Was Nationalism the most Important cause of German Unification? Discuss

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Alex Mansfield 13/2

Was Nationalism the most Important cause of German Unification? Discuss

Many historians have disputed how important Nationalism was in the unification of Germany. Some believe that nationalism was the most important cause, others believe that it was Prussia’s economic power that caused eventual unification. However, other historians believe that it was a combination of factors that led to the unification of Germany in 1871.

Nationalism was part of the cause for German unification. In 1848 revolutions that swept through Europe established the first elected parliament, the Vorparliament although this did discuss the possibility of unity through the declaration of Heidelberg it should not be overemphasised. Indeed, it was the diverging ideologies of Nationalists that contributed to the collapse of the Vorparliament in late 1848. Hence nationalism was not the most important cause of German Unification.

The principal goal of all German Nationalists was to unite “Germany”. However there were two contrasting parties, Kleindeutschland and Grossdeutschland. The Nationalverein, those who supported Kleindeutschland, wanted to exclude Austria from Germany, only those states in the old confederation would be included. The new “Germany” would be lead by Prussia the dominant economy in the Confederation. Supporters of Grossdeutschland wanted to include all German speaking people including not just Austria, but also parts of the Empire that spoke German, though this was clearly idealistic. The divisions ensured Nationalist movements would not be cohesive enough to achieve unification.

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Although, to say that Nationalism played no part in the unification of Germany would be wrong.  In 1815 Nationalism seemed to be appealing to greater numbers of Germans than before, increasing the chance of unification. This was due to the growing support of the German press leading to poems such as “Deutschland uber Alles”. Hence giving all “Germans” a common identity increasing nationalistic feeling. Another possibility was the threat of French invasion of the Rhineland in 1840. Although this did not occur it created a massive increase in nationalist sentiment to resist the “old enemy”

Another event that ...

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