...How far does the role of individuals explain the outbreak of the German Wars of Unification? The German Wars of Unification can be blamed on a myriad of reasons however the pragmatism of Otto Von Bismarck often allowed him to take advantage and shape the course of German history. Conversely it would be remiss to state that Bismarck was solely responsible for the German Wars of Unification, nationalist elements as well as growing calls for liberalism all spurred the way for the beginning of a German state. Compounding this was the economic prosperity of Prussia, as Prussia grew economically stronger it diminished Austria’s sphere of influence in the region. This would also spur calls for greater German unity whilst isolating Austria. Prussian ambition can be first seen to rival Austria with the creation of the Zollverein. Prussia in 1818 created a law to integrate Prussian customs systems onto neighbouring small states, over the next fifteen years through a complex mixture of threats and concessions the Prussians managed to create a concrete policy that would lay the foundations for the Zollverein. In 1833 the Zollverein was created and most importantly Austria was firmly excluded. The importance of this is summed up in Metternich’s quote “a smaller rival confederation..which all too quickly will become accustomed to following its own objectives with its own means”. Metternich’s fears would eventually become a reality, this is reiterated by the historian Treitschke...
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...Coercive Diplomacy: Otto von Bismarck and the Unification of Germany by Lieutenant Colonel Kenneth R. Kassner United States Marine Corps United States Army War College Class of 2012 DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT: A Approved for Public Release Distribution is Unlimited This manuscript is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the Master of Strategic Studies Degree. The views expressed in this student academic research paper are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of the Department of the Army, Department of Defense, or the U.S. Government. The U.S. Army War College is accredited by the Commission on Higher Education of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, (215) 662-5606. The Commission on Higher Education is an institutional accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing this collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden to Department of Defense, Washington Headquarters Services, Directorate for Information...
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...In the year 1860, Napoleon III found himself in a troubling position. Just eight years after an overwhelmingly favorable election, he found his popularity and influence greatly diminished. In the years since Napoleon became emperor, France had seen many military victories. The most notable was a decisive victory in the Crimean War against the Russians. Due to these numerous and very successful wars France saw a great expansion in territory. The only flaw that came with engaging in such a numerous amount of wars in a short period of time was that they were not cost effective in the short term. The treasury's pockets were pinched by the Napoleon’s important project of rebuilding and restoring Paris. Even more debt was amassed by furthering France’s railways and through the modernization banking. These expenditures were very profitable for France in the long run, but coupled with costly foreign ventures and exploits, the public opinion had begun to sway on Napoleon III. Seeing the twilight dawn upon him, Napoleon searched for a way to regain popularity and strengthen his rule over France. In December 1861, Napoleon, against the wishes of his advisors, issued a decree that the legislature would be granted more power. This ushered in an era of liberal reform in France. This is not to say every part of the government was shifted liberally during this era, much to the contrary, as Roger Price writes, most repressive legislation remained intact during this time. “Repression...
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...John O’Malley Visionary Leaders Project Guided Questions 1) Who is your guided leader? (Give some background: When born/died, basic life overview, personality). -My guided leader is Otto Von Bismarck (1815-1898). Otto Von Bismarck was conservative Prussian statesman, and was later the Prime Minister of Prussia, appointed by King Wilhelm I. He dominated German and European affairs from the 1860s until 1890. Early on in his political career, promised to promulgate a constitution, agreed that Prussia and other German states should merge into a single nation-state in 1848. In 1849, he opposed the unification of Germany, arguing that Prussia would lose its independence in the process. He grew up representing the land-owning nobility. His mother also had close connections to the Prussian court. He opposed his mother’s beliefs and ambitions. 2) Where/when is your leader from? What major historical events connect with his/her life? (Think in terms of national, international, and global context). -Bismarck was born in Saxony, Germany in 1815). He spent his childhood and college years studying in Germany as well. The Crimean War of the mid-1850s shocked Bismarck. The Eastern Crisis of the 1870s, put fear in Bismarck and pushed him to signing the Dual-Alliance with Austria-Hungary in 1879. He launched his political career during the revolutions of 1848. 3) In concrete terms, what was your leader’s “vision”? (Political goals, life mission, etc.) How does that vision connect to nationalism...
