What did Wilhelm II Think of Hitler?
What did Wilhelm II think of Hitler?
Before the devastating era of the second world war, before the atrocities of the German state during such time, and before the man at the center of it all, there was an emperor and king who never could have predicted what was to befall his precious homeland…
♦Consider to Support the Channel of Patreon and gain cool stuff:
/ knowledgia
♦Please consider to SUBSCRIBE : goo.gl/YJNqek
♦Music by Epidemic Sound
♦Sources :
Michael Balfour - The Kaiser and his Times, Houghton Mifflin.
Giles Macdonogh - The Last Kaiser: William the Impetuous
Antony Beevor - The Second World War
encyclopedia.ushmm.org/conten...
www.facinghistory.org/weimar-...
www.oldmagazinearticles.com/pd...
Abraham, David. The Collapse of the Weimar Republic: Political Economy and Crisis, 2nd Ed. New York: Holmes & Meier Publishers, 1986. ISBN 0841910847.
♦Script & Research :
Skylar Gordon
#History #Kayser
Wilhelm II defeated Russia, but was defeated by France, while Hitler defeated France but was defeated by Russia. What an irony!
They both got spanked by USA.
@@Arikawanda ... No ...no they certainly didn't. You're looking for the term "allies", which is to say that: - ONLY Britain and France stood up to the Nazi German Reich and particularly Hitler - when France fell in 1940 - the US did absolutely nothing and the burden of propping Britain up as the sole nation standing defiant fell on the poor subjected territories of the empire - the majority of manpower (and sadly lives lost) was provided by the USSR whilst the intelligence that would later go on to inspire the CIA was talent from Britain and Poland mainly. It's not a game mate 🙄.... And if it was then the US would be some DLC they tagged onto a remaster 😐
@@Arikawanda Honestly, no one was the bad guy in that war Edit; I mean WW1.
@@Alex-zs7gw Lmao its funny how eurobrain makes everyone deny reality 😂 you guys are too butthurt to admit that, yes America did play a massive role in the course of ww2
@El pana rojito😎 You're racist
Unbelievable. . i always knew Wilhelm never liked Hitler but the last words in the video took it to another level.
@@hanz3967 we're literally watching a video about his opinion because we care, are people like you unable to talk without saying "nobody cares"?
His name is hanz. Do the German math
@@SupremeRTS who?
@@SupremeRTS Just....what? You don't have to be a neo-nazi to have that opinion of Wilhelm II. In fact, most historians actually have that opinion of him. By all measures, the man was a disaster of a leader, more of a spoiled man-child who led his Empire into a disastrous war that led to near untold suffering for his people, only surpassed by Hitler himself. If Wilhelm II hadn't been such a disaster then Hitler never would have had the opportunity to gain leadership in the first place.
@@hanz3967 not as big of a failure as Hitler and as much as he was a fool otherwise, at least with that quote he absolutely hit the nail on the head
Churchill said that the worst mistake the Allie’s made after the First World War was removing the german monarch and I think he’s right
Well thats not exactly what happened. One of the conditions of german surrender as pressed by the United States was democratization. More accurately, limiting the Kaiser's role to purely ceremonial as in Britain. However, there was also a clashing ideological difference between Britain/France and Germany, as the former were both by the 1900s embracing the concept of rights of men. This western democractic ideology did not really fit in with the Germans, Austrians, Russians and Ottomans whose empires were still built on the institutions and systems going back to the middle ages. Ultimately, however the Kaiser abdicated voluntarily due to internal unrest when the Germans realized they were going to lose. The events of post-WW1 to the start of WW2 were a series of major mistakes done by Britain and France. Some out of geopolitical advantage, some out of guilt over the Treaty of Versailles.
The allies should've done what they did with japan in WW2, keep the Emperor but limit his power. Although I couldn't see him lasting that long as Kaiser after WW1.
@@harrisonbailey5449 well if Wilhelm was still kaiser after ww1 ww2 probably would've never happened because the kaiser would figure out a way to keep Hitler out of power even when Wilhelm is dead
@@AlexTheHistoryFanatical WW2 would start either way, there were too many issues in the world during that time it would start even if germany was not the aggressor.
