It appeared that Unification was arguably inevitable but can Bismarck claim the credit for something that was already happening? Bismarck claimed in his memoirs that he was responsible for the unification of Germany after he was forced to resign by Kaiser William in 1890.
Bismarck had a proven record as a monarchist and had little time for liberals and excessive parliamentary ideas. In 1861, Liberals in the Prussian Diet rejected budget proposals to raise taxes for army reforms. The King considered abdication, but was persuaded by Von Roon to make Bismarck Minister-President. When Bismarck was offered the post by the king he stated,
“I will rather perish with the king than forsake your majesty in the contest with parliamentary government”
Bismarck tried to persuade the parliament to agree to the budget even through threats. When this was of no help either he announced that in view of the constitutional crisis owing to parliament inability to act the king would have to rule by himself. This measure was a result of a gap in the Prussian constitution. This allowed the Prussian Government to rule without parliament, and collect the taxes to use at their desire. In this crisis Bismarck had acted both ruthlessly and illegally. As they were now collecting the taxes, the army reforms were carried out, in spite of protests. The King was grateful to Bismarck for his help and almost always afterward, accepted his advice. Bismarck did appear to inherit a situation in which unification was slowly moving already but he did make this happen quicker. His skilful use of politics and diplomacy were vital, such as was seen at Biarritz when he was underestimated by Napoleon and ended up playing Napoleon for a fool. Bismarck was very skilled at intrigue and diplomacy and regularly used diplomacy to isolate and neutralise likely victims as he went. He wanted to rid the German states of Austrian domination. He was Prussia’s representative at the Frankfurt Diet of the German Confederation between the years of 1851 to 1859, during which he regularly openly challenged Austria’s leadership. He ensued a method of “Realpolitik” doing what was possible and not necessarily desirable was very effective. The Schleswig Holstein is a good example of Bismarck’s methods but it is fantastically complex and the details are not relevant to this essay.
Bismarck also successfully led Prussia to victory in 3 wars in 7 years, an outstanding achievement that suggests that he should be granted a decent amount of credit for the eventual unification of Germany. The way in which he isolated and neutralised countries as it suited him shows how skilled he was. His skilful diplomacy and strength of character were crucial. He increased tension deliberately between the Prussians and the Austrians, and still managed to make Austria appear as the aggressor. When an international conference was suggested to try and eradicate the problem Austria refused, whilst Bismarck was seen to the public eye as the one who longed for peace. When the Austrians retaliated by breaking off al negotiations of Schleswig Holstein, Bismarck ho saw this as a violation of the Convention Of Gastein invaded Holstein. Austria proposed to the bund that Prussia by invading Holstein had violated the rules of the confederation and should be excluded from the bund. This caused Bismarck to withdraw Prussia form the bund. Prussia invited the other German states to join the “Kleindeutsch” federation. Ultimatums were sent Hanover, Saxony and Hesse demanding that they side with Prussia. When the refused, Prussian troops invaded. The Austro-Prussian war had begun. It appeared that Bismarck used the Schleswig-Holstein crisis to draw the Austrians into a trap, but it is undoubted that he very quickly set his sights on Austria and very quickly set his sights on ways to isolate her from the other European countries.
As soon as the war was won for Prussia, Bismarck started working for peace. He had achieved his war aim of pushing Austria out of Germany. He also thought of Austria as a possible ally in the future and was not looking for her as a long-term enemy. Bismarck therefore against the wishes of the king and Prussian generals insisted that Austria should not be badly treated.
“We had to avoid wounding Austria too severely”
The war ended Austrian domination of the German states. A new federal state called North German Confederation was set up under Prussian domination. The 21 member states, each of which kept it’s own head of state, had control of it’s own internal affairs. Prussia and Bismarck dominated the north German confederation in particular. He was such a national hero that no one would dare to challenge his position. Prussia took no land from Austria but received land from the German states that had supported Austria. Bismarck’s success ensured him liberal support despite his illegal raising of taxes.
The French felt threatened by the Prussian’s and so to safeguard French interests the French ambassador was sent to Prussia to suggest that France should be allowed some land perhaps on the Rhine to compensate for the large expansions made by Prussia in line with the promises made by Bismarck at Biarritz. The Prussians declined this request denying that and promises of land had ever been made. Bismarck had fooled Napoleon with false promises of land and had come out on top once again.
Bismarck saw a victorious war against France as being essential to bringing about the complete unification of Germany under Prussian control.
“ I did not doubt that a Franco German war must take place before the construction of a unified Germany could be realised”
“ I think it is probable that German unification could be promoted by violent ideas…that German unification is at present an unripe fruit seems to be only too obvious”.
