(1815-1898), Germanic statesman, Reichschancellor Germanskoy Empire. Born April 1, 1815 in family estate Schö²nhausen in Brandenburg, the third son of Ferdinand von
Bismarck-Schö²nhausen and Wilhelmine Mencken, at birth received the name of
Otto Eduard Leopold.
In 17 years,
Bismarck entered the University of Gottingen, where he studied law. When he was a student earned a reputation as a fighter and revelers, differed in dueling matches. In 1835 received a diploma and was soon enlisted to work in the Berlin Municipal Court. In 1837 he was appointed assessor in Aachen, a year later - the same office in Potsdam. There he joined the Guards regiment of Chasseurs. In autumn 1838 he moved to
Bismarck, Greifswald, where in addition to the performance of their military duties he studied methods of breeding animals in Eldenskoy Academy. Cash loss of his father, along with an innate aversion to the life of the Prussian civil servant in 1839 forced him to leave the service and to assume the leadership of family possessions in Pomerania.
Bismarck continued his education, taking the works of Hegel, Kant, Spinoza, D. Strauss and Feuerbach. In addition, he traveled to England and France. Later joined pietists.
After his father's death in 1845, the family property was divided and
Bismarck received estates Schö²nhausen and Kniphof in Pomerania. In 1847 he married Johanna von Puttkamer. Among his new friends in Pomerania were Ernst Leopold von Gerlach and his brother, who not only were headed Pomeranian pietists, but part of a group of court advisers.
Bismarck, student Gerlach, became known for his conservative positions during the constitutional struggle in Prussia in 1848-1850. Counteracting the liberals,
Bismarck contributed to the creation of various political organizations and newspapers, including 'New Prussian newspaper' ( 'Neue Preussische Zeitung'). He was a deputy of the parliament's lower house of Prussia in 1849 and Erfurt parliament in 1850, when the federation opposed the Germanic countries (Austria, with or without it), because he believed that this combination will strengthen the wave of revolutionary movement. In his speech Olmyutsskoy
Bismarck defended King Friedrich Wilhelm IV, capitulated to Austria and Russia. Pleased monarch wrote about
Bismarck: 'fervent royalist. Use later '.
In May 1851 the king appointed
Bismarck's Prussia in the Union representative in the Diet Frankfurt. There
Bismarck almost immediately came to the conclusion that the purpose of Prussia can not be Germany confederation with the dominant position of Austria and the war with Austria was inevitable, if a dominant position in the united Germany will Prussia. As
Bismarck has evolved in the study of diplomacy and the art of government, he increasingly distanced himself from the views of the king and his camarilla. For its part, and the king began to lose confidence in the
Bismarck. In 1859 the king's brother William, the then regent,
Bismarck dismissed from his duties and sent an envoy to St. Petersburg. There
Bismarck became friendly with Russia's Foreign Minister, Prince AM Gorchakov, which contributed to
Bismarck in his efforts to diplomatic isolation, first Austria and then France and.
Minister-President of Prussia. In 1862
Bismarck was sent ambassador to France at the court of Napoleon III. Soon he was recalled by King William I to resolve the contradictions on the issue of military spending, which vigorously debated in the lower house of parliament. In September of that year became head of government, and later - the Minister-President and Foreign Minister of Prussia. Militant Conservative, .
Bismarck declared the liberal majority of the Parliament, . consisted of representatives of the middle class, . that the government will continue to collect taxes, . consistent with the old budget, . for parliament because of internal contradictions will not be able to adopt a new budget,
. (This policy continued in 1863-1866, . which enabled
Bismarck to military reform.) At a meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on September 29
Bismarck, emphasized: 'The great questions of time will be decided not by speeches and majority resolutions - it was a mistake in 1848 and 1949, . - But by iron and blood ',
. Since the upper and lower houses of parliament have been unable to develop a unified strategy on national defense, government, according to
Bismarck, should take the initiative and forcing the parliament to agree with his decisions. By restricting the press,
Bismarck has taken serious measures to suppress opposition.
For their part, liberals harshly criticized
Bismarck's support for the proposal of Russia Emperor Alexander II in suppressing the Polish uprising of 1863-1864 (Convention Alvenslebena 1863). During the next decade policy of
Bismarck led to three wars, . which resulted in the union in 1867, Germanic states in the North-Germanic Union: the war with Denmark (Danish war of 1864), . Austria (Austro-Prussian war of 1866) and France (Franco-Prussian war of 1870-1871),
. April 9, 1866, . the next day after the signing of
Bismarck's secret agreement for a military alliance with Italy in case of an attack on Austria, . He introduced his project germanskogo Bundestag parliament and universal suffrage by secret ballot for the male population,
. After the decisive battle at Ketiggretse (Garden)
Bismarck managed to get out of annexationist claims of William I and the Prussian generals and offered the Austrian Honorary Peace (Peace of Prague 1866). In Berlin,
Bismarck introduced a bill in Parliament, which exempts it from liability for unconstitutional actions, which was approved by the liberals. In the next three years, the secret diplomacy of
Bismarck was directed against France. Publication in the press Ems Dispatch 1870 (as amended by
Bismarck) is caused outrage in France, that the July 19, 1870 was declared a war that
Bismarck actually won by diplomatic means before it began.
Chancellor Germanskoy Empire.
