The Unification of the

German Empire

Molly HayesJunye Zhang

Scott Campbell Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2009

HL History 11

Mr. Albers

The Holy Roman Empire

Origins

962 - Holy Roman Empire is formed

1000-1300 – local princes start to gain more power than emperors, most of Italy is lost

1618-1648 – Thirty Years War; Protestants (plus Sweden and France) vs. Habsburg Catholics. Peace of Westphalia brings end to Holy Roman Empire.

1815 – Prussia gains territory; Austrian-led German Confederation

Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel

- Extremely influential German idealist (1770-1831)

- Believed that in society, “each successive movement emerges as a solution to the contradictions inherent in the preceding movement.” (Thesis, antithesis, synthesis)

- Example being how the French Revolution brought terrible times but resulted in a constitutional state of free citizens

Quotes“Spirit is the “nature” of individuals, their immediate substance, and its movement and necessity; it is as much the personal consciousness in their existence as it is their pure consciousness, their life, their actuality.”

“Everything is inherently contradictory.”

“That one learns from logic how to think.”

“The universal is a people, a group of individuals in general, an existent whole, the universal force. It is of insurmountable strength against the individual, and is his necessity and the power oppressing him. And the strength that each one has in his being-recognized is that of a people. This strength, however, is effective only insofar as it is united into a unity, only as will. The universal will is the will as that of all and each, but as will it is simply this Self alone. The activity of the universal is a unity. The universal will has to gather itself into this unity. It has first to constitute itself as a universal will, out of the will of individuals, so that this appears as the principle and element.”

Otto von Bismarck

- Prussian Chancellor; very much wanted to see Germany unified, without Austria. Was into diplomacy.

1861 – After Danish War, Prussians and Austrians disagreed on what to do with Denmark; tensions built

1870 – Bismarck decided to pit everyone against France in order to unify German states; Prussia won the war with the help of neighbouring states

1871 – German Empire was born, and Bismarck didn’t want to do much outward expansion and colonisation

Unified Germany

Government Structure

- Emperor (also King of Prussia) controlled foreign policy, military, and appointed the Chancellor

- Two-house parliament; Reichstag elected by people, Bundesrat elected by states. Laws etc. had to go through parliament, but parliament did not have power to impeach a Chancellor

- Empire had 26 states, most were small and completely surrounded by Prussia

- All men over 25 could vote; Bismarck won favor of landowners etc, but was disliked by Catholics and socialists

The German Empire up to WWI

1871 – Bismarck leads imperial confederation that excludes Austria

1890 – Bismarck is forced to resign by Wilhelm II, who is even more eager than his grandfather to expand Germany overseas

1898-1911 – East Asia, Baghdad Railway, and Morocco results in tensions between Germany and UK, Russia, Japan, US and France.

1914 – WWI begins; Germany fights alongside Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and the Ottomans

Bibliography• Brown, Robert W. "Holy Roman Empire." Map. UNCP.edu. University of

North Carolina at Pembroke, 17 June 2009. Web. 20 Sept. 2009. <http://www.uncp.edu/home/rwb/>.

• Blunden, Andy. "Hegel Quotes." Marxists Internet Archive. Web. 22 Sept. 2009. <http://www.marxistsfr.org/reference/archive/hegel/help/quotes.htm>.

• Chastain, James. "Bismarck, Otto von." Encyclopedia of 1848 Revolutions. Ohio University, 30 May 1998. Web. 22 Sept. 2009. <http://www.ohio.edu/chastain/ac/bism.htm>.

• Hayes, Brian J. "German Unification." Map. Age-of-the-Sage.org. 12 Oct. 2002. Web. 22 Sept. 2009. <http://www.age-of-the-sage.org/history/map_german_unification.gif>.

• "The Unification of Germany." Schoolshistory.org.uk. 4 June 2004. Web. 22 Sept. 2009. <http://www.schoolshistory.org.uk/ASLevel_History/unificationofgermany.htm>.