To what extent were religious divisions in Germany the main obstacle to unification between 1815 and 1850? Between 1815, the year the Napoleonic Wars ended, and 1850 the German states experienced a growth of nationalism and desire for unity. However, by 1850 the German states were still not united., despite two attempts at doing so in 1848 and 1849. . Some would argue that the religious divisions in Germany were the main obstacle to unification. Others suggest that the opposition from Austria was more important, or that the German Princes' fear of losing power played a vital part.
This is known as 'particularism', the principle of leaving each state in a federation free to govern itself and promote its own interests. The chancellor of Austria, Metternecht, believed it was in Austria's interests to keep Germany divided and therefore easier to control. Austria also supported particularism in the Confederation as unification of Germany would encourage nationalism leading indefinitely to unrest in the Austro-Hungarian Empire and possibly the disintegration of it. Prussia was given more land in central and
I also think that the North gained major strength after the win at Gettysburg. The North made very good battle decisions like cutting off access to the Southern ports. The North was in financially better position and had more weapons and the ability to stay supplied. England and France wanted no part of the war so both sides had to sustain their efforts on their own. Both sides were determined, but I believe that in the end when the South surrendered it was a good thing for both sides.
Some argue that this in fact was to build a bigger, the economy can be seen not as a genuine desire to help unemployed and sick but to challenge Germany. On the other hand there were genuine reasons for the Liberal reforms. There was a real urge to move away from ‘laisse faire’ to a more interventionist approach. Politicians such as Herbert Asquith, Lloyd George, and Winston Churchill, all want to help the poor. The Liberals reformed because of necessity.
Second, Bismarck developed good relationships with numerous powers so that they would assist Prussia and help Bismarck to isolate its enemies. For example, Bismarck made an alliance, and the benefit was shown in 1870 when Italy refused to help France in the Franco-Prussian War. Thirdly, in the Schleswig-Holstein Affair, Bismarck pretended to be friendly with Austria and just get the two duchies. He succeeded in gaining support from the Germans in these 2 duchies. Lastly, Bismarck tricked Napoleon III at the meeting in Biarritz in 1865.
How important were the German princes in creating the atmosphere within which Lutheranism was successful? The German princes were essential for creating the atmosphere in which Lutheranism was successful between 1521 and 1555 because they maintained Luther’s teachings, making it a reality. Also they obtained military authority over Charles V who at this time, was a new, inexperienced emperor and also had major influence over Charles power due to the fact they were the ones who elected him. This proved useful at the Diet of Worms in 1521 when instead of Luther being issued full excommunication, instead he was offered a full hearing and this was all down to princely support. By 1531 the Schmalkaldic League was set up as a united defence alliance by protestant princes in response to Charles’s threat of eradicating Lutheranism.
In order to shift attention away from the liberal pressure to reform and modernizing Prussia, Bismarck was able to keep modernization forces at bay by pushing for a united Germany. This was supported by Mary Fulbrook in 1990 who said “what came as the unification in 1871 was less a result or expression ……” of Prussian colonization. Wolfgang Mommsen also has supported the idea it was a public agenda by Otto Von Bismarck, unification through the interactive dominance of Prussia and through war. Bismarck’s early life before German unification: Otto Von Bismarck was born in 1815, the year of Waterloo. He was born into a Junker heritage.
Certainly the strength of the Prussian military was key to the unification of Germany as it was vital in winning the three wars of unification, but it shall be argued that the military were as strong as they were due to other more important actors such as Economics and Bismarck. Economics being the most important factor, as it provided a basis for unification as it showed the German people the prosperity of being together than apart. However something has to be said for the work of Bismarck, who acted as a catalyst and manipulated the situations around him to him speed up the unification of the German states, so successfully that many traditional historians argue that Bismarck was solely responsible in bringing about unification. The mistakes of other countries and the international scene meant that Austria was expelled and Prussia could lead the states into unification and the mistakes Napoleon meant that the northern and southern states would not have been united. Finally nationalism laid the foundation for a united Germany, it created the idea of being one country, although there is no argument to suggest that nationalism would have brought about unification alone.
Although the industrial revolution had a huge positive impact on German economy, it also lead to a rise in socialism which meant the emergence of pressure groups, such as the Nationalist pressure groups and the Economic pressure groups. These groups were often focused on single issues, but they highlighted the tensions and divisions in Germany. Foreign minister and Chancellor Von Bulow played a key part in protecting the position of the Second Reich's ruling elite. He focussed on an aggressive foreign policy to
Providing the Confederacy with war supplies influenced Southern power, and their assertiveness towards the Union proved beneficial to international relations. The victory of the Union encouraged the forces in Britain that demanded more democracy and public contribution into the political system. Rather than an outbreak of war, relations between America and Britain were ultimately improved when the idea of widespread famine threatened England. The American Civil War proved difficult but eventually beneficial for Britain, giving them the opportunity to check their growth and rise to power. Keeping within British tradition and diplomacy, Britain never openly partnered with the South and their involvement in the war was to protect their own people, economy, actions and