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Prussian Defeat
During the 1700s, Prussia had been steadily increasing in power and prestige. Frederick the Great had built an efficient state with a strong army. During the Napoleonic period, however, Frederick William III ruled Prussia and was proving to be a fairly inept king. In 1806, he made the major mistake of launching a war against the French without any allies, resulting in crushing defeats at Jena and Auerstadt. As a result of these losses, Napoleon lopped off a considerable amount of Prussian land, adding this territory to the Confederation of the Rhine and the Grand Duchy of Warsaw.
Prussian Reform Under Stein and Hardenberg
After the disastrous defeats of 1806, Prussia needed to reform. Army reforms followed the French model, calling for changes that would increase competition for positions and open positions up to everyone based on talent, rather than on birth. Other reforms of the Prussian state were spearheaded by Baron vom Stein and Karl August von Hardenberg. Baron vom Stein had been a knight in the Holy Roman Empire, but in the Napoleonic era, his goal became to help Prussian people reach their full potential. In 1807, he became famous for “abolishing serfdom.” Although Stein didn’t quite abolish serfdom, he did lessen the restriction of opportunity for the lower classes, paving the way for a modern, free-market economy. This worried Napoleon, who, in 1808, commanded Frederick William III to force Stein out of office.
Hardenberg then filled the exiled Stein’s shoes when he became the Prussian chancellor in 1810. Under Hardenberg, the state confiscated church property, gave Jews legal equality, and ended the monopolistic power of guilds. He also campaigned for Frederick William III to accept a constitutional monarchy. Despite not succeeding at that task, the pressure of ultimate defeat at the hands of Napoleon still motivated the Prussian ruler to accept other reforms more rapidly than he otherwise might have.
Prussian and German Nationalism
As these reforms took place, the Prussian people became increasingly excited and unified. In June 1808, professors in Konigsberg started an anti-French, Prussian nationalist movement called the “Moral and Scientific Union,” or Tugenbund (League of Virtue). Prussian national pride soared, with an increased resolve to fight Napoleon, and Prussia became a focal point for German nationalism.
Rise in the Stature of Prussia
It is odd that Prussia would become such a focus of German nationalism. Until this time, it had basically been ignored by the western parts of Germany, who saw Prussia as existing on the German cultural fringe. Furthermore, after the defeats of 1806, Prussia stood in a poor state, led by an unexciting king. However, the fact that they had even dared to stand against Napoleon at all inspired German Nationalists who were disappointed in their own leaders, many of whom groveled at Napoleon’s feet for a chance at his favor. This, combined with able administrators who employed French reforming techniques while capitalizing on anti-French nationalism, made German and Prussian nationalism a force to be reckoned with. By 1815, the Prussian state, economy, and army were once again powerful, and played a substantial role in bringing down Napoleon at Waterloo.
Prussian Military Reforms
This was in no small part to Prussia’s military reforms under Gerhard von Scharnhost and August von Gneisenau mirroring French liberalizing reforms in many ways. Whereas the French made these changes from the “bottom up,” in response to a revolution by underprivileged classes, Prussia made similar changes, but from the “top down.” The Prussian changes were made not to affirm the dignity of all men, as might be claimed for French liberalization, but to help Prussia improve its military.
Gneisenau had fought for England during the American Revolutionary War and had been very impressed by the power of patriotism among the American revolutionaries. He had seen similar developments in France as well and knew that the French army derived much of its strength from a similar sense patriotic pride. Based on these two models, Gneisenau concluded that he could harness a patriotic power to improve Prussia’s fighting force and opened posts to individuals based on talent.
Thus, the furnace of the Napoleonic Wars actually encouraged Prussia to make liberal reforms. The reformer's intent may have been to prepare Prussia for battle, but the ultimate result was a considerable amount of progressive change.
