Germany’s Aims in WWI

Fritz Fischer, the author, is a well known historian who specializes in WWI and its causes. He deals with each cause and effect thoroughly by finding information on the subject and then breaks it down for the reader to fully understand the subtopic. Fischer points out Germany’s main reason for joining the war was to establish itself as a world power. Germany looked to dominate while the other world powers would do the same in their area. Germany would replace France as world power and would stand among USA, Russia, and Britain. Russia with Germany could be blamed as the starters of the war but Germany’s nationalism helped to ensure that her aims never wavered when fighting the war. Fischer’s thesis could be stated as: Germany was looking to become a world power among USA, Russia and Britain by gaining land France to reinforce the economy, by having Russia depend on Germany for economic support, and by isolating Britain from Europe during the war. Otto von Bismarck, the Prussian Prime Minister, laid the foundations for these policies while Wilhelm I and his advisors elaborated on his plans.

Bismarck was the Prime Minister of Prussia and was also responsible for the uniting of the German Empire. He combined the Prussian military with the authoritarian state of the bourgeoisie. He worked against Austria’s Grossdeutsch Solution to gain dominance of the Empire. Austria’s solution stated that Austria would be in control of the unification of the Empire and its royalty would be appointed to the throne of the Empire. Bismarck countered Austria’s solution with his own, the Kleindeutsch Solution. His solution would have Prussia dominating the throne of the Empire and would have Prussia dominating the unification of the Empire. This solution also excluded Austria from the Empire. This is due to their diversity. They were not “German” but they were a combination of Slavs, Italians, and Magyars. Prussia prevailed over Austria. Austria was not admitted into the Empire and Wilhelm I was appointed the first Emperor with Bismarck as the Chancellor. The policies that Bismarck created during Prussia and during the unification period were brought over to the Empire. He set the foundations for future endeavors for the German Empire. However, the actions that Bismarck had taken while in control of Prussia isolated Germany from the other world powers. The isolation of Germany was a cause of the sides that were chosen during the war.