Diplomacy of the North German Confederation

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The North German Confederation

The diplomacy of the North German Confederation , the first German federal state , was determined primarily by Prussia . From the founding in 1867 to the merging of the larger German Empire on January 1, 1871, the relationship with the southern German states and France was decisive.

Prussia was not only by far the largest member state in the North German Confederation ; At the beginning of 1870 the Prussian Foreign Office was elevated to the Foreign Office of the North German Confederation. The most important politician of the federal government was Otto von Bismarck , the Prussian Prime Minister and Foreign Minister. The Prussian ambassadors also served as federal ambassadors.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Even after the establishment of the North German Confederation in 1867, the affiliated member states retained the right to maintain their own embassies abroad and to receive envoys ( ambassadors ) from other countries. The appearance of a unitary state and the narrowing of the individual states should be avoided. Nevertheless, according to the Federal Constitution (Art. 11) , the Prussian king held the “ Federal Presidium ”. This included the representation of the Federation under international law in relation to other countries. Since there were no federal organs of its own for this purpose, the king was dependent on the apparatus of the Prussian Foreign Ministry and the Prussian foreign missions.

Originally, the Prussian Prime Minister Bismarck wanted a Federal Chancellor who received instructions directly from Prussia and who belonged to the Prussian Foreign Ministry. For this post, Bismarck thought of Karl Friedrich von Savigny , the last Prussian envoy in the German Bundestag . On March 26, 1867, however, the Reichstag of the North German Confederation accepted a motion ( Lex Bennigsen ) that made the Federal Chancellor a responsible official of the Federal Presidium. Bismarck now took over this Chancellorship himself in order, in his opinion, to be able to maintain the unity of politics and management. On July 14th, Bismarck was appointed Federal Chancellor of the North German Confederation, while he remained Prussian Prime Minister and Foreign Minister.

Federal Chancellery as a provisional solution

Otto von Bismarck, 1870

A presidential decree of August 12, 1867 created the Federal Chancellery , from which the highest imperial authorities later developed in the German Empire. Since, according to the constitution, the consular system was a federal matter, but the individual states reluctantly subordinate their consulates to the Prussian Foreign Ministry, the Federal Chancellery offered a solution. On November 8, 1867, the corresponding law regarding the organization of federal consulates was passed.

In addition to the consular system, the Federal Chancellery also undertook trade policy negotiations with other countries, as well as intercessions, legalizations and matters arising from the Red Cross Convention. The corresponding three officials of the Prussian Foreign Ministry were provisionally seconded to the Federal Chancellery, i.e. not transferred. A Saxon official was also called in.

But when, in November 1867, France invited the north German member states individually to a conference, Bismarck, the allied governments and the National Liberals pushed for a further expansion of the federal executive. Out of consideration for the allied governments, Bismarck initially left it to accredit the Prussian ambassadors as ambassadors of the North German Confederation (except for the southern German states) instead of enforcing the abolition of the individual states' embassies. On December 18, 1867 the order of the king was added.

Bismarck had the ambassadors hand over their new credentials without first consulting with the foreign ministries of the host countries (also regarding reciprocity). In doing so, Bismarck avoided the question of whether these states recognized the federal government at all. This was the subject of a discussion between London and Vienna before they decided on reciprocity. The Prussian ambassador in London , who was personally unhappy about his new position, wrote “The Prussian and North German Ambassador” on his business card.

Discussion of a new federal authority

In the summer of 1868, in the budget debate, the Reichstag discussed the demand to convert the Prussian Foreign Ministry into a North German one, and at the end of the year the Prussian House of Representatives also made a corresponding proposal. Bismarck was open-minded and, in accordance with the Reichstag, submitted an application to the Federal Council in February 1869, but the opposition came not least from the foreign ministry, which insisted on Prussian independence.

In the Reichstag debates of April 1869, it became clear that such a reshuffle did not only affect questions of international law , the budget and administration. A federal ministry was being created, although the allied governments had actually wanted to avoid this. The Reichstag recognized an opportunity to enforce more unitary state and parliamentarianism . With a large majority it therefore accepted an application to set up a number of responsible federal ministries, namely with the departments for Foreign Affairs, Navy, Finance, and Trade and Transport. Bismarck rejected the application on behalf of the Federal Presidium, but had to expect that the question would keep coming back. After all, the new federal authority was already called “Ministry” in the budget for 1870.

So Bismarck had good reason to give the new federal authority a different name so that it would not have the character of a ministry that would have made it independent from the Federal Chancellery. On January 1, 1870, the Prussian Foreign Ministry was transferred to the federal government. On January 4th, Bismarck asked the king for some regulations, which the king carried out by cabinet order on the same day.

