German Foreign Relations
Change in foreign policy-
“After the downturns in the economy of 1873 and 1882, a consensus
emerged in favour of foreign trade and the acquisition of colonies as
one answer to Germany’s over production.” – Abrams Lynn
Colonial policy: to divert destabilizing energies at home into
enthusiasm for foreign adventure and expansion. [ called social
imperialism, was followed more deliberately by Wilhelm II and Caprivi
as tensions at home grew more dangerous after 1890 ]
‘diverting revolutionary elements towards imperialism, in order to
turn the nation’s gaze abroad and bring its sentiments on to common
ground’ – Abrams Lynn
Imperialism as a safety valve, protecting Germany from a socialist
revolution
“My map of Africa is in Europe”- Bismarck
Protectorates: Cameroon, Togoland, South West Africa, East Africa, one
or two in Pacific
Economic groups: Colonial Union, Society for German Colonization
However: Germany did not witness spontaneous outbursts of enthusiasm
for colonies as occurred in Britain
Bismarck liked to portray himself as an honest broker- Germany was now
firmly established as player, wished to consolidate her position
[ 1878 Congress of Berlin, Russian bore a grudge against the lack of
support from Germany ]
Bismarck’s Objectives
- Attempt to maintain European peace- essential for the security of
the Empire and its commercial prosperity
- Prevent France from mounting a serious challenge to the new Empire
- Avoid a war on two fronts
- Avoid having to make a choice btw Austria Hungary and Russia
- Germany is in a majority of three to two in any alliance...
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Late 1890s
- Foreign imperial policy took center stage
- Anglo-French entente signed in 1904
- Bismarckian alliance system had been dismantled in the space of five
years, and Germany found itself isolated, surrounded by potentially
hostile powers
Kaiser
- Influenced by Von Tirpitz (seized Kiao Chow in1897, alienating
Russia, embarked on navy policy 1898 Naval Bill)
Fischer and Wehler: Germany was at fault
Wehler emphasized the primacy of domestic policy in the development of
foreign policy and proposed that the anachronistic character of the
Second Empire was to blame for the descent into war
“By 1914 war was the only and final means by which the ruling elites
could seek to maintain their power against the threat of new social
forces, an ‘escape forwards’” – Abrams Lynn
Why Weimar Germany Adopted a Policy of Fulfillment in Foreign Affairs At first, successive German governments wanted * To remedy the dangerous diplomatic isolation that resulted from defeat, and * To restore the degree of national independence of Germany lost to the allies This was done using a simple tactic called sullen obstruction in which: * The war guilt clause in the treaty was never really enforced effectively * The disbanding of paramilitary organizations was slow and unreliable * The clauses relating to disarmament were implemented only under constant allied supervision These policies, however, didn’t really work for a long time.
The Wannsee Conference is an event that took place during World War II on January 20 1942 in a small Berlin suburb called Wannsee. This conference was set up by Reinhard Heydrich, the Chief of Security Police for the Nazi’s (otherwise known as the SS) and was attended by many high ranking officials in the Nazi regime. The conference was set up in order to discuss and implement ‘The Final Solution to the Jewish Question’ in regards to the Jewish population in Europe. The minutes of this conference were written down and are now known as the Wannsee Protocol. Even before the Wannsee Conference took place Jews were already being executed by the Einsatzgruppen, or otherwise known as the mobile killing units of the SS.
It is the inquisitive nature of man that is primary driving force behind the Five W’s: Who, What, When, Where and Why. Though these are all meaningful pursuits in their own right, it is the purpose of this piece to shed light on the Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Soviet Union’s purpose, as well as the most likely causes for its manifestation. Also in question, but not out of the scope of discussion, is whether or not non-aggression pacts truly work to preserve peace, or whether they are unintentionally one of the primary fuel sources that combust to cause war amongst the nations involved. The realist holds the key to this argument. The realist perspective sits alone as being the most concise angle from which to view the events transpired. However, without understanding a bulk of the history, a moderately concise answer cannot be delivered to the reader.
By 1890, Germany had been a nation state for almost 20 years. Liberal nationalism was dying from its own success, and a new brand of popular ideas on the German Volk and fatherland was emerging to represent the generation which had been born in the boundaries of a German state, and was now reaching adulthood. Necessarily, these ideas would adopt foundations of German cultural superiority and common identity which had been espoused at the start of the century, and this was encouraged by colonialism. This popular nationalism was encouraged by the more active climate of public debate and freer politics. They were also no doubt affected by the position of the army in German society and the interference of a government dominated by the military. The presence of minorities within the empire and growing anti-Semitism in Europe encourages racist views, and the growing political importance of the SPD stimulated fears of socialist threats to the nation. Above all, during this period, German nationalism became rooted in chauvinist masculine sentiments.
