Sunday, January 02, 2011

Honors Business Economics: 3 January 2011

Prayer
Current Events:


CNBC Panel Dismisses Peter Schiff (and What WSJ Really Thinks Of Him)



Risking Social Security Bankruptcy by 2017.

The Ch. 3 Sec. 2 Quiz Make-Up is today:

Cf. http://shanawiki.wikispaces.com/Honors+Business+Economics+Fall+2010+Chapter+3+Section+2+Quiz+Prep+Page

The Make-Up for the Chapter 3 Section 1 Quiz is today.

The Chapter 2 Make-Up Test is today.

Cf. http://shanawiki.wikispaces.com/Honors+Business+Economics+Chapter+2+Test+Prep+Page+Fall+2010

The Ch. 2 Sec. 3 American Free Enterprise Make-Up Quiz is today.

Standard feature:

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Password: 10888

Ch. 5

Chapter 5: Supply

Chapter Overviews

Section 1: What Is Supply?

Supply, like demand, is another important microeconomic concept. Together, supply and demand explain how prices are determined and how markets function. Supply is defined as the quantities of output that producers will bring to market at each and every price. Like demand, supply can be presented in the form of a supply schedule, or graphically as a supply curve. Individual producers have their own supply curves, and the market supply curve is the sum of individual supply curves. The Law of Supply states that more output will be offered for sale at higher prices and less at lower prices. A change in quantity supplied is represented by a movement along the supply curve, whereas a change in supply is represented by a shift of the supply curve to the left or right. Changes in supply are caused by changes in the cost of inputs, productivity, technology, taxes, subsidies, expectations, government regulations, and the number of sellers in the market. Supply elasticity describes how producers will change the quantity they supply in response to a change in price.

Law of Supply

In-class assignment: in your own words, define demand. What is the Law of supply? How does demand relate to supply? Graph out a sample Law of supply.

Supply curve video

In-class assignment: define supply curve. In your own words, describe a supply curve.

Draw a supply curve graph by following the video.

Use the market for cars as your example.

Who needs to be willing and able?

What do suppliers want?

What do consumers want?

What happens when cars are more expensive?

What happens when there is a change in price?

What happens to demand?

market supply curve

In-class assignment: in your own words, define market supply (long run supply curve).

Long Run Supply Curve

quantity supplied

change in quantity supplied

change in supply

Changes in Supply

In-class assignment, working with a partner, answer the following questions:

What do we mean by changes in supply?
Why do changes in supply occur?
What happens when supply decreases?
How do market forces effect supply after supply decreases?
What happens when supply increases?
How do market forces effect supply after supply increases?
What determines supply?

Philly News: "Teacher salaries issue sharpens across region; "You almost have class warfare here," said the president of the school board.

Hans Rosling's 200 Countries, 200 Years, 4 Minutes - The Joy of Stats - BBC Four

In-class assignment: working with a partner, answer the questions below.

Student Web Activity

"Finding Company Profiles"

Introduction

When economists think of supply, they often think about businesses, the products they produce, and the costs of producing them. Business organizations are often willing to share information about their products with consumers in hopes of making a sale, and this information is often on the World Wide Web.

Destination Title: Kentucky Fried Chicken

Cf. http://www.kfc.com/

Directions
Start at the Kentucky Fried Chicken home page.

* Click on "About Us" and browse through the information about the company.
* Select the "History" link from the menu on the left.
* Click on the additional topics at left of your screen to learn more (Colonel Sanders, Secret Recipe, Pressure Cooker, and Press Releases).

1. Describe Kentucky Fried Chicken's business niche. What type of business organization is it?

2. How did Colonel Sanders start KFC, and why?

3. What product, facility, retail sales, and employee information is provided?

4. Select the "Animal Welfare" page on the left of your computer screen. What has KFC done to ensure animal welfare?

Cf. http://glencoe.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/0078747643/student_view0/unit2/chapter5/student_web_activities.html

1. Describe Kentucky Fried Chicken's business niche. What type of business organization is it?

KFC Corporation, based in Louisville, Kentucky, is the world's most popular chicken restaurant chain, specializing in Original Recipe®, Extra Crispy®, Kentucky Grilled Chicken™ and Original Recipe Strips with home-style sides, Honey BBQ Wings, and freshly made chicken sandwiches.

Every day, more than 12 million customers are served at KFC restaurants in 109 countries and territories around the world. KFC operates more than 5,200 restaurants in the United States and more than 15,000 units around the world. KFC is world famous for its Original Recipe® fried chicken -- made with the same secret blend of 11 herbs and spices Colonel Harland Sanders perfected more than a half-century ago. Customers around the globe also enjoy more than 300 other products -- from Kentucky Grilled Chicken in the United States to a salmon sandwich in Japan.

KFC is part of Yum! Brands, Inc., the world's largest restaurant company in terms of system restaurants, with more than 36,000 locations around the world. The company is ranked #239 on the Fortune 500 List, with revenues in excess of $11 billion in 2008.

2. How did Colonel Sanders start KFC, and why?

ANSWER

1930
In the midst of the depression, Harland Sanders opens his first restaurant in the small front room of a gas station in Corbin, Kentucky. Sanders serves as station operator, chief cook and cashier and names the dining area "Sanders Court & Café."

3. What product, facility, retail sales, and employee information is provided?

ANSWER

MENU: http://www.kfc.com/menu/

Facility, store locations can be searched; a SHOP page is available, sales info is available in the "About Us" section; "Careers" describes the work at KFC.

