HI136 The History of Germany Lecture 2

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HI136 The History of GermanyLecture 2

• Bismarcks Germany

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Proclamation of German Unification (1888) by
Anton von Werner note the position of Bismarck
in the composition.
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Otto von Bismarck (1815-98)

• Born in Schönhausen in Brandenburg, the son of a
  Pomeranian Junker.
• Educated at Göttingen University.
• 1836 Entered the Prussian civil service.
• 1839 Retired from the civil service to manage
  the family estates.
• 1849 Elected as an ultra-conservative member of
  the Prussian Landtag.
• 1851 Joined the Prussian diplomatic corps,
  serving as Prussian representative to the Federal
  Diet and then ambassador to Russia and France.
• 1862 Appointed Prussian Minister-President.
• 1867 Became Chancellor of the North German
  Confederation.
• 1871-90 Chancellor of the German Empire.

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• The mad Junker?
• Junker a corruption of Junger Herr (Young Sir)
  the title given to Prussian landowners east of
  the River Elbe. Closely associated with
  Conservative politics in the 19th century.
• The White Revolutionary?
• Realpolitik a system of politics or principles
  based on practical rather than moral or
  ideological considerations. (OED).
• German Nationalist or Prussian Patriot?
• The Bismarck Myth

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The architects of German Unification Bismarck
(left) with General Albrecht von Roon (centre)
and Field Marshal Helmuth von Moltke (right).
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Helmuth von Moltke (1800-91)

• Born in Mecklenburg, but moved to Denmark as a
  small child.
• Educated in Royal Cadet Corps in Copenhagen.
• 1822 Commissioned in the Prussian army.
• Military career interrupted by ill health he
  studied modern languages and wrote poetry.
• 1832 Appointed to the Prussian General Staff.
• 1832-36 Advisor to the Turkish Army.
• 1855 Appointed aide-de-camp to the Prussian
  Crown Prince.
• 1858 Appointed chief of the General Staff

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The Wars of Unification, 1864-71

• The German-Danish War (1864)
• The Seven Weeks (Austro-Prussian) War (1866)

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The Battle of Königgrätz (Sadowa), 3 July 1866
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The Wars of Unification, 1864-71

• The German-Danish War (1864)
• The Seven Weeks (Austro-Prussian) War (1866)
• The Franco-Prussian War (1870-71)
• Traditional antipathy between France German
  states going back to the 17th century
• The Luxemburg Crisis (1866-67)
• The Hohenzollern Candidature Crisis (1870)
• The Ems Telegram
• War!

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The Battle of Mars-la-Tour (16 August 1870)
Napoleon III and Bismarck after the Battle of
Sedan (1 September 1870)
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Results of the Franco-Prussian War

• War with France created an huge upsurge in German
  national feeling popular pressure in the South
  German states to transform the wartime alliance
  into a permanent union.
• However
• The rulers of the South German states wanted a
  much looser federation than Bismarck proposed,
  giving them more control over their own affairs
• Wilhelm I was reluctant to accept a German
  title which he felt would lessen the dignity of
  his position as King of Prussia
• He insisted that he would only accept the Crown
  of Germany if it were offered by his fellow
  German sovereigns, not the German people
• Bismarck threatened to call on the German people
  to remove those rulers who opposed a united
  Germany.
• Symbolic concessions to South German states
  Bavaria retained a separate postal service and
  peacetime control of its own army.
• Bismarck paid a huge bribe to King Ludwig II of
  Bavaria in order to get him to sign a letter
  offering the German crown to Wilhelm.
• Germany annexed the territories of Alsace and
  Lorraine from France.

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(No Transcript)
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The Constitution of the German Empire, 1871

• Based on the Constitution of the North German
  Confederation.
• Germany was to be a federal state.
• Power was divided between the central government
  and the governments of the 25 states.
• The states preserved their own constitutions,
  rulers, parliaments and administrative systems
  with powers over direct taxation, education,
  public health etc.
• As German Emperor, the King of Prussia was head
  of state, head of the civil service and Supreme
  Warlord (Commander-in-Chief) of the armed
  forces.
• A bi-cameral parliament made up of the Bundesrat
  (Federal Council) and the Reichstag (National
  Parliament).
• Prussia dominated the institutions of the new
  Empire, with the most seats in both houses of
  parliament, shared institutions and a dominant
  position in military and administrative circles.

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The Constitution of the German Empire, 1871

• The Chancellor (Reichskanzler)
• The highest official in the Reich
• Also Minister-President of Prussia
• Responsible to the Emperor, not parliament
• Chairman of the Bundesrat
• Appointed government ministers
• Could ignore resolutions passed by the Reichstag

• The Emperor (Kaiser)
• Always the King of Prussia
• Could appoint/dismiss the Chancellor
• Could dissolve the Reichstag
• Could make treaties/declare war
• Commander-in-Chief of the army
• Had to approve all federal laws
• Possessed the right to interpret the constitution

Reich Government
Federal Centralised government with specific
Responsibilities for the Reich as a
whole (foreign policy, defence, customs etc.)
State Regional government with responsibilities Fo
r individual states (education, direct Taxation,
health, local justice etc.)

