Why was he so incompetent?
Look, if you had, one shot, or one opportunity. ... Would you capture it, or just let it slip?
>>981960
Because he's was the generation that grew up with everything handed to him and that was surrounded by a military culture he loved to play with without experiencing it himself outside of bossing others around without a legitimate threat to face.
I have no idea how Otto V Must Unite The German Peoples Under One Flag wasn't taken as gospel and propped up for as long as he lived as elder council by anyone who recognized the master stroke of politics he pulled on Germany.
>>981960
He wasn't the brightest bulb in the knife drawer.
>>981960
Everyone blames Wilhelm, but if anything Bismarck set the table and Wilhelm was forced to eat shit. Bismarck set up a political and diplomatic system that only he could navigate so it is pretty unsurprising, in hindsight, that Wilhelm fucked up in the way he did after Bismarck was thrust from his position of usurpation.
>>982204
Bismarck's Biggest Mistake was not annexing Austria and Purging the Anti Russian Military Higher ups
Just another fall guy for the hun - jews, wilhelm, anglos, the french, hitler, etc
The only that matters is germany is not responsible for the things it did
>>982012
Is this true. Was Wilhelm just a stupid millennial?
>>982204
How was that hard to navigate? Realpolitik just means be pragmatic and don't be an overly anxious asshole, which Wilhelm was.
>The German ambassador to Russia delivered an ultimatum that night—halt the mobilization within 12 hours, or Germany would begin its own mobilization, a step that would logically proceed to war. By four o’clock in the afternoon of August 1, in Berlin, no reply had come from Russia. At a meeting with Germany’s civilian and military leaders—Chancellor Theobald Bethmann von Hollweg and General Erich von Falkenhayn—Kaiser Wilhelm agreed to sign the mobilization orders.
>>982204
>Bismarck set the table and Wilhelm was forced to eat shit. Bismarck set up a political and diplomatic system that only he could navigate so it is pretty unsurprising, in hindsight, that Wilhelm fucked up in the way he did after Bismarck was thrust from his position of usurpation.
Bismarck's foreign policy was "Realpolitik." Which was based on compromises and maintenance of the peaceful status quo.
Wilhelm II's "Weltpolitik" was an aggressive stance in diplomacy and foreign policy based on German nationalism + feelings of being left out in the "great game."
Same insecurity complex Japan had.
>>982204
It wasn't Bismarck's idea to annex land from France nor was it his idea to start trying to build a navy that could rival the one of Britain.
>>982372
>>982399
>>982499
Bismarck had the pragmatism of a bull in a china shop with Germany's realpolitik, despite your responses. You see the same situation with American realpolitik under Kissinger. France was pissed due to continual bullying by Bismarck's Germany, Britain eyed Germany skeptically because of German posturing even before the naval "race" (Germany aimed for 2/3 Britain's naval capacity and did not seek to overcome it), Russia saw Germany as extremely brutish and hated them due to Bismarck's negotiation of the Russo-Ottoman War before Wilhelm became Kaiser thus creating the necessity of an agreement to prevent attack, and Bismarck happily signed colonial company charters in the mid 1880's (and even wanted to sign charters as foreign minister decades prior when Guatemala wanted to become a Prussian colony in the 1860's), years before Wilhelm II came to the fore. The idea that Bismarck was against colonialism is a myth. Bismarck wanted self-sufficient colonies that would support Germany rather than the money sinks Germany got (he still spoke highly of Togoland which was largely self-sufficient in administration). Again, the situation that Wilhelm got and his response to it was largely Bismarck's fault due to the system he had set up in the decades prior. Quite frankly, the only countries in Europe that didn't fucking hate Germany when Wilhelm II was coronated were Italy and Austria-Hungary.
>>982626
The Problem was that Bismarck thought he didn't have to Choose Between A-H and Russia and That He could Ease the tensions between the two
When he realised that he failed to do so it was too late
>>982639
In all likelihood, the League of Three Emperors would have been upheld had Bismarck not sided with the Ottomans at the Congress of Berlin. It was the decisive moment that caused the alliance to fall apart.
>>982647
>Make an effort to ally with Russia
>Completely cripple their gains in the Ottoman-Russian war
What was even the point of it all?
>>982663
Momentary instead of lasting peace. Bismarck never really thought very far ahead.
>>982399
Machtpolitik is best politik
>>982688
So he really wasn't the super genius people have made him out to be?
Or did he maybe not car that much?
>>982747
Politically speaking, he was fucking brilliant and almost always got his way. He was the LBJ of German politics for certain. It was in foreign relations where he made in the moment rather than lasting decisions, which is confusing since he was originally an ambassador and a foreign minister who rose in political prowess to the chancellery. He should have known better.
