CONSEQUENCES/SIGNIFICANCE OF THE WAR

CONSEQUENCES/SIGNIFICANCE OF THE WAR


Positive consequences
1. The war was a great success for Bismarck and a proof that he was the "master political tactician of the 19th century". Bismarck had argued that Germany would be unified on Prussian terms using the policy of blood and iron. He had also assured Disraeli that he would "attack Denmark to gain possession of Schleswig and Holstein, put Austria out of the German confederation and attack France". This is exactly the manner and stages throughout which Bismarck achieved the unification of Germany. The success of Prussia over France in the Franco-Prussian war boosted Bismarck's popularity and influence in German as well as European politics. He became the chancellor of United Germany and played a major role in directing German and European affairs from 1871-1890.
2. The war is significant because it led to the final and total unification of Germany. It eliminated
Napoleon Ill's claims over the southern German states and made them to join the north for total unification by 1871. After the war, a united German empire was declared at Versailles in France including the two French provinces of Alsace and Lorraine.
3. Similarly, the war favoured and completed the unification of Italy. It forced Napoleon III to withdraw the French troops from Rome. The Italians seized this opportunity to occupy Rome and declare a united Italy in 1870.
4. The war inspired the rise of nationalism in Europe after 1871. A number of nationalities who were disunited and dominated by foreign powers were inspired by Bismarck's policy of blood and iron to fight for their freedom and unity. Nationalistic movements like Pan Slavinism, Pan Germanism, Young Turk Movements and the Greater Serbian Movement took lessons from the German nationalism that had crushed France at Sedan.
Negative consequences
5. There was massive loss of lives and destruction of property. The French army of about 200.000 was encircled by the Prussian troops in the city of Metz in the western part of Lorraine. Napoleon III surrendered at Sedan close to the border with Belgium. He was arrested together with 100.000 troops and sent to exile from where he died. A number of German troops also perished either within the German states or in Paris where they were besieged for a long time.
6. The Franco- Prussian war ended with the defeat of France by Prussia at the battle of Sedan. This humiliation was crowned by the 1871 Frankfurt treaty, in which France lost the two mineral rich provinces of Alsace and Lorraine to Germany. This became great assets in the industrialization of Germany on top of 5 billion francs (200 million pounds) war indemnity. France was to have a German army of occupation stationed in Paris until all the reparations was paid. This weakened France economically and militarily to the advantage of Bismarck and Germany.
7. The war changed the balance of power in Europe. The war led to the downfall of France as a land power and the rise of Germany as a new land power. This created a struggle by France to regain her former glory by planning a war of revenge against Germany. The determination of Bismarck to avoid this war and maintain Germany's supremacy is what made him to start the alliance system and arms race that became the root causes of the First World War. In other words, European powers like France, Russia and Britain hated and feared a powerful Germany and this caused tension between Germany and them, which was forcefully resolved in the 1914-1918 war.
8. The war also contributed to the scramble and partition of Africa. The loss of Alsace and Lorraine forced France to look for compensation in Africa by acquiring some colonies. France also wanted to raise enough manpower for a successful war of revenge against Germany. Bismarck who had regarded colonies as not worth the bones of a single German soldier changed and started conquering colonies to encourage France in her compensation chive. Germany also supported France to divert her attention from recovering Alsace and Lorraine through the 1878 and 1884-85 Berlin conferences. All these moves and counter moves accelerated the scramble and partition of Africa, which ended in the colonisation of some parts of Africa.
9. The war led to the destruction of the second French empire and the declaration of the third French Republic later in 1875. Napoleon III was abducted and exiled which ended the second French empire that he had forged in 1852. This opened way for the establishment of the third French Republic under Macmahon.
10. Russia exploited the war situation to repudiate the 1856 Paris treaty on the neutrality of the Black Sea.
Bismarck encouraged Russia to do so in order to guarantee Russia's neutrality during the war. This however, revived Russia's imperialism (especially in the Turkish Empire) with all its threats to European peace.