Germany
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Otto von Bismarck
said
There is no doubt, however, that I have caused unhappiness to great numbers.
— Spoken on 21 October 1877, according to Moritz Busch in Bismarck: Some Secret Pages of His History, Volume II This quote is preceded by
Otto von Bismarck
German statesman and Chancellor (1815-1898)
- Fame90.1
- Momentum0.1
- Global rank#172
Source-basedFalling
- Fame90.1
- Momentum0.1
- Global rank#172
- Germany rank#13
- Politicians rank#35
- Wikipedia206.7K
Lived 1815–1898, aged 83Germany
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Summary
Updated 2026-07-17
He turned Prussia into an empire through three calculated wars, then spent two decades keeping the peace he'd shattered to get there. The man who invented the welfare state to crush socialism and coined "Realpolitik" as statecraft.
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Born a Junker landowner in 1815, Otto von Bismarck climbed through Prussian diplomacy — ambassador to Russia and France, both houses of parliament — before Wilhelm I made him minister president in 1862. Over eight years he engineered three short wars against Denmark, Austria, and France, each one deliberate, each one won. Austria's defeat in 1866 let him form the North German Confederation; France's collapse in 1870 cleared the path to German unification under Prussian rule in 1871, with Bismarck as its first chancellor. He built the first welfare state to undercut his socialist enemies, waged…
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Sourced, dated quotes from Otto von Bismarck
Otto von Bismarck
said
A conquering army on the border will not be stopped by eloquence.
— Speech to North German Reichstag (24 September 1867)
Otto von Bismarck
said
I ask you what right had I to close the way to the throne against these people? The kings of Prussia have never been by preference kings of the rich.
— Speech to the Prussian United Diet in answer to the petition of Wüstegiersdorf weavers (1865), quoted in W. H. Dawson, Bismarck and State
Otto von Bismarck
said
Faust complains of having two souls in his breast. I have a whole squabbling crowd. It goes on as in a republic.
— As quoted in (1955) by A. J. P. Taylor, p. 12. Cf. Goethe, Faust, Part I: Zwei Seelen wohnen, ach! in meiner Brust, / Die eine will sich
Otto von Bismarck
said
Only a country's most vital interests justify its embarking on war. ...
— Speech during the Luxembourg Crisis (1867), quoted in Gerhard Ritter, The Sword and the Sceptre: The Problem of Militarism in Germany,
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