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A German Confederation was formed to stop the rivalry between Prussia and Austria however, it was ineffective. When German states create their own constitution rebellions subdued. Bismarck declared war in Denmark and later in Austria and German states were forced to divide to support either side. Bismarck spent years trying to prevent Germany from encircled by their neighbors. He diminished the authority of the Catholic Church during the culture camp.

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Brazil could only trade with Portugal for a period of time. The Cortes wanted to remove all of Bonifacio's remaining power and abolish all reforms that the government made so far. To increase the number in the armies slaves were recruited. Portuguese surrendered in 1824. Brazil became independent and Pedro's son became emperor.

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Brazilian Independence | 3 Minute History

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The majority of the population was slaves and they rebelled. The Declaration of Rights of Man caused people to question citizenship. Slaves destroyed plantations and killed thousands of people. France tried to maintain loyalty and control but it was clear that slavery was over.

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Bismarck began wars that would establish Prussian power in Europe. After they unified Germany, they established their domestic power. Bismarck is known as one of Germany's strongest leaders.

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Table of Contents

1. Otto von Bismarck: Early Years

2. Otto von Bismarck: The Iron Chancellor

3. Otto von Bismarck: Kulturkampf, Welfare State, Empire

4. Otto von Bismarck: Final Years and Legacy

Germany became a modern, unified nation under the leadership of the "Iron Chancellor" Otto von Bismarck (1815-1898), who between 1862 and 1890 effectively ruled first Prussia and then all of Germany. A master strategist, Bismarck initiated decisive wars with Denmark, Austria and France to unite 39 independent German states under Prussian leadership. Although an arch-conservative, Bismarck introduced progressive reforms-including universal male suffrage and the establishment of the first welfare state-in order to achieve his goals. He manipulated European rivalries to make Germany a world power, but in doing so laid the groundwork for both World Wars.

Otto von Bismarck: Early Years

Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck was born April 1, 1815, at his family's estate in the Prussian heartland west of Berlin. His father was a fifth-generation Junker (a Prussian landowning noble), and his mother came from a family of successful academics and government ministers. Throughout his life Bismarck would emphasize his rural Junker roots, underplaying his considerable intellect and cosmopolitan outlook.

Did you know? Although German leader Otto von Bismarck wore a general's uniform in public for much of his later life (and successfully prosecuted three wars as chancellor), his only prior military service was a brief, unwilling stint in a reserve unit.

Bismarck was educated in Berlin and after university took a series of minor diplomatic posts before retiring, at age 24, to run his family's estate at Kneiphof. In 1847 he married and was sent to Berlin as a delegate to the new Prussian parliament, where he emerged as a reactionary voice against the liberal, anti-autocratic Revolutions of 1848.

From 1851 to 1862 Bismarck served a series of ambassadorships-at the German Confederation in Frankfurt, in St. Petersburg and in Paris-that gave him valuable insight into the vulnerabilities of Europe's great powers.

Otto von Bismarck: The Iron Chancellor

William I became Prussia's king in 1861 and a year later appointed Bismarck as his chief minister. Though technically deferring to William, in reality Bismarck was in charge, manipulating the king with his intellect and the occasional tantrum while using royal decrees to circumvent the power of elected officials.

In 1864 Bismarck began the series of wars that would establish Prussian power in Europe. He attacked Denmark to gain the German-speaking territories of Schleswig-Holstein and two years later provoked Emperor Franz-Josef I into starting the Austro-Prussian War (1866), which ended in a swift defeat for the aging Austrian empire. At the time, Bismarck wisely declined to levy a war indemnity against the Austrians.

Bismarck was less circumspect in his conduct of the Franco-Prussian War (1870-71). Seeing the opportunity to unify Germany's loose confederations against an outside enemy, Bismarck stirred political tensions between France and Prussia, famously editing a telegram from William I to make both countries feel insulted by the other. The French declared war, but the Prussians and their German allies won handily. Prussia levied an indemnity, annexed the French border provinces of Alsace and Lorraine and crowned William emperor of a unified Germany (the Second Reich) in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles-a tremendous insult to the French.

Otto von Bismarck: Kulturkampf, Welfare State, Empire

With Germany unified, William I and Bismarck turned to entrenching their domestic power. For much of the 1870s Bismarck pursued a Kulturkampf (cultural struggle) against Catholics, who made up 36 percent of Germany's population, by placing parochial schools under state control and expelling the Jesuits. In 1878 Bismarck relented, allying with the Catholics against the growing socialist threat.

In the 1880s Bismarck set aside his conservative impulses to counter the socialists by creating Europe's first modern welfare state, establishing national healthcare (1883), accident insurance (1884) and old age pensions (1889). Bismarck also hosted the 1885 Berlin Conference that ended the "Scramble for Africa," dividing the continent between the European powers and establishing German colonies in Cameroon, Togoland and East and Southwest Africa.

