One result of the Franco-Prussia War of 1870 was the creation of the German Empire. Otto von Bismark was the father of this German unification, and created the first German kaiser, William I. With himself as chancellor of Germany, Bismark carried out various reforms to create his dream antisolcialist empire. These reforms greatly affected the livelihood of the German princes, all the way down to the working classes.
To win popular support for his reforms, Bismark exploited existing democratic and socialist sentiment. He demanded that members of the Reichstag, the lower chamber, be elected by universal male suffrage. Using this provision to his advantage, Bismark usually tried to keep the majority of the Reichstag on his side, but he upheld the doctrine that the emperor and his chancellor governed the country. Moreover, the legislative powers of the lower house were severely restricted, and the upper chamber, representing the princes, tended to be more important. Because of this,......
Join Now or Login to view the rest of this paper.
Approximate Word Count: 445
Approximate Pages: 2 (260 words per double-spaced page) |