Facility

Caricature of Bismarck and his many offices, including as Federal Chancellor, Prussian Foreign Minister and diplomat

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the North German Confederation was officially named "Foreign Office of the North German Confederation". It should act as an organ of the Federal Chancellor, while the Federal Chancellery is responsible for the internal affairs of the Federation. The head of the new office should be called State Secretary , so that it would be easier for the Chancellor to reject requests from foreign diplomats to be received by the Chancellor himself. From London, diplomacy is used to this title. Since, according to Article 11 of the Federal Constitution, the Prussian King was responsible for the representation of the Federation under international law, the Prussian coat of arms including the eagle was retained in the official seal, but it was given a new period of grace: "Foreign Office of the North German Confederation" or "Legation of the North German Federal ". With this, Bismarck introduced the designation of State Secretary for the head of a federal department , based on the English model .

Hermann von Thiele became State Secretary for the office . He had already served in Prussia's foreign service since 1837. He was State Secretary until 1872.

The Federal Chancellery handed over the powers it had acquired in 1867 to the Foreign Office. However, it was involved in the employment of the consuls on a permanent basis because, according to the constitution, the Federal Council's Committee on Trade and Transport had to be involved. All trade policy matters remained with the Federal Chancellery for several years until the foreign-related part was transferred to the Foreign Office for practical reasons.

On January 13, 1871, after the imperial constitution had been promulgated, the Foreign Office informed the diplomatic missions abroad that in future the addition “of the North German Confederation” should be omitted. It was not until May 4, 1871 that the official decision was made that the new designation would be “Foreign Office of the German Empire”.

Envoy from the member states

The new office raised the question of whether the northern German member states should continue to have the right to have their own embassies. The British and French ambassadors in Berlin, for example, feared that the federal government would become a unitary state if the law were abolished. Count Beust , the Austrian Foreign Minister, said that the North German Confederation would thereby deter the southern German states. In addition, German constitutional law allows the northern German member states to continue to have their own embassies. Bismarck saw it that way too. He assumed, however, that ultimately the parliaments of the northern German member states would abolish their own diplomatic organs, through budget law, for cost reasons.

Bismarck was right. After the founding of the empire in 1870/1871 there were still 16 embassies from member states, in 1914 only half as many. Bavaria had embassies in Bern, Paris, Petersburg, Rome, Vienna and at the Vatican, Saxony one in Vienna and Prussia one at the Vatican. Conversely, foreign countries still operated 104 diplomatic missions in German member states in 1914. Only 16 were stand-alone missions; Russia maintained most of them, seven; a total of six were in Munich. Essentially it was about the "exercise of courtly dynastic functions" (Sasse); at most the French ambassador in Munich was of some political importance.

Changes in 1870/1871

When the southern German states began negotiating membership of the federal government in September 1870, Bavaria wanted the northern German envoys to be allowed to represent the federal government only together with the southern German envoys. Such an impractical solution was rejected not only by Bismarck but also by Württemberg. The demand was, however, suitable to wrest some concessions from the federal government. According to Art. VII of the Versailles final protocol of November 23, a Bavarian envoy was allowed to represent a federal envoy if he was unable to attend. The federal envoys complained about such a dualism, but in practice Bavaria later only made use of the regulation once.

The Federal Council Committee for Foreign Affairs to be set up was more important. It consisted of the representatives of Bavaria, Württemberg and Saxony under Bavarian chairmanship. Up until the First World War , this committee met extremely seldom; its importance only grew during the course of the war. During the peace of Brest-Litovsk with Russia in 1917/1918 Bavaria referred (unsuccessfully) to a secret promise by Bismarck that Bavaria should be represented by its own proxy in peace negotiations. In addition, the empire had to undertake to employ a consul wherever a member state required it.

See also

literature

  • Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office in 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22

supporting documents

  1. ^ Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22, here p. 9.
  2. ^ Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22, here p. 9. Also Ernst Rudolf Huber: German Constitutional History since 1789. Volume III: Bismarck and the Reich. W. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart [u. a.] 1963, pp. 658-661.
  3. ^ Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22, here p. 10.
  4. ^ Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22, here p. 10.
  5. ^ Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22, here pp. 11/12.
  6. ^ Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22, here pp. 11/12.
  7. ^ Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22, here pp. 12/13.
  8. ^ Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22, here p. 14.
  9. ^ Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22, here pp. 15/16.
  10. ^ Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22, here p. 16.
  11. ^ Ernst Rudolf Huber: German constitutional history since 1789. Volume III: Bismarck and the realm. W. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart [u. a.] 1963, p. 837.
  12. ^ Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22, here p. 17.
  13. ^ Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22, here p. 22.
  14. ^ Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22, here pp. 16/17.
  15. ^ Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22, here p. 21.
  16. ^ Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22, here pp. 20/21.
  17. ^ Heinz Günther Sasse: The establishment of the Foreign Office 1870/71 . In: Foreign Office (Ed.): 100 Years of Foreign Office 1870–1970 , Bonn 1970, pp. 9–22, here p. 21.