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German History > National Minorities + Kulturkampf > Flashcards

National Minorities + Kulturkampf Flashcards

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1
Q

Why did Bismarck face so many challenges trying to achieve full unification of Germany post 1871?

A

All states had different traditions, history, languages, religions, cultures etc
All states wanted to protect their power, rights and customs

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2
Q

What was Bismarck’s initial move to bring the states together?

A

1871 election: NL won 125/397 seats, largest single party

Von Bennigsen- NL leader was willing to cooperate with Bismarck to help achieve full unification-> agreed to 100+ acts to help thing along

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3
Q

What was Bismarck’s second move to achieve full unification?

A

Dealing with minority groups to bring order in Germany -There were substantial minority groups who didn’t want to be part of the unification

  • 2.3 million Poles
  • Jews in East Prussia
  • Danes in Schleswig-Holstein
  • French in Alsace Lorraine
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4
Q

What were the minority groups in Germany known as?

A

Reichsfeinde

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5
Q

Why was Bismarck concerned about the minority groups?

A

the Security implications of having these groups around Germany’s border

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6
Q

Where is the Danish Minority found?

A

Schleswig-Holstein
- Schleswig occupied by Prussia in 1864
- Holstein in 1866’

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7
Q

How did the Danes react to unification?

A

Keen to join Denmark
- Formed their own party in the Reichstag, resented being governed by Berlin
- Some refused to take German citizenship test + some were deported-> Danes looked to Denmark even more to keep their culture alive

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8
Q

How did Bismarck respond to the Danes?

A

Promised Austria in 1866 a direct vote would be held on the future of North Schleswig, but later abandoned this promise
- Bismarck followed a policy of ‘Germanisation’-> 1878 onwards, German was the only language permitted in schools in that region

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9
Q

How did the unification of the Danes end?

A

World War 1, Schleswig returned to Denmark

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10
Q

Where was the French Minority found?

A

Alsace + Lorraine
- Territory won by France in Franco Prussian war, 1871

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11
Q

How did the French feel about unification?

A
  • Most inhabitants spoke French, those who spoke German as a first language still considered themselves more French
  • Alsace repeatedly elected officials who were committed to the separation of the area from Germany
    Prussian civil servants ran the lower levels of government-> German was the language of education + administration
  • Strong Pro-French citizens were asked to leave the area-> around 400,000 people left between 1870-1914
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12
Q

How did Bismarck/the government respond to the French?

A

French faced a milder approach to other minorities
- Bismarck promoted the revival of Strasbourg University + appointed humane and conscientious governors, who were conciliatory towards the French

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13
Q

How did the unification of the French end?

A

Zabern Affair of 1913- German soldiers attacked Alsace
- shows they were never fully united
- 1918: area became French again, population drove out German troops in triumph

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14
Q

Where was the Poles minority found?

A

Mainly came from East Prussia
- acquired by the dismemberment of Poland in the 18th century

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15
Q

What stake did Poles have in Germany?

A

Spoke Polish, so shared bond with other Poles under Russian or Austrian rule
Poles were largest non-German minority in the Reich-> independant Polish state would claim many Prussian territories and make Germans living in these areas a minority

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16
Q

How did Bismarck respond to the Poles?

A

Tried to Germanise the Poles by encouraging internal colonisation by Germans of the Polish area
- German was only language permitted in schools in Polish speaking areas + the sole language of commerce in 1876
- Bismarck’s attack on the Catholic church also weakened the cultural tradition of the Poles-> their Catholic leader was imprisoned, people were left without a religious leader for 12 years
- 1885-6: Bismarck expelled 34,000 Poles and Jews who he claimed has crossed into Germany through Russia and Austria, despite protestations from the Reichstag

17
Q

How did Poles feel about the unification + Bismarck’s retaliation against them?

A
  • Bismarck’s approach forced Poles into a defensive position + made them more determined to hold their own culture
  • Poles continued to form their own clubs, publish Polish newspapers, worship as Polish Catholics, form own Polish political party
18
Q

How did the unification of the Poles end?

A

Germanisation had some effect, but there was still some discrimination as Poles within Germany were seen as separate and lesser people

19
Q

Where were the Jews minority found?

A

Found throughout Germany, mainly in urban areas

20
Q

What was the Jews stake in Germany at the time?

A

Largely middle class
Placed value on education and hard work-> made them socially mobile
Very successful group (financiers, businessmen, traders etc)-> this drew in envy from others

21
Q

How did Bismarck respond to the Jews?

A

Jews blamed as scapegoats for the economic depression in mid-1870’s
Bismarck didn’t seem personally anti-Semitic, he never publicly opposed it
Did at one point seek the endorsement of an anti Semitic party
1885-6: Bismarck expelled 34,000 Poles and Jews who he claimed crossed into Germany from Russia and Austria, despite protestations in the Reichstag

22
Q

How did other Germans respond to the Jews?