4. Select the "Animal Welfare" page on the left of your computer screen. What has KFC done to ensure animal welfare?

ANSWER

We are monitoring our suppliers on an ongoing basis to determine whether our suppliers are using humane procedures for caring for and handling animals they supply to us. KFC formed the Animal Welfare Advisory Council, which consists of highly regarded experts in the field. We were also a prominent player in the joint effort conducted by the National Council of Chain Restaurants and the Food Marketing Institute to develop comprehensive guidelines for all species of farm animals. KFC has implemented a farm level audit program - a program which is industry-leading in the areas of poultry care and handling.

http://www.kfc.com/about/animalwelfare.asp

Why is Animal Welfare an issue for the Colonel?

Animal slaughter for KFC is halal (done in accordance to Islamic law) compliant in some areas. Non-Muslims have objected to the allegedly cruel nature of Islamic animal treatment as well as groups such as PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) have raised concerns about Islamic practices.

The Halal Food Authority in England endorses KFC animal slaughtering.

Cf. http://www.halalfoodauthority.co.uk/press-kfc.html

The imposition of halal includes many British supermarkets, fast-food chains, hospitals, schools, pubs and sporting arenas such as Wembley Stadium, serving halal meat and poultry without notifying the public; the American Muslim Consumer Conference started to follow suit in the U.S. (as of Dec. 2010) and attracted 400 attendees.

Cf. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101227/ap_on_bi_ge/us_the_muslim_consumer

subsidy

Subsidies, 2:50

Description of how subsidies operate in a competitive market and the effects on consumer surplus, producer surplus and social surplus using supply and demand diagrams.

In-class assignment: with a partner, answer the following questions.

What happens with subsidies?
Which direction does the demand curve go?
Which direction does the supply curve go?
Who or what supplies the subsidies?
What is the reason behind subsidies?
What happens to costs?
What direction does the supply curve shift as a result?
Where does the money for subsidies come from?


supply elasticity

Gas Prices, Gas Gouging, Peak Oil, Elasticity, Supply Demand, 1:31


Academic Vocabulary

various

interaction

Companies in the News

Flu Shot Gold Rush

An Introduction to Supply, p. 118

Main Idea

The Supply Schedule

The Individual Supply Curve

The Market Supply Curve

Figure 5.2 Individual and Market Supply Curves

Cf. http://glencoe.com/sites/common_assets/socialstudies/in_motion_08/epp/EPP_p119.swf

A Change in Quantity Demanded

Review video

Change in Demand vs Change in Quantity Demanded, 5:13

In-class assignment: you may work with a partner to answer.

What happens to demand if prices go up?
What formulas express the concepts covered here?
Is there anything that could alter the underlying demand?
What about changes in related markets?
What happens when apartment rents increase?
In which direction does the demand curve shift?
What happens as a result of changes in income?
What about expectations?
What about the prices of complementary goods?
What is the difference in the change in demand vs. the change in quantity demanded?


Reading Check

Synthesizing

How might a producer of bicycles adjust supply when prices decrease? p. 120

Change in Supply, p. 120

The Determinants of Supply, 9:12

This video describes the different determinants of supply- price, input prices, technology, expectations and number of sellers.. It also introduces the supply curve and discusses its various features.

In-class assignment: with a partner, answer the following questions.

What are the five determinants of supply?
Define quantity supplied.
What is probably the most important determinant of supply?
Define the law of supply.
According to this video, draw the sample supply curve provided.
In which direction does the supply curve move?
What two features are illustrated in the supply curve equation?
Does supply indicate marginal cost?
What is the second determinant of supply?
The third determinant?
Explain what technology means in economics and how it is a determinant.
How do expectations play a role?
What is the last determinant?
Explain how the number of sellers effect supply.


Economics and You

Cost of Resources

Productivity

Technology

Taxes and Subsidies

Expectations

Did You Know?

Government Regulations

Number of Sellers

Reading Check, Explaining, p. 123

Why do factors that cause a change in individual supply also affect the market supply curve?

Careers, Retail Salesperson

Elasticity of Supply, p. 124

Main Idea

Economics and You

Three Elasticities

Determinants of Supply Elasticity

Reading Check, Comparing, p. 125

How are the elasticities of supply and demand similar? How do they differ?

Case Study, "Green" Suppliers, p. 126 (ethanol, flexible-fuel vehicle (FFV)

Preview

Section 2 The Theory of Production, p. 127

The theory of production deals with the way output changes in the short run when a single productive input is varied. This relationship is presented graphically in the form of a production function. The two most important measures of output are total product and marginal product. Three stages of production—increasing returns, diminishing returns, and negative returns—show how marginal product changes as additional variable inputs are added.

Chapter 5, Section 2 - Reading Strategy

In-class assignment (you may work with a partner for the exercise):

Directions: Listing

As you read about production, complete the graphic organizer by listing what occurs during the three stages of production.

Figure 5.5 Short-Run Production

Cf. http://glencoe.com/sites/common_assets/socialstudies/in_motion_08/epp/EPP_p128.swf

Chapter 5, Section 2 - Review

In-class assignment (you may work with a partner):

Directions: Explaining

Complete the graphic organizer by explaining how marginal product changes in each of the three stages of production.

