Iron+Chancellor

Notes From Class

=__**Iron Chancellor-**__ = =“Prussia’s political boundaries… are not favorable to a healthy = =political life: not by means of speeches and majority verdicts will the great decisions of = =the time be made- that was the great mistake of 1848 & 1849- but by //iron and blood// ” – Otto von Bismark, Sept. 1862 = = = = When the German Empire  was formed in 1871, Bismarck served as its first Chancellor until 1890 = = and practiced  Realpolitik, which gained him the nickname "The Iron Chancellor", ‘iron’ referring to the = = focus of industrializing Germany.. As Chancellor, Bismarck held an important role in the German = = government and greatly influenced German and international politics both during and after his time of service = = = = //Realpolitik: politics or diplomacy based primarily on power and on practical and material factors and considerations, rather than ideological notions or moralistic or ethical premises.//  (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) a ruthlessly realistic and opportunist approach to statesmanship, rather than a moralistic one, as exemplified by Bismarck. =