... king, it was Bismarck who was in control, manipulating the king with his intellect while using royal decrees to circumvent the power of elected officials. He had to clear two major obstacles facing a unified Germany under Prussia, the first would be the Austrian Empire, their bitter rival, who no longer had the thumb over the smaller German states thanks to the ... Prussian army was equipped with the needle gun, while the Austrians were still using muzzle-loading guns, and this was a huge advantage. This technological advancement allowed the Prussian soldier to fire five or more shots, ...

• Word Count: 1378
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... that the German Confederation could grant national unification, for they saw it as a tool used by Austria and Prussia to maintain their power. Another major problem, was the question of who would rule these nation-states if they were created? This was a serious problem the nationalist movements had, ... leader of a country whose formation would be going against the wishes of traditional Catholic countries like Austria and France. The Austrian Empire was a major problem for the German and Italian national question for many reasons. The Austrian Empire was a multi-ethnic empire which inclu...

• Word Count: 3402
• Approx Pages: 14
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

THE UNIFICATION OF GERMANY The unification of Germany in 1871 was a major historical event. The process of unifying the many German states was by no means a straightforward or rapid one. Ultimately unification was only possible due to the common race of German ... danger. Although the aim of the confederation was not to promote a united Germany, the links established by it would prove beneficial to the unification process in the future. The first major step towards a unified Germany was the Zollverein or Economic Union. In 1818, Prussia brought into being the Prussian Customs Union to remove...

• Word Count: 1379
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... the greatest of all the European powers even though Napoleon had been overthrown. The aim documented by Pitt the Younger was interpreted by Castlereagh as, setting up with the other major European powers a permanent international system with regular functioning congresses. Britain lead the industrial revolution, and it was of great importance to keep good relations with the other European powers to ... equilibrium in Europe. In dealing with France, Castlereagh "helped to deliver the prosperous Rhineland to Prussia," which led to the eventual unification of Germany, which saw the displac...

• Word Count: 1280
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... Gallic Bull". Bismarck was correct in his assumptions and Napoleon III, in fury, declared war on Prussia on July 19th, 1870. Bismarck once again managed to secure neutrality of all major European powers. Austria was still appeased due to the kind Prussian settlements, Russia was not interested in western matters, Italy was interested in getting French troops out of Rome and ... was enraged by a document of Napoleon's about ambitions with Belgium, which Bismarck had published. Prussia fought the war with the support of all German states, this was due to two major factors. Although the so...

• Word Count: 2540
• Approx Pages: 10
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... powers being formed against Prussia. Bismarck was in a favourable situation because at this time Austrian power was unstable as they had just been defeated by Italy, Austria's relationship with another major power, Russia, was at an all time low after the Crimean war, and also at this time for there own individual reasons both France and Russia were seeking to amend ... attacked and this agreement was advantageous to both sides. It gave Prussia a hold over another piece of territory and it gave the smaller states the security of being annexed with a major power like Prussia. The fact th...

• Word Count: 1594
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... have done this with success. His first action was against the Danish over the issue of Schleswig-Holstein, in alliance with Austria so as not to upset any of the major powers too soon. Then, determined to exert Prussian dominance over German area, including Austria, and foreseeing war, Bismarck set up important alliances with Italy, who eventually provoked Austria into war ... surely be a long power struggle between them, and so were to remain neutral. However the Austro-Prussian war ended quickly in a decisive victory for Austria, leaving the French, the last major power Bismarck would...

• Word Count: 1748
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... Metternich had similar achievements towards foreign policy. In a martial sense, both leaders managed to defeat France. This was a big achievement because throughout the time of both their reigns, France was a major power. After defeating France in the battle of Sedan, Bismarck took the provinces of Alsace and Lorraine. Bismarck's foreign policy was to keep France isolated in Europe so that the ... ...

• Word Count: 838
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... Prussia's dominance. Also the Crimean War upset alliances of the Concert of Europe and it caused for alliances that would be in WWI. It established Great Britain and France as major powers. Which meant that the fight between the Concert of Europe nations would lead to an end of conservatism. In the end it ended conservatism and started nationalism in the ... ...

• Word Count: 1851
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... Metternich had similar achievements towards foreign policy. In a martial sense, both leaders managed to defeat France. This was a big achievement because throughout the time of both their reigns, France was a major power. After defeating France in the battle of Sedan, Bismarck took the provinces of Alsace and Lorraine. Bismarck's foreign policy was to keep France isolated in Europe so that the ... ...

• Word Count: 837
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... , the limitations to the size of her navy meant that Germany had less protection and this made Germany even more prone and vulnerable to foreign attack and because of its major loss of land, Germany also felt like it had been weakened and split apart altogether. The country also felt that the treaty was a dictate and were upset not to be ... ...

• Word Count: 1207
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... Austria-Hungary (Dual Alliance), and two years later he signed a defensive treaty with Russia and Austria. In 1882 Italy joined the German-Austrian alliance (Triple Alliance). Of the five other major powers in Europe three were now allied with Germany and one, Britain, was not interested in European alliances for the time being. The main rivals of the British were the ... ...

• Word Count: 10254
• Approx Pages: 41
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... happened over the first years of the republic. It showed that the regime was certainly unpopular with the German people, particularly compared to the Golden Years', where there was no major unrest. A further effect of the revolution attempts was the publicity gained by extremists. Hitler in particular was unknown before the Munich Putsch but that, and the subsequent trial gave the ... ...

• Word Count: 2083
• Approx Pages: 8
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... public order, or the nation would continue to tear itself apart in religious civil wars until there were no pieces left that were big enough to tear apart. The other major theorist of absolutism was Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679). He wrote immediately after the civil wars in England in the 1640s, conflicts that partially stemmed from religious fanaticism. Hobbes took the ... ...

• Word Count: 1362
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... other changes were just getting started. Although there was still not enough German people believing in Unification and Liberalism a feeling of common identity was being to spread. Then there was a major break through - something that would make Nationalism more important to many more Germans - The Zollverein. By the 1830's the Zollverein hit it off, it meant that as goods were transported ... ...

• Word Count: 580
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: Undergraduate