The German Reich that was founded in 1871 was nothing but a greater Prussia

The German Reich of 1871 was a creation of Prussia for Prussian interests. Otto
von Bismarck a Prussian landowner was the politician who did most to create
united Germany. He was traditionalist who realised that the traditional order
would not survive without reforms. He cynically used the language of German
nationalism to gain popular support for his unification of Germany under
Prussia. Austria with its tradition of liberalism and its multi ethic empire, was
pushed out of Germany. The Austrian chancellor could be forced out by the
parliament. This was not the practice in Prussia or in the united Germany. The
government of the German Reich was autocratic with elements of liberalism. The
Keiser appointed the chancellor and the Reichstag could nothing about it. The
German Reich was mostly protestant because the Catholic German power,
Austria, was pushed out. Bismarck underlined this when he engaged in a policy
of Culture struggle Kulturkampf. He wanted to minimise the political power of
the Catholic Church. This had the added bonus of pleasing the liberals with
whom Bismarck was in a tactical alliance. But the 1871 settlement didn’t satisfy
Bismarck. He set out in 1878 to set up independent income stream for the Reich
by a tariff on grain imports.

The German Reich was formed by Prussia. Bismarck took advantage of German
Nationalism to form the Empire under Prussian rule. German nationalism was a
movement that wanted to unite all ethic Germans in state ruled by popular
sovereignty. Reactionaries opposed German nationalism because it would
destroy the tradition German social order. The Junkers, Prussian landowners,
were firmly opposed to revolutions that would undermine their social status.
Bismarck was a Junker who was firmly devoted to the tradition German order.
But Bismarck believed that the best way to defend the traditional was to
compromise with it. In later life he introduced social insurance in order to stop
the development of the Social Democratic party. Bismarck made a similar deal
with nationalism. He gave them a united Germany albeit a one that excluded
Austria. Austria posed a problem to German nationalism. It had an empire that
was made up of many nationalities. The Austrian emperors were against German
unity. The best possibility of a united Germany was one that excluded Austria.
Bismarck had said in 1850s that the confederation was “too small for the two of
us1. Bismarck exploited the idea that Prussia had a mission to unite Germany.
[T]here is nothing more German than Prussian particularism properly
understood2. Weather Bismarck was a sincere nationalist is debatable. But we
know he used German nationalism to further Prussian dominance of a united
Germany.

The German Reich was formed by Prussia defeating Austria. Prussia and Austria
were allied against Denmark. But Bismarck was still planning to unite Germany
and push out Austria. Austria’s possible allies were not in a position to help
Austria. Russia had domestic troubles, France was occupied in Mexico and
Britain was committed to staying out of continental disputes. Prussian troops
1
Matthew S. Selgmann and Roderich R. McLean, Germany from Reich to Republic,
1871-1918 (London, Macmillian Press, 2000),4
2
Seligmann and Roderich, Germany, 4
marched into Holstein in 1866. Austria rallied most of the German states against
Prussia. But Prussia was able to defeat them all on the battlefield. Austria was
defeated and was pushed out of Germany. Austria had advocated a “third
Germany”. In a “third Germany” Austria and Prussia would share power. This
option was definitively closed with the defeat of Austria. Bismarck could now
satisfy the liberals with universal male suffrage. The Prussians were happy to see
Prussia increase in prestige. The nationalists had a united Germany. Austria was
made sign mild peace treaties. For Bismarck the most important factor was that
the European Balance of Power was maintained. Austria acted as a buffer
between Germany and Turkey. Without Austria Russia would have a free hand in
the Balkans. This was a traditional Prussia position. The united Germany was
acting like Prussia in the realm of foreign policy.

