Otto von Bismarck in German Collective Historical Memory

Abstract

The article analyzes the evolution of the evaluative attitude towards Otto von Bismarck in the German collective historical memory. The aim of the article is to highlight the change in the image of Chancellor Bismarck in the German collective memory of different historical eras. The methodology of the article is based on the retrospective method, the historical-genetic method, the historical-comparative method, and the historical-descriptive method. The scientific novelty of the study lies in the generalization of the experience of the purposeful formation of the "Iron Chancellor" of his image in history, which was symbolized by memoirs. The correction of this image during the time of Kaiser Wilhelm II as the antipode of Bismarck in the history of the Second Reich is highlighted. The First World War was considered by Bismarck's followers to be the embodiment of his historical mission. The defeat of the Second Reich in the First World War determined the contradictory attitude of the elites and society of the Weimar Republic towards Bismarck. The republic was not so much a democracy as a format of competitive authoritarianism, characteristic of the "Iron Chancellor". The Nazi Third Reich identified itself as the true restorer of Bismarck's legacy. The conclusions note that the Federal Republic of Germany denied the legacy of the Third Reich in its historical policy, but adapted the continuity of other periods of national history. In the 1950s, the institutionalization of the memory of Bismarck took place through the creation of a museum. The German Democratic Republic classified Bismarck as an enemy of Marx and assessed his historical legacy in narrow class categories. After 1990, the image of Bismarck in the German collective memory became diverse. The liberal part of German society considers him an enemy of liberal democracy. The national-conservative part of German society idealizes the historical legacy of Bismarck.