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History knows the most diverse reasons for starting a war. Border incidents, collective and individual attacks, occupation of the territory of a union state, announcement – about army mobilization – these are perhaps the main ones. If you strain memory, you can find something more original. “Boston tea party “So, for example, an occasion to the war of the English colonies Of North America for independence from the mother country in the 70s of the XVIII century was the so-called “Boston tea party.” In 1773 the Boston colonists, disguised as Indians, were thrown into the water with British ships packing tea, after which the British closed in Boston port, and the colonists announced a boycott of British goods, why and war ensued. However, this episode is an exception to the rule. In anyway, in the history of Europe of the 19th century, about one of the pages which we want to tell. Europe fought too much in the 19th century a lot, actually constantly. European monarchs are not too made it difficult to find a reason for another war. Napoleon Bonaparte, for example, without any diplomatic notes on the announcement the war just suddenly invaded with his army in one or another country and his foreign minister Talleyrand retroactively He explained to the government of the defeated country why this was done. When Napoleon conquered Switzerland in 1802, Talleyrand in a special circular explained to the Swiss that this was done “not then to deprive Switzerland of freedom, but then to calm tearing her troubles “(which actually was not). Prince Otto von Bismarck did not flaunt publicly political cynicism like this did Talleyrand, he just considered it superfluous, and his political weight under the Prussian king and the German emperor Wilhelm I was much higher than the weight of Talleyrand under Napoleon, Bismarck was not an executor of the will of the monarch, but independent a politician. He proved it repeatedly. In 186 6, after the victory Prussia in the Austrian War of War, Bismarck did not allow William I “bring Austria to its knees” by occupying Vienna. Bismarck insisted relatively light world conditions for Austria so that to ensure its neutrality in the future conflict of Prussia and France, which from year to year became inevitable. War with France Bismarck provoked a way not yet seen in world history: he edited the dispatch and published it in the newspapers. Why did he choose exactly this method of provocation? To answer this question, you need to make a brief excursion into the history of relations of France and North German Union in the second half of the 60s of the XIX century. A step towards war Having won the war with Austria, Prussia got her consent to the education of 22 separate German states of the North German Union. Outside the Union, the South German lands of Bavaria, Württemberg and Baden. France did everything possible to prevent Bismarck from incorporating these lands North German Union. Napoleon III did not want to see on his eastern borders united Germany. Bismarck understood that without the war will not be able to solve this problem. In France at that time were belligerent anti-German sentiments are strong. On them is Bismarck and played. The emergence of “Ems dispatch” was caused by scandalous events surrounding the nomination of Prince Leopold of Hohenzollern (nephew of William I) to the Spanish throne, freed after the revolution in Spain in 1868. Bismarck correctly calculated that France will never agree to such an option in the case of Leopold’s reign in Spain will begin to rattle arms and do warlike statements addressed to the North German Union that early or later end in war. So he lobbied hard Leopold’s candidacy, assuring, however, Europe that the German the government is completely unaffiliated with the Hohenzollern claims Spanish throne. In his circulars, and later in Bismarck’s memoirs strongly denied his participation in this intrigue, arguing that the nomination of Prince Leopold to the Spanish throne was the “family” business of the Hohenzollern. Actually Bismarck and come Minister of War Roon and Chief of General Staff Moltke to his aid spent a lot of effort to convince the stubborn William I support Leopold’s candidacy. As Bismarck expected, application Leopold’s Spanish throne caused a storm of indignation in Paris. 6July 1870 French Foreign Minister Duke de Gramont exclaimed: “This will not happen, we are sure of it … Otherwise in case we would be able to fulfill our duty without showing any weaknesses, no hesitation. “After this statement, Prince Leopold without any consultation with the king and Bismarck announced that he was giving up claims to the Spanish throne. This step was not in the plans. Bismarck. Leopold’s failure ruined his hopes that France It will unleash a war against the North German Union. It was crucial for Bismarck, seeking to enlist the neutrality of leading European states in a future war that he later succeeded largely due to the fact that the attacker it was France. It’s hard to judge how sincere Bismarck was in his memoirs when he wrote that upon receipt of the news of Leopold’s refusal to take the Spanish throne “my first thought was to resign “(Bismarck repeatedly filed petitions with William I retired, using them as one of the means of pressure on the king, who without his chancellor did not mean anything in politics), however his other memorial evidence looks quite authentic relating to the same time: “I already considered war at that time a necessity that we couldn’t avoid with honor. ” Provocation While Bismarck wondered what other ways can provoke France to declare war, the French themselves gave this a wonderful excuse. July 13, 1870 to a vacationer on Ems waters Wilhelm I the French ambassador in the morning Benedetti and gave him a rather arrogant request of his Minister Gramon: assure France that he (the king) will never give of his consent, if Prince Leopold again exposes his candidacy for the Spanish throne. King outraged by such really impudent for diplomatic etiquette of those times trick, responded with a sharp refusal and interrupted the audience of Benedetti. A few minutes later he received a letter from his ambassador in Paris, which said that Gramon insisted that William assured Napoleon III with his own hand in his absence all intentions to damage the interests and dignity of France. it the news finally infuriated William I. When Benedetti asked a new audience for a conversation on this subject, he refused him admission and conveyed through his adjutant that he said his last word. Bismarck learned of these events from a dispatch sent in the afternoon from Ems Advisor Abeken. Bismarck’s dispatch was delivered during lunch. Roon and Moltke dined with him. Bismarck read the dispatch