Wilhem's Folly

After reading this week about King Wilhelm II, I have to say that I was stunned at his folly. The folly that I speak of is, of course, the removal of Otto von Bismarck as chancellor. Bismarck had always taken the cautious approach in his foreign policies. Wilhelm II, however, chose a more antagonistic approach. Both men were trying to protect Germany's "place in the sun". I had to know more about just why Wilhelm and Bismarck came to be so opposed to one another. It seems that Bismarck thought that he would be able to dominate the new king. He vehemently opposed Wilhelm's policies. In any case, Bismarck is replaced, and his carefully laid plans to protect Germany's borders peacefully failed as the result of World War 1 would painfully point out. But what really is surprising is just how prophetic Bismarck turned out to be. Bismarck said," Jena came twenty years after the death of Frederick the Great; the crash will come twenty years after my departure if things go on like this." This prophecy came about just as he said it would. He is also to have said, "One day the great European War will come out of some damned foolish thing in the Balkans." His prediction was made true when Prince Ferdinand was assassinated by Gavrilo Princip of the Serbian Black Hand. Bismarck proved to be a very insightful man when it came to just what Germany could handle and what would be the best interest of Germany. My question is: What was Wilhelm thinking when he fired Bismarck? I know that he may have disapproved of Bismarck's political leanings and games, but Bismarck did nothing that put Germany in danger, as a country, while he was responsible also for the expansion of Germany's borders and the weakening of France. Wilhelm, on the other hand, expanded Germany into Africa, put his foot into European politics at the peril of war, and will put Germany into a war that it would lose. It is Wilhelm's folly that I believe will give birth to the infamous Third Reich.

The Importance of the Second Reich

It seems to me that people seem to be trying connect the Second Reich with the infamous Third Reich. The question to me is why? Of course if would seem logical to try to find a connection between the two most influential periods of Germany's history. The Second Reich, under Bismarck's political guidance, achieved a unified Germany with established borders and a military able to withstand any power on the continent. The Third Reich was also made territorial gains and established a powerful and effective army. I believe, however, that the Second Reich is not the place to look for the "birth" of the Hitler's Germany. The evidence points out the fact that while Bismarck and Hitler were both charismatic and politically savvy leaders they were as different in their aims as two men could be. Bismarck played his political games with the European powers and fought wars to expand and establish Germany's borders but went no further. Hitler fought and would have taken over the whole world if he had had all the right advantages. He would not be satisfied with the Sudetenland or Czechoslovakia. The end of World War 1, the resulting Versailles treaty, and the failure of the Weimar Republic is the real birth of the Nazi Party and the Third Reich.

The Great Bismarck

Otto von Bismarck is one of the most interesting characters in German history. What intrigues me most about him is his political savvy. This man took Prussia, a growing power in the European theater but still a minor one, and, through manipulation of both domestic and foreign politics, united his country into a power that rivaled the likes of France and Great Britain. His poltical manuevering started when he unveiled his plan to finance the modernization of the army. The Reichstag, more specifically the liberals, would not vote for a budget that included the expansion of the army. So Bismarck unveiled his Gap Theory. There is a loophole in the constitution that allows for the old budget to be used if a new one is not agreed upon by the Kaiser and the Reichstag. Another way to view his tactics is the fact that the law allowed the government to collect back taxes. In any case, Bismarck is successful in getting the funds he needed to modernize the army. With a modern army, Bismarck departs on his quest in the expansion of the German Empire. In short order, Bismarck defeats the Danes, Austrians, and French. Bismarck seemed to be a master of perception. He starts off by stating that the territories of Holstein and Schleswig are German territories and thus should be under German control. He manages to enlist the aid of the Austrian Empire. While they do not provide men or materials, they do provide backing in exchange for control of one of the provinces. Here is where Bismarck proves to be the political mastermind of his age. With his victory over the Danes, he turns to the Austrians. Then the Austrians declare war over the territories. Then the French declare war and lose with the loss of Alsace-Lorraine. I find it fascinating that he managed these feats without ever being the aggressor, but what really is fascinating is his constraint. Here is a man, one could say a man with the power and the ability to conquer much more of Europe, that defeats the powers of the region and enlarges the empire but once the borders are established he stays content with the empire he founded. I think that this points to his motives behind all that he did. It would seem that he only wanted to unite the German peoples under one flag and establish an empire capable of standing up to the other powers.