GERMAN
UNIFICATION
-Last to achieve
unification in
Europe
- in 1815 was a
group of 39
independent
states
-In 1815 a
German
Confederation
was formed at the
Congress of
Vienna (why?)
-Buffer state against French
expansion
-Had an assembly (diet) in Frankfurt
-Confederation was dominated by
Austria
-Austria was in direct conflict with
Prussia
-Prussia was a German state with
the most dominant economy, so
other states feared them
-Prussia doesn’t want a unified
Germany and neither does Austria
(why?)
-Smaller German states want to see
a united Germany
-fear Austria and Prussia
-Unity brings them strength
-economic conditions prevented
the Germans from uniting until:
1) The Junkers (yun-kers)members of the rising business
class, demanded a share of
political power
- Prussian Junkers created the
ZOLLVEREIN- an economic
union founded in 1834 that
reduces trade barriers between
the German states
(modern day example?)
2) Standardized units and measures
3) The economic union caused Prussia to win political dominance
over Austria
-Prussia is now leader of Germans much like Sardinia was with
Italy
The Rise of Bismarck
-In 1861 William I (right) becomes
king of Prussia (succeeding
Frederick William II)
-opposes liberal ideas
-Supports the military and works to
expand the army
-seeks to take Germany by military
force
-Liberal Germans, however, see no
need for a strong military and want a
democratic Germany
-As a result, liberal deputies in the
Prussian assembly overwhelmingly
defeat new taxes to support army
-frustrated with the Prussian
assembly’s actions, William I appoints
a new prime minister who supports
his views on the military:
OTTO VON BISMARCK (left)
-a Junker
-served in the Prussian assembly
-Ambassador to Russia and France
-A brilliant negotiator/politician
-A supporter of REALPOLITIK (the
right of the nation-state to pursue its
own advantages by any means,
including war and the repudiation of
treaties
-in September of 1862 Bismarck
defied the finance committee
when the Prussian Assembly
refused to collect taxes for the
army- Bismarck collects the taxes
without authorization
-BLOOD and IRON
“Germany does not look to
Prussia’s liberalism, but to her
power….The great questions of
the day are not to be decided by
speeches and majority
resolutions-that was the mistake
of 1848 and 1849-but by blood
and Iron”
-Otto Von Bismarck 1862
Bismarck had 3 major goals
1) Raise $$ for army expansion
2) Reduce Austria’s influence among the German states
3) Unify Germany w/o Austria or Switzerland, but keep them under
Prussian domination
-Went to war three different times to accomplish these goals
War with Denmark
-By inheritance, king of
Denmark ruled the territories
of Schleswig and Holstein
-Schleswig had a German
and Danish population;
Holstein was entirely German
-in 1863 King Christian IX claims Schleswig a Danish providence
and Germans in both territories appeal to the German states for
support
-to prevent Danish annexation, Bismarck persuades Austria to go
in/w Prussia in declaring war against Denmark in 1864
-Prussia/Austria win and divide territories (leading to future strife)
-Prussia gets control of Schleswig
-Austria gets control of Holstein
The Seven Weeks’ War
-Between Austria and Prussia
over the Schleswig and
Holstein territories
-Bismarck prepares for war by
stripping Austria of its
potential allies
1) Gives aid to Russia to help against Polish rebels in 1863
2) Promises France compensation for its neutrality
3) Supports Italy in its claim to the Austrian territory of Venetia
-Gains public support for his actions when Austria sided with the
Duke of Augestenburg, who claimed tithe to Schleswig and
Holstein
-To prevent this alliance Bismarck orders troops into Holstein
-In response to this, Austria asks German
Confederation to take military action
against Prussia for their invasion and
Bismarck declares war with Austria
-War begins June 15, 1866 and, 7 weeks
later, is over- - Prussia wins
-Purpose of the war was to separate
Austria from Germany
-Prussians win so quickly because of the
breach loading rifle (invented in 1841 by
Johann Nikolaus von Dreyse) they had
which enabled them to lie down and
reload
-Austrians still used Muzzle loaders (so
they had to stand up to reload)
Treaty of Prauge
-Ends Seven Weeks’ War
-Bismarck goes easy on
Austria (why?)
