Bülow, Bernhard, Fürst von

Bülow, Bernhard, Fürst von

▪ chancellor of Germany
born May 3, 1849, Klein-Flottbek, near Altona, Germany
died October 28, 1929, Rome, Italy

      German imperial chancellor and Prussian prime minister from October 17, 1900, to July 14, 1909; in cooperation with Emperor William II (Kaiser Wilhelm II), he pursued a policy of German aggrandizement in the years preceding World War I.

      The son of an imperial secretary of state for foreign affairs under Chancellor Otto von Bismarck, Bülow studied law at Lausanne (Switzerland), Berlin, and Leipzig and entered the German foreign service in 1874. He held a number of diplomatic posts, becoming German ambassador in Rome, Italy, in 1893. Bülow's real rise to power occurred in June 1897, when William II appointed him state secretary for the Foreign Department. He quickly became a more potent force than the chancellor, Chlodwig Karl Viktor Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst (Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst, Chlodwig Karl Viktor, Fürst zu), and after three years he succeeded to the chancellorship. Bülow was expected to satisfy the widespread desire for an aggressive foreign policy while preventing the impetuous emperor from making a fool of himself.

      In his foreign policy, both as state secretary and as chancellor, Bülow, considerably influenced by Friedrich von Holstein, employed what he understood as Bismarckian Realpolitik to advance William II's policy of a “place in the sun” for the Reich among world powers. As state secretary, he scored some gains in the Pacific, acquiring Chiao-chou (Kiaochow) Bay, China; the Caroline Islands; and Samoa (1897–1900). He actively promoted building the Baghdad Railway to make Germany a power in the Middle East, and his success in compelling European acceptance of Austria-Hungary's annexation of Bosnia-Herzegovina (1908) was welcomed by Germans fearful of the Reich's encirclement.

      Bülow was less successful in his attempts to prevent the formation of an English–French–Russian combination against Germany. In 1898 and 1901 he and Friedrich von Holstein (Holstein, Friedrich von) tried to negotiate an alliance entailing British guarantees for Austria-Hungary, but the British, concerned over Germany's threat to their naval supremacy, remained aloof. His conclusion of the Treaty of Björkö with Russia in 1905 did not prevent the Russians' adherence to the Anglo-French Entente (1907). The confrontation with France and Britain over Morocco (1905–06) increased international tension.

      In the domestic affairs of Prussia and the Reich, Bülow relied on the support of the Conservatives and Centrists and, at times, the National Liberals. Although he did not repress the Social Democratic Party (Social Democratic Party of Germany), and even introduced some cautious social measures through his state secretary, Artur Posadowsky, Bülow made sure that they gained no real political power. He evaded several urgent problems: the repeal of the Prussian three-class suffrage laws, the resolution of the dualism between Prussia and the Reich, the radical reform of imperial finances, and the imposition of direct taxes. Seeing the necessity of cooperating with the Reichstag, Bülow from 1905 leaned toward liberal constitutionalism.

      William II's indiscreet remarks printed in The Daily Telegraph of London in 1908 led to Bülow's resignation in the following year. Bülow admitted that he had not read the proof of the article that the newspaper had submitted to him before publication; William believed Bülow had approved the article so that the emperor would be humiliated.

      Bülow's posthumously published memoirs, Denkwürdigkeiten (ed. by Franz von Stockhammern, 4 vol., 1930–31; Eng. trans. Memoirs, 4 vol., 1931–32), represented an attempt by Bülow to exonerate himself from any blame for the war and for Germany's collapse; in fact, they reflect his blindness to his own limitations as a statesman.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Bernhard Fürst von Bülow — Bernhard von Bülow, 1895 Bernhard Heinrich Martin Karl von Bülow (* 3. Mai …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Bülow, Bernhard Heinrich Martin Carl, Count von — (1849–1929)    A German politician and diplomat, Count von Bülow was German Chancellor and Prussian Ministerpresident from 1900 to 1909. Born into one of the oldest German aristocratic families on May 3, 1849, he studied law and then had a rapid… …   Encyclopedia of the Age of Imperialism, 1800–1914

  • Bülow [4] — Bülow, Bernhard, Fürst von, Sohn des vorigen, deutscher Reichskanzler, geb. 3. Mai 1849 in Kleinflottbeck (Holstein), war 1877 78 Geschäftsträger in Athen, 1879 84 Botschaftssekretär in Paris, dann Botschaftsrat in Petersburg, 1888 Gesandter in… …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Von Bülow — …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Bernhard von Bülow — Bernhard von Bülow, 1895 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Herbert Fürst von Bismarck — Herbert von Bismarck (1892, von C.W.Allers) Marie, Herbert und Wilhelm von Bismarck ca. 1855 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Von Bulow — Von Bülow Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Les Bülows sont une famille noble allemande, portant les titres de baron (Freiherr), de comte (Graf) ou de prince (Fürst). Sommaire 1 Liste de… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Bernhard von Bülow — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Bernhard von Bülow Cargo: Canciller de Alemania …   Wikipedia Español

  • Karl August Fürst von Hardenberg — Karl August von Hardenberg Karl August Freiherr von Hardenberg (auch: Carl August von Hardenberg; * 31. Mai 1750 in Essenrode, heute zu Lehre; † 26. November 1822 in Genua) war ein preußischer Staatsmann, der dem kurhannoverschen Adelsgeschlecht… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Carl Max Fürst von Lichnowsky — Karl Max Fürst Lichnowsky nach der britischen Kriegserklärung an das Deutsche Reich im August 1914 im Londoner Hyde Park Karl Max Fürst von Lichnowsky (* 8. März 1860 in Kreuzenort, Oberschlesien; † 27. Februar 1928 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”