Section 3: Cost, Revenue, and Profit Maximization

Cost and revenue are added to the theory of production. Several important measures of cost are introduced, including fixed cost, variable cost, total cost, and marginal cost. Total revenue and marginal revenue are the most important measures of revenue. The firm reaches the break-even point when the revenue from sales is large enough to cover the total cost of production. Furthermore, the firm finds its profit-maximizing quantity of output where the marginal cost of production is exactly equal to marginal revenue from the sale of the product.

Chapter 3 Prep

Chapter 3: Business Organizations

Cf. http://glencoe.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/007879997x/student_view0/unit1/chapter3/self-check_quizzes.html

Crossword Puzzle

Cf. http://www.glencoe.com/olc_games/game_engine/content/gln_ss/epp_08/ch03/index.html

Vocabulary eFlashcards

Cf. http://www.glencoe.com/qe/efcsec.php?qi=21820

Ch. 4 Prep

Ch. 5 Prep

Chapter 5 Supply Multiple Choice Quiz

Cf. http://glencoe.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/0078747643/student_view0/unit2/chapter5/self-check_quizzes.html

Chapter 5 Puzzle

Cf. http://www.glencoe.com/olc_games/game_engine/content/gln_ss/epp_08/ch05/index.html

Chapter 5 Supply Flashcards

Cf. http://www.glencoe.com/qe/efcsec.php?qi=15424

Resources

Elasticity and Supply, 3:52 (Warning: images of alcohol consumption, language, and possible objectionable content, this is not required viewing).


Elasticity Song, 3:34

A song about price, income and cross elasticities of demand and price elasticity of supply. Note: Rojak is a mixed salad found in South east Asia (figurative meaning: melting pot). Teh and kopi mean tea and coffee.


Supply and Demand Nights AP Econ Music Video, 4:11


Email (or hand in hard copy) to gmsmith@shanahan.org.

Monday HW

1. p. 113, #26-28.

Tuesday HW

1. p. 113, #29-30.

Wednesday HW

1. p. 113, #31-32.

Thursday HW

1. p. 115, #1-3.

Friday HW

1. p. 116, #1-2.

Honors World History: 3 January 2011

Prayer
Current Events:


Gen. James Clapper is tasked with coordinating everything the nation knows about terrorism and national security. Diane Sawyer interviewed our nation's top terror team and Clapper did not know about the arrests of 12 Islamists in London as part of a potential holiday terror plot.

The 12 Islamists, who range in age from 17 to 28, were detained at 5 a.m. London time.

When Sawyer asked about London, and "how safe is it? Any implication that it was coming here? Director Clapper?" Clapper answers: "London?"

SAWYER: I was a little surprised you didn't know about London.
CLAPPER: Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't.

After the interview, Clapper's office--in fast-moving damage control--issued a statement to ABC News:

"The question about this specific news development was ambiguous. The DNI's knowledge of the threat streams in Europe is profound and multi-dimensional, and any suggestion otherwise is inaccurate."

UPDATE: After suggesting that the problem wasn't sheer ignorance, but rather Diane Sawyer's "vague" question, the office of the DNI now admits Clapper, essentially, had no clue about what had happened in London.

ODNI spokesperson Jamie Smith, working damage control, issued this statement:

Clapper, she explained, had been "working throughout the day on important intelligence matters, including monitoring military and political developments on the Korean Peninsula, providing answers to questions concerning the ratification of the START nuclear treaty, and other classified issues. He wasn't immediately briefed on London because it didn't appear to have a homeland nexus and there was no immediate action by the DNI required. Nevertheless, he should have been briefed on the arrests, and steps have been taken to ensure that he is in the future. The intelligence community as a whole was fully aware of this development and tracking it closely."

The Ch. 11 Make-Up Test is today.

Cf. http://moodle.catholicschools-phl.org

Moodle - Nationalism

The Chapter 11 Section 3 The Age of Napoleon Make-Up Quiz is today.

Cf. http://shanawiki.wikispaces.com/Honors+World+History+II+Fall+2010+Chapter+11+Section+3+The+Age+of+Napoleon+Quiz+Prep+Page

#19. should have listed: "d) Anne Louise Germaine de Staël"

#20. do not answer, skip the question entirely, go on to #21.

Standard feature:

The electronic edition of the Philadelphia Inquirer is available. We have the Sunday edition, available on Mondays, in addition to the Tuesday through Friday editions on the other days.

Please follow the steps below:

URL: http://nie.philly.com
Click on the words "Access e-Inquirer" located on the gray toolbar underneath the green locker on the opening page.
Login:
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ABCya! Cf. http://www.abcya.com/word_clouds.htm

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Revolutionary Outbursts

Greek soldiers



Reading Check

Evaluating

How did liberalism and nationalism begin to break through the conservative domination of Europe?

The Revolutions of 1848
Revolutionary France: Les Miserables

Summary

The backdrop for Victor Hugo's novel Les Miserables is revolutionary France in the 1800s. Les Miserables expresses Hugo's passionate belief in the spiritual possibilities of society, despite the presence of evil. Les Miserables also expresses Hugo's fight for justice, democratic ideals, and basic rights for all people.

What was the main theme of Hugo's novel Les Miserables?

What were Hugo's political beliefs?

Writing Practice

How do the choices made by Jean Valjean reflect his sense of justice and compassion for others?

