To what extent was Bismarck responsible for German unification?

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To what extent was Bismarck responsible for German unification?

To a certain extent I believe that Bismarck was responsible for German unification.  Bismarck possessed the temerity to break with the traditions of Prussian diplomacy and to choose an anti-Austrian policy as the means of dividing the parliamentary opposition that was threatening to paralyse the Prussian Government when he came to power in September 1862

There are some respectable arguments against my view.  All of these arguments intertwine to make up the counter-argument that ‘inevitability’ was the main contributor to the unification of the German states, that Bismarck simply acted as a catalyst to this process.

It can be argued that Germany would have been grasped by the powerful gravitational pull of nationalism sweeping through Europe whether Bismarck had existed or not.  When Otto von Bismarck was recalled from Paris to become Minister-President of Prussia in 1862, German nationalism was already more than 40 years old. First apparent in the opposition to Napoleon’s occupation of the German states, national feeling grew into a movement after 1815 as the emotional appeal of nationalism had been experienced by increasing numbers of Germans due to the defeat of France, resulting in the Vienna Settlement.

These nationalist feelings were encouraged by a growth of interest in German literature and music and by increased economic cooperation between the north German states through the creation of the customs unions, which resulted in the creation in 1834 of the Zollverein customs union, brought about the beginnings of the unity of the German states, which at its height covered 18 states with 23 million people.  The abolition of all internal customs barriers between these states allowed trade to flourish and encouraged industrialisation, beginning their industrial revolutions.  These benefits made it clear to the German people that unification of the states was the way forward to economic prosperity (and national security).  The zZollverein was the single development which led to the first relevant emergences of ‘German’ nationalistic feeling; therefore it can be argued that it was the decisive element in the cycle of German unification.  I back up this argument with reference to the revolutions of 1848.  By 1848 enough nationalistic feelings were present in Germany for the February revolution in Paris to spread to the German states (and also Italy, Austria and Hungary) and bring about the creation of the Vorparlament and the Frankfurt Parliament whose main purpose was for German unification.  All this was achieved without Bismarck (who had just begun his political career in the Prussian United Diet).

One must examine how much of the foundation of the German Empire can be attributed to people other than Bismarck. Indeed, one must ask, would the numerous German states have been in a situation in 1871, fit for unification, if it were not for the actions of Napoléon at the beginning of the 19th century? The legacy of the Napoléonic Wars, in which the great number of various states (over three hundred) was reduced to a mere thirty-nine, must surely have been the ignition for the road to unification, for indeed; much unification had already taken place through the merger of various states into the thirty-nine.

        

        Bismarck seeked to dominate Germany under Prussian leadership while completely isolating Austria from affairs.  Historians are divided in opinion as to whether this was part of a long-term plan to unify Germany, but most support the idea that he was definitely trying to unify the German states in the late 1860s when it was apparent that unification was a very realistic possibility.  Whether in the early 1860s Bismarck was simply acting to ensure Prussian domination, or whether he wished to create a unified Germany, he still wished to develop long-term relationships with the other German states and this had unifying effects.  While it is probably wrong to believe he came to power in 1862 with a master plan for German unification, it is equally wrong to imagine that he had no long-term objectives and fumbled his way through events simply by good luck.  He manipulated situations even if he did not always create them.  He had clear aims but the exact means of achieving them were left to short-term decisions based on the situation at the time.  Therefore it is extremely difficult to determine the extent to which Bismark was responsible for German unification.

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Bismarck’s actions during the Danish war of 1864 were intentionally manufactured to manoeuvre Austria into open confrontation with Prussia as a way of settling the problem of leadership in Germany.  Bismarck knew he could pick a quarrel with Austria over Holstein any time he wanted.  This put him in the position of being able to incite war between Prussia and Austria when he felt the Prussian army was strong enough, in order to swing the balance of power in Germany to Prussia’s side.

After signing his secret treaty with Italy, Bismarck pushed the matter of Holstein and his proposals for ...

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