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...appointed chancellor during the reign of Wilhelm I and was also chancellor to his son, Wilhelm II, for a time. Bismarck can best be described as secretive, manipulative, controlling, and willing to use trickery to achieve his goals. Not exactly honorable, but you have to admire his ambition to do whatever it took to achieve his goals. I think he was a clever and masterful strategist; he studied leaders, treaties and laws that attracted him and learned from their mistakes. Bismarck would take his time and plan things out. (Bismarck, Archive p. 307) In the process of unifying Germany, three wars were fought. The first was against Denmark in 1864 which didn’t do much for the rivalry between Austria and Prussia. Bismarck knew he would have to go to war with Austria sooner or later if he wanted to unify Germany. War broke out again in 1866 with Austria. It seems that Austria was predicted to win the war, but Germanys well organized army defeated Austria in six weeks. France was not pleased with this victory; Napoleon III feared that Germany would become too powerful and disrupt the balance of power in Europe. When Spain offered its throne to one of the German princes, it did not help the situation at all. France subsequently intervened, blocked the candidacy, and demanded that no one from the House of Hohenzollern ever take Spain’s throne. After some sneaky editing of the Ems Dispatch letter between Wilhelm and the France ambassador to Prussia by...
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...the Hungarians into splitting his empire in half; these halves consisted of Austria and Hungary, and Francis Joseph declared himself the ruler of both. Nationalist disputes and revolts broke out across the empire of Austria-Hungary for almost 40 years. These movements weakened the empire significantly, but it did not break up until after World War 1 (Holt 693). Since various ethnicities within the empire wanted to gain independence from each other, but the emperor wanted to keep all of his territory under his control, the empire neither separated into many nationalist states, nor unified as one nationalistic country. In other words, the conservatives and radicals disagreed, thus leading to one weak and disunited empire. Another example of leaders trying to control a disunited empire is Russia. The Romanov Dynasty forced their culture upon all ethnic groups in their empire, also known as Russification, in order to keep them under control. However, the idea backfired on the Czars, as Russification only strengthened nationalistic feelings within the different groups, thus disunifying Russia (Holt 693). Similarly to Austria, the “tug of war” between those who wanted an empire and those who wanted independence only weakened Russia. Conversely, the Ottomans granted equal citizenship to all ethnic groups, rather than forcing a certain culture upon them. Despite this, the empire still fell apart as this act angered conservative Turks, and they began to massacre and deport other ethnic...
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...Jared Lucas Hum 111-D020 2/16/16 Essay 1 The topic that I chose to talk about is whether the Palace of Versailles is impressive or excessive. I believe the palace of Versailles is impressive because it has so much history behind it and so many historical people have been there ranging from all of the kings that have live their since it was first built in 1682 to all of the diplomatic meetings that have taken place such as the Versailles summit had taken place in 1982, where a lot of industrialized nations leaders were there to talk about international elations and problems. (Chateau Versailles). My first impression of Versailles was that it was an impressive palace and that whoever lived in it was really powerful, and I think that was the goal of the people who built it because it wanted to symbolize that France was powerful and is not one to mess with. I will tell you what I think of Versailles now, why Versailles matters, and compare it to other famous things we have talked about in the Humanities. I think of the palace of Versailles as a historical treasure of France because it was built to be a palace for the king and have great times there which their was, but with all historical places they all have some not so great memories that come with it such as, “ A beautiful palace built by a proud king blazed with glory for a century. Then abruptly, comeuppance arrived with a revolutionary mob and led off the kings decedents to a gory death.” (Versailles, Tony Spawforth). The...
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...Why did Prussia win the Austro-Prussian War? In the summer of 1866, the Austro-Prussian War broke out, with Prussia winning in a war, which lasted all of seven weeks. In deciphering why Prussia won the war, or rather why Austria lost it, it is essential to review the economic situation of both nations, and somewhat more crucially, their performances and outcomes of previous ‘wars’. Looking at the facts before the warm the gap in some aspects weren’t as profound as others. Essentially, the war was really over before it began. Austria’s situation was dire to say the least. In Europe, the usage of alliances was prevalent. One very poignant example was the alliance between Prussia and Italy, with Italy pledging troops to defend and disguise Russian movements. Austria were most excluded from the plethora of links between nations, meaning that if and when war should break out, there would not any nation willing to come to the aid of Austria in times of desperation. It was also on the verge of bankruptcy, as excursions into pointless wars had put a very heavy burden on Austrian shoulders. Additionally, the ‘war’ of Schleswig-Holstein proved to be a debacle and this consequently put a dagger right into the heart of Austro-Prussian relations, with Austria still supporting the Duke of Augustenburg to be the reigning monarch, whilst Prussia worked for annexation, on the contrary. Meanwhile, Prussia was most certainly in a very strong position. They were certainly on the rise and that...
