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Kaiser WilhelmGerman emperor (Kaiser) and king of Prussia from 1888 to the end of World War 1 in 1918, known for his militaristic manner as well as for his indecisive policies. Wilhelm was the eldest child of Crown Prince Frederick (later Emperor Frederick III) and Victoria. In 1888 Wilhelm's grandfather died. Crown Prince Frederick died shortly afterwards and, aged just 29, Wilhelm became Kaiser. Within two years he had forced the resignation of Chancellor Bismarck and later appointed von Bülow to the position. Wilhelm wanted von Bülow to persuade the Reichstag to accept whatever policies the Kaiser and the upper classes wanted, usually completely unsuitable for the rapidly industrialising Germany.Bülow's foreign policy included the German Naval Bills of 1897 and 1900, which threatened British naval domination. British anxieties were inflamed further by Kaiser Wilhelm's tactless posturing. Bülow was replaced by Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg, who tried to come to an agreement with Britain. He failed when Britain refused to promise neutrality in any Franco-German war unless Germany agreed to limit its fleet, which was unacceptable to the Germans.  Responsible for government appointments and commander in chief of the armed forces, Kaiser Wilhelm was the only person in Germany who could ensure that military and diplomatic policies were in tune. During and immediately after the war he was vilified in Britain for causing the war. However, his real failure was to encourage  Germany's leaders instead of restraining them at a time when German expansion made some form of conflict with the established great powers seem inevitable.Following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in 1914, Kaiser Wilhelm encouraged the Austrians to adopt an uncompromising line but lost his nerve and was unable to stop his generals mobilising their forces. While theoretically supreme commander, once at war he found himself excluded from decisions, but crippled chances of a compromise peace by encouraging the grandiose war aims of the generals and of many politicians. After Germany surrendered, he was forced to abdicate and left for the Netherlands. This removed the possibility of any form of monarchy and the resulting Weimar Republic saw the rise of Hitler. |