in the German Confederation which were far stronger than any of the
others; these were Austria and Prussia. Austria had been a great power
in German and European affairs for centuries; but her rulers were now
incompetent and corrupt. Prussia, on the other hand, was an upstart,
whose strength lay in universal military service. As the century
progressed, the influence of Prussia became greater; and the jealousy of
Austria grew proportionately. Bismarck, the Prussian prime minister,
adopted a policy of "blood and iron." By this he meant that Prussia
would attain the objects of her ambition by means of war. Under his
guidance she would intimidate or conquer the other German states and
force them into trade and commercial agreements, or annex their
territory to that of Prussia.

Bismarck looked for success only to the army. With the king back of him,
he defied the people's representatives, ignored the Prussian
constitution, and purposely picked quarrels with his neighbors. In 1866,
in a brief war of seven weeks, Austria was hopelessly defeated and
forced to retire from the German Confederation. In 1870, when he felt
sure of his military preparations, Bismarck altered a telegram and thus
brought on a war with France. The Franco-Prussian War lasted only a few
months; but in that time the French were thoroughly defeated. Many
important results followed the war: (1) The German states, influenced by
the patriotic excitement of a successful war, founded the German Empire,
with Prussia in the leading position, and the Prussian king as German
emperor or "Kaiser." (2) A huge indemnity of one billion dollars was
exacted by Prussia from France, and this money, deposited in the German
banks and loaned to individuals, played a large part in expanding the
manufactures and commerce of Germany. (3) Prussia took away from France,
against the wishes of the inhabitants, the provinces called
Alsace-Lorraine. This "wrong done to France," as President Wilson has