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...Napoleon's foreign policy was simply a desire for glory while staying out of war with Britain and Russia. Unlike his uncle, Napoleon was concerned with the "social question" of France and the plight of the working people. His economic internal affairs tended to be more successful than his military endeavors. Like many leaders before him, Napoleon had to give France glory to gain his legitimacy. Napoleon did not want to meet his uncle's fate in a war with a major power of Europe; he steered clear of conflict with Britain and Russia. Napoleon's military adventures were unsuccessful in both obtaining glory and winning any sort of victory. Napoleon wanted to create a satellite government in Mexico and set up a system in Mexico for French exports. Defying the Monroe Doctrine, he attacked Mexican Radical Republicans and was soon kicked out by Americans and the Mexican peasants. Not only had Napoleon failed to gain any sort of satellite government but he had lost to a bunch of Mexican peasants. He had managed to stay out of war with a European power, but lost huge glory. Needless to say this Mexican adventure was unsuccessful. The Luxembourg Crisis and Napoleon's cockiness lost glory for France while losing a war that the French should not have even been involved in. Napoleon demanded the city of Luxembourg from Bismarck after the Prussian defeat of Austria. Bismarck became enraged, as did the rest of the Germans. Napoleon attacked Germany, to keep France's glory as the...
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...↑ Bismarck hat laut der Darstellung Volker Ullrichs (Otto von Bismarck. 4. Auflage, Rowohlt, Reinbek 1998) den Titel eines Herzogs zu Lauenburg konsequent abgelehnt und auch Post zurückgesandt, die so adressiert war. ↑ Christopher Clark: Preußen. Aufstieg und Niedergang 1600–1947. Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt, Stuttgart 2007, ISBN 3-421-05392-8, S. 592 f.; Lothar Gall: Bismarck. Der weiße Revolutionär. 2. Auflage, Ullstein, Berlin 2002, ISBN 3-548-26515-4, S. 27–30; Volker Ullrich: Otto von Bismarck. Rowohlt, Reinbek bei Hamburg 1998, ISBN 3-499-50602-5, S. 14 f. ↑ Ullrich: Bismarck, S. 17; Gall: Bismarck, S. 29. ↑ Ullrich: Bismarck, S. 16–20. ↑ Brautwerbebrief an Heinrich von Puttkamer. In: Fürst Bismarcks Briefe an seine Braut und Gattin. Herausgegeben vom Fürsten Herbert von Bismarck. Cotta, Stuttgart 1900 ↑ Brief Bismarcks an seinen Bruder Bernhard vom 16. Oktober 1836. In: Otto Becker: Bismarcks Ringen um Deutschlands Gestaltung. Hrsg. und ergänzt von Alexander Scharff. Quelle & Meyer, Heidelberg 1958 ↑ Ludwig Reiners: Bismarcks Aufstieg 1815–64. C.H. Beck, München 1956. ↑ Bismarck, Gedanken und Erinnerungen I, S. 1 ff. ↑ Ullrich: Bismarck, S. 23; Gall: Bismarck, S. 33–36. ↑ Paul Kuetgens (Hrsg.): Carl Borromäus Cünzer Folie des Dames. Illustr. Bert Heller, Aachen 1932, S. 11. ↑ Zit. nach Ullrich: Bismarck, S. 26. ↑ Ullrich: Bismarck, S. 27. ↑ Ernst Engelberg: Bismarck – Urpreuße und Reichsgründer, Siedler Berlin 1985...
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...War Name Course Date War is defined as an organized and prolonged conflict carried out by countries or individuals within or outside a country. War is generally characterized by brutal or extreme violence, displacements of populations and both social and economic disruption or destruction. War is an actual, widespread and intentional armed conflict between countries. War is regarded as a form of political violence because countries are political creations or entities. When war is absent piece prevails. There are several types of war, namely; civil war, asymmetrical, conventional, chemical, unconventional, nuclear warfare among others. In civil war the warring sides are from the same country or political entity and what is at stake is either the control of the nation and instruments of power or one side is trying to break away or secede. In asymmetrical war, the combatants or feuding sides are not evenly marched in terms of military capability and therefore the weaker side engages in guerilla tactics in order to counter the huge disadvantage it is faced with. Conventional war is defined as a war whose main aim is to reduce or minimize the enemy’s capability mostly through battles. It is a war mostly fought by states and their allies. Unconventional war on the other side refers to a war whose main purpose is to attain military victory through use of clandestine activities such as supporting secretly one side in a...
