Frederick William IV and the Young German Revolution
As Prussia entered the 1840s, her economy was booming. Already the third largest in the world, and rapidly gaining on the French, Prussia’s stature was rising. Her resources were generating huge profits, but the urban population remained small compared to the British. Less than 5% of Prussians lived in cities, and the proportion was even lower in the smaller German states. However, along with the Ruhr, Berlin was starting to attract immigrations from the countryside in ever greater numbers. Prussia encouraged the establishment of cheap, cramped living quarters for these new workers, who began to fill the ever expanding factories.
In addition to the accelerating internal migration, the Prussian population had swelled through the acquisitions in Nigeria. Almost 20% of the 18 million strong population were natives in the new colonies. As the wealth of the state expanded, the Zollverein and expanding rail network ensured that the overfilling Prussian coffers spilled some of their overfill into the other German states. Prussian assets in the North German states totalled 80 million Deutschmarks. The smaller states were coming to rely almost entirely on Prussian investment for any major capital projects
Coronation
On June 7th 1840, the elderly Kaiser Friedrich Wilhelm III died peacefully in his bed, and his son Friedrich Wilhelm IV ascended to the throne. In his long years waiting for his coronation, Friedrich had studied the art of statecraft and politics in depth, and had been influenced by the liberal intelligentsia of the Universities, connections in the British Royal Family, but especially the emerging industrial classes in the Ruhr. Friedrich travelled widely across Prussia, becoming familiar with the social structures of the newly acquired Rhineland. A well-known figure amongst these key emerging parts of society, there were hopes that Friedrich Wilhelm would prove to be receptive to the growing demands for reform.
One of the first acts of the new Kaiser was to conduct a whistle-stop tour around the country. For many in Prussia, this was the first time they had ever seen royalty in the flesh. At every major city, crowds thronged the street and welcomed their new Emperor, thrilled at this unprecedented access to the upper echelons of Prussian society. In the general enthusiasm which gripped the populace, the administration saw an excellent opportunity. 30,000 were pressed into service, forming a new army group comprised of infantry, cavalry and artillery. A wider reorganisation was undertaken, reforming the existing forces into army groups with a standardised mix of units to maximise fighting efficiency. The Prussian army was one of the best funded in Europe, but it was small, and the Prussian navy was almost none existent. The paltry collection of frigates which had been recruited since 1830 was slowly being expanded and a small number of Man of War were also added. Nevertheless, it remained one of the smallest forces, only on a par with the lesser of the great powers such as Austria and the Ottomans.
In addition to the military reforms being undertaken, the new Kaiser was eager to establish his reformist credentials. In early 1841, encouraged by the Kaiser, the number of openly liberal deputies increased to almost 20% of the Reichstag. A special session was convened to discuss the dramatic expansion of the education system. All children in Prussia were to be granted to right to a few years. The newly established schools were to be funded out of the public purse – creating new jobs in the growing urban centres and also improving standards of literacy. The system that was introduced was two tier, with a lower school looking after the youngest children while more technical skills were taught in the upper school for children up to the age of 14.
The education reforms were only the first part of Kaiser Friedrich Wilhelm’s programme. In the years leading up to his coronation, the number of underground newspapers had increased drastically. Rather than attempt to fight a desperate struggle, the Kaiser instead sought to allow independent papers to proliferate, provided that they abide by a censorship code. The final component of the reform package was to liberalise Prussia’s citizenship laws. The 1830 wars in Africa had increased the movement of people between the homeland and the overseas possessions. The Prussian population remained relatively small compared with her peers, and any initiatives to increase the rate of growth were pursued with vigour.
As many a reformist leader was to discover, the public demands for reform were not easily satisfied. A number of rallies were held throughout Prussia demanding further political concessions. Outside of Prussia, the demands were all the more forceful, spilling over into violence. The number of reform movements multiplied throughout Europe, and every state felt the pressure for reform build. Within the German confederation, however, the demands took on a peculiar nature which marked the movement out compared to those in other European nations. In addition to liberalism, the vast majority of those agitating in Germany also did to see the destruction of the confederation, and the birth of a liberal Germany.
The Young German Revolution
Revolutions often start with an explosion, but the Young German Revolution of the 1840s began with just 6,000 rioting students in the tiny state of Saxe-Weimar. The army were sent in, and initially massacred the disorganised rabble. However, the sight of so many young students, a good number of whom were not even armed, soon turned popular opinion
The young Duke, nervous in his new position and concerned by the rumours of his liberal tendency’s, thought that the demonstration offered an opportunity to establish the tenure of his reign through a firm response. He ordered the royal militia, a small professional force of around 3,000 riflemen, to disperse the demonstrators and clear the square.
The young students were shocked to see the soldiers form up in the palace gates, and as unease spread through the crowd a significant number began to slip away. The majority, however, convinced that the massing soldiers were either a bluff or a misunderstanding, were determined to remain in the square, perceiving the peaceful nature of the demonstration and the messages of support for the new Duke. A third, smaller group, who made up a tiny minority of those assembled in the square, began to send messages back into the town.
As the soldiers lined up opposite the demonstration the mood grew tense, with many voices from the crowd demanding an explanation as to why they were being opposed by force. A scuffle broke out close to the front, as an incredulous student wrestled a gun from the hands of one of the demonstrators. As the news spread of arms in the demonstration, the officers visibly stiffened and rifles were raised along the line.
In the days which followed, it was agreed that it was almost certain that the first shot did not come from the crowd, but rather from one of the buildings behind. The solider hit, a young private, was not previously wounded, but his wounded leg caused him to collapse and spill blood. The retort of the gun and his anguished cries of pain were soon drowned out by the sporadic reply of soldiers who fired on the demonstrators. As the panic spread, soon hundreds of students lay dead and dying on the streets, as officers tried in vain to re-establish control. In many places the crowds broke and fled, but a number of pockets surged toward the soldiers as they fired, while the few who had carried weapons discharged them freely.
The soldiers, ill equipped for a confrontation, began an organised withdrawal into the palace grounds, while the majority of the crowd fled. The street lay littered with bodies, many of them young, and the sight provoked outrage amongst the population. In the coming hours, the soldiers remained in the palace while the Duke considered his responses, and the townsfolk assembled barricades at the end of the square, within sight but out-with range of the waiting soldiers.
Three small groups began to cross the square, under a makeshift white flag, and started toward the bodies. The garrison, without any orders, were panicky, and a small number of soldiers fired on those recovering the bodies, convinced that they had spotted partially concealed armaments. Mad rumours circulated of attempts to plant bombs, and with no one taking command the nervy aggression of the garrison looked set to continue.
Among the wider population, those whose loyalty had not been secured by the deaths of the students was soon secured by the sight of woman being fired on as they attempted to retrieve the bodies of their sons and brothers.
Historical Note - German flag
Out of the blackness (black) of servitude through bloody (red) battles to the golden (gold) light of freedom. The German tricolour has its roots in the uniform of the Lützow Free Corps, a volunteer force of the Prussian army during the Napoleonic wars, was the only unit consisting of people from all over the German states. Although it did not achieve any notable military success, it did prove influential after being disbanded as soldiers dispersed throughout the German Confederation. They wore black cloaks (due to lack of supplies, people had to bring their own uniforms) with a red trim and golden brass buttons.