In 1869 the Spanish government was looking for a constitutional monarch. Prince Leopold of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen was a relative of the Prussian Hohenzollen family and he was a Roman catholic. King William of Prussia argued against this as it was seen as a threat to the French, which was exactly what Bismarck was hoping for. In 1820 Bismarck sent 3 bribes of £50,000 to representatives to make them persuade the Spanish parliament invite Leopold to be their King, it was successful. This was not kept secret for long and the information soon leaked out to the French. Bismarck was agile. The plan to instate Hollenzo over Madrid backfired and he was forced to back down. Bismarck once again used his genius, undeterred by this failure in his plan he used the Elms telegram to provoke the French into declaring war upon Germany, once again making France appear as the aggressor. Bismarck used propaganda to rouse German nationalists against France.
The German armies were quickly and efficiently organised, unlike the French. Within eighteen days of the mobilisation order, the German’s were able to get 350,000 to the battlefront, whereas the French could only muster 200,000.
The French were outnumbered, outclassed and skilfully defeated at Sedan. The Prussians then laid siege to Paris, which surrendered in January 1871. Bismarck’s use of diplomacy had provoked France into declaring war, and giving Prussia the chance of revenge against the French after they so easily defeated the German states.
The Prussian success in the 3 wars was essential in the unification of Germany. Bismarck skilful diplomacy and strength of character were crucial in all of the 3 circumstances. The army reforms triggered by Bismarck begun the development of the iron and coal industries in the Rhineland and the steel industry. The introduction of railways and the telegram helped transporting troops and supplies quicker giving them the upper hand in any conflict, with the ability to communicate quickly over large distances. This also brought Germany closer. The Prussian army was also a powerful fighting machine equipped with the best weapons such as the needle gun, which gave them the upper hand in combat due to its accuracy and quicker loading time. The enemy was of no match for the heavy Krupps artillery. This encouraged new military thinking by Von Roon and Von Moltke.
Despite the war there was till a considerable number of people who did not favour the prospect of unification. Bismarck used his skilful politics once again by more or less telling the Kings and Dukes of the German states to either unify or be overthrown. Bismarck skilful as ever persuaded King Ludwig of Bavaria to offer William the throne, which allowed William to retain the title of King of Prussia. The suggested title for his new position was German emperor or Kaiser.
Biarritz was one of the key points in unifying Germany, for if France had intervened in the war between Germany and Austria the Prussia would have had faced almost certain defeat. Biarritz was crucial later when the French asked for territory on the Rhine in line with the promises made by Bismarck at Biarritz, which was of course refused by Bismarck and the Prussians who denied all knowledge that any such promises granting France territorial compensation had ever been made. Bismarck’s skilful ways had granted him the time he needed to defeat Austria and build up the strength to face a deeply concerned France.
It is however argued by many that Bismarck inherited a movement that was well underway due to strong nationalistic feelings, a common identity between the Germans and the universal want to once again become a superpower, able to compete both economically and militaristically with the other great powers as the nationalists had celebrated for their glorious past. The military successes in the 3 wars cannot however be wholly credited to Bismarck, and neither can the Zollverein, the customs union created in 1818 which brought both the northern and southern states closer together, Bismarck had no effect or influence upon. The removal of Austria and France however was a huge achievement in the pursuit of centralisation for nothing would have been possible if they were able to intervene in Bismarck’s plan. People cannot be forced to unify, they must want it.
Bismarck was both a German nationalist and a Prussian expansionist. He wanted a unified Germany as he too could see the benefits both economically and militaristically. There are also however factors that argue that unification of Germany was happening anyway. The Germans also shared a common identity in the form of language, race, heritage and culture. The works of 18th and 19th century thinkers such as Ernst Andt and Friedrich John promoted the idea of one nation based on a common culture and language. The Romantic Movement also stirred up feelings of nationalism and the want for a unified Germany. Poets such as Goethe and musicians such as Beethoven made the educated Germans aware of a shared identity.
Economic developments also indicated that unification was inevitable. The great changes in the 19th Century encouraged a nationalistic feeling. The developments made in industry led to the growth of a wealthy middle class who resented increased taxation, restrictions on trade through custom duties and it’s exclusion from political power making them press for political reform. The growth of the population, industrialisation and urbanisation created a large, discontented urban working class. The appalling working and living conditions led to social unrest and demands for political reform.
Bismarck however also wanted to see Prussia as the leading state of a unified Germany, which was how many Germans saw it anyway due to Prussia’s influence on the Zollverein and because Prussia had ended the Austrian domination of the German states.
“ Bismarck’s task of unifying Germany was made easier by circumstances. If he played his hand with great skill it was a good one in the first place”.
The growth of nationalism and economic unification in the German sates from the early 19th Century, made unification inevitable. Bismarck hastened the process and helped unification occur sooner rather than later. Many people argued that Bismarck did not make Germany but Germany made Bismarck and that he was able to build upon economic conditions and claim the credit. Claim the credit for a unification that given time would have occurred naturally and that “coal and iron” not “blood and iron” was the real Prussian power base. Bismarck used massive skill and ruthlessness to unify Germany but he did exaggerate his own role in the unification of Germany for not only was he not solely responsible for the unification of Germany but it was going to happen sooner or later. So in conclusion Bismarck can claim the credit for unification to an extent but he acted as a catalyst to speed up the unification of Germany, which was already happening.
