This is a visual representation of what the Holy Roman Empire looked like in 1789; this is a wonderful representation of the separation of Germany before the unification.
After large events like The Thirty Years War that destroyed Germany and the Treaty of Westphalia which separated Germany, we see a decline of the Holy Roman Empire and an uprising in the power of stronger, united countries, like France. The fall of the Holy Roman Empire (eventually destroyed by France in 1806) finally gave Germany its rights to become a nation, where they could all be German, however, most Germans did not seek or desire this unification because they were so separated. The decline of this Empire was just the beginning for a physically and emotionally united Germany. However, the increasing power of France brought Germany down, as it was a destroyed, weak country. To identify Germany at this point (early-1800's), we should call it Prussia.
Prussia was in and out of country-wide despair. There were multiple rebellions from its citizens because of famine, disagreements, etc (92). In order to be successful in having a chance against the powerhouse of France, Prussia did the most inconceivable thing and joined forced with Austria; this would be a short-lived partnership. This partnership correlated in time with the partnership of France and Russia, which was to be feared among Europe. In order to show progress of unity, the 300 provinces of "Germany" were downsized into about 30, symbolic of progress but still a lot more to go.
This depiction of Prussia helps us define the borders and location that is Prussia, as it is crucial to our understanding of German unification.
Prussia was in and out of country-wide despair. There were multiple rebellions from its citizens because of famine, disagreements, etc (92). In order to be successful in having a chance against the powerhouse of France, Prussia did the most inconceivable thing and joined forced with Austria; this would be a short-lived partnership. This partnership correlated in time with the partnership of France and Russia, which was to be feared among Europe. In order to show progress of unity, the 300 provinces of "Germany" were downsized into about 30, symbolic of progress but still a lot more to go.
At this point, Prussia seeks to come out on top, no matter what the outcome may be, even though"it became more difficult than ever to say what Germany actually was" (102). As France, under Napoleon's rule, made its presence clear among Prussians, however, terms like "fatherland" and "nation" became cries for unification, as a united force against Germany (104). Here, we see the beginning of the birth of a German nation. Simply put, as these forces and battles carried on, France took some major blows, and was slowly declining while German unity was rising. In a way, French forces were causing damage to Germany physically, but giving Germany a reason to come together as a nation to fight one common enemy, and finding common ground in nationhood. Time passes, and we can see that "the shape of a future German national state had been visible only in the barest outlines. There were increasing references to 'German people' and the 'German fatherland,' but as a rule these terms were used to heighten the contrast with the enemy, the French.." (117). Although these times were trying and Germans still were experiencing hardships like famine and national confusion for identity, the years following 1840 saw a rebirth in German nationhood (119). Germans finally saw eye-to-eye on nationhood and liberal opposition, as they were after the same goals. In this, we see that Prussia finally has the right mentality to become a united Germany, as explained in the text.
A glimpse by the Brandenburg Gate of what the wars and battles brought on by Napoleon and the French Empire might have looked like while they were occurring in the early 1800's.
In the last 30 or so years before Prussia evolves into Germany, we can see a birth of German social standards and goals being set. Also, the end is coming for French domination with the help of Otto von Bismarck. Of course, this was not without dispute amongst citizens. There was a desire for a German future that included the ideas of Great Germany (all German regions, Austria, and lead by a Hapsburg emperor) and Small Germany (exclude Austrian areas and would be ruled by a Hohenzollern emperor) (125-126). A small group was trying to fight for a democratic Germany at this point, but this notion was halted rather quickly. Prussia could not achieve German unity yet, because of disputes like the future of Germany, and they established a constitution in November of 1848 (127). It was still clear that this large land could not be unified as long as goods moved slowly. At this point, the first German railway line was open, which opened up jobs for many citizens, and an economic boom took place because this (and other) labor was cheap (131). From this point on, Germany sees like revolts because of hardships of the past, like famine or pauperism (the great social threat to Europe's future in the first half of the century) (132). Because of industrialization, it transformed Germany's society to shape this emotional and mental bond for a progressive route to a united country.
Politically, however, Germany saw an uprise in nationalistic notions, yet again. Napoleon's nephew, Napoleon III tried to influence Italy and challenged Austria in doing so. This was not going to bring Germany down again. Around this time, 1862, Otto von Bismarck was named the new prime minister, and he viewed this job as a goal and the means to which he could achieve higher aims (138). In doing so, he needed to separate from Austria, and he did once they defeated them in an Austrian-declared war. Austria ejected from Germany and all ties were dissolved from these two. Next, Bismarck sought to take down France in order to achieve dominance. At this point, another short war took place between a weakening France and a powerful Germanic country. After a quick win, Germany had established itself as one of the most dominant countries, and finally, it became an official united country. This unification finally occurred after a peace treaty from France (weakened them) and King William I of Prussia was declared the German emperor on January 18, 1871 (145). Finally, a united Germany existed for years to come.
A photo representation of Otto von Bismarck, the leader who set and achieved goals for German dominance.
A depiction of a new, unified German map - 1871.
