Why didn't he unite Austria or Switzerland with Germany?

>why didn't germany just annex a european empire the same size as itself :^)
because real life isn't HOI4

Okay I know about Germany's industrial prowess,
But where did you get this agricultural bullshit?

>Autistically create your ebin grosse germaniums
>Austria doesn't want to give up its imperial possessions
>Either exclude Austria or let it become the hegemon in the new empire instead of Prussia

HMMMM

I can't find the page at the moment, but i remember in the 1870's, the domestic agricultural market just plain and simple couldn't compete with German grain prices. I originally found it in Great Britain & The Empire by James Williamson, but couldn't find it
got another source though
>Other transformative forces included the effect of industrialisation elsewhere in Europe – particularly in Britain. British demand for grain imports were met partly by German exports, especially from the lands east of the Elbe out of the Baltic ports of Stettin and Danzig
>These was an important impetus to social and technological change for these areas, which were the regions most suited to large scale grain production but which were also the most traditional and backward in their social and contractual organisation.
helsinki.fi/iehc2006/papers2/Grant.pdf
essentially German grain exports to Germany undercut the domestic market heavily in the 1870's and led to a domestic agricultural crisis and a near-collapse of the domestic market

For fucks sake, the guy who said that "nations have no permanent friends, or permanent enemies, only permanent interests" was British. How much of a fuck do you think the foreign office gave about the past?

Britain gave a thousand fucks to Russia when it said Britain had to ally with France

Taking switzerland would make germany an international pariah, they do their own thing.

Austria for most of his time in office was a collosal powerhouse totally fine living on their own.

Yeah, in that specific circumstance. England saw Russia as a nation whose interests lied squarely in the Balkans and the Middle East, territories that, after shit like Crimea and Afghanistan, England decided weren't worth getting invested in, and so just let Russia get what they want as long as they agreed to donate some of what they got over to Britain and France (see: Sykes-Picot). Stuff like East Asia or India, though? England would definitely have come to blows with Russia. But combating encroaching German hegemony over continental Europe and African colonies? They'd probably ally with the devil himself if it meant having an ally against them.

Because Austrians were dedicated to maintaining one of the last true Monarchies in Europe rather than join a Nation-State Empire which would quickly BTFO Habsburg authority.

A Russia that is busy fighting Germany in Eastern Europe is a Russia not challenging British hegemony in central Asia. Similarly, a Germany that is fighting Russia in the east and France in the West is a Germany not competing for control of South Africa and East Asia. Germany was the more capable of those powers, so Britain favored it's opponents. If the war had come later, when Russian industry and rail networks were developed to the point that they would best Germany, Britain would have favor Germany to weaken Moscow

Prussia actually had a military standoff with Switzerland in 1857 didn't do much for Prussia, but it amalgamated the Swiss once mor ein their stand against the German Emperor.

No self respecting German would want to have Austria. Ever.

And attacking Europe's buffernation #1 would trigger endless hostilities from all neighboors, also fighting the Swiss in the Mountains is some dark, cold nightmare without any real strategic purpose.

Would he delay the war?

It appears Willy didn't actually expect war in 1914, but the German high command saw it as a necessity. Ultimately, probably not, depending on another nation for support is a risky proposition. Britain could well have let Russia destroy Germany, hoping that they would be crippled by the effort

My History Proffessor taught us that not many people in Germany wanted Austria to join because they felt that Austria would dominate Germany

Also remember that Austria was Catholic and Germany was mostly Protestant. And Austria was head of a large Multi-Ethnic empire

Switzerland was culturally too distinct from Germany and he let austria off the hook since Germany needed at least one ally.

>doesn't want to see a Habsburg on the German throne
>lol, let's unite all the German lands with Austria
Terrific idea

He feared the Alpine warrior.

I thought Austria wanted to be part of Germany

bavaria and rhineland were catholic. catholics were a huge problem without austria

nope

Guess he knew what he was doing

>too culturally distinct
>as opposed to the danes, the french and the poles already in NGF

hmmm

wat

I am from /pol/, of course I know real politics!