France, the "fifth" power, is represented by its foreign minister, Talleyrand, as well as the Minister Plenipotentiary the Duke of Dalberg.

Talleyrand had already negotiated the Treaty of Paris (1814) for Louis XVIII of France; the king, however, distrusts him and is also secretly negotiating with Metternich, by mail.

Virtually every state in Europe has a delegation in Vienna—more than two hundred states and princely houses are represented at the Congress.

In addition, there are representatives of cities, corporations, religious organizations (for instance, abbeys) and special interest groups—e.g., a delegation representing German publishers, demanding a copyright law and freedom of the press.

The Congress is noted for its lavish entertainment: according to a famous joke it does not move, but dances.

Spain, Portugal, and Sweden had not been part of the Chaumont agreement, but had joined the Treaty of Paris.

Other prominent states include Denmark, The Netherlands, Switzerland, the Papal States, the Republic of Genoa, Bavaria, Württemberg, Mecklenburg-Schwerin, and Hanover, at this time in a personal union with the British crown (King George III had refused to recognize the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806 and had maintained a separate diplomatic staff as Elector of Hanover to conduct the affairs of the family estate, the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg, until the results of the Congress were concluded, establishing the Kingdom of Hanover.)