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Germany's economy was rundown. And jobs were hard to find

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On January 18 1871 Germany became a nation for the first time in history after a nationalistic war against France masterminded by the “Iron Chancellor” Otto von Bismarck.

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Otto von Bismarck, often referred to as the "Iron Chancellor," was the mastermind behind the unification of Germany. Through strategic diplomacy and nationalistic fervour, Bismarck paved the way for the birth of a united German nation.

With its newfound unity, Germany rapidly emerged as a formidable force in Europe. Bolstered by its industrial prowess, economic growth, and a powerful military, the nation exerted its influence on the global stage.

Under his leadership, the German Empire was formed, ending centuries of fragmentation. The symbolic significance of the unification ceremony cannot be understated. By deliberately choosing the Palace of Versailles, located outside Paris, as the venue instead of Berlin, Bismarck sent a powerful message. This decision represented a bold statement of military might and conquest, foreshadowing Germany's ambitions and its trajectory as a dominant European power throughout the first half of the 20th century.

Otto von Bismarck's legacy as the architect of German unification would shape not only the country's trajectory but also the geopolitical landscape of Europe for years to come.

A motley collection of states

Before 1871 Germany had always been a motley collection of states sharing little more than a common language.

Over 300 distinct states existed within the region, each differing in customs, systems of rule, and even religion. Unification seemed improbable and was often dismissed, much like the contemporary notion of a United States of Europe. However, the vision and determination of Otto von Bismarck would change the course of history.

As the 19th century progressed, a wave of nationalism began to sweep through Germany. The defeat of Napoleon by several German states played a significant role in fueling this nationalistic fervor. Initially, the call for unity was championed by students and middle-class liberal intellectuals who emphasised the importance of a shared language and a somewhat tenuous common history as unifying factors.

Few people took much notice beyond a few mildly nationalistic festivals, and the fact that the movement was confined to intellectuals was illustrated poignantly in the European revolutions of 1848, where a brief stab at a national German parliament quickly fizzled out and this attempted Reichstag never held much political power.

After this, it seemed that German unification was no nearer to happening than ever. The kings, princes and dukes of the German states, typically opposed to unification for obvious reasons, generally retained their power.

The power of Prussia

The power balance of the German states was important, for if one was ever more powerful than the others put together, then it might attempt conquest of intimidation. By 1848 Prussia, a conservative and militaristic kingdom in the east of Germany, had been the strongest of the states for a century.

However, it was restrained by the combined strength of the other states, and, more importantly, by the influence of the neighbouring Austrian Empire, which would not allow any German state to have too much power and become a possible rival.

After a brief flirtation with revolution in 1848, the Austrians had restored order and the status quo, humiliating Prussia in the process. When the formidable statesman von Bismarck was appointed Minister-President of that country in 1862, he aimed to restore Prussia as a great European power.

After effectively taking command of the country unconstitutionally, he vastly improved the military for which Prussia would become famous. Bismarck harnessed the aspirations of the German people and united them under a singular cause.

The defeat of Austria in the Seven Weeks' War

The war that followed in 1866 was a resounding Prussian victory which radically changed a European political landscape which had remained virtually the same since the defeat of Napoleon.

Many of Prussia's rival states had joined Austria and been cowed and defeated, and the Empire then turned its attentions away from Germany in order to restore some of its severely battered prestige. The ethnic tensions that this move created would later kick-start World War One.

Prussia, meanwhile, was able to form the other beaten states in North Germany into a coalition which was effectively the beginnings of a Prussian Empire. Bismarck had masterminded the whole business and now reigned supreme - and though not a natural nationalist he was now seeing the potential of a fully united Germany ruled by Prussia.

This was a far cry from the heady dreams of the earlier intellectuals, but, as Bismarck famously said, unification would have to be achieved, if it was to be achieved, by "blood and iron."

He knew, however, that he could not rule a united country dogged by infighting. The south remained unconquered and the north was only tenuously under his control. It would take a war against a foreign and historic enemy to unite Germany, and the one that he had in mind was particularly hated across Germany after Napoleon's wars.

The Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71

France was ruled at this point by the great man's nephew, Napoleon III, who did not have his uncle's brilliance or military skill.

Through a series of clever diplomatic tactics Bismarck was able to provoke Napoleon into declaring war on Prussia, and this seemingly aggressive move on France's part kept the other European powers such as Britain from joining her side.

It also created a furious anti-French feeling across Germany, and when Bismarck moved Prussia's armies into position, they were joined - for the first time in history - by men from every other German state. The following war was devastating for the French.