Another French Revolution

Trouble in the German States

Germany




Note Taking, pp. 380-81 (and additional information listed below on the blog)

In-class assignment (you may work with a partner for this assignment):

Recognize Sequence: keep track of the sequence of events that led to German unification by completing a chart like the one below. Add more boxes as needed.



Taking Initial Steps Toward Unity

In the early 1800s, German-speaking people lived in a number of small and medium-sized states as well as in Prussia and the Austrian Hapsburg empire. Napoleon’s invasions unleashed new forces in these territories.

Napoleon Raids German Lands

Between 1806 and 1812, Napoleon made important territorial changes in German-speaking lands. He annexed lands along the Rhine River for France. He dissolved the Holy Roman Empire by forcing the emperor of Austria to agree to the lesser title of king. He also organized a number of German states into the Rhine Confederation.

At first, some Germans welcomed the French emperor as a hero with enlightened, modern policies. He encouraged freeing the serfs, made trade easier, and abolished laws against Jews. However, not all Germans appreciated Napoleon and his changes. As people fought to free their lands from French rule, they began to demand a unified German state.

Napoleon’s defeat did not resolve the issue. At the Congress of Vienna, Metternich pointed out that a united Germany would require dismantling the government of each German state. Instead, the peacemakers created the German Confederation, a weak alliance headed by Austria.

Economic Changes Promote Unity

In the 1830s, Prussia created an economic union called the Zollverein (tsawl fur yn). It dismantled tariff barriers between many German states. Still, Germany remained politically fragmented.

In 1848, liberals meeting in the Frankfurt Assembly again demanded German political unity. They offered the throne of a united German state to Frederick William IV of Prussia. The Prussian ruler, however, rejected the notion of a throne offered by “the people.”

Checkpoint for assignment:

What was the German Confederation?

p. 381, Reading Check, Summarizing, What events led to German unification?

Germany

Review:

Otto von Bismarck The Iron Chancellor 1815-1898, 4:36

Individual in-class assignment:

When was Bismarck born?
When did he die?
When was he Chancellor?
What country was he from?


What was a main objective of Bismarck's?

The rise and fall of Prussia, 4:36

In-class assignment: with a partner, consider the rise and fall of Prussia.

1. What are the five modern great powers?

2. Which is the only one that disappeared from Europe?

3. In what year did Prussia gain independence from the State of the Teutonic Order?

4. What is Prussia's great rival (Hint: not France but another German-speaking state)?

5. What exactly was Prussia?

6. Where was it located?

7. Why did it disappear?

8. What were the dates of an independent Prussia?

9. What was the predominant religion (Protestantism or Roman Catholicism)?

10. What was the main dynasty?

Some traces of Prussia in history:
- the Iron Cross
- the Prussian mentality can be seen back in the present-day Germans
- the black and white colours in German national football team (black and white are colours of the Prussian flag)
- Borussia Dortmund (Borussia is the Latin name for Prussia)
- Prussian blue


1. Prussia was one of the five modern great powers. The other great powers were Austria, France, Russia and the United Kingdom.

2. Prussia is the only country of these which disappeared from the European map. The Prussian borders changed very often.

3. In 1525 Prussia gained independence from the State of the Teutonic Order. Prussia had a great influence on German and European history.

4. Its rival was Austria, because Prussia and Austria both wanted to control the rest of Germany.

5. The leading German-speaking state of the time.

6. Prussia was located in northern, central Europe. After Bismarck, Prussia was incorporated into a greater Germany.

7. Why did it disappear?

As a result of the German loss in World War I and II. The Allies decided to end it once and for all.

8. What were the dates of an independent Prussia?

1525-1947, a total of 422 years.

9. What was the predominant religion (Protestantism or Roman Catholicism)?

Protestantism

10. What was the main dynasty?

The Hohenzollerns.

ANSWERS: to "Otto von Bismarck The Iron Chancellor 1815-1898"

1. When was Bismarck born?
1 April 1815

2. When did he die?
30 July 1898

3. When was he Chancellor?
21 March 1871 - 20 March 1890

4. What area was he from?

Prussia

Additional question:

What was a main objective of Bismarck's?

A main objective of Bismarck's was to prevent other major powers allying with France.

Quotes from Bismarck, 3:49

In-class assignment: individually, pick out one quote you find interesting and explain why.


chancellor

Realpolitik

annex

Reich
German Unification

Bismarck pictured greeting representatives at the Congress of Berlin.



Note Taking

Reading Skill: Recognize Sequence

Keep track of the sequence of events described in this section by completing a chart like the one below. List the causes that led to a strong German nation.






The Price of Nationalism Audio: Germany

The last half of the 1800s can be called the Age of Nationalism. By harnessing national feeling, European leaders fought ruthlessly to create strong, unified nations. Under Otto von Bismarck, Germany emerged as Europe’s most powerful empire—but at a considerable cost. In his 1870 diary, Crown Prince Friedrich wrote:

“[Germany had once been admired as a] nation of thinkers and philosophers, poets and artists, idealists and enthusiasts . . . [but now the world saw Germany as] a nation of conquerors and destroyers, to which no pledged word, no treaty, is sacred. . . . We are neither loved nor respected, but only feared.”
Bismarck: Germany From Blood and Iron (clip), 1:39


Blood and Iron: Audio

Otto von Bismarck succeeded where others had failed. Bismarck came from Prussia’s Junker (yoong kur) class, made up of conservative landowning nobles. Bismarck first served Prussia as a diplomat in Russia and France. In 1862, King William I made him prime minister. Within a decade, the new prime minister had become chancellor, or the highest official of a monarch, and had used his policy of “blood and iron” to unite the German states under Prussian rule.

