Unification of Germany Essay

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.

Nationalism can be traced to the nineteenth century, European peoples came to identify strongly with communities they called nations. Members of a nation considered themselves a distinctive people that spoke a common language, observed common customs, inherited common cultural conditions, held common values, and shared common

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.

Despite the fact that Italy was unified, it wasn’t as nearly as strong as Germany was becoming. Bismarck joined both authoritarianism and nationalism to increase Prussia’s power. He was a very clever diplomat and used whatever means possible to work towards his goal. Bismarck’s Realpolitiks, the pursuing of realistic goals by any available method instead of the pursuit of an ideology. Bismarck never wanted to have enemies for long and hoped to pacify the Liberals with foreign policy achievement, notably the unification of Germany. He wanted to exclude Austria from the unification process. This led to the Austria-Prussian and Franco-Prussian wars. His plan was successful. Even with the fact south German states were reluctant to join in his unification because of strong religious and political traditions. After the overpowering of France in 1871 the southern states finally joined. This was the defeat the brought them together.

Nationalism contributed to the outbreaks of wars in the nineteenth century. During Germany’s unification, Bismarck aimed to eliminate all opposition to the imperial state. Bismarck fought three wars in which he increased Prussia’s power and expanded Prussian territory, paving the way for German unification. “This contest can only be settled by blood and iron. There is one way to guarantee our success.” (Document 5). In Italy, a nationalist movement, the Risorgimento, passed onto Sardinia with the hope of uniting among other states. Count Camillo Cavour, the Prime Minister of Sardinia, allied with Britain and France while acknowledging Austria to be Italy’s biggest barrier against unification. After negotiating a clandestine arrangement with France,

During the period of 1864 to 1871, Bismarck led Prussia into three significant wars. As said by G.A Craig in The Germans, 1991, the unified Germany was “created in 1871 by Bismarck’s diplomacy and Prussian military power.” The first of these wars was the war with Denmark over the provinces of Schleswig-Holstein in 1864. Prussia and Austria combined their military forces and won against the much weaker Denmark with considerable ease. This was a contributing factor in the second of the three wars, which was fought against Austria, as the two states

At this moment Bismarck saw his opportunity to trap Austria. Bismarck knew Austria will be forced to side with Prussia against the Danes because they wish to keep their appearance of superiority in the German Confederation and because neither Austria nor Prussia wished the other to appear more devoted to the German states (doc21). Otto von Bismarck was not concerned whether or not the Germans in Holstein were happy but only cared about the expansion of Prussian power and the seizure of Schleswig and Holstein by Prussia (doc20). Austria and Prussia were now allied together along with Saxony and Hanover in order liberate the twin duchies of Schleswig and Holstein from the Kingdom of Denmark (doc23). The joint forces of Austria and Prussia threatened war with the king of Denmark (doc24). King Christain IX of Denmark was unable to count on support of England, France nor Russia and is forced to abdicate, ending the Prussian-Danish War (doc 25). Ending the Prussian-Danish War, the Joint Austrian-Prussian Agreement was made. Of this agreement Prussia will occupy and administer Schleswig, Austria will occupy and administer Holstein, Austria will allow for a transportation and communication corridor through Holstein, for the purpose of serving Prussian troops in Schleswig, and Austria will allow for the construction of a Prussian naval base in Kiel which is located on the Baltic Sea coast of Holstein (doc26). By having a Prussian naval base in

As the main source of national identity, nationalism “makes [people] feel connected not only to one another but also to the homeland itself” (Jusdanis 28). In the case of the American founding, when the delegates from respective states met to construct a more perfect union, they did not identify themselves as Virginians or New Yorkers. Instead, they defined themselves as “we the people of the United States” as it appears in the Preamble to the US constitution. The shared interest in liberty and freedom as well as the attachment to the land of their fathers made it possible for the vast population of the thirteen states to think of itself as a unified body despite their internal ethnic and cultural divide. By identifying themselves as a member of certain group, people will form a society with certain shared value, which ultimately can become the political units for a democratic government. Nationalism is essential for creating a cohesive political community.

Bismarck had brought Germany closer to unification, Thus, meaning Bismarck had an important role in the progression of the unification of Germany. Some historians argue whether or not Bismarck was an opportunist or a planner. In the case of the Austro-Prussian War of 1866 it is evident that Bismarck deliberately planned the outbreak of war against Austria. In William Carr’s Germany 1815-1945 he quotes a conversation between Bismarck to Disraeli in 1862: “when the army has been brought to such a state as to command a respect then I shall take the first opportunity to declare war with Austria” proving that Bismarck had planned to go to war with Austria. but he also took advantage of an opportunity which enabled him to go to war with Austria as he stated. Therefore Bismarck can be viewed as both a planner and an opportunist. The wars of unification helped unite Germany as all members of the Bund came together and fought as one in all of these wars.

The mastery Bismarck demonstrated in foreign policy was such that he was able to outwit all other powers and make their leaders appear inadequate. Bismarck believed that the unification of German states was determined by Prussia’s foreign policy. He was also persuaded that "nothing but a change in our foreign attitude can liberate the position of the Crown in domestic matters from the pressure which it will otherwise be impossible to resist." On September 30, 1862 Bismarck followed through on this belief in his famous blood and iron speech, which implied that if Germany was to unify it would be with the use of military force. These armies would than be used in three wars which Bismarck intentionally started though an aggressive foreign policy to unify the country. The Ems Telegram of 1870 was a prime example of Bismarck’s ability to use a hostile foreign policy to outwit a country. After editing a letter sent to Napoleon, Bismarck ensured that the amended version was released to the newspapers and telegraphed to all of Prussia's foreign embassies. French court circles

Jens George Reich stated, “People imagine the reunification will be the answer to all their dreams.” While reunification marked the official end of communism within Germany, in reality problems were arising from the processes that were unexpected by the people of Germany. The reunification was implemented ineffectively by incompetent management amidst unfavourable economic and social circumstances which resulted in political, economic and social consequences as problems associated with the East far outweighed the advantages that could be provided by the West. Indeed, German citizens dreamed that the West could provide a degree of peace and economic stability that would reinforce a cohesive German identity.

had one of the best education rates to be seen in a long time. Along

Nationalism has become one of the most powerful uniting-and occasionally separating-powers of the modern age. Throughout history, there were numerous countries that exemplified both sides of this classic European belief. However, as time has passed, this pride and promotion of one’s country has developed far beyond the scope of Europe. Nationalist feelings fester in all parts of the globe now, and with that comes more complicated expressions of the sentiment, as well as carefully crafted governments that exist for the sole support of nationalist fervor.

During the 19th century, Nationalism was a big player when it came to unity in Europe. The man who played the main role in unification in Germany was Otto von Bismarck. He made progression through three wars. The question people still ask today is, did Otto von Bismarck plan to unify Germany, or did he just take advantage of the opportunities that fell into his lap. Otto Von Bismarck was most definitely a planner as shown through countless actions and statements shown threw his time of power during the three wars. The first war was the Danish war were Germany with the help of Austria took control of the provinces of Schleswig and Holstein. The second war was the Austrian-Prussian war, where there was a disagreement over administrations of Schleswig. The third and final war was the Franco-Prussian war, were France was determined to prevent German Unification.

The leading drive in Prussia for unification was a man named Otto Von Bismarck. Otto Von Bismarck was a master strategist that initiated a series of