The governmental structure of the second German Reich clearly shows that it
was greater Prussia. It was not a liberal constitution but they were elements of
liberalism in it. The Chancellor was appointed by the King of Prussia. The King of
Prussia was the German emperor. He was both royal and imperial. The Keiser
had control over foreign affairs, the army and he had the power to declare
martial law. The parliament the Reichstag was limited to scrutinising legislation.
It was not a proper liberal regime. Bismarck ignored the law if it suited him. The
Prussian practice of passing budgets for seven years meant that any one
parliament might never see some important bills. So in theory the Reichstag
could veto budgets but might never see it during a parliamentary term. The
Prussian antipathy towards liberal constitutionalism continued in the German
Reich. Prussian dominance of the Reich was built also into the constitution itself.
Constitutional amendments required a super majority in the Bundesrat. Prussia
had seventeen votes, enough to block any amendments.

One of the factors that brings you to the conclusion that the 1871 German Reich
was nothing but a greater Prussia is the fact that Bismarck embarked on a policy
of Kulturkampf, Culture struggle in German. It was in the words of Bismarck “not
a struggle between believers and unbelievers, it is a struggle between Kingship
and priesthood”3. It was political struggle against the political power of
Catholicism in the Prussian Germany. Religious order such as the Jesuits were
banned from the empire. Catholics had to have separate civil marriages and
discriminated in the civil service. There was state oversight of ecclesiastical
appointments in Catholicism and catholic education. Bismarck was no liberal but
he was in a tactical alliance with liberals in the German parliament. The liberals
were against the influence of political Catholicism. Catholicism was a powerful
force of reaction in Europe. In the united Germany it suited Bismarck to placate
the liberals and move against political Catholicism. It also tapped into the
cultural background of Northern Germany which was suspicious of Catholicism
and especially Jesuits. August Reichenspecger said at the time “we ultramontanes
are all to certain extent unclean4 Catholics held loyalties to the Pope over the
mountains in Rome. This made Prussians nervous. In united Germany Catholics
were not totally respectable. The fact that Bismarck would try to marginalize
Catholicism illustrates the extent that united Germany was a greater Prussia.
3
www.zum.de/psm/imperiali#873421
4
Seligmann and Roderich, Germany, 5
German Catholicism cut off from Austria was now a minority religion in a
Protestant empire.

Prussia was the dominant part of the Empire. Sixty per cent of the of the
population and land mass was Prussian. Even with this Bismarck was not
content. His tariff reforms illustrate that he wanted even more influence for
Prussia. Originally funds were raised for the imperial government from the
individual states. Bismarck was against this “every year I have to play the role of
mendicant” he complained5. The Reich had no powers to raise taxes. The Reich
was not sufficiently under Prussian control for Bismarck. So he announced on the
15 of December 1878 that he would place a levy of 1 mark per 100 kg of grain.
What happened next shows that while the German Reich was dominated by
Prussia but the other states still had a degree of autonomy. The Reichstag
refused to accept Bismarck’s measures as he presented them. He eventually
accepted a compromise, Frankstein clause. The Reich was guaranteed 130
million marks raised by customs. Anything in excess of this was given over to the
States. This didn’t provide for all the needs of the empire. This episode illustrates
that the Prussia was anxious to increase its power by increasing the power of the
empire as a whole. But the states and Reichstag were able to resist Prussia’s will
albeit in very minor way. It is the exception that proves the rule because there
are no other case of the states and the Reichstag obstructing Bismarck.

The German Reich founded in 1871 was creation of Prussia. Bismarck was a
reactionary who wanted to preserve the privilege of the Junkers in Prussia and
the Traditional Five power balance of power in Europe. But Bismarck was
extraordinarily astute politician. He would play the forces of nationalism and
liberalism for his own ends. It created an united Germany with universal
suffrage. So doing he placated the liberals and the nationalists. His policies of
Kulturkampf and tariff reform were naked examples of Prussian dominance.
Kulturkampf was protestant Germany attacking Catholic Germany. Tariff reform
was a power grab for the imperial government. The imperial government was
pseudonymous with the Prussian government. The 1871 Reich was formed out
the defeat of Austria, her allies and the ideal of Germany that Austria
represented. The German Reich acted in the interests of Prussia in the domestic
sphere and the balance of Power in Europe.

5
Selgmann and McLean, Germany, 129