Bismarck Unites Germany: Audio
Prussian legislators waited restlessly for Otto von Bismarck to speak. He wanted them to vote for more money to build up the army. Liberal members opposed the move. Bismarck rose and dismissed their concerns:

“Germany does not look to Prussia’s liberalism, but to her power. . . . The great questions of the day are not to be decided by speeches and majority resolutions—that was the mistake of 1848 and 1849—but by blood and iron!”

—Otto von Bismarck, 1862

Map

Unification of Germany, 1865–1871

Go Online
For: Audio guided tour
Visit: PHSchool.com
Web Code: nap-2211

1. Locate

To the East? West? Near what countries? Bodies of water, etc.

a) Prussia; b) Silesia; c) Bavaria; d) Schleswig

2. Region

What are did Prussia add to its territory in 1866?

3. Analyzing Information

Why do you think Austrian influence was greater among the southern German states than among the northern ones?

This map is titled “Unification of Germany, 1865 to 1871.” A circular image below the title to the right gives a global view of the map area.

The map extends north-south from Denmark and Sweden to the Mediterranean Sea. The map extends east-west from Russia to central France. A Key at the right shows the following shading and symbols: yellow shading; Prussia, 1865; light green shading, Added to Prussia, 1866; dark green shading, Added to form North German Confederation, 1867; orange shading, Added to form German empire, 1871; red line, Boundary of German empire, 1871;

red explosion symbol, Battle sites; orange arrow, Route of Prussian armies in Austro-Prussian War; and green arrow, Route of German armies in Franco-Prussian War.

The boundary of the German empire in 1871, indicated by a red line, borders the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea in the north, Russia and Austria-Hungary in the east, Switzerland in the south, and France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands in the west. Prussia in 1865, shaded in yellow, includes the western province of Westphalia. Another large yellow-shaded area appears in the north and east. Brandenburg, including the city of Berlin, is in the center. The provinces of Pomerania, West Prussia, and East Prussia are in the northeast. Posen is in the East, and Silesia is in the southeast. Two other small yellow areas appear in the center. Another small yellow area, labeled Hohenzollern, appears in the south. The area added to Prussia in 1866, shaded in light green, includes the northwest area bordering the Netherlands and Denmark.

The province of Schleswig is in today’s southern Denmark. Holstein is south of Schleswig. The city of Hamburg and the province of Hanover are south of Holstein. Another light green area appears in the center. The cities of Ems, east of the Rhine River, and Frankfurt to the southeast are in this area. The area added to form the North German Confederation in 1867, shaded in dark green, appears in the north between the light green and yellow areas. It is labeled Mecklenburg. Another dark green area appears in the center on the Austria-Hungary border. The provinces of Thuringia and Saxony are in this area. Other green areas are scattered throughout the center. The area added to form the German empire in 1871, shaded in orange, includes southern Germany. Lorraine, including the city of Metz, and Alsace are in the west, bordering France. Württemberg is in the center, Baden is in the south, and Bavaria, including the city of Munich, is in the east. Orange arrows extend from the Saxony and Silesia regions across the Austria-Hungary border to Sadowa. A red battle symbol appears here. Green arrows extend from Lorraine, through Metz, across the French border to Sedan. A battle symbol appears here. The arrows extend westward toward Paris.

Learn

Focus Question

How did Otto von Bismarck, the Chancellor of Prussia, lead the drive for German unity?

Master of Realpolitik

Bismarck’s success was due in part to his strong will. He was a master of Realpolitik (ray ahl poh lee teek), or realistic politics based on the needs of the state. In the case of Realpolitik, power was more important than principles.

Although Bismarck was the architect of German unity, he was not really a German nationalist. His primary loyalty was to the Hohenzollerns (hoh un tsawl urnz), the ruling dynasty of Prussia, who represented a powerful, traditional monarchy. Through unification, he hoped to bring more power to the Hohenzollerns.

Royal house medal of the Hohenzollerns




Strengthening the Army

As Prussia’s prime minister, Bismarck first moved to build up the Prussian army. Despite his “blood and iron” speech, the liberal legislature refused to vote for funds for the military. In response, Bismarck strengthened the army with money that had been collected for other purposes. With a powerful, well-equipped military, he was then ready to pursue an aggressive foreign policy. Over the next decade, Bismarck led Prussia into three wars. Each war increased Prussian prestige and power and paved the way for German unity.

Prussia Declares War With Denmark and Austria
Bismarck’s first maneuver was to form an alliance in 1864 with Austria. Prussia and Austria then seized the provinces of Schleswig and Holstein from Denmark. After a brief war, Prussia and Austria “liberated” the two provinces and divided up the spoils. Austria was to administer Holstein and Prussia was to administer Schleswig.

In 1866, Bismarck invented an excuse to attack Austria. The Austro-Prussian War lasted just seven weeks and ended in a decisive Prussian victory. Prussia then annexed, or took control of, several other north German states.

Bismarck dissolved the Austrian-led German Confederation and created a new confederation dominated by Prussia. He allowed Austria and four other southern German states to remain independent. Bismarck’s motives, as always, were strictly practical. “We had to avoid leaving behind any desire for revenge,” he later wrote.

