- Kleindeutsche Lösung
The "Kleindeutsche Lösung" ("Lesser German Solution") was a 19th century political idea postulating the idea of a unified
Germany consisting of the members of theGerman Confederation , led byHohenzollern Prussia , but excluding theAustrian Empire which was united withHungary and not willing to separate. The inclusion of Hungary would have contradicted the idea of anational state . It stands in contrast to the idea of a "Großdeutsche Lösung" ("Greater German Solution") "(Großdeutschland " or "Greater Germany").Early History
The German parliament which was elected after the early successes of the the revolution of 1848 was split between the two options, with the democratic left favouring a
Republic an "Großdeutschland", whereas the liberal centre favoured a "Kleindeutschland" with aconstitutional monarchy . In the end, the "Kleindeutsche Lösung" prevailed, but the Prussian king rejected the crown offered to him.After the Austro-Prussian Dualism had been forcefully decided in favor of Prussia by the
Austro-Prussian War in 1866, "Kleindeutschland" was realized in 1871 after theFranco-Prussian War . The "small solution" was also chosen partly in order to prevent the Austrians and fellow Catholics in the south and west from being a predominant force in a Prussian Germany, a view held byOtto von Bismarck .After World War I
After
World War I , the Habsburg Monarchy was broken up and the German-speaking territories, having lost their industrial and trading areas, decided to join the German Reich. TheTreaty of Versailles and theTreaty of Saint-Germain however specifically prohibited the union of Austria and Germany. Still, the Greater German sentiment remained strong and in 1938Adolf Hitler annexed Austria into a new Grossdeutsches Reich. In contrast to earlier versions of the Greater German idea, Austria was split up into several districts.After World War II
After the
Second World War Austria was once again separated from Germany and managed to gain its independence as a neutral state despite the growingCold War . Austria was also declared the "first victim of Nazi Germany" in theMoscow Declaration , despite its having been a part of Germany throughout the war and despite the involvement of many Austrians - including Hitler himself - with the regime. This need to distance oneself from Germany effectively ended "Greater German" sentiments in Austria.References
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