>Europe today is a powder keg and the leaders are like men smoking in an arsenal … A single spark will set off an explosion that will consume us all … I cannot tell you when that explosion will occur, but I can tell you where … Some damned foolish thing in the Balkans will set it off.
Otto von Bismarck, 1878
Justin Ramirez
>create a country that will destroy Europe if operated poorly >get cucked out of your job running it in favor of a guy with literal brain damage and only one good arm
4d chess
Jacob Sullivan
And World War 1 promptly starts because of some dammed foolish thing in the balkans
Daniel Hughes
>Makes educated guess considering certain geopolitical realities of the time >hailed as some prophet for it
Carson Jones
Does that mean every averagely informed individual who decades ago said "idk maybe we shouldn't dick around in the middle east without thinking it through" is also a massive prophet who should centuries from now be hailed as wiser than us common folk
Leo Foster
Still, if you look at all the things is done and the plays that he made in europe it's still impressive.
Grayson Turner
Except there were many Balkans War,and only a particular one really blew up
Robert Mitchell
That "foolish thing in the Balkans" ended up causing the WW1 because of Bismarcks who awarded Bosnia to Austria-Hungary. He didn't just predict it, he literally caused it.
Noah Sullivan
This. Bismarck himself was largely responsible for the state of affairs that he complained of.
Christian Mitchell
No it was serbians in typical fasion chimping out
Landon Brown
oh fuck off
Andrew Phillips
Lol this guy thinks he was so smart I'm smarter than him
Ethan Clark
He caused it, as he set up the whole diplomatic situation -- he was the only one who knew how to prevent the powder keg, and then idiot Wilhelm II wanted war and made him leave.
Not saying it wasn't a bad thing to set up the diplomatic world that way, but at the same time was it necessary to the formation of a unified German state. This was Bismarck's dream. It was a point of pride
Jaxson Young
I believe in you user!!
Xavier Reyes
OHHHH SHIT DUDE UR RIGHT. YOU MUST BE SOME KINDA GENIOUOUS OR SOMETHING
Luke Ramirez
that was literally 1 serbian
Jace Thompson
>This was Bismarck's dream Bismarck actually opposed incorporating Alsace-Lorraine you know, but the liberal king listening to the Pan-Germanists fucked that up and made an enemy out of France
Jonathan Jones
Actually, France set up the diplomatic situation by seducing Russia to the Entente.
Grayson Hall
Bismark didn't actually give a shit about a United Germany, he only cared because it would empower the King of Prussia even more. Everything he did, both good and shit, was to help the king.
Cameron Evans
Bismark was against a unified Germany all along.
Jackson Martin
Hourly reminder that nietzsche predicted both world wars before 1900
Cooper Torres
>lone gunman theory >no mention of Young Bosnia or Black Hand There was a cabal behind it, as there often is in matters of political murder.