Primary Source

War and Power

In 1866, Field Marshal Helmuth von Moltke analyzed the importance of Prussia’s war against Austria. Why, according to von Moltke, did Prussia go to war against Austria?

Primary Source

“The war of 1866 was entered on not because the existence of Prussia was threatened, nor was it caused by public opinion and the voice of the people; it was a struggle, long foreseen and calmly prepared for, recognized as a necessity by the Cabinet, not for territorial expansion, for an extension of our domain, or for material advantage, but for an ideal end—the establishment of power. Not a foot of land was exacted from Austria. . . . Its center of gravity lay out of Germany; Prussia’s lay within it. Prussia felt itself called upon and strong enough to assume the leadership of the German races.”

France Declares War on Prussia

In France, the Prussian victory over Austria angered Napoleon III. A growing rivalry between the two nations led to the Franco-Prussian War of 1870.

Franco-Prussian War (1870), 6:10

When did the war start?
Which country declared war?
How many dead or wounded did Germany and France have?



The causes of the Franco-Prussian War are rooted in the shifting balance of power in Europe after the Napoleonic wars. France and Prussia had fought against each other, with France beating Prussia in 1806, then losing in 1813-1815. In the following decades, Prussia was generally considered by the French as a modern, enlightened country. Republicans particularly favoured the prospect of seeing the German nation unite under Prussian leadership, displacing the old, catholic Austrian empire. Prussia hold similar views, but cultivated an image of France as the hereditary enemy: Prussia was to replace Austria as the head of Germany, and to replace France as the leader in continental Europe.

Napoleon III became emperor in France thanks to a coup in 1851. He initially supported the German unification policy of Otto von Bismarck, chancellor of Prussia under king Wilhelm I. It was only after the Austro-Prussian war of 1866 that France began to worry about the fast-rising Prussian power. To be able to face the Prussian conscription-based army, military reform was debated in the French parliament, but refused by the Left which considered there was no danger of war.

In July 1870, a diplomatic crisis broke, Bismarck managed to provoke the French into declaring war to Prussia — and French diplomacy fell in the trap.

Germans recalled only too well the invasions of Napoleon I some 60 years earlier. Bismarck played up the image of the French menace to spur German nationalism. For his part, Napoleon III did little to avoid war, hoping to mask problems at home with military glory.

Bismarck furthered the crisis by rewriting and then releasing to the press a telegram that reported on a meeting between King William I and the French ambassador. Bismarck’s editing of the “Ems dispatch” made it seem that William I had insulted the Frenchman. Furious, Napoleon III declared war on Prussia, as Bismarck had hoped.

Vocabulary Builder

edit—(ed it) v. to make additions, deletions, or other changes to a piece of writing

A superior Prussian force, supported by troops from other German states, smashed the badly organized and poorly supplied French soldiers. Napoleon III, old and ill, surrendered within a few weeks. France had to accept a humiliating peace.

France had a good professional army, which was indeed able to face the Prussians. But a decisive strategic surprise came when all German states took side with Prussia: The French were overwhelmed, outmaneuvered and, in spite of ferocious combats, finally beaten. After Sept. 4th, the new Republic refused to sign an armistice, managed to hastily improvise "armies" out of civilian volunteers, but these were no match for the well-trained Prussians. The war ended when Parisians, besieged, bombarded and starved, surrendered.

The Prussian Army held a brief victory parade in Paris on 17 February, 1871, and Bismarck honoured the armistice by sending trainloads of food into Paris and moving Prussian forces to the east of the city. Prussian armies would occupy parts of France until the French completed the payment of a five-billion francs war indemnity. Then, they would withdraw to Alsace and Lorraine. An exodus occurred from Paris as some 200,000 people, predominantly middle-class, left the city for the countryside. Paris was quickly re-supplied with free food and fuel by the United Kingdom and several accounts recall life in the city settling back to normal.

The war ended up with a complete triumph for Prussia, whose king was proclaimed emperor of Germany in the palace of Versailles — a supreme humiliation of the French and a Prussian revenge on Napoleon's victorious march in Berlin.
The Treaty of Frankfurt gave Germany Alsace and the northern portion of Lorraine (Moselle), where Germanic dialects were spoken by parts of the population. Most importantly, Germany now possessed Metz, a key fortified stronghold between the two countries. Part of the Alsacians refused to live under German rule and emigrated to "inner France".

The loss of this territory was a source of resentment in France for years to come, and revanchism even inspired an attempted coup in Paris in the 1880s. Yet, by 1900, new generations tended to consider it old history, while Alsacians adapted more or less reluctantly to German rule [see Barrès "Au service de l'Allemagne"]. No French political party put forward a reconquest of Alsace-Lorraine in its program. Compensations were found in colonization abroad. When World War I broke out, the French mobilized with the idea to defend their territory as it was, not to take back Alsace-Lorraine, as soldiers' diaries and letters indicate.

Had Germany not taken the option of war in 1914, its successful path paved by the 1870 triumph would have led it to become peacefully the uncontested leader in Europe.



Checkpoint

What techniques did Bismarck use to unify the German states?

Birth of the German Empire: Audio

Delighted by the victory over France, princes from the southern German states and the North German Confederation persuaded William I of Prussia to take the title kaiser (ky zur), or emperor. In January 1871, German nationalists celebrated the birth of the Second Reich, or empire. They called it that because they considered it heir to the Holy Roman Empire.

