Zusammenfassung der Ressource
The 2nd Reich
- Von Bülow
- Flottenpolitk
- Building up of the Navy to rival UK
- Justified to protect Empire
- Risk Theory - no one would risk
attackign as the Naxy is so large
- 1900 Navy Law - build 38
battleships in 20 years
- 1906 Navy Law - build Dreadnoughts
+ widen Kiel Canal
- Weltpolitik
- Expansion of the Empire through
colonies and economic influence
- wanted 'a place in the sun'
- Limited influence - a few African
and pacific colonies
- Herero Crisis
- Deliberate killing 65,000 of
native South West Africans
- Caused political crisis - murderous and
unrully army, caused political conflict
- Reforms
- 1899 - Old Age and
Invalidity Law
- 1902 - Tariff Law - restored high
duty on foreign goods
- 1903 - Sickness
Insurance Law extended
- Children's working hours reduced
- 1907 - Hottentot Election
- May 1906 - Centre party + SPD voted against
new budget for a new colony railway
- To get his own way the Kaiser dissolved
Reichstag and called new elections
- 1908 - Daily Telegraph Affair
- 1. Kaiser gave an interview to
British newspaper saying he
wnated closer ties with UK
- 2.Reichstag objected
to foreign policy ideas
without consultation
- 3. Kaiser blamed Bülow for
not censoring the interview
- 4.Kaiser guranteed it
wouldn't happen again
- 5. Contrubuted to Bülow's downfall
- Unification
- formed 1871
- Prussia dominant state
- Formed by:
- Zollverin Trade Union
- Wars
- 1848 - Shleswig-Holstein
- 1866 - Austrian-Prussian
- 1870 - Franco-Prussian
- Under Willhelm I
- Constitution
- 25 states, all kept own Government
- Created by Bismarck-
preserve power of the elite
- Kaiser
- Controlled Foreign &
diplomatic affairs
- Controlled the Army
- Appointed + dismissed Chancellor
- Could dissolve Reichstag
- Personality Important
- Bundesrat
- Upper House of parliment
- 58 seats - 17 Prussian
- Made Laws
- 3 class franchise electorate
- Change Constitution
- Reichstag
- Lower House of parliment
- Mainly dealt with Finance
- All men over 25 could vote
- Chancellor, military + Kaiser not
responsible to Reichstag
- Army
- Only Responsible to Kaiser
- Acted in interest of
Kaiser, not the state
- Right to declare Martial Law
- Prussian elite officers
- Chancellor
- Responsible to kaiser alone
- Appoint + dismiss Secretaries
- Could Ignore Reichstag
- Difficult to co-op with Willhelm II
- Political Parties
- Conservatives
- Conservatives
- Junkers + Prussians
- Supported Kaiser, nationalistic
- Free Conservatives
- Industrialists,
wealthy professionals
- Supported Bismarck,
protectionism
- Liberals
- National Liberals
- Industrialists, middles classes
- Supported Kulterkampf,
nationalistic
- Liberal Progressives
- Middle classes
- Development of parliment,
against Bismarck
- Centre Party
- Catholics, working classes,
lower middle classes
- Against Kulterkampf,
feared socialism
- Social Democrats
- Working class, socialists
- Marxists + Reformists
- Bethmann-Höllweg
- 1913 - Zabern Affair
- 1. German Officer insulted locals in Alsace
- 2. Officer was jeered at in streets
- 3.locals were imprisoned
and a siege began
- 4.Kaiser saw it as a
military matter - sent in
reinforcments, prevented
Chancellor's involvment
- 5.Reichstag vote of no confidence
ignored by Chancellor
- Willhelm II
- Preceded by Willhelm
I, then Frederick
- Came to throne aged 29
- Unhappy childhood
- Damaged left arm and ear
- Believed in Divine Right
- Poor decision maker
- Did not believe
in democracy
- Socialist Movement
- Banned under Bismarck, 1878-90,
did not dampen enthusiasm
- 1914 - 2.5 million in unions,
400,000 went on strike
- 1910 - SPD had 720,000
members, 75% working
class vote
- 1912 - SPD was largest
party in Reichstag
- 1891 - Bebel
- Work legally to achieve worker
ownership of production
- rejected co-op with 'bourgeois'
- Believed revolution
was inevitable
- 1900 - Bernstein
- No crisis of capitalism
- Look for reform
- SPD should co-op when appropriate
- Luxemburg + Liebknecht
- Revolution should
be considered
- Use general strikes