Context

1) The Kaiser and the Constitution

 Germany was only unified in 1871, it was previously just a
collection of states with Prussia being the strongest.
Kaiser Wilhelm II
 The states became unified after successful war against
France in 1870.
 Germany was shaped by the powerful Chancellor Otto
von Bismarck in the 1870s and 1880s. He created a
national coin system, postal service, law system, railway
network and army.
 He also established the constitution which determined
who had power in Germany.
 Wilhelm became Kaiser when his father died of cancer after just 99 days as
Emperor.
 Wilhelm wanted to personally control Germany. He was born with a withered
hand and constantly felt the need to prove himself.
 Wilhelm had unstable moods and often went into violent rages. Historians
agree that his character was not suited to governing the country well, or
leading the army.
 Wilhelm wanted to build a German Empire and give his country its “place in
the sun”. His focus was on boosting Germany’s international position and
status. This was a policy called Weltpolitik (world policy).

Power

 The leader of the country was the Kaiser (emperor). He

alone could choose the Chancellor and his State
Secretaries (ministers). The government ministers
couldn’t do anything without the Kaiser’s agreement.
 There was a Parliament known as the Reichstag. It could
discuss, change and vote on new laws but the Kaiser told
them what they could discuss.
 Political parties started to develop but no party was big
enough to get a majority in the Reichstag. The right-wing
parties used to group together to pass laws but by 1914
Prussia
other parties were growing, like the left-wing Social
Democrat Party which appealed to industrial workers. Prussia was the largest of the 25 German states; it controlled 2/3 of the population
 There was a system of universal suffrage and all men and over half of the territory in Germany.
were able to vote for the members of the Reichstag.
It had a proud military tradition as the “defenders form the hordes from the East.”
 Each of Germany’s 25 states had control over their own
Because of this military chiefs often became ministers in the government and drove
affairs. But this was reduced by the national government
Germany’s policy to focus on expansion and empire.
who passed laws about communication, expanding the
army and navy and social insurance schemes which It also slowed down the development of democratic government; people respected
everyone had to follow. and admired the traditions of the army and so were happy to follow them as leaders
of the country.