Bismark was a bedwetting sissy who had to be held in order to sleep at night, Blood and iron my ass...
I don’t know a lot bout Bismarck but remember a few things he said or did.
I am pretty sure he started the idea of Social Security. I also remember his saying that all of the Balkans “was not worth the bones of a single Pomeranian grenadier”.
Another one was something like “Lieber Spitzkugeln Als Spitreden” if I remember my college German right. Anyway it meant “rather pointed bullets than pointed words”.
Let’s also not forget that the Prussians’ reckless militarism led to them sponsoring Lenin’s revolt in Russia, simply to undercut a wartime enemy. So we have them to thank for the horrors of international communism that followed as well.
His basic foreign policy following this period of expansion was rather conservative and avoided war - that eventually got him fired in 1890 by the young and very aggressive Wilhelm II, whose own policies came to a thundering head in August 1914. That one didn't end well for Germany.
We think our culture wars were unique but Bismarck launched his own culture war (Kulturkampf) against Christianity and won. The American left merely followed the blueprints of Bismarck and Marx.
Viel danke for this posting
Jerk forced my ancestors to move out of Poland during the Kulturkampf.