A

1878: Christian Socialist Worker’s Party was founded as an anti-Semitic party by Adolf Stoeker
- Due to popularity with lower middle classes, Bismarck briefly sought out Stoeker’s support
- Later, Bismarck came to regard Stoeker with disfavour + forced him to withdraw from public affairs in 1889

Jews had full legal equality and contributed greatly to the German economy BUT were continually the victims of violence and some political parties continued to adopt discriminatory policies
Jews may have held a dual identity of both Jewish and German, but Germans may not have regarded them as German.

23
Q

What was Bismarck’s most determined stand against minorities?

A

His stance against Catholics during the first 7 years as Chancellor

24
Q

What percentage of Germans were Catholic and Protestant?

A

39% Catholic
61% Protestant

25
Q

What is the Kulturkampf?

A

Bismarck’s attacks on the Catholic Church

26
Q

Why did Bismarck end the Kulturkampf?

A
  • Bismarck wanted a closer alliance with Catholic Austria and feared the Anti-Catholic policies would stand in his way
  • Suspected the Centre Party was giving support for those in France seeking revenge for the seizure of Alsace-Lorraine
  • Wanted to change his economic policy, which would lose him support of the National Liberals, therefore could not afford to have the Centre Party as an ‘enemy’ (pragmatic)
  • Wanted to build up support of Protestant Conservatives, who didn’t like that the Kulturkampf was promoting a general anti-clericalism in Germany
  • Bismarck felt the working support for socialism posed an even greater threat to German unity. The Catholic church had declared opposition to Socialism, so Bismarck felt he could use the Centre Party against this new enemy
  • Trigger factor of new pope (Opportunistic)
  • Was increasing support of the centre party
  • Free trade by 1878, people have to encourage connections with other countries (German farmers could make money from renting their land, but now cheaper resources from elsewhere means business dries out). National liberals like free trade, Junkers don’t like free trade-> Bismarck creates alliance with the far right
27
Q

What are causes of the Kulturkampf?

A
  • Bismarck believed loyalty to the state should come before all else
  • Zentrum, the Catholic Centre Party, was set up in 1870 to protect Catholic interest. Gained 58 deputies in Reichstag in 1871, supported by the Poles, French and Southern German states. Bismarck feared they would encourage civil disobedience when policies of church and state conflicted
  • Catholicism was strong in the South. These states previously looked to Austria for leadership and were the last to join the German empire.
  • 1874, Zentrum won 91 seats became 2nd largest party in Reichstag, threatening Bismarck’s ability to control the majority
  • 1870, Doctrine of Papal Infallibility was released: In matters of morality and faith the Pope could not be wrong-> leads Catholics to difficult choices between the church and country
  • Prussia and the Junker class were staunchly Protestant. Bismarck was a devout Pietist Lutheran
  • The new leader of Zentrum, Ludwig Windhorst, was a skilled and courageous parliamentary debater and under his leadership the party rapidly increased in numbers
  • 1864, Pope Pius IX released ‘Syllabus of Errors’ declaring the church was opposed to liberalism, nationalism, and ‘recent’ civilisation
28
Q

Was the Kulturkampf successful?

A
  • Catholic church continued to thrive despite the recession
  • Persecution created martyrs and encouraged greater resistance
  • Convinced many Catholics that they should support the Centre Party to defend their interests
  • Centre Party leader Windhorst organised meetings and ‘national resistance’ tours to attack the Kulturkampf and unite Catholic voters
    1874: 91 seats in the Reichstag (less than the liberals but 2x the next largest party)
  • Kulturkampf only made the growing problems in minority areas worse (among Poles and people of Alsace-Lorraine), and German Protestants expressed unease with Bismarck’s attack on religious freedom.
29
Q

What was the excuse/final straw Bismarck used to end the Kulturekampf?

A

Death of Pope Pius IX-> a more liberal pope replaced him (Pope Leo XIII)
- Leo immediately wrote to Bismarck to express his wish for reconciliation
- The May Laws were blamed solely on Falk who was forced to resign
1880, the repeal of these laws began HOWEVER not all laws were repealed
- Civil marriages continued
- Jesuits were still not allowed into Germany

30
Q

What happened after the end of the Kulturkampf with Bismarck and the Pope?

A
  • Bismarck’s subsequent relations with the Pope were good ie 1885, Bismarck proposed the Pope as a mediator in Germany’s colonial dispute with Spain
31
Q

What happened after the end of the Kulturkampf with the Centre Party?

A

Centre Party increased its seats further to 100 in 1881.
Leo XIII encouraged the party to support the existence of the German empire, so in the long term unity was strengthened

32
Q

What did the Kulturkampf show about Bismarck?

A

Highlighted Bismarck’s qualities as a politician
- supreme opportunist who was able to move from persecution to conciliation to strengthen his position in the Reichstag and facilitate the policy change he desired

33
Q

What does the National Liberals being Anticlerical mean?

A

They believe religion restricts the freedom of thought

34
Q

What are the May laws/Falk laws?

A

The anti Catholic laws of 1873

German History (9 decks)

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