• Bundesrat (upper house)
• The Federal Council
• Made up of 58 members nominated by states
• Not directly elected
• Consent required in passing new laws
• 14 votes needed to veto legislation
• Prussia had 17 of the 58 seats
• Bavaria had 6, the other states had 1 each

• Reichstag (lower house)
• The National parliament
• Elected by all males over 25
• Limited powers to initiate new legislation
• Government ministers could not be members
• Members were not paid
• Could approve or reject the federal budget
• Elections normally held every 5 years

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The continued existence within the Reich of an
enlarged Prussian state with a virtual monopoly
of military power, with a position in the
Bundesrat superior to that of the other states,
and with a parliamentary system of its own, based
on a form of suffrage which was not democratic
but favoured the propertied classes, was the best
possible assurance against any possibility of the
federal government succumbing to the forces of
liberalism and democracy. In Bismarcks
Constitutional system, the federal government was
given enough influence . . . to keep the
particularism of the south within safe bounds,
while Prussia was allowed to retain significant
power to protect the aristocratic-monarchical
system by discouraging dangerous experiments on
the part of the federal government. G. A.
Craig, Germany 1866-1945 (Oxford OUP)
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Germanys Problem of Identity

• Even after unification large numbers of Germans
  had difficulty in identifying with the new state
• Liberals increasingly conscious that Bismarcks
  Empire was not the united Germany they had
  desired for so long.
• Conservatives who remained un-reconciled to the
  idea of a united Germany.
• Organized Labour who felt that unification had
  done little to improve their lot and that the
  system had been deliberately designed to prevent
  them achieving their goals.
• National Symbols
• No national flag until 1896
• No national anthem until 1922 (!)
• Disagreement over national holidays

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The Niederwald Germania Monument (1885)
The Teutoburger Wald Monument (1875)
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Statue of Bismarck in the Großer Stern in Berlin
(1901)
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The Kulturkampf

• 1870 The doctrine of Papal Infallibility
  published.
• 1872 Catholic schools brought under state
  control. The Jesuit Order banned from Germany.
• 1873 The May Laws
• Only candidates for ordination who had been
  trained in Germany and passed a state approved
  examination could become priests.
• All religious appointments had to be approved by
  the state.
• 1874 Civil marriage introduced.
• 1875 All religious orders except nursing orders
  banned.
• 1878-80 End of the Kulturkampf Dr Falk
  dismissed and some of the anti-Catholic laws
  repealed.

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The Development of the SPD

• 1869 August Bebel and Wilhelm Liebknecht form
  the Marxist Social Democratic Workers Party.
• 1875 This merges with Ferdinand Lassales
  General German Workers Association to form the
  Social Democratic Party of Germany
  (Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, SPD) at
  a Unity Conference in Gotha.
• The partys Gotha Programme called for
• universal, direct, equal suffrage, with secret
  ballot and obligatory voting for all citizens
  over 20 years of age
• freedom of press, association and assembly
• the abolition of child female labour
• a shorter working week
• free, universal primary education
• While the SPD was an avowedly Marxist party,
  pledged to overthrow the established bourgeois
  order, they were committed to doing so through
  legal means.

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Anti-Socialist Legislation

• Bismarck was fundamentally opposed to Socialism
  they represented a threat to the very fabric of
  the society he sought to preserve.
• 1876 Legislation banning the publication of
  Socialist propaganda defeated in the Reichstag.
• 1878 Two failed assassination attempts on
  Wilhelm I provide an opportunity to introduce
  anti-Socialist legislation.
• Oct 1878 The Anti-Socialist Law passed by the
  Reichstag. This
• Banned socialist organizations (including trade
  unions)
• Gave the police powers to break up socialist
  meetings
• Outlawed the publication and distribution of
  socialist literature

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State Socialism

• 1883 Sickness Insurance Act
• Provided medical treatment and up to 13 weeks
  sick pay for 3 million low-paid workers.
• 1884 Accident Insurance Act
• Provided protection for workers permanently
  disabled or sick for more than 13 weeks.
• 1889 Old Age Disability Act
• Provided old age and disability pensions for
  people over 70 and those permanently disabled.

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1888 The Year of Three Emperors
Wilhelm I (1861-88)
Friedrich III (1888) Wilhelm II
(1888-1918)
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• I shall let the old man shuffle on for six
  months . . . then I shall rule myself.
• Wilhelm II

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Dropping the Pilot

• Bismarck and Wilhelm disagreed over the need to
  retain close links with Russia.
• They clashed over social policy and the
  Anti-Socialist Law.
• In March 1890 Bismarck and Wilhelm quarrelled
  over ministers access to the monarch.
• Wilhelm gave Bismarck an ultimatum resign or be
  dismissed. The next day Bismarck resigned.

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Assessment

• Bismarcks admirers
• He maintained peace between 1871 and 1890
• His policies helped Germanys economic
  development
• He pioneered state socialism
• In the 1870s he worked closely with the National
  Liberals and implemented many liberal policies
• He was not a dictator his powers were limited
  and he worked with the parties in the Reichstag
• His long tenure in power points to his political
  skill

• Bismarcks Critics
• He was responsible for France remaining isolated
  and embittered
• His influence has been exaggerated
• Negative integration using attacks on
  minorities to whip up patriotism
• The Kulturkampf was a major miscalculation
• His anti-socialist policies were unsuccessful
• He was unable to delegate and jealous of
  perceived rivals
• A flawed legacy Bismarcks rule led to
  Wilhemine Nazi Germany