Why was Germany unified under Prussia and not Austria?
I. Introduction
A. Prussia was the foremost country in the unification of Germany
B. Although it may have not been the intent of Prussia to unify Germany, it is certain that Prussia had the greatest amount of influence in German politics
C. Austria was not in a political, economic, or social state to take on such significant role
D. Prussia’s advantages:
a. Almost exclusive German population
b. Leadership more acceptable to German liberals
c. Economic strength, including Zollverein
d. Otto von Bismarck and diplomacy
e. Military, as seen later
E. Simply put, Prussia was in a much better position than Austria
II. Economic strength
A. In 1818, Prussia took the lead by
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Made an agreement with Napoleon III for France’s neutrality in exchange for France’s acquisition of territory in Rhineland or Belgium
C. Allied with Italy on April 8, 1866– support only if war broke out in three months
D. Used pretext that Austria had violated Gastein by sending troops into Holstein to start war
E. Prussia’s army was superior to that of Austria in training and equipment, including breech-loading needle gun, military railroads, and army general staff:
a. Highly trained experts who planned war away from frontline with steady stream of information
b. General Helmuth von Moltke used strategies and new technologies such as telegraph to defeat Austria
F. In just over two weeks, Prussia secured complete victory over Austria
G. August 23, 1866– Peace of Prague:
a. Austria deprived of all influence among German states
b. North German Confederation created under Prussian leadership
c. End of Austrian hopes for Germany
b. One of Bismarck’s highest priorities was building up the Prussian military.
c. Bismarck also sought to isolate Austria diplomatically.
i. This required Prussia to secure good relations with Russia. ii. Bismarck also needed to keep Austria out of the Zollverein.
1. Bismarck, more than anyone, through the Zollverein, kept Austria out by keeping tariffs low.
2. A key strategy Bismarck used was to isolate Austria thereby allowing the Hohenzollern Prussians to establish domination
It was Germany's goal gain strategic position that enemy forces may gain to use against them, such as Austria. Bismarck was also contemplating another war to banish the French threat once and for all. Germany's interest played a key roll in pushing Austria-Hungary to disaster. The Emperor's League that was formed, which consisted of Germany, Austria, and Italy, did one major thing; it brought Austria and Germany closer together.
Germany started out as a divided nation fighting for dominance in Europe. Otto Von Bismarck was able to take this struggling complexity and unify it. During this process Bismarck turned the small country of Prussia into a powerhouse, growing the population from 11 to 18 million. Bismarck sprung from a landlord class and moved his way up the political ladder as realpolitik, realistic Politician. He was a man of simple ideals; he stressed duty, service, order, and the fear of God. These ideals along with manipulative tactics are what lead Bismarck on his journey of the unification of Germany, proving that without Bismarck’s diplomatic efforts between 1871 and 1890 Europe would not be the stabilized continent it is today.
At the Convention of Gastein, Austria took over a German state. This bad feeling for Austria made Prussia more popular. Bismarck then isolated Austria by persuading Russia, France and Italy to remain neutral towards her. Prussia then defeated Austria in a war. Afterwards, the Prussian king and generals wanted to finish Austria off, however, Bismarck showed strength and wouldn't let them. Instead he made peace with Austria to ensure her future support. Bismarck stated: "We shall need Austria's strength ourselves". A good example of opportunism is when Bismarck goaded France into declaring war by editing the EMS telegram. Bismarck edited the telegram to make it seem as if Prussia had insulted France. This angered Napoleon and he declared war. This made France seem like the aggressor, which ensured the neutrality of the other powers. Bismarck described it as: "a red rag to a Gallic bull". All of these points show that Bismarck undoubtedly played an important role in unifying Germany.