Otto von Bismarck: Final Years and Legacy

William I died in 1888 and was succeeded by his son Frederick III and then his grandson William II, both of whom Bismarck found difficult to control. In 1890 the new king forced Bismarck out. William II was left in control of a flourishing unified state but was ill-equipped to maintain Bismarck's carefully manipulated balance of international rivalries. Respected and honored by the time of his death eight years later, Bismarck quickly became a quasi-mythic figure invoked by political leaders calling for strong German leadership-or for war.

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Otto von Bismarck - Biography, World Wars & Facts

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Otto von Bismarck (1815-1898)-also known as the "Iron Chancellor"-was Chancellor of the newly-united German Empire from 1862 to 1890. During his tenure he modernized the nation and helped set the stage for World War I.

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Dom Pedro was the first emperor of Brazil after they became independent. He was the son of the king of Portugal. Portugal signed a treaty with Brazil to recognize their independence.

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Pedro I, (born Oct. 12, 1798, Lisbon, Port.-died Sept. 24, 1834, Lisbon), founder of the Brazilian empire and first emperor of Brazil, from Dec. 1, 1822, to April 7, 1831, also reckoned as King Pedro (Peter) IV of Portugal.

Generally known as Dom Pedro, he was the son of King John VI of Portugal. When Napoleon conquered Portugal in 1807, Pedro accompanied the royal family in its flight to Brazil. He remained there as regent when King John returned to Portugal in 1821.

Pedro surrounded himself with ministers who counseled independence. When the Portuguese Cortês (Parliament), preferring colonial status for Brazil, demanded that Pedro return to Lisbon to "complete his political education," he issued a declaration of Brazilian independence on Sept. 7, 1822. Within three months he was crowned emperor.

Pedro's initial popularity waned, and in 1823, when the Brazilian Assembly was preparing a liberal constitution, he dissolved that body and exiled the radical leader José Bonifácio de Andrada e Silva. On March 25, 1824, however, Pedro accepted a somewhat less liberal constitution drafted by the Council of State at his behest.

Although adoption of that charter may have saved Pedro from deposition, it did not reestablish his popularity. His autocratic manner, his lack of enthusiasm for parliamentary government, and his continuing deep interest in Portuguese affairs antagonized his subjects, as did the failure of his military forces in a war with Argentina over what is now Uruguay. Strong opposition in the Brazilian Parliament and a series of local uprisings induced him to abdicate in 1831 in favour of his son Dom Pedro II, who was then five years old. Pedro I then returned to Portugal.

On the death of King John VI (March 10, 1826), Pedro I had become titular king of Portugal as Pedro IV. Two months later, still in Brazil, he issued a parliamentary charter for Portugal and conditionally abdicated the Portuguese throne in favour of his daughter Maria da Glória, the future Queen Maria II. He died of natural causes in Portugal while securing his daughter's claim against that of his brother, the regent Miguel.

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Pedro I | Reign of Brazil, Independence, Abolitionist

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Pedro I, founder of the Brazilian empire and first emperor of Brazil, from Dec. 1, 1822, to April 7, 1831, also reckoned as King Pedro (Peter) IV of Portugal. Generally known as Dom Pedro, he was the son of King John VI of Portugal.

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Slaves were the people who fought for Haiti's independence.  Thousands of people were killed. Toussaint l'Overture led the slaves to rebel. He died just before Haiti was renamed and gained their independence.

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How did Toussaint L'ouverture, born into bondage in the French colony of Saint-Domingue (present-day Haiti) and enslaved for more than half his life, come to lead the most successful slave revolt in history-and help precipitate the downfall of European colonialism in the western hemisphere?

Saint-Domingue in the late 18 th century thrived as the wealthiest colony in the Americas. Its sugar, coffee, indigo and cotton plantations minted money, fueled by a vast enslaved labor force. A French colony since 1697, it occupied the western third of the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, while the Spanish had colonized the eastern side, called Santo Domingo (now the Dominican Republic).

In 1791, revolution brewed among the island's brutally enslaved majority-inspired in part by the egalitarian ideals driving France's own recent revolution. As the island's enslaved workers organized to burn plantations and kill many owners, Toussaint initially laid low. Having been free for some 15 years, he farmed his own plot of land in the north of the island, while continuing to oversee his former owner's plantation. Eventually, wielding knowledge of African and Creole medicinal techniques, he entered the war as a physician. But he quickly distinguished himself as a canny tactician and a strategic, charismatic leader.

As a general, Toussaint led his forces to victory over the planter class-and thousands of invading French troops. But that was only the start. Navigating the complex, ever-shifting politics of dueling colonial powers, he successfully repelled the aggressions of Europe's mightiest nations (France, Spain and England), using his diplomatic guile to cannily play them off one other. He conquered the Spanish side of Hispaniola, uniting the island and establishing himself as governor. In that role, he worked to quell widespread domestic unrest and restore the island's war-battered economy. And with an education steeped in Enlightenment philosophy, he built on those humanistic ideals to create a constitution that would forever abolish slavery.

