Germany: Bismarck Flashcards
What was the Reichstag’s role?
Agree/reject laws and control over the budget
What couldn’t the Reichstag do?
Couldn’t remove the Kaiser or the govt
What was the role of the Kaiser?
Could dissolve Reichstag, and controlled army
Who was the electorate?
Men over 25
What was the Bundesrat?
58 members nominated by state assemblies: 17 from Prussia, 6 from Bavaria and smaller states had just 1 each
What was the Bundesrat’s job role?
Could veto legislation passed by Reichstag
What party were Prussian landowners in?
German Conservative Party
What party were landowners and industrialists in?
Free conservatives
How many royal rulers were in the newly unified Germany?
22
What fraction of the German population was Catholic?
1/3
How frequent were Reichstag elections?
Every 5 years
When was a single German flag created?
1892
What 4 states made up the army?
Bavaria, Prussia, Saxony and Württemberg
What did the 3 class system mean?
Junkers votes were worth 3x than normal votes
The lowest taxpayers represented what % of the population?
85%
How did Bismarck try to limit the Reichstag’s power?
- members weren’t paid
- couldn’t initiate legislation
- Bundesrat
How did the Reichstag remain powerful?
Could control the budget and had parliamentary immunity
Place parties in order from left to right
SAPD Z party National Liberals National Groups DVP DKP
How long did conscription mean all men served for?
2-3 years
Bismarck presented a law that said an army with over 400,000 men would what and when?
Would automatically be financed by federal expenditure in 1874
What % of federal expenditure was spent on the army?
80%
How long were military budgets fixed for at a time?
7 years
When did the National Liberals split
August 1880
What are the benefits of Bismarck’s split with the National Liberals?
Pushed the national liberals into an even more conservative outlook
What are the disadvantages of Bismarck’s split of the National Liberals?
- Z party grew in size
- 2 largest parties were opposed to B
- Lost power over Reichstag
Kulturkampf
What was the aim of the Centre Party?
Sought to protect Catholic rights in 1871
Kulturkampf
Why was Bismarck suspicious of Catholics?
Most had sided with Austria against Prussia in 1866 war + non-Catholic minorities joined the centre party
Kulturkampf
What law and when introduced a range of laws establishing state control over the Catholic Church?
1873 Prussia May Laws
What is the Bread-Basket Law?
Withdrew financial support from any priest who didn’t publically declare his support for the german state
By what year had 1800 priests been jailed or exiled?
1879
Kulturkampf
The German state seized church property worth how many Reichsmarks?
16 million
Kulturkampf
This only increased support of Z party.
By 1878, how many votes did they have?
Same share of the vote as the National Liberals
Kulturkampf
Why did the Kulturkampf end?
- B needed Z party support
- Change in pope who was more willing to talk
- Prussia + royals opposed it
When was the national holiday of Sedantag introduced?
1870 after Battle of Sedan
What was taught at schools?
The Reichsdeutsche identity and nationalism
In the late 1879s, what did Bismarck do to foreign Poles and Jews?
Expel them from Germany and used education + military to enforce German identity on minority groups
How did Bismarck declare socialism was a threat to Germany?
The 2 assassination attempts on Wilhelm I to 1878
What did Bismarck do after declaring socialism a threat?
Dissolve the Reichstag, resulting in reduced votes of National Liberals and SAPD
When did Bismarck pass the anti-socialist legislation that gave police power to randomly search, arrest and exile socialist politicians?
October 1878
Between 1878-90 how many socialists were imprisoned?
1500
By 1890 how many votes did the SPD have and how many seats in the Reichstag?
1 million votes and 35 seats
The War in Sight Crisis
How did it seem France were preparing for war?
Had 800,000 trained men - an increase of 80,000 - and increased French infantry battalions from 3 to 4
The War in Sight Crisis
In what newspaper and when was an article published suggesting the German govt believed a war was in sight?
The Berlin Post - 9th April 1875
The War in Sight Crisis
What caused Bismarck to back down from a possible war?
Talks with Russia and Britain
The War in Sight Crisis
Why did Bismarck feel humiliated?
Discussions between the Tsar and Kaiser had determined German policy, which he’d been excluded from
The War in Sight Crisis
What was weakened by poor relations between Germany and Russia?
The Three Emperors League between Austro-Hungary, Germany and Russia in 1873
How many seats did the Catholic party have?
58
In 1871, what % of votes did the Z party have?
18.6%
