Diplomatic History of Europe 1500 - 2000 | German Unification (Lecture 20)

Lecture 20: When Germany was unified as an empire around the hard core of the German kingdom of Prussia, this unification was called a “German Revolution,” upsetting all the political certainties of the age. A new power factor appeared at the center of the continent, but would it anchor peace or disrupt stability? From 1862 to 1871, the Prussian “Iron Chancellor” Otto von Bismarck (though not a nationalist himself) steered the process of national unification through a series of wars with Denmark, Austria, and France. In this lecture, we examine closely his fascinating character, elusive aims, and ruthless methods—in particular his trademark “politics of Realism,” or Realpolitik.

Essential Reading:
Henry Kissinger, Diplomacy, pp. 103–36.

Supplementary Reading:
A. J. P. Taylor, Bismarck: The Man and the Statesman.