Jeśli chodzi o nasz naród: mamy za gorącą krew, mamy upodobanie do zakładania na wątłe ciało zbyt ciężkiego rynsztunku, teraz powinniśmy go użyć. Niemcy nie patrzą na liberalizm Prus, lecz na ich potęgę. Być może Bawaria, Wirtembergia, Badenia tolerują liberalizm, ale nikt im z tego powodu nie przypisze roli Prus; Prusy zaś muszą skupić swoje siły i trzymać je na dogodny moment, kilkakrotnie już przegapiony. Granice Prus po kongresie wiedeńskim nie sprzyjają zdrowej egzystencji państwa; problemów współczesności nie rozstrzyga się przemówieniami i uchwałami większości — to był wielki błąd lat 1848 i 1849 — tylko żelazem i krwią.

Jean-Paul Bled Bismarck. The Iron Chancellor

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Fotografia czarno-biała przedstawiająca portret Otto von Bismarck'a. Postać siedzi na krześle ubrana w mundur, na głowie ma kapelusz. Spod nakrycia głowy można dostrzec siwe włosy.

If Bismarck, like many other political strategists, had a doctrine of his own, it was a doctrine of circumstances. However, before we take a closer look at it, let’s start at the beginning. Bismarck came from a family of noble Prussian landowners. His family, however, did not belong to the aristocracy. He was born in 1815 – in the same year that the decisions of the Congress of Vienna on the prevention of political and social changes that could undermine Europe’s stability. The implementation of those decisions was not entirely successful. Its second task, however – the creation of an European balance of power – remained unchanged.

Bismarck entered politics at the age of 32. He became a deputy to his state Parliament. He became known as an extreme conservative. Bismarck was an opponent of the Revolutions of 1848 so radical that the Prussian King was reluctant to make him a Minister even after the revolution was quelled in Prussia. However, he managed to gradually earn the King’s trust. In 1851, he became a delegate of the Prussian side in the Bundestag – the convention of the representatives of the German rulers or governments. He stayed in this office for eight years, then he spent three years in Petersburg and a few months in Paris as an envoy. Having been called back by the King, he was appointed Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1862. He was at the helm of Prussian politics during the wars with Austria and France, which in turn led to the unification of Germany. Bismarck became the head of the new German government – the Chancellor.

Bismarck treated national emotions instrumentally. He created a state of the German nation, but excluded the Austrians from it, even though they were hitherto (and for many decades to come) considered part of it. He fought against the Poles, as they were an obstacle to the Prussian, and later German statehood. “Their situation invokes my pity, but if we are to survive them, we have no choice but to eliminate them”. Those words are not to be taken literally. Bismarck did not want to exterminate the Poles – he merely sought to germanize them. His attitude was far from ethnic hatred‑fueled nationalism.

He saw two principal tasks ahead of him. In his foreign policy, he sought stabilization and the prevention of France’s revenge by coming to an agreement between Germany, Austria and Russia. In domestic policy, he attempted to uphold the authority of the Emperor, while maintaining the advantage of the conservative forces. He fought against decentralizing tendencies, as well as those veering towards the introduction of elements of social struggle. He saw the former in the Catholic circles, and the latter in the growing influence of the social democrats. Hence the years of culture struggle (KulturkampfKulturkampfKulturkampf) against the Catholics, followed by anti‑socialist laws. Bismarck lost both of the campaigns. In 1890, he was dismissed by the young Emperor, Wilhelm II, who got rid of the Chancellor to rule all by himself. The lone reign of the Emperor ended with World War One, Germany’s defeat, and the Emperor’s abdication.

What were Bismarck’s principles? The first of them was the saying: “The only sane foundation of a strong state is egoism, not sensitivity.” The second was elasticity. In the face of Prussian‑Austrian competition for dominance in Germany, Bismarck thought that: “It would be very unfortunate for Prussia to ally herself with France, but ever if we are not to act on this possibility, we should not clear the suspicions of our partners”. In his foreign policy, the most important principle was that of self‑containment. After Austria’s defeat, he was against imposing humiliating conditions on her in order to prevent revenge. This principle was amiss after the victory over France. The French considered their defeat humiliating already; the conditions imposed upon the state were supposed to weaken it. However, the Prussian self‑containment policy manifested in the state’s endeavors to peacefully stabilize the international situation, as it was Germany that possessed the greatest military power. “It is not about territorial gains, but rather about the concept of global politics in which every single powers except for France would need us”. Bismarck repeated that Germany had become a satiated state.

In the domestic policy department, Bismarck, a conservative, supported the idea of general parliamentary elections, as he wanted to mobilize the national forces and concentrate them around Prussia. In other words: Bismarck decided that, in the situation existing at the time, the mechanics of democracy could be favorable to conservatism. He was ahead of his times as well, having introduced social policies and various social securities. “Why should a disabled war veteran and an elderly state official receive pension, while a soldier of work does not?” This was merely an instrumental measure, as it was meant to block the influence of the socialists and bring an advantage to the conservatives, but, at the same time, created the foundations for the European welfare state policies.

bismarck Source: Jean-Paul Bled, Bismarck. The Iron Chancellor, Warszawa 2013.