>>982626
>Britain eyed Germany skeptically because of German posturing even before the naval "race" (Germany aimed for 2/3 Britain's naval capacity and did not seek to overcome it), Russia saw Germany as extremely brutish and hated them due to Bismarck's negotiation of the Russo-Ottoman War before Wilhelm became Kaiser thus creating the necessity of an agreement to prevent attack, and Bismarck happily signed colonial company charters in the mid 1880's (and even wanted to sign charters as foreign minister decades prior when Guatemala wanted to become a Prussian colony in the 1860's),
>HAPPILY
WOW, FUCK YOU M8
BISMARCK FUCKING HATED COLONIALISM. HE THOUGHT IT WOULD BE WAY TOO DANGEROUS FOR THE BABBY STATE.
HOWEVER A FUCKING CRASH IN 1873 IN WHICH GERMANY WAS SUSCEPTIBLE DUE TO BEING PRETTY MUCH WHAT IS CHINA NOW- A MANUFACTURING GIANT- IN ADDITION TO SPASTIC GERMAN NATIONALISM PRETTY MUCH PRESSURING THE REICHSTAG, BISMARCK AND HIS CONSERVATIVE GOVERNMENT WAS FORCED TO START COLONIALISM. AND EVEN THEN HE JUST WANTED FUCKING CHARTER COLONIES (I.E. TRADE POSTS RUN BY PRIVATE COMPANIES) BUT THE SPASTICS IN THE NATIONALIST COLONIAL SOCIETIES WHERE THESE MERCHANTS WERE IN DEMANDED ADMINISTRATION AS WELL. BISMARCK KEPT SAYING "STOP THAT, WE'D BE CLASHING WITH OTHER EURONIGGERS AND NOT TO MENTION THAT IS EXPENSIVE. MANAGE YOUR OWN SHIT." BUT WAS FORCED NONETHELESS TO SEND SOLDIERS AND SUBSIDIES TO COLLAPSING PRIVATE VENTURES THAT BY 1898 GERMAN COLONIAL TERRITORIES WERE FORMALLY MANAGED BY THE FOREIGN OFFICE.
BISMARCK'S PUSSY STANCE TOWARDS COLONIALISM IS ONE OF THE REASONS WHY HE BECAME INCREASINGLY UNPOPULAR WITH BOTH NATIONALIST SENTIMENTS AND WILHELM II
SOURCES
-FUCKING SEBASTIAN CONRAD
-FUCKING HARTMUTT POGGE VON STRANDMAN
-FUCKING AJP TAYLOR.
>>982786
>t. Uneducated sperg
Read Germany in Central America by Thomas Schoonover. Bismarck was ecstatic when he heard Guatemala offered to become a Prussian colony in the 1860's, but pressure by the United States, Britain and France forced the Prussian government to turn it down. He also wasn't pressured into colonization of Africa. Quite the opposite, he changed his tune of his own accord, but you are correct that he wanted self-sufficient colonies as I previously fucking stated if you knew how to read. Also which fucking Conrad book because I have 3 sitting in front of me since I just finished my fucking thesis on German colonialism in East Africa.
>>982845
>Fischer revisionist
explain
>>982883
Basically, go read Germany's Aims in the First World War. It was a Post-WW2 book written by a German that places sole blame on Germany for the first world war due to war aims that didn't come about until the war was fully under way. It was a really controversial book in German historiography that's heralded by German liberals and Germanophobes alike, despite having serious issues. Von Strandmann was a protege of Fischer's and falls into the same vein of errant revisionism. There's also an excellent rebuttal written by Fritz Klein, but I'm certain you don't really care about that.
tl;dr
Disingenuous historian mentors another historian who follows his mentors disingenuous ways
>>982904
Oh okay
>>981997
Kekk
His nature and his nurture
>>982904
The thing about Fischer is that while he was way off and extreme in his conclusions, his work is what ultimately paved the way for much more reasonable and well researched work (virtually any big name in post-70s WW1 historiography e.g. Strachan) - which ultimately confirms a lot of Fischer's early steps/German fault in sparking the conflict - except unlike Fischer these guys didn't go full retard.
>>981960
The first thing he remembered hearing
Was his british cousins jeering
And his young dreams of growing up to fight
At the head of an empire
Lead all Europe entire,
And no one could change his mind but Bismarck tried
A one and only rebel child, from a family proud, but mild
His Chancellor seemed to know what lay in store
Despite all his political learning, to war he kept on turning
Till Bismarck couldn't hold him anymore
And Deutschland turned one hundred, with an occupied capital,
No one could steer him right but Bismarck tried, Bismarck tried
Bismarck tried to teach him better, but his pleading the Kaiser denied
That leaves only him to blame 'cause Bismarck tried
Dear old Daddy, rest his soul
Left Will a heavy load
He tried so very hard to fill his shoes
Working hours without rest
Wanted his Reich to be the best
His generals tried to follow, but they were fools
And Deutschland turned one hundred, with an occupied capital,
No one could steer him right but Bismarck tried, Bismarck tried
Bismarck tried to teach him better, but his pleading the Kaiser denied
That leaves only him to blame 'cause Bismarck tried