-Treaty made Bismarck a
hero amongst the
German Nationalists
What it did:
1) Dissolved German Confederation
2) Gave Holstein to Prussia
3) Created a new organization of Germany w/o Austria (called the
North German Confederation
The North German Confederation
-Established in 1867
-Each state could manage their own affairs
-Foreign policy and defense was put in the hands of the Prussians
-Legislative authority-Federal Council of Representatives-elected
by universal male suffrage
The Franco-Prussian War
-Southern German states
remained outside of the
confederation
-Napoleon III doesn’t want a
unified Germany unless
France receives territory (for
neutrality in 7 weeks’ war)
-Bismarck wants to go to war with France, but has to lure them
into it for public sentiment reasons
-in 1868 a revolution in Spain overthrew their queen and Prince
Leopold (a cousin of William I) was offered the throne
-France fears a Spanish/Prussian alliance, so demands promise
from William that the Spanish throne will never be occupied by
someone with Prussian ties
-William I is vacationing and
meets with the French
ambassador, to which he
refuses the offer
-William writes a telegram to
Bismarck detailing the
meeting with French
ambassador
-Bismarck alters the telegram to make it seem as if William I was
insulting the French and leaks it to the press
-French take exception to the insult and Napoleon III declares war
on Prussia
-Fighting begins on July 19, 1870
-Southern Germany allies with Prussia
-Prussia wins within a few weeks
Bismarck and the Church
-Kulturkampf (culture war
between church and state)
-Catholics organized politically
to counter prominent
Protestants
- Bismarck said Catholics were
“Anti-Nation”
- 1870 Rome- Papal Infallibilitydoctrine in which the pope,
when speaking on matters of
faith and morals, is free from
error
-Bismarck says the Jesuits were
working to destroy the empire
-expels Jesuits in 1872
-Passed many laws to destroy the
Catholic influence in Germany
(Catholic bishops lost power, Catholic
weddings not valid unless performed
by a Protestant or secular official)
-Pope Pius IX declared laws invalid
and broke diplomatic ties with
Germany
- Bismarck’s repressive measures
strengthened the Catholic cause
-1877 The Center Party
(Catholic Party) gained more
seats
-The Junkers (conservatives)
begin to oppose Bismarck
-Socialism on the rise in
Germany, Bismarck needs to
make peace with the Catholics
-1878 Pope Pius IX dies and new pope makes peace with
Germany
-1881-Most of laws repealed (Kulturkampf over)
Socialism in Germany
-Poor wages and long days make
socialism attractive to Germans
- Ferdinand LaSalle-1863 founds
Universal German Workingman’s
Association
- he was a disciple of Marx
- Differed in that he didn’t teach
revolution
-Lectured on the plight of workers
-1864 killed in a duel
-1875 his workers party grew into the Social Democratic Party-a
major political force
Bismarck and Socialism
-Socialism was a threat to the
empire
-1878 Bismarck banned all
Socialist gatherings and
publications
-Changes policies to show that
Gov’t has the answers, not socialism, by passing several laws
-sickness insurance law- compensation for missing work
-1889-Old Age Insurance Law- retirement
-Socialism party still popular- Win 35 seats in 1890 elections
- Anti-socialist laws are removed
The Fall of Bismarck
-In 1888 William I dies, eventually
having William II take over
-William II is 29, Conservative,
Favored militarism, and the absolute
authority of the Emperor
-Leads to conflict with Bismarck
-Bismarck liked to get his way through
threatening to resign with William I
-In 1890 he offered his resignation as a
bluff and the Kaiser accepted it