The large and well trained German armies won many victories - most notably at Sedan in September 1870, a defeat which persuaded Napoleon to resign and live out the last miserable year of his life in exile in England. The war did not end there however, and the French fought on without their Emperor.

A few weeks after Sedan, Paris was under siege, and the war only ended when it fell in late January 1871. In the meantime, Bismarck had gathered the German generals princes and Kings at Versailles and proclaimed the new and ominously powerful country of Germany, changing the political landscape of Europe.

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Otto von Bismarck: Architect of German Unification

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Otto von Bismarck, often referred to as the "Iron Chancellor," was the mastermind behind the unification of Germany. Through strategic...

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The modern nations of Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador are grouped together, from 1740, as the Spanish viceroyalty of New Granada with its capital at Bogotá.

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The modern nations of Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador are grouped together, from 1740, as the Spanish viceroyalty of New Granada with its capital at Bogotá.

The second half of the 18th century is a time of considerable progress in the region. Spain relaxes the long-standing mercantilist restrictions on trade with its colonies, resulting in a rapid increase in prosperity. An educated and professional class of Creoles begins to emerge, self-confident and increasingly resentful of the privileges of the peninsulares. In these circumstances New Granada is a natural region for the first resistance to imperial rule. There is a brief uprising in Ecuador as early as 1809. But sustained opposition begins elsewhere a year later.

Bolívar escapes to Cartagena, the main seaport of neighbouring Colombia. The city is in rebel hands, and here he pens a powerful political pamphlet, the Manifesto de Cartagena, addressed to the citizens of New Granada. In it he offers the inspiring vision of a united effort to expel the Spaniards.

He soon proves his own abilities in this great enterprise. In 1813, at the head of an army of liberation, he returns to Venezuela and wins six successive engagements against Spanish forces. On 6 August 1813 he enters Caracas. Welcomed as the Liberator, he takes political control with dictatorial powers.

The crisis of 1826 brings Bolívar back from Peru to Gran Colombia. He appeases Páez, allowing him a degree of autonomy in Venezuela, but in doing so he provokes opposition in Colombia - where he assumes dictatorial powers in 1828 (and later in the same year is lucky to survive an assassination attempt).

Meanwhile Ecuador, the third part of Gran Colombia, has been in political turmoil since independence was first achieved in 1823; and its valuable southern port of Guayaquil has remained a bone of contention with Peru. The Peruvians invade in 1829. They are only driven back when Sucre emerges from his recent retirement and defeats them, against heavy odds, on the plain of Tarqui.

The elections of 1998, however, bring a dramatic new change of direction. Hugo Chavez, a charismatic former paratrooper who has served two years in gaol for his part in a failed military coup in 1992, wins the presidency with a large popular majority on a nationalist left-wing programme.

Chavez, who sees himself as leading a new revolution, borrows the mantle of the liberator of Venezuela, Bolívar. He renames the country the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, and appears on platforms with Bolívar's jewel-encrusted ceremonial sword as a prop.

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The modern nations of Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador are grouped together, from 1740, as the Spanish viceroyalty of New Granada with its capital at Bogotá. The second half of the 18th century is a time of considerable progress in the region. Spain relaxes the long-standing mercantilist restrictions on trade with its colonies, resulting in a rapid increase in prosperity.

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Simon Bolivar liberated Venezuela from the Spanish fire more than 20 hundred years ago

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Bolivians proclaimed their independence from Spain in 1809, but it took 16 years of struggle to actually gain it in 1825.

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Bolivian Independence, achieved after centuries of Spanish colonial rule, was a process that spanned more than 15 years, from 1809 to 1825, and involved numerous battles and countless deaths. The struggle for independence started locally and later Simon Bolivar and Antonio Jose de Sucre gave cohesiveness to a fragmented and unorganized cause.

Ultimately, this new and independent country, Bolivia, would get its name from the Simon Bolivar, the military and political leader that changed the course of Colonial South America. Bolivia during the 18th century was known as Upper Peru and as was an autonomous region dependant on the Viceroyalty of Peru. Local government was the responsibility of the Royal Audience directed by a President.

This Audience was known as the Audiencia de Charcas. As was the case in other places, the Spanish overseers were widely ignorant of the situation of the people and considered themselves superior to the indigenous people. It was not uncommon for these Oidores to make the people bow to them. In 1776 a reorganization of territories was ordered by Spain and Upper Peru joined the Viceroyalty of the Rio de la Plata against the wishes of the Viceroyalty of Peru-which would stand to lose valuable natural resources and the money that would come with them.

