Lesson Objectives
By the end of this lesson you will be able to:
• Describe how Germany became an industrial giant.
• Explain why Bismarck was called the iron Chancellor
• List the policies of Kaiser William II

By January of 1871, the Prussian/German forces had defeated the
French in the Franco-Prussian War. It was now clear that French domination of Europe had ended. Germany was now the dominant power in Europe.
Germany Becomes an Industrial Giant
Germany eventually became the industrial giant of the European continent. By the late 1800s, German chemical & electrical industries were setting the standard worldwide. Among the
European powers, German shipping was second only the Britain’s.
Making Economic Progress
Germany like Great Britain possessed several of the factors that made industrialization possible.
*Large amounts of iron and coal
*Disciplined and educated workforce
*Rapidly growing population: from 41 million in 1871 to 67 million by 1914

During the 1850s and 1860s, Germans had founded large companies and built many railroads.
*The house of Krupp became an enormous industrial complex that produced steel and weapons for a world market.
*Business tycoon August Thyssen built a small steel factory of 70 workers in 1871 into a giant empire with 50,000 employees by
1914.
*German inventor Carl Zeiss built a company that became known for its telescopes, microscopes, and other optical equipment.

Promoting Scientific and Economic Development
German industrialists were the first to see the value of applied science in developing new products such as synthetic chemicals
(man made chemicals or products like plastic).
The German government also promoted economic unity.
*Government issued a single currency for Germany.
*Government re-organized the banking system
*Government coordinated railroad built by the various German states.

The Iron Chancellor
As chancellor of the new German empire, Bismarck pursued several foreign-policy goals:
1. He wanted to keep France weak and isolated.
2. He wanted to built a strong relationship with Russia and
Austria.
3. Temporarily avoided naval conflicts with Great Britain.
In Germany, Bismarck wanted to erase local loyalties and crush anyone who went against Germany.
He specifically targeted two groups:
1. The Catholic Church
2. The Socialists (group that called for a democratic government with laws to improve conditions for the working class).

Bismarck’s Campaign against the Church
After unification, Catholics made up about 33% of the German population. Bismarck was Lutheran and did not trust the
Catholics. He felt that Catholics were more loyal to the pope then they were to Germany.
Bismarck launched the Kulturkampf, which means “the battle for civilization” which lasted form 1871 to 1878. His goal was to make
Catholics put loyalty to the state above allegiance to the Church.
Kulturkampf
*Bismarck passed laws that gave the state the right to supervise
Catholic education and approve the appointments of priests. The state also made it mandatory for couples to be married by the state instead of the Church.
Bismarck’s Plan Backfires
The faithful Catholics rallied behind the Church and the Catholic
Church gained power. Bismarck realized that he was fighting a losing battle and quickly worked to make peace with the Catholic

Bismarck’s Campaign against the Socialists
Bismarck also saw a threat in the growing power of socialism.
Socialism called for a democratic government, or a government run by the people. Socialists also called for laws to improve conditions for the working class. Bismarck worried that socialists would undermine the loyalty of German workers and turn them toward revolution. In order to stop the spread of socialism,
Bismarck had laws passed that dissolved socialists groups, shut down socialists newspapers, and banned socialist meetings.
Bismarck’s Plan Backfired
The working class in Germany unified in support of the socialist movement. Bismarck changed his plan and set out to win back the support of the working class by supporting laws to protect the rights of workers. By the 1890s, German workers were given health and accident insurance as well as old-age insurance to provide retirement benefits. These new benefits were the first of their kind in all of Europe. Over time, Germany & other European nations would build on these laws.

Kaiser William II
In 1888, Willaim II succeeded his grandfather as Kaiser. The new emperor was very confident in his abilities & wished to put his own stamp on Germany. IN 1890, he shocked Europe by asking
Bismarck to resign. William II felt that Germany only had room for one strong leader and that leader was himself.
William II spend large amounts of money on the German military making it the most powerful army of Europe. He also launched a campaign to expand the German navy and win an overseas empire to rival those of Britain and France.
Eventually these policies would increase tension leading up to
WWI.