1705041958
1705041959
convulsed, shook violently (literally and figuratively).
1705041960
1705041961
gloss over, cover up; explain away; say as little as possible.
1705041962
1705041963
after a thousand years of dissent . Charlemagne was able to bring most of the present Germany into the bounds of his empire by his energetic conquest of the Saxons, but the unity of his empire was ephemeral. The breakdown of the state was signalized in the Treaty of Verdun (843) when the three sons of Louis I, the Pious, divided the territories, the eastern portion going to Louis the German. The eastern territories never achieved a real unity; five great duchies, Saxony, Franconia, Lorraine, Bavaria, and Swabia, developed, and were dominant. From that time down to Bismarck’s day, these and many other divisions that later sprang up kept Germany from becoming a united nation.
1705041964
1705041965
rent, torn apart; dissociated.
1705041966
1705041967
coping, meeting with; dealing with.
1705041968
1705041969
oscillation, changing repeatedly back and forth; fluctuation.
1705041970
1705041971
white heat, great heat; under great compulsion; at a great speed.
1705041972
1705041973
forged, built up; shaped; made.
1705041974
1705041975
this realm of music, German musicians and composers, such as Beethoven (1770-1827), Mendelssohn (1809-1847), Schumann (1810-1856), Wagner (1813-1883), and Brahms (1833-1897), and the Austrian Schubert (1797-1828), are well known in the field of music.
1705041976
1705041977
wariness, state of being cautious; cautiousness.
1705041978
1705041979
monomaniac, one whose mind is deranged upon a single subject only.
1705041980
1705041981
primum mobile (first moved), with Aristotle, the highest physical sphere, or heaven of the fixed stars, which is in immediate contact with God, and derives its circular motion, the most perfect of all motions, directly from him; hence, any deep-seated impulse or urge.
1705041982
1705041983
Napoleon the parvenu . A parvenu is a person of obscure origin who has gained wealth or a high position; an upstart, in other words. Napoleon came from an obscure family, while Bismarck came from a family that had a long history back of it; therefore Napoleon is called the parvenu, while Bismarck is entitled the noble.
1705041984
1705041985
misanthropy, hatred of mankind.
1705041986
1705041987
ideologist or artist, idle theorizer or artist (musician, painter and such); philosopher or artist.
1705041988
1705041989
homo politicus, political man; political being; the practical administrator.
1705041990
1705041991
pedants of the Frankfort variety . Frankfort refers to the town Frankfort am Main in Germany where the Frankfort National Assembly was held in 1848-1849. A preliminary parliament (the Vorparlament) met in March, 1848, in response to popular demand and called an assembly, the parliament which convened May 13, 1848. Its president was Heinrich von Gagern (1799-1880). Delegates from all the German states gathered for the purpose of discussing plans for the unification of Germany. The delegates were of all political complexions from radical democrats to conservative royalists. There was much conflict among them and it was only after much travail that a constitution for a united Germany was drawn up. The rivalry of Austria and Prussia further complicated the problem, and the whole scheme ended in failure when Frederick William IV of Prussia, partially from fear of Austria, partially because he did not wish to have a crown given him by commoners, refused the headship of the proposed empire. Though it failed, the Parliament’s proposals were valuable to Bismarck later in the formation of the empire.
1705041992
1705041993
Pomeranian back-country, the uncultivated regions of Pomerania, North Prussia. Bismarck came from an old Brandenburg family.
1705041994
1705041995
political primitive, one unlearned in politics; one who entered the field of politics without any previous experience in it.
1705041996
1705041997
heavy cargo of courage, much courage.
1705041998
1705041999
the ballast, is any heavy substance put into the hold of a ship or the car of a balloon to steady it. Ludwig states that a proud self-consciousness kept Bismarck’s head clear and steady, even in spite of his other handicaps.
1705042000
1705042001
antinomies, opposition of one to another.
1705042002
1705042003
mishap, misfortune; accident.
1705042004
1705042005
March ‘48, March ‘90 . Bismarck was present at Potsdam on that March evening, 1848, when Frederick William IV announced to the assembled officers the order for the withdrawal of the troops—a capitulation to the Revolution. Bismarck went home and at once wrote a letter to the king in which he rebuked him for conceding so readily to the mob. On March 14, 1890. Windthorst consulted Bismarck about the forthcoming session of the Reichstag. The next day the Emperor in person demanded an explanation of what had passed, and Bismarck was dragged from bed to wait upon the unexpected visitor. Both men lost their temper. Repeatedly pressed, Bismarck at last submitted his resignation. On March 20, the official Gazette announced the acceptance of the resignation by the Kaiser.
1705042006
1705042007
Windhorst, leader of the Center Party, formed of Catholics and Clericals, in the Reichstag. Richter , leader of the South German Popular Party in the Reichstag.
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