Chapter 14: The unification of Germany
Further reading
The best introduction to German history during this period is W. Carr, A History of Germany,
1815–1945 (London, Arnold, 1969). For fuller coverage consult J.J. Sheehan, Germany
History, 1770–1866 (Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1989) and G.A. Craig, Germany,
1866–1945 (Oxford University Press, 1978). A useful collection of essays is to be found in J.
Breuilly (ed.), The State of Germany: the National Idea and the Making, Unmaking and
Remaking of a Modern Nation State (London, Longman, 1992). The unification of Germany
is covered specifically in A. Stiles, The Unification of Germany, 1850–1890 (London,
Arnold, 1986). A very full and illuminating account of Prussia’s history is provided by
Christopher Clark’s Iron Kingdom: the Rise and Downfall of Prussia, 1600–1947 (London,
Allen Lane, 2006). It considers the unique contribution made by Prussia to German history,
both for good and ill. There are many biographies of Bismarck. The best brief introduction is
by B. Waller, Bismarck (Oxford, Blackwell, 1985). On the personal level see W. Richter,
Bismarck (London, Macdonald, 1964) and A.J.P. Taylor, Bismarck: the Man and the
Statesman (London, Arrow, 1955). For a fuller and more recent account see Lothar Gall,
Bismarck the White Revolutionary, 2 vols (London, Unwin Hyman, 1982). C. Grant
Robertson, Bismarck (London, Constable, 1918) has much valuable documentary material. A
recent brief but very thoroughly researched study that covers the whole of Bismarck’s life
and career is by Katherine Anne Lerman, Bismarck, Profiles in Power (London, Longman,
2004). The most extensive biography, written originally in German, is by Otto Pflanze, in
three volumes: Bismarck and the Development of Modern Germany: 1: The Period of
Unification 1815–71, II: The Period of Consolidation 1871–1880, III: The Period of
Fortification 1880–1898 (Princeton, NJ, Princeton University Press, 1990). For a summary of
recent interpretations of Bismarck, see Bruce Waller, ‘Bismarck and the Historians’, New
Perspective, vol. 8, no. 2, December 2002, New light on Bismarck himself and on his role in
the creation and early history of the German empire is shed by Jonathan Steinberg in
Bismarck: a Life (Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2011). Two useful collections of source
material are H. Bohme (ed.), The Foundation of the German Empire (Oxford, Oxford
University Press, 1971) and M. Gorman, The Unification of Germany (Cambridge,
Cambridge University Press, 1989).
Websites
The best website for German history is German History in Documents and Images,
http://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org/about.cfm
It is subdivided into periods, the relevant ones being 1815–1866, 1866–1890 and 1890–1918.
Each section is further divided into topic areas, and each document or image is listed and
numbered within the topic area.
The following documents have been selected for their relevance and importance in the story
of German unification. Maps and images have not been selected but are well worth
examining.
1815–1866
Government and administration: confederation or nation state?
2. German Federal Act (8 June 1815)
3. Carlsbad Decrees; Confederation Press Law (20 September 1819)
4. Final Act of the Viennese Ministerial Conference (15 May 1820)
12. Excerpt from Bismarck’s ‘Blood and Iron’ speech (30 September 1862)
Parties and organisation
5. The Conservatives: Friedrich Julius Stahl ‘What is the Revolution?
6. The Liberals: Founding Program of the German Progressive Party (9 June 1861)
7. The Socialists: Ferdinand Lassalle, Excerpt from ‘Open Letter’ (1863)
Military and war
1. Carl von Clausewitz, Excerpts from On War (1833), see especially pp. 23–29
4. Helmuth von Moltke, Memorial on the Possible War between Prussia and Austria (1866)
1866–1890
Politics: Forging an empire
1. Bismarck’s Diplomatic and Military Gambling through British Eyes (February–August,
1866), The Diplomatic Reminiscences of Lord Augustus Loftus, British Ambassador to
Prussia
4. Bismarck remembers the Evening the Ems Despatch was edited (13 July 1870)
13. Count Friedrich von Beust in praise of the German Confederation (1887)
18. Constitution of the German Empire (16 April 1871)
27. August Bebel, speech in the Reichstag (8 November 1871)