A constitution drafted by Bismarck set up a two-house legislature. The Bundesrat (boon dus raht), or upper house, was appointed by the rulers of the German states. The Reichstag (ryks tahg), or lower house, was elected by universal male suffrage. Because the Bundesrat could veto any decisions of the Reichstag, real power remained in the hands of the emperor and his chancellor.

Checkpoint

How was the new German government, drafted by Bismarck, structured?

The New German Empire

Audio

In 1870, German historian Heinrich von Treitschke (vawn trych kuh) wrote a newspaper article demanding the annexation of Alsace and Lorraine from France. A year later, annexation became a condition of the peace settlement in the Franco-­Prussian War:

“The sense of justice to Germany demands the lessening of France. . . . These territories are ours by the right of the sword, and . . . [by] virtue of a higher right—the right of the German nation, which will not permit its lost children to remain strangers to the German Empire.”

Learn

Focus Question

How did Germany increase its power after unifying in 1871?

In January 1871, German princes gathered in the glittering Hall of Mirrors at the French palace of Versailles. They had just defeated Napoleon III in the Franco-Prussian War. Once home to French kings, the palace seemed the perfect place to proclaim the new German empire. To the winners as well as to the losers, the symbolism was clear: French domination of Europe had ended. Germany was now the dominant power in Europe.

Reading Check

Summarizing

What events led to German unification?


Unification of Germany, 1865–1871

Go Online
For: Audio guided tour
Visit: PHSchool.com
Web Code: nap-2211

1. Locate

To the East? West? Near what countries? Bodies of water, etc.

a) Prussia; b) Silesia; c) Bavaria; d) Schleswig

2. Region

What did Prussia add to its territory in 1866?

3. Analyzing Information

Why do you think Austrian influence was greater among the southern German states than among the northern ones?

A Political Game of Chess

This political cartoon shows Otto von Bismarck and Pope Pius IX trying to checkmate each other in a game of chess.

1. How does this cartoon reflect the relationship between Bismarck and the Catholic Church?

2. How did the conflict between church and state affect German politics in the 1870s?

On the domestic front, Bismarck applied the same ruthless methods he had used to achieve unification. The Iron Chancellor, as he was called, sought to erase local loyalties and crush all opposition to the imperial state. He targeted two groups—the Catholic Church and the Socialists. In his view, both posed a threat to the new German state.
Crankshaw, one of Bismarck's biographers, describes the tragedy of Bismarck. It is not that he "subordinated morality to the supposed needs of the state," many politicians do that; it is that "his countrymen surrendered to the principle (pp. 413-414)."

The German people saw it happening and lacked the will to stop it. Bismarck and the people each corrupted the other. To say that Bismarck was a direct precursor of Hitler is evidently untrue; but it is not untrue, I think, to say that those aspects of the German character which made it possible for Bismarck to rule for just on thirty years were those same aspects which made it too easy for a Hitler to take power and keep it (p. 414).

In-class assignment: does diversity always work?

p. 383

Each individual student should write a paragraph, by considering the information in the textbook, and the data below on the blog, to answer the question whether diversity united, or divided, the Austrian Empire?

Revolutions in Central Europe

The Hungarian Parliament Passes Legislation Funding an Army Against the Hapsburg Empire, 1848

The mixed symbols on the flag of the Austro-Hungarian Empire

A Multinational Empire

Equally disturbing to the old order were the urgent demands of nationalists. The Hapsburgs presided over a multinational empire. Of its 50 million people at mid-century, fewer than a quarter were German-speaking Austrians. Almost half belonged to different Slavic groups, including Czechs, Slovaks, Poles, Ukrainians, Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes. Often, rival groups shared the same region. The empire also included large numbers of Hungarians and Italians. The Hapsburgs ignored nationalist demands as long as they could. When nationalist revolts broke out in 1848, the government crushed them.

Revolts in the Italian States
Italy Before 1861



Note Taking

Reading Skill: Recognize Sequence

In-class assignment (you may work with a partner):

pp. 379-380.

As you read and hear a lecture on the Italian revolt, create a time line showing the sequence of events from 1831 to 1871 that led to Italian unification (the time line continues in the next section of the Chapter).

After a failed revolution against Austrian rule in northern Italy, many rebels, fearing retribution, begged for funds to pay for safe passage to Spain. Giuseppe Mazzini (mat see nee), still a boy, described his reaction to the situation:

“He (a rebel) held out a white handkerchief, merely saying, ‘For the refugees of Italy.’ My mother . . . dropped some money into the handkerchief. . . . That day was the first in which a confused idea presented itself to my mind . . . an idea that we Italians could and therefore ought to struggle for the liberty of our country. . . .”

—Giuseppe Mazzini, Life and Writings

In-class assignment:

Each individual student should answer the following question.

p. 380, Reading Check, Explaining, How did Giuseppe Garibaldi contribute to Italian unification?

Giuseppe Mazzini

In-class assignment: individually, pick out one quote you find interesting and explain why.

Learn

Focus Question

How did influential leaders help to create a unified Italy?

Garibaldi



Reading Check

Identifying

What countries experienced revolutions in 1848?

Eyewitness to History

Revolutionary Excitement

Analyzing Primary Sources, p. 377
And, to anticipate further revolutionary developments, we will consider Karl Marx.