Prussia had become the most powerful state in Europe. “Most German’s were enormously proud, enormously relieved. And they
to deal with the French and Russian forces , staunch allies, in order to avoid a war on
Germany became a unified country in 1871 under the leadership of Otto Von Bismarck. The separate states up until this time were independent, Prussia being the strongest and most influential, followed by Austria. There are several contributing factors to the unification of Germany, the most influential of which being the leadership of Otto Von Bismarck. The three wars that Prussia fought with Denmark, Austria and France also played significant roles in the unification of the German states. Another factor to consider is the increase in support of nationalism around Western Europe at the time, and the changes in German society. Through an evaluation of these factors and relevant sources one can
C) issued a statement accepting blame for the policies that had led to World War I.
a. They attempted to invade and conquer twice (but failed both times). Because of their
If the Allies delayed accepting the offer of President Wilson, and if, later on, the course of the war was so unfavourable to them that the intervention of the United States would not be effective, the United States would probably disinterest themselves in Europe and look to their own protection in their own way.
While the religious division of the Prussia Protestant and that of the dominating Austria Catholics was an important factor, the opposition from Austria and the rulers were more important. Nationalism became this progressively intensifying cycle that eventually climaxes into war. Many began to put aside the idealistic ideas of society and began to embrace the realities of society as competitive and combative. Under the calculated guidance of Otto von Bismarck, Germany would finally be on the promising path of unification.
Bismarck main objective was to bring together the German states and to form a powerful great German
Germany's industrial emphasis can be seen as heightening in this period as a result of their unification; now they had the means of exploiting materials as well as manufacturing it. Part of the reason that during this period, Germany was not seen as an aggressor is due to its Chancellor, Bismarck, who was conscious of the importance of pursuing a peaceful foreign policy and abstained form excessive Imperialism. Berlin, in 1894-95, was the centre for the diplomatic partition of Africa, with Bismarck heading up the talks between the powers. Germany's approach to other countries, and its foreign policy underwent a dramatic change in 1890, when Bismarck was dismissed from office and Caprivi was instated to the position. In
Leading into the Fall of 1914, tactics on both sides of the line involved the rapid mobilization, maneuver and envelopment of the opposing side.10 Pre-1914 doctrine took little into account the effects of emerging new technology and their impact on both defensive and offensive operations. This disconnect between doctrine and technology contributed to the failure of early offensive operations in the Fall of 1914 and resulted in staggering casualties.11 Both sides developed doctrine that took into effect the unique terrain and technology that had been developed prior and during World War I. However by the end of the war, a combination of flexibility, decentralized control, and counterattack at every echelon made the German defensive system the most effective.12 This “elastic defense” had three unique characteristics; dedicated counter-attack force at all levels, decentralized command and control, fluid defensive belts and integrated artillery support at the Division level. Under this new doctrine, Corps headquarters had the role sustaining subordinate units, but not directing their actions during battle.13 This defense-in-depth and the lessons learned during the Verdun battles of 1918 were so successful that British forces adopted many of the German tactics with a special emphasis on their counterattack capability.10 Utilizing the new doctrine, by August 1918, Germany had made substantial gains, however had
The war grew out of the rivalry of the increasing power of Prussia and the decreasing power of Austria. Finally, it was caused by the Schleswig-Holstein controversy. Prussia's backing came from the majority of North German states and Italy. While, the South German states, Nassau, Frankfort, and Hanover gave their assistance to Austria. Though, some Southern Germans would unite with Prussia, since it was the victor of German unity, and was in condition to make her championship successful.
Bismarck was the man who did the most to unify Germany. It was clear that unification was one of his major objective which he announced in his famous ‘Blood and Iron speech’. I was fascinated by how he managed to unify the so many divided states. Thus, my historical investigation examines the question, to what extent was the Franco-Prussian war Bismarck’s final step to unify Germany? To assess whether the Franco-Prussian war was Bismarck’s final step for unifying the loose net of 39 German states or not, the investigation analyses the previous steps made by Bismarck to unify Germany. It investigates the events between 1962, when Bismarck became Minister president of Prussia and 1971, when Germany became officially unified. The events analyzed are the Danish war, The Prussian Austrian war and the Franco Prussian war.