WI: Kaiser Bismarck (Royal House of Bismarck)

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In 1871, right around the conclusion of the Franco-Prussian War, the German aristocracy gathered around the palace of Versallies and official crowned Wilhelm I, King of Prussia and President of the North German Confederation, German Emperor.

Originally perfering the title "Emperor of Germany", Wilhelm is quoted to have dismissed the title as "trash" and vocally perfering his original regal position as "King of Prussia".

Bismark, the architect of the coronation ceremony and a Prussia Aristocrat/Junker himself saw the importance of having a conservative regal position to help cement the union of the germanic principalities and territories under Prussian rule. Bismark eventually convinced the king to assume the title.

However my question is this: since Otto himself was awarded the title prince ("Furst") along with Imperial Chancellor after the coronation, what if instead Wilhelm I refused the "German Emperor" title and instead granted Bismark the title "German Furst" at Versaillies as means to satisfy both men's political necessities.

Wilhelm would remain King of Prussia and President of the new German Confederation and Otto would be the leading regal statesmen of the new German Empire instead of chancellor. Possibly a regal "first citizen" of the new Imperial State.

Upon Wilhelm's death in 1888, could we see "Prince Otto" out maneuver the sickly Frederick III to assuming the a German Kaisership De Jure? Would the Prussian aristocracy accept this? What would a Bismarck as Kaiser Germany look like.
 
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This is really as close to impossible as non-ASB PODs get. I mean, yes, technically it is conceivable that the German Empire introduces a German nobility at the Reich level, but the negotiations were tense enough without introducing that to upset the applecart. Getting the German kings and princes to accept such a title would require superhuman political skill. The titles in Wilhelm's gift were Prussian, not German, for the good reason that creating a German nobility would have lowered the status of all extant nobles (with their now-provincial titles) and humiliated the other kings (who couldn't bestow these new titles).

Assuming this happens, we still need to define what 'German Prince' means. Fürst is a relatively 'soft' title, nowhere near as clearly defined as, say, king or duke. Bismarck was made a non-sovereign prince (for the good reason he couldn't be made a sovereign one without creating a new member state to the Reich). What would a 'German prince' be? It is not really plausible that it would be a sovereign title since that would make him superior to kings (which a prince isn't), but what does a non-sovereign title of that grandiosity actually mean? It has no precedent and is liable to offend.

Even with the princely title, Bismarck still has no executive authority. It is imprtant to remember that 19th century Germany, despite its loud and consistent proclamations of adhering to legitimist principle, was first and foremost a bureaucratic state. Kings did not have power through their blood or the mystical bonds of loyalty, they had power through the law (and often it was mightily circumscribed). The king of Prussia could close down his parliament on a whim, but he could not issue a cabinet order without the written consent of his chancellor (yes, him. Guess who wrote that law). The apparatus of state obeyed because it was what you did. You followed the rules. Max Weber describes this wonderfully in his analysis of the modern bureaucracy, which is really based largely on Wilhelmine Prussia. A 'German prince' has no rules. There is no law pertaining to that position, and it cannot be written against the opposition of the Reichsrat (the princes wouldn't stand for it, even if Prussia overrules them they're likely to walk out) and Reichstag (not a chance, given the sizeable liberal and later Socialist factions). It would have to be a coup d'etat, backed by the Prussian army. Except that the Prussian army would not back it. They're sworn to uphold order and obey the monarch, not to help some crazy nogoodnik politician overthrow the Hohenzollern dynasty. Much the same goes for the civil service. This is not 1933, when a parallel power structure can be erected on the basis of charisma and intimidation. There is no 'Fronterlebnis' to desensitise people to violence, no expectation of messianic deliverance. People won't stand for it.

And finally, assuming the office of 'German prince' is actually created, the moment Bismarck suggests the vacant emperorship might be elective, the first candidate will be a Wittelsbach, not some nobody from the arse end of Ostelbien. We are used to seeing Bismarck through the lens of his cult, but that is mostly an artifact of the early 1900s. While he was alive, the man was disliked even by many of his admirers. Think Rahm Emanuel, the magnificent bastard stereotype. Very few people trusted him. He's not emperor material (granted, neither was Wilhelm II, but that was an accident of heredity. Picking Bismarck would be walking into the buzzsaw with your eyes open).

You cannot do this without changing so many aspects of the German Empire to the point that it really bears little resemblance to OTL.
 
Bumping***

Please read Carlton Bach's post. This is ridiculous.

Neither the Prussian aristocracy nor any other German monarch would accept being made subservient to a jumped-up Junker. At least not in title. And Bismarck was loyal to the Hohenzollerns, so why the hell would he prevent one of them from becoming Emperor? Seriously, the German Empire and its member states were fundamentally aristocratic and reactionary; Bismarck is never going be anything more than Chancellor. 19th century Germany is not Revolutionary America.
 
Pretty much yeah. Even if the German Empire actually becomes elective they're more likely to elect The King of Bavaria or Saxony as Emperor than Bismarck, and it doesn't matter how well he 'serves' the Empire or how super smart he is.

Hell, they would be more likely to elect Franz Joseph than Bismarck.

....Which would be hilarious and awesome, by the way.
 
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