question_answer 20)

Briefly trace the process of German unification.   

Answer:

The Frankfurt Parliament, which was convented in 1848, was the first major step taken towards the unification of German states. But this liberal initiative of nation building was repressed by the combined forces of the Monarchy and big landlords of Prussia. From then Prussia took the Initiative to unify Germany. Otto Von Bismarck, the Chief Minister of Prussia, carried out the process of unification with the help of the Prussian army and bureaucracy. Bismarck was convinced that the unification of Germany could be only achieved by the princes, not by the people. He wanted to achieve his aim by merging Prussia into Germany. In 1867, Bismarck became the chancellor of the North confederation. Bismarck's main objective was to unify Germany and was accomplished by three wars which were fought in a brief period of seven years. These wars were ended with the victory of Prussia which helped in completing the process of German unification on 18th January, 1871, in the Royal Palace of Versalles, the king of Prussia was crowned as the German Emperor. It symbolized the birth of a united Germany.