ABSTRACT

The situation created by Germany’s victory in 1870 did not immediately produce the changes which German hegemony in Europe seemed to suggest. In eight years Bismarck had humbled Britain, crushed Austria and France, and made the second German Reich. But he was wise enough to see that Germany could do no more at present. He wanted peace and time to consolidate his gains and, during that necessary breathing-space, he was quite ready to let other nations take the lead, and snatch at opportunity in areas where German interests were in no way endangered.