-
German sense: common identity and purpose
The reorganization of Europe after 1815 recognized the developing German sense of common identity and common purpose. -
The power of Prussia
By 1848 Prussia – a conservative and militaristic kingdom in the east of Germany – had been the strongest of the states for a century. -
Restoration of order by Austria
After the brief flirtation with revolution in 1848 the Austrians had restored order and the status quo, humiliating Prussia in the process. -
Von Bismarck: Minister-President of Austria
When the formidable statesman von Bismarck was appointed Minister-President of that country in 1862 his aims were revenge and the restoration of Prussia as a great European power. -
The Battle of Königgrätz
Decisive battle during the Seven Weeks’ War between Prussia and Austria, fought at the village of Sadowa, northwest of the Bohemian town of Königgrätz (now Hradec Králové, Czech Republic) on the upper Elbe River. The Prussian victory effected Austria’s exclusion from a Prussian-dominated Germany. -
The Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71
France was ruled at this point by the great man’s nephew, Napoleon III, who did not have his uncle’s brilliance or military skill.
Through a series of clever diplomatic tactics Bismarck was able to provoke Napoleon into declaring war on Prussia, and this seemingly aggressive move on France’s part kept the other European powers such as Britain from joining her side. -
Battle of Sedan
An entire French army, along with Emperor Napoleon III, was forced to surrender after a bruising defeat.
The conflict was the culmination of a decade of political and military maneuvering between France’s emperor, the nephew of the original Napoleon, and Prussia’s Minister-President Otto von Bismarck. In that time, the balance of power had decisively shifted in Prussia’s favour following its successful war against Austria in 1866 and the disastrous French military campaign in Mexico. -
End of the Battle
A few weeks after Sedan, Paris was under siege, and the war only ended when it fell in late January 1871. In the meantime, Bismarck had gathered the German generals princes and Kings at Versailles and proclaimed the new and ominously powerful country of Germany, changing the political landscape of Europe.
