As far as European conflicts are concerned, the Franco-Prussian War hasn't exactly attained the notoriety of the Hundred Years' War or the two World Wars. However, the war has greater ramifications on European history than one might think. Directly, the Franco-Prussian War was responsible for the unification of Germany and it also contributed in part to the causes of World War I.

Setting the Scene

In the 17th and 18th Centuries, Germany was divided into several city-states, and Prussia had been the most powerful — in fact, it was one of the foremost European countries. This influence had been somewhat eroded as countries like Britain and the United States became more technologically advanced, so when Otto von Bismark became the Prime Minister of Prussia¹ in 1862, he looked to regain Germany's power. He enlarged and modernised the army and eventually set his sights on world denomination through the unification of all the German states. King Wilhelm I of Prussia wasn't terribly interested in politics and he trusted Bismark, allowing the Prime Minister to pursue his own political goals.

Through a series of brief conflicts in the 1860s, Bismark was able to gain territory from Denmark and from Austria. As a result, Bismark declared a confederation of all the German provinces north of the Main River. Although the provinces were all still officially independent, their rulers were subservient to Prussia's king, Wilhelm I. A two-house legislative body was formed, consisting of the Bundesrat, the upper house, and the Reichstag, the lower house.

Meanwhile, over in France, the people had voted Emperor Napoleon III² into power in 1852. As the ruler of another important, though slightly less developed, country, Napoleon's primary interest in international politics was in preserving the balance of power between the European powers. It would take any sign of Prussian agression for France to declare war.

The War Begins

This sign was easily provided by Bismark, because he determined that the key way to achieve German unification was to provoke a war with France. This may sound bizarre, but Bismark's thinking, if violent, was perfectly sound. The major obstacle to bringing the southern German provinces into the union was a religious divide. The northern provinces were largely Protestant, whereas there were more Catholics in the southern provinces. Concerned that any forced attempt to get the southern provinces to join the union would cause the religious differences to grate, Bismark theoreorised that a European war would cause the southern provinces to flock to Prussia's power for protection.

Bismark's cue came when, in 1870, Spain's queen was deposed in an uprising. A Prussian prince, Leopold, was advanced as a candidate for the throne, as was a French claimant. Edgy at being surrounded on all sides by Prussians, Napoleon arranged to meet with King Wilhelm at Ems, in northwestern Germany, to discuss the issue. The conference determined that the Spanish throne should be given to the French candidate. In the process, though, Wilhelm sent Bismark a telegram, which Bismark then edited somewhat to put France in a poor light. The 'Ems Dispatch' was then widely publicised, and when France got wind of it, they were sufficiently angered to declare war on 19 July.

The War

The Aftermath