When Bismarck first got into politics many people already knew of his reputation as a strong and feared man, no one however could envisage that within 9 years he could do the impossible, unite Germany. So what made Bismarck so special? As we have already discussed he was helped largely by his canny ability to strike the opposition when they where at less than full strength, nevertheless victories over Denmark in the Schleswig Holstein affair, Austria …showed first 75 words of 1806 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1806 total…in the 1870s and the socialists in the 1880s because both constituted unforeseen threats to his authoritarian creation. He also introduced a vicious rhetoric into German politics that forestalled a sense of common destiny. While German industry developed rapidly during his decades in power, he would allow no evolution in the political system toward greater participation. In this sense, Bismarck was a last representative of the world of the ancient régime and cabinet diplomacy.