government and opposition kaiser wilhelm 1 and bismark Flashcards
what was kaiser wilhelm 1 personality
prussian aristocrat
enjoyed state occasions and military ceremonies
74 years old in 1871
old fashioned
allowed Bismarck to take initiative on political matters
how did bismarck use is power to get what he wanted
he manipulated the Kaiser with temper tantrums and frequent threats of resignation
what was Bismarck’s personality
intelligent
hard working
love / hate relationship with kaiser
loathed working with the reichstag
in 1871 which political parties supported Bismarck’s view for a united germany
national liberals
imperial liberals
free conservatives
how many laws did the Reichstag pass to make administrative and economic unity to Germany
100
when was the reich bank established
1876
new currency called the mark which was backed by gold
name 5 laws put in place by the reichstag to unify germany
- abolition of tariffs
- single weight and measurement system
3.national postal and telegraph service - single court system and supreme court
- support for extension of railway network across the empire
what were the reasons for kulturekampf
catholics were only 37% of the population but strong in southern states
church was financially independent and had its own schools and political parties
zentrum was second largest party in Reichstag in 1871 and bismarck feared it would oppose his ideas to unify germany
thought attacking catholics would gain him protestant supporters
why did the liberals support kulturekampf
in 1864 the pope said to oppose the liberals
so zentrum party ideas were completely opposite to the liberal party
what did Bismarck do against the catholic church under kulturekampf
1871 press campaign shown zentrum as Bismarck’s enemies
catholic section of prussian ministry for religion and education is abolished
1872 diplomatic relations with vatican were broken
jesuits were forbidden from preaching in prussian schools
how many seats did the zentrum party win in 1874 elections
91
what were the issues with kulturekampf
zentrum party leader ludwig windhorst organised national resistance tours
divisions in the empire intensified
1874 catholic barrel makers tried to assassinate bismarck
protestants began to question Bismarck’s views on religious freedoms
what were the may laws of 1873
only applied to prussia :
catholic education came under state supervision
only people who had passed german stat exams could become priests
existing priests had to re train and prove their loyalty to the state
state financial aid to the catholic church ended
prussian catholics were deprived of certain legal rights
what other actions against the catholic church took place across the empire
1874 - responsibility of recording birth death and marriages was given to the state
all states had the right to restrict freedom of movement for clergy
why did kulturekampf end in 1878
bismarck wanted a closer relationship with austria
he wanted to abolish free trade which would loose his liberal support so would require backing from the centre party
protestants were growing against kulturekampf and he needeed their support
socialism with a bigger threat than catholicism