This would bitterly divide the relationship between these two regions. Further dividing the bases of power was the implementation of the intendancy system that subdivided the power of Viceroy and created internal power struggles between Intendants and Viceroys. At the start of the 19th century, a perfect storm of circumstances came together to fan the flames of independence in South America.

In 1807, Napoleon invaded Spain in a quest to increase his empire. This created an enormous vacuum of power and oversight in South America permitting the independence movements to begin their fight in earnest while the Spanish Monarchy was distracted with its own problems back home.The first wave of nationalist uprisings in Bolivia occurred in 1809 when the government juntas of Charcas and La Paz were formed as a reaction to the events in Spain-the chaotic, almost anarchic, situation in Spain was duplicating itself in Bolivia.

The junta in Charcas was created by the removal of the President, Ramon Garcia Leon de Pizarro, by the Audience because the Spanish Oidores suspected him of wanting to join with Portugal. The representatives of the Monarchy decided to convert Upper Peru into a junta that would remain loyal to Spain in spirit while isolating itself politically from the other surrounding regions including the Viceroyalty of Peru. In La Paz, the junta there was an effort to break free from Spanish rule altogether and wanting complete independence from any European power. These juntas ended up being short-lived, however, and soon fell back under Spanish control thanks to the intervention of the Viceroy of Peru and the better equipped Royalists easily defeated the nationalists, who were lacking in money, resources and military experience.The defeat of the juntas did not mark the end of the independence movement; they constituted an important part of the history of Bolivia. The juntas were able to promote and encourage the independence movement which was kept alive by a six guerrilla armies that formed away from the cities and took control of various regions of Bolivia.

In 1810, these six breakaway regions would come to be known as republiquetas (little republics) and each were headed by a caudillo (military leader or dictator). These regions had little or no influence in the surrounding areas but were strong enough to withstand any interference by the royalist forces for more than 15 years.With the American war of independence still fresh in the mind of the world; especially in South America which was subject to Colonial Spanish rule, people began to question the legitimacy of colonial occupation. In 1807, a South American aristocrat and liberal thinker had just returned from his travels in Europe.

In Venezuela, this man, Simon Bolivar was beginning a revolution of South American independence from Spain. His struggle would take him all over South America and his cause gained followers every day that passed. After having liberated Colombia, Venezuela, and Ecuador, Bolivar was now close to liberating Peru in 1821. In Upper Peru, following 1817, there was relative calm with the power of the caudillos and the Viceroy of Peru reaching a point of equilibrium. In 1820 this equilibrium was broken with the conservative general, Pedro Antonio de Olañeta, refusing to recognize the Spanish Constitution of 1812 and breaking away from the Viceroyalty of Peru. He also refused to join the rebel armies of Bolivar that were beginning to approach Upper Peru as he considered himself "the only defender of the throne and altar" in the region. With the fall of Peru to Bolivar, the next he set his sights on was Upper Peru.

In the latter half of 1823 the forces of Bolivar crossed Bolivia and on December 9, 1824, the rebel forces under the command of Antonio Jose de Sucre defeated the royalist army in the Battle of Ayacucho.The remaining royalist forces were easily defeated at El Callao but there remained one last military obstacle: General Olañeta. As the last holdout, he attempted to surrender Upper Peru to Brazil in the last ditch effort to maintain Spanish control in the area but to no avail. In one final battle on April 9, 1825, Olañeta and Sucre met on the battlefield. Olañeta's troops now knowing that defeat would be their destiny murdered Olañeta on the battlefield and surrendered to the rebel army.

Spain's last outpost in South America was now lost forever. A constitutional congress was summoned and on August 6, 1825, to create a new Magna Carta as well as a name to this newly independent country Bolivia in honor of the aristocrat turned liberator, Simon Bolivar. From August 12 to December 29, 1825, Bolivar led Bolivia on the path to democracy and independence and after he stepped down fellow war hero, Antonio Jose de Sucre would continue in the presidency.

Today, Bolivia's Independence Day is now celebrated every year on 6th August. Celebrations are held throughout the country and it is a common sight to see schoolchildren parading through the streets in their school uniforms while proudly carrying the Bolivian flag.

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Bolivian Independence - History of Bolivia - don Quijote

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Bolivian Independence. From August 12 to December 29, 1825, Simon Bolivar led Bolivia on the path to democracy and independence.

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economic success has risen with the population
Bolivia has just marked 194 years of independence