Identifier: modernhistoryeur00west (find matches)
Title: Modern history; Europe
Year: 1904 (1900s)
Authors: West, Willis Mason, 1857- (from old catalog)
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Publisher: Boston, Allyn and Bacon
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: Sloan Foundation

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le, while the Land-tag enthusiastically passed the act of indemnity he requestedfor his previous illegal acts. This hearty support made iteasier for him to complete his work. The South Germanstates were yet to be brought into the more complete NorthGerman union; and this consummation was secured by Bis-marck through the third of his wars, —the contest with Prancein 1870-1871. Before the war, however, two important steps toward unionwere taken. (1) In 1868, a Customs Parliament, representingall Germany, north and south alike, organized a national 1 When Prussia became a kingdom, in 1701, her population was about oneand a half millions. Frederick II received the state with a population of twoand a half millions, and it was doubled during his reign. By 1815, it hadbeen doubled once more. In the next fifty years, 1815-1866, without terri-torial growth, the population had risen from ten to twenty millions. TheSix Weeks War added a half more. Compare the map opposite with that onpage 297.
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474 UNIFICATION OF GERMANY, 1850-1871. (§470 Customs Union, and so joined all Germans into one nationcommercially.1 (2) Secret treaties bound the South Germanstates to Prussia in a military league against France. This last arrangement was a diplomatic victory for Bismarckover Napoleon III. Napoleon had been outwitted in boththe preceding wars. After the Danish war, he had failed toget Belgium or Luxemburg, one of which he had expectedPrussia to help him secure ; but when the Six Weeks Wardrew on, he thought his chance had come. France wouldremain neutral at first, but would be ready to strike, and atthe critical moment she would step in and save the vanquished.Napoleon did not doubt that the vanquished would be Prussia;and, as the price of his protection, he expected to compel Prus-sia to help him to the coveted Rhine territory. But the warwas over, and over the other way, before the French armieswere ready to act. Napoleon had lost his chance 5 but he thenweakly tried negotiation. H

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