Although Toussaint died in a French jail a year before Saint-Domingue gained full independence (and rechristened itself as Haiti) in 1804, his myriad efforts set the stage for the establishment of the second sovereign nation in the western hemisphere after America-and the world's first sovereign Black state. Here's how he did it.

He Played Empire Against Empire

In 1792, France was in a dicey situation. It had recently become a republic, stoking the ire of European monarchies. Furthermore, Saint-Domingue's sustained slave rebellion had put France's wealthiest colony in the Americas at risk of falling under the control of its enemies, England and Spain. So that same year, French commissioners arrived in Saint-Domingue in the apparent spirit of compromise. Rebel leaders, including Toussaint, refused the overture, choosing to do battle instead with the 6,000-man fleet France had also sent.

Toussaint was aware of his regiment's lack of training, but he was also aware of France's desperate position in the face of Spanish and British hostility. So when it suited his needs, he joined forces with France's enemies.

Feigning outrage at the execution of King Louis XVI in 1793, he made an alliance with neighboring Santo Domingo, taking command of a Spanish auxiliary force to reclaim a swath of Saint-Domingue territory. He refused to negotiate with French commissioners until 1794, when France formally abolished slavery in its territories. Toussaint then rejoined the French forces, beat back the Spanish and began his sustained campaign against the British, who had their own designs on Saint-Domingue.

His army ousted British forces in 1798, causing them to lose more than 15,000 men and 10 million pounds in the process. Nonetheless, Toussaint continued to dangle the prospect of British influence in Saint-Domingue as a check against French complacency and to spur trade with Britain's neighboring colony of Jamaica. Toussaint entered into a secret agreement with the British army that eased their naval blockade of imported goods.

He went a step further in 1799, opening diplomatic talks with the Americans to renew commercial ties that would benefit both economies-a major coup for Toussaint. In just two years, American exports to the colony rose more than 260 percent, to $7.1 million. The alliance with the Americans also afforded naval protection on trading vessels destined for Saint-Domingue, an important buffer against British aggressions.

He Played to Multiple Bases

To revitalize a local economy torn by conflict, Toussaint had to leverage his considerable political skills to reconcile the conflicting interests of Saint-Domingue's racial, class, religious and cultural orders. Judging the resources of the merchant and planter classes as integral to rebuilding Saint-Domingue, Toussaint extended generous restitution policies in the name of republican fraternity, going so far as to punish any acts of retribution against former slaveholders. This ensured him a loyal base of allies who did his bidding at regional and international levels. Under his stewardship, Saint-Domingue initiated a robust civic overhaul and public-works projects that created roads, widened canals and improved public sanitation.

That extensive leniency to white citizens, alongside his increasingly autocratic measures to compel Black citizens to work on plantations, corroded his standing among the Black majority. Still, through much of his tenure as governor, he worked vigorously to safeguard their interests and ensure they were now paid for their labor. He traveled extensively to quell internal unrest, relying on his deep cultural ties and Afro-spiritualist cues to reinforce his image as their defender. Under his stewardship, thanks in large part to the efforts of the black masses, the island's agricultural cultivation was restored up to two-thirds to what it had been prior to the 1791 uprisings, according to Toussaint's biographer C.L.R. James.

He Cultivated His Legend

The secret to Toussaint's impact lay also in the trait common to history's greatest heroes-the forging of a persona that verged on the superhuman. James writes that Toussaint saw himself in the avenger role described by Enlightenment thinker Abbé Raynal: as a figure who rises up to eradicate human bondage. Toussaint led charges into battle, and survived numerous brushes with death, lending him a supernatural aura that he cultivated to enrapture followers and enemies alike.

His legend grew. One French official in Saint Domingue credited Toussaint's ability to be in several places at once to his vitality and unmatched understanding of the terrain. And after Napoleon sent 20,000 French troops in 1802 to regain control of Saint-Domingue, a secretary in the expedition described Toussaint as like a tiger: visible where he wasn't and invisible where he was. In time, for his unprecedented achievements, he would be hailed as the Black George Washington and the Napoleon Bonaparte of the Caribbean.

But these honorifics fail to capture the measure of Toussaint Louverture and his far-reaching impact. He was a singular leader who helped charter a revolution extraordinary in its insistence that any declaration of "inalienable liberties" rings hollow when constrained by notions of color or creed. His was a revolution that carried far wider geopolitical implications: Historians credit it with spooking France from further colonial endeavors in the hemisphere and inspiring Napoleon to offload the Louisiana territory to the United States, effectively doubling the young republic in size.

Toussaint would not live to see his country's eventual independence. Captured during Napoleon's 1802 expedition to subdue the colony, he was transported to a French jail, where he died a year later. While it was his radical deputy, Jean-Jacques Dessalines, who would outlast the French assault and declare Haiti's independence in 1804, it is Toussaint's leadership that laid the groundwork for that extraordinary achievement.

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How Toussaint L'ouverture Rose from Slavery to Lead the Haitian Revolution | HISTORY

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Pushing back aggressions by Europe's greatest powers, Haiti's 'founding father' set the stage for the world's first sovereign Black state.