to them. On the two old warriors dispatch made the most difficult impression. Bismarck recalled that Roon and Moltke were so upset that “neglected foods and drinks.” Having finished reading, Bismarck through asked Moltke for some time about the state of the army and about her readiness for war. Moltke replied in the spirit that “immediate the beginning of the war is more profitable than a delay. “After that, Bismarck immediately at the dining table edited the telegram and read it to the generals. Here is her text: “After the news of the abdication Crown Prince of Hohenzollern was officially reported the imperial government of french spanish royal government, the French ambassador presented in Ems to his royal Majesty additional requirement: authorize him to wire to Paris that his majesty the king pledges to all future times never give your consent if the Hohenzollern will return to their candidacy. His Majesty the king refused yet time to receive the French ambassador and ordered the adjutant on duty, tell him that his majesty has nothing more to report ambassador. “” Emme despatches “Still contemporaries of Bismarck they suspected him of falsifying the “Ems dispatch.” First about it the German Social Democrats Liebknecht and Bebel began to speak. Liebknecht even published in 1891 the brochure Ems despatches, or How wars are made. “Bismarck wrote in his memoirs that he only “deleted” something from the dispatch, but did not add to it “neither words. “What did Bismarck cross out of the” Ems dispatch? ” something that could indicate the true mastermind of the appearance in print telegrams of the king. Bismarck struck out William I’s wish convey “at the discretion of your Excellency (i.e. Bismarck) the question of whether to inform both our representatives and to the press about Benedetti’s new demand and the king’s refusal. ” reinforce the disrespect of the French envoy to William I, Bismarck did not insert in the new text a mention of that the king answered the ambassador “rather sharply.” The rest of the cuts are not were significant. The new edition of Ems dispatches brought of depression dined with Bismarck Roon and Moltke. Last exclaimed: “That sounds different; before it sounded a signal to retreat, now – fanfare. “Bismarck began to develop before them our future plans: “We must fight, if we do not want to take on the role of the vanquished without a fight. But success depends largely on those the impressions that the origin of the war will cause for us and others; it’s important that we are the ones we are attacked and the Gallic arrogance and touchiness will help us with this … “Further events turned in the direction most desirable for Bismarck. The promulgation of the “Ems dispatch” in many German newspapers caused a storm of indignation in France. Foreign Minister Gramon indignantly shouted in parliament that Prussia had slapped France. July 15, 1870 the head of the French cabinet Emile Olivier demanded a loan of 50 million francs from parliament and reported on government’s decision to call in the army of reservists “in response to challenge to war. “The future president of France, Adolf Thiers, who in 1871 will make peace with Prussia and drown in the blood of Paris the commune, in July 1870, still a member of parliament, was, perhaps the only sane politician in France in those days. He tried to convince the deputies to deny Olivier a loan and an appeal reservists, arguing that since Prince Leopold abandoned of the Spanish crown, French diplomacy has reached its goal, and not should quarrel with Prussia over words and bring the matter to a break on a purely formal occasion. Olivier answered that he’s with a light heart “is ready to bear responsibility, henceforth falling on him. In the end, the deputies approved all the proposals. government, and July 19, France declared war on the North German to the union. Backstage games bismarck meanwhile chatted with deputies of the Reichstag. It was important for him to carefully hide from the public its painstaking behind-the-scenes provocation work France to declare war. With his inherent hypocrisy and by the resourcefulness of Bismarck convinced the deputies that in the whole story with Prince Leopold government and he personally did not participate. is he he shamelessly lied when he told the deputies that about desire Prince Leopold to take the Spanish throne, he learned not from the king, but from some “private person” that the north-German ambassador from Paris he left “for personal reasons”, but was not recalled government (actually Bismarck ordered the ambassador to leave France, annoyed by its “softness” in relation to French). Bismarck diluted this lie with a dose of truth. He didn’t lie saying that the decision to publish a dispatch on the Ems talks between William I and Benedetti was adopted by the government by the will of the king himself. William I himself did not expect publication “ems dispatches” will lead to such a quick war with France. After reading Bismarck’s edited text in the newspapers, he exclaimed: “This is war!” The king was afraid of this war. Bismarck later wrote in memoirs that William I didn’t have to negotiate with Benedetti, but he “left his monarch person unscrupulous processing by this foreign agent “largely due to that succumbed to the pressure of his wife Queen Augusta with “her feminine justifiable fearfulness and lacking her national feeling. “So Bismarck used William I as a cover for his backstage intrigues against France. When Prussian generals began to dominate the French victory after victory, not a single major European power stood up for France. This was the result of preliminary Bismarck’s diplomatic activities neutrality of Russia and England. Russia, he promised neutrality in the event her withdrawal from the humiliating Paris Treaty, which forbade her have their fleet in the Black Sea, the British were outraged a draft annexation agreement published at Bismarck’s direction France Belgium. But the most important thing was that it was France attacked the North German Union, despite repeated peace-loving the intentions and minor concessions made in relation to her Bismarck (the withdrawal of Prussian troops from Luxembourg in 1867, statements about the readiness to abandon Bavaria and create from it a neutral country, etc.). Editing the Ems dispatch, Bismarck is not impulsive improvised, and was guided by the real achievements of his diplomacy and therefore came out victorious. And the winners, as you know, don’t be judged. The authority of Bismarck, even a retired, was in Germany is so tall that no one (except the Social Democrats) it occurred to me to pour mud at him when in 1892 the original text of the Ems dispatch was made public from the rostrum Reichstag.
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