Wilhelm II sought limits on working hours and labor by women and children while Bismarck favored repression of socialism. Bismarck marshaled the Prussian ministers against the emperor, threatened force and constitutional rupture, and tried to control all ministerial contact with the crown. Electoral losses and an attempt to build a Reichstag coalition without consulting Wilhelm deepened the crisis until an old political opponent described leaving the deathbed of a great man. The book provides a broad political overview of Britain, Germany, and the coming of the First World War, with the loss of precision that any overview entails.
Chapter · 2:03:49-2:11:47
Bismarck's break with Wilhelm II
A reading from Robert K. Massie's Dreadnought traces the clash over labor reform and ministerial authority that ended Bismarck's dominance under Wilhelm II.