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...years countries have been at war with one another over territories and making alliances. To conquer a nation meant building bigger armies, obtaining political power and access to more resources. Many factors contributed to the cause and whether or not for their involvement. In order to get a better understanding of the U.S. involvement we need to go back in time and take a look at the alliances that were made between countries during the 1800’s. During the time of growing prosperity Europe’s wealth consisted of industrial strength and world domination which created the Golden Age of European Imperialism. By the 1900s Africa, Asia and every part of every other continent was owned and controlled by the European powers. “Each country’s prosperity depended on its ability to maintain and expand its colonial empire. This created completion between the various imperial powers for control over foreign territory.” (Dannaher & Burnaby, 1999) Around 1880 European powers began seizing new colonies. During 1870 war erupted between France and Germany. Bismarck wanted to unite Germany further. During the Danish and Austro-Prussian war Bismarck successfully created the North German Confederation but still needed to convince the South German states to join. When victory was declared over France several German states united under Prussian leadership which formed the German nation. French foreign policy vowed revenge against Germany after the Franco-Prussian War. This resentment was one of...
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...Assessment 06.08 19th Century Changes: Module Project Haitian Revolution From 1791-1804 Haitian slaves, led by Toussaint l ‘Overture, attacked wealthy whites. The main cause for the Haitian revolution was the philosophies of the enlightment in that “all men were considered brothers”, the French revolution had a psychological influence suggesting that if the French could rebel against illegitimate rule so could the Haitians. This is considered the most successful slave rebellion in history. Industrialization in Britain Between 1750 and 1850, the UK experienced the first industrial revolution. The UK changed from mostly agricultural to industrial. The industrial revolution occurred first in Britain because they had resources such as, coal,...
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...but rather to concentrate on their colonies. The Franco-Prussian War, 1870 - spanning from July 1870 until May 1871, the Franco-Prussian War was fought between the French and the Germans, resulting in a comprehensive German victory. The primary cause of the war was Otto von Bismarck, Prussian Chancellor, and his desire to create a unified Germany. Unification of Germany - officially occurring on the 18th January 1871, this unification was a direct result of the Franco-Prussian War, although many believed this organisation of German-speaking populations into one nation was inevitable. Nevertheless, this rose tensions for political, religious and cultural reasons, meaning true unification wasn't complete for years. Austria-Hungary - in the Balkans, the growth of Slavic nationalist groups threatened the stability of the already-fragile Austro-Hungarian empire. These groups sought to gain independence from the political domination of this empire. Unification of Italy - this involved the consolidation of states of the Italian peninsula into one state, spanning a large proportion of the 19th century. Many see the completion of this process as 1871, when Rome was made the capital city of this unified state. This was due to a growing national identity and the sight of nearby countries also unifying. The Dual Alliance, 1879 - created on 7th October 1879 as part of Otto von Bismarck's plan to prevent or limit war. This alliance existed between Germany and Austria-Hungary...
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...period after the Napoleonic Wars. It was not clear around which power, Austria or Prussia, Germany could achieve national unification (Merriman 2010). Prussian merchants, with the support of the Prussian crown, established the customs and trade union known as the Zollverein in 1834 (AP Central - German Unification 2013). The Zollverein freed trade between most of the German states, with the exception of Austria. The upper class were wary of any change that might threaten the status quo and feared the strong nationalist feeling unleashed by the revolution, the expansion of which might lead to, they reasoned, the proclamation of the equality of all citizens (Merriman 2010). Industrialists and merchants thus brought liberal politics into German nationalism. During the Revolution of 1848, liberals met in the Frankfurt Assembly and drafted a constitution modeled on the ideals of the French Revolution of 1789 (AP Central - German Unification 2013). The assembly offered to share power under a constitutional monarchy and offered the crown of a unified Germany to Frederick William IV of Prussia. The Revolution of 1848 brought some liberal reforms to Prussia, such as the ability of the parliament to obstruct certain forms of taxation. However, the Prussian leadership, which was thoroughly conservative, rejected the Frankfurt constitution, preferring reform and unification directed from above. Austria's resistance of attempts to unify Germany under Prussian leadership further obstructed...
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