bismarck, prince otto edward leopold von 1815-1898, prusso-german statesman, who was the architect and first chancellor 1871-1890 of the german empire.
bismarck was born on april 1, 1815, at schnhausen, north-west of berlin, the son of a landowning nobleman junker and a prosperous bourgeois mother his multifaceted background accounts for the blend of intellectual subtlety and junker parochialism in his character. he studied law, and in 1836 entered government service. unhappy in his subordinate post, he resigned a year later, took over the management of his familys run-down estates, and restored their profitability.
driven by a strong sense of power, bismarck entered politics in 1847. as a delegate to prussias first diet, he emerged as one of the most rigid conservatives at the outbreak of the revolution of 1848 he rushed to berlin, urging king frederick william iv to suppress the uprising. his advice was ignored, but his loyalty was rewarded by his appointment in 18...