Imperialism was one of the many tensions that caused WWI to begin. Many countries began to practice imperialism, the policy of extending their power through military force. An example of a country being imperialistic was Serbia. "They wanted their country to be center of larger Slavic state. To do this they wanted control of Bosnia and Herzegovina for outlet to Adriatic Sea." Serbia wanted to be the leader of the Slavic states to be able to have extra resources which in this case was the Adriatic Sea. Two other countries also practiced imperialism during this time, their actions increased the rivalry between Germany and them as stated by historyonthenet.com. "By 1900 the British empire extended over five continents and France had control of large areas of Africa." "The amount of land owned by Britain and France increased rivalry with Germany." Imperialism was a major part of the eruption of WWI. Most of the countries involved in WWI practiced imperialism. As previously stated, imperialism was one of the many tension that often occurred which led to the eruption of WWI.
Germany experienced a lot of economic changes after Germany was split into East Germany and West Germany. Initially, West Germany was established as a federal republic but was established as it’s own independent nation in 1955. Many events happened in West Germany from the 1950s to the 1980s before Germany became one nation again. There were events such as “oils price shocks, generous social programs, rising deficits and loss of control.” East Germany’s economy was strong due to the Soviet Union’s reliance on Eastern Germany’s production of machine tools, chemicals and electronics. It became appealing to reunite with West Germany when the value of East Germany’s currency became “worthless” outside of it’s country because Eastern Germany was relying on the Soviet Union’s demand (Marketline).
However, with the designation of Wilhelm II as the new Kaiser, Bismarck’s ways and goals weren’t longer taken into account and was dismissed in 1890. The new Kaiser had different objectives; he was ambitious and wanted to improve the notability of Germany by expanding the empire. This expansion involved more colonies from where they would be able to import cheaply raw materials and labour supply. The whole new tendency whose sole purpose was to expand was named Weltpolitik. This Imperialism was one of the many causes of WW...
and in this case this could occur due to a lack or even the failing of
The foreign policy of Nazi Germany between 1933 and 1945 was different than any other country during that era. Their distinct approach to ruling came from the nation’s many diverse philosophies. Furthermore, every basis of motivation and control came from the beliefs in which they so strictly followed. Many aspects, such as, communism, fascism, and nationalism, influenced these ideologies.
...ccurred after World War I was the surge of nationalism in colonial powers which helped Germany become a strengthened country that would be ready for another war.3
The Second War World changed the scope of American foreign policy dramatically. The United States had historically sought to stay out of disputes in continents outside North America. The nation had sought isolationism during the Great War of 1914-1918 until it became necessary to protect innocent American lives. President Franklin D. Roosevelt was also inclined to remain uncommitted in the struggle that began in Europe in 1939. It was not until the end of 1941 that a direct attack against the United States at Pearl Harbor drew the United States into the conflict raging throughout the rest of the world.
Starting in 1945 with the defeat of Germany in World War Two and ending with the reunification of Germany in 1990, America has played a large role in the lives of the Germans. America was said to be Germany’s "protector, patron, and partner". Because of this, Germany has had a special relationship with America, and their relationship has evolved throughout the years during periods of struggle in Germany. This partnership of countries has dealt with many issues such as the results of World War Two, the Berlin Airlift, the Cold War, the developing West Germany and it’s struggle against "the East", the fall of the Berlin Wall (Die Mauer) in 1989, and the reunification of East and West Germany in 1990. It has well been many years since the most recent major event in Germany, reunification, but American troops are still stationed in Germany and Germany still maintains it’s close ties to the United States. However, recently, it has been questioned whether or not Germany will continue to keep it’s special relationship with the United States, perhaps they are drifting apart? All of the events in the history of Germany in which the Americans played a large role were the foundations in which Germany and the United States built their relationship. Now since the end of the Cold War and the fall of the Berlin Wall, will it all collapse?
The first paradigm of international relations is the theory of Realism. Realism is focused on ideas of self-interest and the balance of power. Realism is also divided into two categories, classical realism and neo-realism. Famous political theorist, Hans Morgenthau was a classical realist who believed that national interest was based on three elements, balance of power, military force, and self interest (Kleinberg 2010, 32). He uses four levels of analysis to evaluate the power of a state. The first is that power and influence are not always the same thing. Influence means the ability to affect the decision of those who have the power to control outcomes and power is the ability to determine outcomes. An example of influence and power would be the UN’s ability to influence the actions of states within the UN but the state itself has the power to determine how they act. Morgenthau goes on to his next level of analysis in which he explains the difference in force and power in the international realm. Force is physical violence, the use of military power but power is so much more than that. A powerful state can control the actions of another state with the threat of force but not actually need to physical force. He believed that the ability to have power over another state simply with the threat of force was likely to be the most important element in analysis the power of as state (Kleinberg 2010, 33-34).
Progressive era foreign policy was motivated by a variety of factors including racial and national superiority, business and economic interests, strategic concerns, and idealism. Excerpts from For the Record provide various examples supporting the concerns that led to America’s foreign policy.
The Unification of Germany In 1871 the thirty-eight states of what was once the Holy Roman Empire. re-united to become what was known in the early twentieth century as simply, The German Empire, united under the rule of the German Emperor, or Kaiser. There are many factors which led to the unification of the German states: liberalism, nationalism, Otto Von Bismarck, fear of ‘another Napoleon’, the Prussian King William I, and the three wars Prussia fought. One of the key factors which led to the unification was nationalism.