Industrial Europe ca. 1850

Breakdown of the Concert of Europe

War and Civilization, Crimea, War, technology, and Industry, Blood & Iron
Reading Check

Explaining

How did the Crimean War destroy the Concert of Europe?

Italian Unification
Interactive Map Unifying Italy

For: Interactive timeline
Visit: PHSchool.com
Web Code: nap-2232

Reading Check

Explaining

How did Giuseppe Garibaldi contribute to Italian unification?

Nationalism and Reform in Europe

Great Britain

France

The Austrian Empire

Russia
Although serfdom had almost disappeared in Western Europe by the 1700s, it survived in Russia. Masters exercised almost total power over their serfs. A noble turned revolutionary described the treatment of the serfs:

“I heard . . . stories of men and women torn from their families and their villages, and sold, or lost in gambling, or exchanged for a couple of hunting dogs, and then transported to some remote part of Russia to create a [master’s] new estate; of children taken from their parents and sold to cruel . . . masters.”

—Peter Kropotkin, Memoirs of a Revolutionist

Learn

Focus Question

Why did industrialization and reform come more slowly to Russia than to Western Europe?
Reading Check

Examining

How was Great Britain able to avoid a revolution in 1848?

Nationalism in the United States


Graphic Notes: "Downfall of Mother Bank," depicting President Andrew Jackson holding up an "Order of the Removal of the Public Money" during the fight over the Bank of the United States, 1833. E.W. Clay lithograph.

Citation: American Antiquarian Society, 185 Salisbury St, Worcester, MA 01609-1634 and the Library of Congress.

Nicholas Biddle was the president of the Bank of the United States during the Bank War of 1832. Biddle held a great deal of unwarranted power over the nation’s finances, which President Jackson resented. When Jackson vetoed a bill to renew the Bank’s charter, Biddle agreed with Senator Henry Clay that this would hurt him in the upcoming presidential election of 1832, but both of them were proven wrong. When Jackson tried to end the bank by withdrawing deposits, Biddle caused a financial panic to try and prevent Jackson from attaining the presidency which failed when Jackson was re-elected.
The Bank War began with Senators Noah Webster and Clay with their Recharter Bill: Clay and Webster presented Congress with a Recharter Bill for the Bank of the United States in 1832. Although four years before the charter would expire, Clay hoped to make the Bank an issue in the upcoming presidential election, which he hoped to win. Clay hoped to quickly pass the Bill in Congress, then send it to the White House to be signed by Jackson. Clay knew Jackson would most likely veto the bill, alienating the elite in the upcoming election, therefore favoring Clay. Jackson did veto the bill, but contrary to Clay’s expectation, gained popular public support for his statement.

The “Pet” banks where surplus federal funds were placed after the closing of the Bank of the United States. The banks were chosen for their support of president Jackson and soon flooded the country with paper money as there was no longer a central, federal finance institution. As a result of the massive amounts of paper money, inflation skyrocketed, and Jackson was forced to try to slow inflation with his Specie Circular.

The Specie Circular (1836) was decreed by Jackson which stated that all public lands had to be purchased with “hard” money, gold or silver. Jackson took this measure to slow the runaway inflation caused by his closure of the Bank of the United States.

Reading Check

Explaining

How did the election of Andrew Jackson influence American politics?
The divisions between Americans eventually led to fighting in the Civil War.

You can learn more about music from the period by listening to:
"When Johnny Comes Marching Home." In this exercise you can 1) view the exhibit; 2) read the lyrics; 3) learn more; and, 4) rewrite the song.

The Emergence of a Canadian Nation

Reading Check

Describing

How did the British North American Act change the government of Canada?

Map: The Dominion of Canada in the Nineteenth Century

A novel about the Crimean War:

Master George by Beryl Bainbridge
Visit an interactive exhibit about the gold rush.

The American Civil War.

Everyday life of a Civil War soldier

Civil War diary accounts

The Civil War: A Film by Ken Burns

Short animated movie about the American Civil War

Brahms, Hungarian Dance No. 5, 3:21

The German composer, pianist, and conductor Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) was one of the most significant composers of the 19th century. His works greatly enriched the romantic repertory.


HW: email (or hard copy) me at gmsmith@shanahan.org.

Honors World History II: HW for Next Week
Monday HW
p. 387, Preview Questions, #1-2.
Tuesday HW
1. p. 387, Summarizing Information (fill out chart).
2. Read Ch. 12 Sec. 4.
Wednesday HW
1. p. 388, History Through Architecture
2. Reading Check, Examining, p. 389.
Thursday HW
1. Reading Check, Describing, p. 390.
2. Picturing History, p. 390.
Friday HW
p. 391, History Through Art.

Honors World History II: HW for Next Week

Monday HW
p. 387, Preview Questions, #1-2.
Tuesday HW
1. p. 387, Summarizing Information (fill out chart).
2. Read Ch. 12 Sec. 4.
Wednesday HW
1. p. 388, History Through Architecture
2. Reading Check, Examining, p. 389.
Thursday HW
1. Reading Check, Describing, p. 390.
2. Picturing History, p. 390.
Friday HW
p. 391, History Through Art.

Honors Business Economics: HW for Next Week

Monday HW

1. p. 113, #26-28.

Tuesday HW

1. p. 113, #29-30.

Wednesday HW

1. p. 113, #31-32.

Thursday HW

1. p. 115, #1-3.

Friday HW

1. p. 116, #1-2.