OTtto Von Bismarck
...a kept peace with other countries. Using his new army and solid foreign policies Bismarck fought three major wars that helped unify Germany. The Danish War of 1864-1865 was one of the first decisive actions Bismarck took to obtain German unification. Liberal sentiment in Germany had always been stirred by a desire to separate Schleswig-Holstein from Denmark. The liberals called for a repudiation of international agreements by Prussia, while Bismarck declared in the Diet that he would not be a party to a breach of international obligations. So Bismarck made an agreement with Austria to proceed within the context of the 1852 Protocol. The two powers then sent an ultimatum to Denmark on January 16, 1864 demanding a withdrawal of the constitution of Nov. 18 within 48 hours or face military action. Denmark, counting on the support of the European Powers, rejected the ultimatum France hesitated to join England, which refused to act alone. So the powers did nothing. An attempt at mediation also failed. Denmark was therefore reduced to submission by Prussian and Austrian military force. Denmark was forced to sign the Treaty of Gastein in August 1865. In the treaty Prussia and Austria decided how to split up the acquired land. The two powers decided to rule the land jointly. Austria controlling Holstein and Prussia controlling Schleswig. Prussia was given certain military roads through Holstein and command of Kiel, which was to be a port of the German Confederation. Also Prussia annexed Lauenburg, but did pay 2.5 million thaler for it. All this seemed fair, although Prussia seemingly got the better end of the deal, but Bismarck had no intention of leaving things as they were. It is surprising that the statesmen of Austria did not see this (4). Bismarck knew that trouble and eventual war with Austria would be inevitable. His entire policy from 1863 to 1866 was predicated on war with Austria. All he needed now was a reason to go to war with Austria. He presented a plan to the Confederate Diet in April 1866, which called for the acceptance of the 1849 electoral laws, including universal equal and secret ballot. He knew Austria would oppose the planned reform, but he also knew that the clergy and the landowners would be able to win the peasants to the conservative side. Bismarck then moved towards the showdown by accusing Austria of arming and troop movements in Bohemia. Bismarck presented a new plan for the reorganization of the Confederation, to choose a commander for the Confederate armies and to mobilized the forces of the smaller states. When the proposal won by a vote of 9 to 6 the Prussian declared the existence of a state of war. So the Prussia-Austrian War started. The war only lasted three weeks. Sadowa in Bohemia was the crucial battle, which turned into an easy victory for Prussia. Bismarck was not interested in crushing Austria but in removing her from German politics. The North German Confederation was formed of various smaller states and the gain of some larger states. In three short weeks, Austria was permanently eliminated from German affairs. Using the victory to further pursue a gain in foreign policy, Bismarck forced Bavaria to sign a secret treaty to aid Prussia in any future war with France (5). Germany was not yet fully unified, the South remained outside the unification. On July 19, France declared war on the North German...