Apart from all of these issues, there are many others that deserved to be explored through this nationhood foundation. There are many compelling parts of German history, especially while exploring its journey into unification. One, in particular, that stood out to me is the large issue of famine and hunger/food in general. Although it is quite a small idea, the largeness of it throughout Germany is what was interesting to me. Too often, when students look at large political issues, we forget what it must have been like to experience life as a German/Prussian citizen. One of the main causes of revolt in the provinces was due to hunger and people were not being fed. According to the chart on page 115, most people survived off of grains until even grains became too expensive for people to eat. With this becoming too expensive, it is no wonder why there was so much anger in the provinces, as people were struggling to wrap their heads around nationhood when they were not guaranteed their next meal or day. How were they to be expected to look to the future when the governments and leaders of Germany could only think of the physical future of Germany? What would a future Germany be if these people were to die from lack of nourishment? This issue seems to be more important in the provinces and less important in the grand scheme of nationhood, although I view it as a common ground for the citizens to agree on something and gain that German identity together, even though it was through hardships.
It was through these hardships that Germany was founded in unification. It is compelling to me to think that through such traumatic times like poverty and undernourishment, that Germans came to a unified identity and nation. Without going through these hardships, would Germany be the same nation that we see today? I doubt that it would be the same. Take the German flag for example, the colors were used in times of revolution, but now they are used on the flag to symbolize unification throughout the nation. Also, it is strange to think that Germans today are finally unified, but they do not show national pride, like we talked about in class. We know the colors of the German flag, but you will not see them waving at national events and on national holidays. They have lost this sense of unification and pride, even though they finally have it. With hardships, war, conflicting and controversial occurrences happening in Germany, it is not surprising to see that they are wary to raise their unified flag high. In class, we also learned that Germans do not deny their history, either. They are very apt to show the dark side of their history, and are not ashamed to keep remnants of it around to remind them of times past. One would think that a country that is so modern, innovative, prosperous, and known worldwide would have some pride in that. They are too often carrying around burdens from the past and memories of the hardships they endured to be proud. German society came up from principalities, confusion and a spread community and triumphed to become one, great, nation. To me, this is compelling because it is seen as amazing to the people of today. To think that Germans were not even considered a united term, like Germany, and were starving people, literally, and became prosperous in unification is amazing. That is why Germany is so revolutionary, in more ways than one.
It was through these hardships that Germany was founded in unification. It is compelling to me to think that through such traumatic times like poverty and undernourishment, that Germans came to a unified identity and nation. Without going through these hardships, would Germany be the same nation that we see today? I doubt that it would be the same. Take the German flag for example, the colors were used in times of revolution, but now they are used on the flag to symbolize unification throughout the nation. Also, it is strange to think that Germans today are finally unified, but they do not show national pride, like we talked about in class. We know the colors of the German flag, but you will not see them waving at national events and on national holidays. They have lost this sense of unification and pride, even though they finally have it. With hardships, war, conflicting and controversial occurrences happening in Germany, it is not surprising to see that they are wary to raise their unified flag high. In class, we also learned that Germans do not deny their history, either. They are very apt to show the dark side of their history, and are not ashamed to keep remnants of it around to remind them of times past. One would think that a country that is so modern, innovative, prosperous, and known worldwide would have some pride in that. They are too often carrying around burdens from the past and memories of the hardships they endured to be proud. German society came up from principalities, confusion and a spread community and triumphed to become one, great, nation. To me, this is compelling because it is seen as amazing to the people of today. To think that Germans were not even considered a united term, like Germany, and were starving people, literally, and became prosperous in unification is amazing. That is why Germany is so revolutionary, in more ways than one.
Although Germans/Prussians faced many hardships together, they were all starting to come together under these three colors, which now represent their entire country as a whole. These colors have been present with them since earlier revolts and now it represents unity on their flag.
Overall, through this long period of Germanic separation, we see how the German state was founded, through wars and a need to come together as a dominant force. German identity evolved as well, through nationalistic notions of coming together to revolt against hardships, unification through cheap labor and an increasing desire to become one nation. Looking back, it is incredibly captivating to read and study how a country was once so torn apart, and today, we only think of how progressive and united this area is.
Word count: 1,877
Citations:
(n.d.). Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://www.german-flag.org/german-640.gif
Iron and Blood – The German Wars of Unification. (n.d.). Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://eisenundblut.wordpress.com/tag/otto-von-bismarck/
Map of German unification. (n.d.). Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://www.age-of-the-sage.org/history/map_german_unification.html
Map of Prussia 1648-1795 - Territorial Expansion. (n.d.). Retrieved October 15, 2014.
Napoleonic Wars. (2014, October 15). Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napoleonic_Wars
Our Maps of the 18th Century-and Theirs. (2011, April 8). Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://www.geocurrents.info/geopolitics/our-maps-of-the-18th-century-and-theirs
Schulze, Hagen. Germany: A New History. Cambridge, MA: Harvard UP, 1998. Print.
Citations:
(n.d.). Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://www.german-flag.org/german-640.gif
Iron and Blood – The German Wars of Unification. (n.d.). Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://eisenundblut.wordpress.com/tag/otto-von-bismarck/
Map of German unification. (n.d.). Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://www.age-of-the-sage.org/history/map_german_unification.html
Map of Prussia 1648-1795 - Territorial Expansion. (n.d.). Retrieved October 15, 2014.
Napoleonic Wars. (2014, October 15). Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napoleonic_Wars
Our Maps of the 18th Century-and Theirs. (2011, April 8). Retrieved October 15, 2014, from http://www.geocurrents.info/geopolitics/our-maps-of-the-18th-century-and-theirs
Schulze, Hagen. Germany: A New History. Cambridge, MA: Harvard UP, 1998. Print.
Wolf, G.H. "Germany." GLS 362 Meeting, Room 11, Oesterle Library, Naperville. 24 September, 2014. Lecture.
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