Shift In Power From Austria To Prussia example essay topic

The Congress of Vienna had been a meeting of the powers, to dictate the borders and boundaries of Europe. When they re - divided the Confederation of the Rhine into the Confederation of the Germanic states Austria became the dominant power in this area, at least initially. By 1866 Prussia was now the dominant power in Germany and how they got there is quite clever. The Unification of Germany is a result of the shift in power from Austria to Prussia. The first step that began Prussia down the road of power was when Bismarck is appointed President - Minister of Prussia. He was appointed to help the King solve his financial problems.

The parliament was refusing him funding to build his military. Bismarck managed to find the funding by using loopholes in the parliamentary responsibilities. He gained the funding from the budgets that weren't directly under their control. He also used these loopholes to solve the problem of crown vs. parliamentary stalemates. He established the L"uckentheorie (the gap theory), which determined that in a stalemate between parliament and crown, the crown, would always "win". During this time Prussia also went through a massive industrialization period.

The period increased the contents of the Prussian coffers significantly which allowed for greater expansion of the military as well as funding for any campaigns Prussia would wage in the future. This all helped Bismarck establish a policy of militarism among the Prussia country. While Bismarck is scheming about ways to unite Germany under Prussian rule an opportunity arises that he can't say no to. For years the duchies of Holstein and Schleswig, both part german and part Danish, had been the private property of the Danish king. When the Danish parliament made a move to include these as a part of Denmark Bismarck saw the perfect opportunity to gain more control. Bismarck used the attempted annexation to declare war on the Danes in 1864.

Prussia and Austria both attack the Danish and defeat them. In the end Prussia will end up with Schleswig and Austria will gain Holstein. Although Schleswig was closer to the Danish border Prussia also manage to isolate Holstein from Austria simply by the fact that she was so far away. Holstein would become a bone of contention between the Austrians and the Prussians. Prussia delighted in treating Holstein as if it were its own state as opposed to an Austrian country. Another opportunity that Bismarck would seize with both hands is the Convention of Gastein.

The agreement that was signed between the Austrians and the Prussians exhibited a shift in power from Austria to Prussia. The entire document is layered with concessions of Austria to Prussia. Several examples of this are the power given to Prussia to establish fortifications and a Naval base around the German Fleet in the harbor of Kiel. All of the concessions granted gave Prussia the opportunity to establish strategic military advantages for the upcoming Austro - Prussian war.

In this same year a "vote" is held so that Prussia and Austria would learn which Germanic states supported whom. Prussia made several promises of a new council with more liberal policies to attract more states to their side. Although they did attract more attention Austria still came out on top. Despite this Prussia still walked out of the confederation, declaring it disbanded.

Many of the smaller states would follow their lead. This would cause an unprepared Austria to declare war on the already mobilized Prussia. Prior to the walkout of the Prussians Bismarck was aware that there would be an Austro - Prussian war. He planned this carefully before provoking the Austrians. He knew that Prussia couldn't afford to face two great powers at once and so he took steps to neutralize the other great powers. England, a major concern for Bismarck, was at the time more interested in her colonies then what Prussia was doing so when the war broke out it happened to fast for her to intervene.

Russia and Austria were already at odds with each other and so Bismarck gained favor with Russia by offering them military support to put down the Polish revolt. This is known as the Alvensleben Convention. The final problem was France. Bismarck solved this problem by promising them "compensation" in the form of land should they help Prussia instead of Austria.

With all the powers neutralized Bismarck could then provoke a war with Austria. The Austro - Prussian war itself was the final straw in breaking the Austrians power. Since Bismarck was already mobilized when Austria declared war she was able to attack Austria while Austria was still struggling to mobilize. Instead of an offensive war in Prussian territory Austria was now facing a defensive war on their own lands. France also began to mobilize to aid the war efforts, which is why Bismarck needed to act and fast. He had no intention of actually providing the French with a reason to claim "compensation" for their help; he also didn't want France gaining any ground in Germany itself.

He moved in and defeated Austria in seven weeks in 1866. He does halt the attack before it reaches Vienna to avoid insulting the Austrians. The Nikolsburg Memorandum is signed on July 24 of 1866 to create peace with Austria. The United Germany snowballed after this point with, as Bismarck had dreamt, Prussia holding the power. Bismarck was the major moving force behind Prussia's climb to power. His "vision" would lead to Prussia exploiting the opportunities that were given for their own greater good.

Obviously there would be the Franco - Prussian war before the actual unification of Germany but Prussia was reaching its pinnacle of power in 1866.