Bismarck was Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Prussia, and during his tenure he fought the Prussian War, the Austro-Prussian War, and the Franco-Prussian War, defeating Denmark, Austria, and France respectively. Subsequently, Bismarck became the first prime minister of a reunified Germany. Because Bismarck relied on the iron-blooded war to achieve the unification of Germany, he was known as the "Iron-Blooded Prime Minister".
Japanese Ito Hirobumi and Qing Dynasty Li Hongzhang were once known as "Oriental Bismarck" and "Oriental Bismarck". This shows the great influence of Bismarck in the mid-to-late 19th century.
Bismarck contributed greatly to the unification of Germany and to German hegemony in Europe. However, in March 1890, Bismarck was "fired" by Wilhelm II, who had been on the throne for less than two years, and lost his position as prime minister. Thereafter, the Friedrichsruh Manor near Bismarck Hamburg remained until his death on 30 July 1898.
By the way, Bismarck received Li Hongzhang, a famous late Qing dynasty minister who visited Germany during his retirement at friedrich sulu manor. When they were eating together, Li Hongzhang smiled and told Bismarck that some people called themselves "Bismarck of the East" Bismarck also laughed, saying that no one called himself "Li Hongzhang of Europe".
Bismarck was bitter about Wilhelm II's dismissal. Before his death, he had prophesied: "20 years after frederick the Great's death, Prussia was defeated by Napoleon at the Battle of Jena; 20 years after my death, the crown of Wilhelm II will not be preserved." ”
On 31 July, the day after Bismarck's death, the German reich newspaper reported that His Majesty the Emperor (Wilhelm II) had visited friedrich Slough Manor to express his deep condolences to Bismarck, a volunteer for the reunification of Germany. But to Wilhelm II, Bismarck did not buy it until his death, and the inscription on his tombstone read: "Marquis von Bismarck – a loyal German servant of Emperor Wilhelm I." ”
Bismarck believed in the power of war, and in order to achieve German reunification, he did not hesitate to launch three wars. Bismarck, however, was not superstitious about war, especially when there were other options. After the victory in the Austro-Prussian War, fanatical militants emerged in Prussia. Bismarck said calmly: "The use of force must be cautious and must serve realpolitik purposes." ”
After the reunification of Germany, Bismarck tried his best to curb the expansion of militarism in the country: "The only sound basis for a great power, which is very different from that of a small country, is national egoism, not romanticism. Fighting for a cause that is not in its own interests is disproportionate to a great power. ”
However, when Bismarck withdrew from politics, Wilhelm II set out to purge Bismarck's influence and pursue expansionist policies in Europe. This inevitably came into conflict with Britain. In fact, William II and King George V of England were cousins. Wilhelm II, however, had little sympathy for his cousin and repeatedly spoke ill of him, causing relations between Germany and England to plummet.
Since Germany's reunification, the army strength has been one of the best in Europe, but the navy is relatively weak. William II engaged in an arms race with Britain in order to compete for global hegemony. In 1905, for example, britain began building the battleship HMS Dreadnought. William II built the battleship HMS Dreadnought in 1907. On the Army side, there is a similar arms race between the two sides. In the almost crazy arms race, the First World War was about to emerge.
On 28 June 1914, Archduke Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, was assassinated in Sarajevo. This is the famous "Sarajevo" incident. William II had a very good relationship with Archduke Ferdinand. With the support of Wilhelm II, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia. World War I broke out. Since then, Germany, Russia, Britain, France, Japan, the United States and other countries have been involved in this war that lasted for more than 4 years.
As a result of the war, Germany, Austria-Hungary, etc. announced their surrender. At the end of 1918, the November Revolution broke out in Germany. On 28 November, Wilhelm II was forced to announce his abdication. His abdication edict reads:
"I renounce forever all powers as King of the Kingdom of Prussia and as german Emperor at the same time, and at the same time I dismiss all civil servants of the German Empire and Prussia, all officers, naval units, Prussian army and all military units that have sworn allegiance to me as Emperor. I hope they will help those who hold real power in Germany against the dangers of looming anarchy, hunger and foreign domination in order to protect the German people until a new order in the German Empire is established. ”
After the abdication of Wilhelm II, Germany established the Weimar Republic. As for Wilhelm II himself, after leaving Germany, he used his relatives with Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands to live in the Doron Estate in Doron, the Netherlands, and spent the rest of his life.
From Bismarck's death in 1898 to the abdication of Wilhelm II in 1918, no more, no less than 20 years. Bismarck's prophecy was accurately fulfilled.