Self Determination’s Role In The Unification Of Germany
Self-determination or the right of nations to self-determination is the right countries have to choose their sovereignty or who/what rules them without other countries telling them to do so. In this essay I am going to look into what role self-determination had in the unification of the German states.
In the early 1800’s there wasn’t a real Germany, there were several small states that were all speaking German. Then, in 1862 King William 1 makes Otto von Bismarck the prime minister of Prussia, the biggest German state at the time. Otto von Bismarck had the second highest political position and thus a lot of power. Prussia was the online state that was comparable to Austria in wealth and size at that time. Austria did not like the idea of German unification because they saw it was a threat to them. At that time Prussia was the most industrialized state, producing more resources like coal and iron than Austria. Bismarck’s idea is that the power of a country comes from “blood and iron”, or warfare and industrialization. Thus, Bismarck’s first move is to strengthen the Prussian army for use when his plan to unification leads to war. However, the Prussian parliament didn’t want to pay for this. Bismarck neglected this and collected money through taxation. Bismarck wants to unite the German states under Prussian rule, however there are 2 main obstacles; France and Austria. France and Austria did not want to see a united Germany because a united Germany would have much more power and was seen as a threat to their own countries/empires.
Before attacking Austria Bismarck strengthened his power by allying with Italy. He offered Italy Venezia in turn for Italy to help Prussia in an...
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Research will be drawn from many sources including several historical studies and online articles. The sources used revolve around Bismarck's attitudes and actions toward German unification and general policy. Sources include works by historians A.J.P. Taylor and James Wycliffe Headlam. The policies of Bismarck during the interwar period were researched as well, through several scholastic journals and written works.
He brought in the Carlsbad Decree, banning the teaching of nationalism and liberalism. Lecturers were expelled for teaching nationalism and students were not allowed to talk about liberal and nationalist ideas. On the other hand, the second most powerful Germanic state, Prussia was open to the idea of liberalism and nationalism. Prussia welcomed the idea of one German nation. Other states grew closer to Prussia and an economic union called Zollverein was created that did included Austria in it. This economic union allowed Prussia to improve its economic situation and its military. An attempt to unify Germany was made in 1848, which ended up in a partial failure. The 1848 attempt made it clear that the German’s wanted Germany without Austria. The attempt was partially a failure because Prussian king did not take the title of German Emperor since the commoners were giving it and it made the Prussian King feel
insist on our right of and capacity for being self-governing individuals. But we find ourselves again under the rule of a king - an authority exterior to the self. This time, however, we cannot as easily identify the king and declare our independence." Despite
Berghahn Books. 2000 Germany and the Germans. After the Unification of the. New Revised Edition. John Ardagh.
Hagen W (2012). ‘German History in Modern Times: Four Lives of the Nation’. Published by Cambridge University Press (13 Feb 2012)
Can certain people assume absolute rights over others? Do people deserve a voice in determining what goes on in their lives as well as their country? Are people liable for their own actions? The questions asked above all fall under one theme that will be discussed: autonomy and responsibility. The American Heritage Dictionary defines the word ‘autonomy’ as self-government or the right to self-government; self-determination; independence.
Bismarck believed that Germany should be united under Prussian leadership and that Austria should have nothing to do with Germany. Bismarck was chosen as chancellor by the Prussian king as he had a proven record as a monarchist and had little time for liberal and excessive parliamentary ideas. Bismarck helped his long term plan to unite Germany and to be the ruler by getting in a strong position with the king. The king owned Bismarck a 'favour´ as Bismarck had solved the king´s constitutional crisis. Bismarck played a crucial part in the unification of Germany as he helped to set up the Northern German Confederation after defeating Austria in the second of three wars.
The biographical approach to German unification in Bruce Waller’s Bismarck leaves the reader without much information on the European political picture as a whole and by no means provides a plethora of information on many of the political power players outside of Bismarck’s Germany. For example, Waller’s approach to Bismarck’s economic foreign policy is clearly lacking an explanation of outside factors, and those factors of the European economic situat...
A German confederation ‘Deutscher Bund’ was agreed to by the states of Germany in the ‘Bundesakte’ of 1815. This was because the leaders of the new territories did not want to give up their power over their land they had recently reclaimed, to another source of power, i.e. Austria or Prussia the two dominant German states. The ‘Deutscher Bund’ was an alliance between the 39 states of Germany and had no head of state or cen...
"Hitler Comes to Power." . United States Holocaust Memorial Museum . Web. 11 Dec 2013. .
The German nation was born in January 1871 at the Palace of Versailles. Many factors have been noted by historians as to what led to the eventual unification of Germany such as; economic and industrial factors and the role of Otto Von Bismarck. A debate that has emerged over German Unification is whether it was united by ‘coal and iron’ or ‘blood and iron’; this looks at whether economic or political factors were the main driving force behind unification. In this essay I will explore these factors and gain an understanding of how these factors contributed to German Unification and come to a decision as to whether it was a nation unified by economic
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Turner, Henry Ashby. Germany from Partition to Reunification. New Haven, CN: Yale University Press, 1992. Print.
Prior to unification in 1871 the territory that would become Germany was comprised of thirty-nine independent states and city states joined together in a loose German Confederation. The most powerful among these states was Prussia, both geographically the largest state and that with the largest population. The influential politicians and policies that came out of Prussia were instrumental in the gradual formation of a united Germany. Beginning with the rise of Napoleon, the nineteenth century was a time of incredible change which dramatically altered the political balance of Europe. In order to understand the factors that culminated in official German unification on January 18 1871, it is necessary to examine the preceding decades. No single factor can be credited for the unification of the German states. Rather, the combined forces of social change, economic strength within a unified customs union, the moral justifications provided by nationalism, Bismarck’s careful manipulation of internal politics and the advantages gained through military action resulted in the unification of Germany.
Some people say that the definition of independence is a complex word and idea to try to define. In al truth independence is a perplexing word to try to define. This is because everybody has their own speculations of what independence is. Very infrequently are their two people that have the same perception of what the definition of independence is. What I perceive the definition of independence is the absolute freedom to do what you want, and to not be held back by any rules or laws of government or man, but by the rules and laws of nature and your own self concise. My view of independence may greatly differ form your beliefs on the definition but in this paper I will try to show exactly what my perspective on the definition of independence is by my experiences, my beliefs, my thoughts, and research on the subject at hand.