Because of the title of "Iron-Blooded Prime Minister", many people have the impression that Bismarck is a belligerent and ruthless person, and some people say that he is Hitler's spiritual godfather, but in fact, the Austro-Prussian War and the Franco-Prussian War were not provoked by Bismarck, but passively responded to the war, and after the war, they also tried their best to avoid deepening hatred with Austria and France.
The rise and unification of the German nation after the Franco-Prussian War made the national sentiment rise to a level beyond his complete control, and the domestic political situation allowed universal suffrage to be realized prematurely, and the masses who did not understand politics were completely manipulated by populism, and the enthusiasm for war and the national pride continued to expand, which laid the foundation for the occurrence of the subsequent World War I and World War II, and people were completely unaware that great dangers and disasters were at hand. This is also very enlightening for us in China, cherishing a peaceful environment is everyone's responsibility.
In this article, we will talk about two issues:
The first question is, if you are Bismarck, do you have a way to do better to avoid the destruction of Germany?
The second question is whether Bismarck and Hitler had anything to do with each other.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="7" > nationalist sentiment</h1>
It can be said that Bismarck had a clear understanding of the tragic end of the empire caused by the harsh external environment from the beginning. Therefore, his foreign policy is three words: no expansion. Not only did it not seek territorial expansion in Europe, but it also did not engage in overseas colonies, so as not to cause contradictions with Britain and France. Bismarck's retreat, however, did not play a role.
From the time of the Holy Roman Empire, Germany and France were feuds, and after the victory over France in the Franco-Prussian War, Kaiser Wilhelm I, even Bismarck himself, had a hard time controlling the fluttering emotions, and the nationalist sentiment throughout Germany was high, and South Germany took the initiative to ask to join.
Therefore, after winning the Franco-Prussian War, whether Bismarck liked it or not, the establishment of the Second German Empire could not be stopped.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="11" > electoral system</h1>
If Germany had initiated political reforms in 1870, transforming from an absolute monarchy with real power to an English-style bourgeois parliamentary democracy, would it have avoided the tragedy that followed?
In Prussia, the Conservative Party, which represented the king and the nobility, could not win the Liberal Party representing the bourgeoisie in parliament, so Bismarck introduced universal suffrage in Prussia in 1867, allowing the peasants to vote for the king. But from 1840 onwards, Germany began the process of industrialization, the peasants became workers in large numbers, and the party of the working class grew stronger and stronger. The political protagonists of Germany became the conservatives of the king and the peasants, the confrontation with the parties of the working class, and the Liberal Party, representing the bourgeoisie, could not become the climate at all. In this way, British-style parliamentary politics has become a flower in the mirror of the moon in the water.
In Britain, the process of political participation of the people at the bottom has been guided and controlled by the elite, and there has been no serious political confrontation. This is not the same as France and Prussia. In these two countries, universal suffrage was realized at once, which led to the proliferation of populism in both countries, and populism, the people became a ragtag group, who could only see the immediate interests and follow the most extreme ideas.
Therefore, after the victory in the Franco-Prussian War, the external environment at that time, several powerful countries such as Britain, France, Russia, and the United States have successively become enemies of Germany, and their allies are too weak and alienated from Germany, which is doomed to the tragic result of the inevitable destruction of the Second German Empire, which is no longer something that Bismarck can influence.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="17" > Bismarck and Hitler</h1>
Next, let's turn to the second question: What was the relationship between Bismarck and Hitler?
The orthodox view of German historians has always been that Bismarck used three things: nationalism, militarism and dictatorship to form a mixture of conquests, and this path decisively induced the Nazis. Therefore, Bismarck was Hitler's spiritual godfather and his guide.
Norn disagrees completely. Because these two people really don't have anything in common.
First of all, Hitler advocated Greater Germany, that is, how much Europe and the world Germany could dominate within its capabilities, and he was fully expanding; while Bismarck pursued a small Germany, that is, a "German-controlled Germany under Prussia", and he was resolutely opposed to expansion.
Bismarck famously said: "The struggle for world hegemony is something that Germany cannot afford." Bismarck came to power in 1862 and was dismissed in 1890. During this period, although Prussia fought several major battles, none of them were initiated by Bismarck on his own initiative.
Judging from his attitude toward Germany, Bismarck, although pessimistic in his heart, still worked hard to strive for the best result for Germany. Hitler, on the other hand, ordered the destruction of all German supplies, claiming that "a nation that has not fulfilled its historical mission is not qualified to survive." From this point of view, it would be impossible to insist that Bismarck was Hitler's spiritual mentor and fellow traveler.
If we take a little distance and put Bismarck in a broader historical context, he is different from what we think before, he actually passively became an "iron-blooded prime minister". What is touching is that looking back at the 19th century, people at that time were completely unaware of the inevitable tragedy of the 20th century.
Well, Noorne's Bismarck: A Prussian Man and His Century is introduced.
Here are the links to the first three articles, welcome to read:
Bismarck 1: Bismarck faced the dilemma between monarchy and nationalism
Bismarck 2: It was history that unified Germany, not Bismarck
Bismarck 3: How can a unified empire be so troublesome?