@@harrisonbailey5449 the only country that would've started it is Italy then because everyone else at the time did not care about what happened in Asia
Wilhelm II looking at Hitler like "Wow what a psycho."
Rational and wise opinion for an grown ass man seeing plenty of shit during his reign.
He thought "Ah, my ticket back to the throne. Wait, why are you locking that door?"
hi mr z love you
@@PakBallandSami Howdy, pal.
@@MonsieurDean Hi Mr.Monsieur.
Z rueisnom
@@MonsieurDean love your vids (but personaly prefer althis instead of country X fall is inevitable)
Apart from being ancestrally related Wilhelm II and Nicholas II share a similar story during their late reign
Except that Wilhelm was a far better Emperor domestically. Though today he’s mostly known for his terrible foreign policy.
@@Swissswoosher can you elaborate plz ?
@@YasserMaghribi he ruined bismarcks foreign policy of maintaining a pact with the Russians (in addition to kicking him out of office), plus, he did a naval buildup which angered the British
@@thelegendformula6695 True, he should’ve let Bismarck take care of the foreign policy a little longer and after his dismissal should’ve trusted his ministers to take care of it. It would’ve saved a few relations. Also, Britain was probably more worried about how it would reflect on them than anything. Germany didn’t have the capacity to build many more warships than they ended up with anyway. But it was a very unnecessary provocation by Germany.
@@YasserMaghribi what do you mean?
That last summary written by Wilhelm II was perfectly spot on.
And his summary still fits the german People till today. :( Politically seen we have just liars and fanatics, just one extreme to another. General Centrist parties in lobbies, steering to more radical courses in fear of losing power and this jumps on the political opinions of many voters.
As a german those last words hit hard, we as a nation still feel and know the effects Hitler had on our grandmothers and grandfathers, we still remember the terror and hate one man brought to the world under our nation. We're taught about the way he rose to power and what led to the circumstances where a man like him was able to grab power and plunge us all into darkness. Our nation has contributed so much to science, poetry and theatre, we were known for culture and scientific discovery and while all these contributions aren't forgotten, the first thing many people think about when hearing "Germany" isn't Goethe, Einstein or Beethoven, they think of Hitler, the Holocaust and the most devestating conflict in human history.
Well, yea, I mean thats what happens when you do literally the worst thing thats ever been done. Still, I at least admire modern germany for being willing to face and own up to what they did. Unlike, for example, turkey, which still denies the fact that tbey murdered 1.5 million armenians.
@@ethanwinnegrad3402 Its one of the worst things ever done not the worst thing, there are plenty of historic figures who killed a similar number of people than those who died in ww2. Under Mao Tse-Tung 70 million people died, almost as many people died under Mao's policies as did in WW2. These deaths under Mao are without a war and just his policies to centralize china. In WW2 there were arguably more parties responsible for the many deaths that happened. (I'm not taking away Hitlers sole responsibility for starting the conflict in the first place, the people who died just weren't all Wehrmachts Soldiers under his command.) Genghis Khan killed about 40 million people in the quest for his empire, while Stalin killed 23 million lives during his reign of the USSR in his gulags. (Which were bascially the Soviet equivalent to the Nazis concentration camps) The Holocaust claimed the lives of around 17 million people. (These deaths can soley be contributed to Hitler because without his policies these people wouldn't have died) So even by a measure of "Who killed the most people in his concentration camps" Hitler comes in second with 6 million less lives lost than Stalin, tthese are as many people as jewsih people who died in the Nazi-camps. There is no single worst thing that's ever been done, all these people killed millions of human beings in search for power, no one dictator or conquerer is worse than the other because real people suffered and died under their reign.
@@jurassicpeter I mean I feel like arguing about which mass murder is worse is kind of gross, but I think you have to make distinction the likes of ghangis khan, who lived at time when barabrians were fairy common, and hitler who lived during the 20th century. Also, mao’s policies were horrible and resulted in the deaths of 10s of million, but i think thats also different than a deliberate attempt to completelty wipe out an entire race of people, for no other reason than they are a member of that race. As far as I know, mao didnt put people in gas chambers or shoot babies.
@@ethanwinnegrad3402 nah. Its the 4th worst thing. I mean... USSR under Stalin killed more and were similarly cruel. Same with the Japanese they also killed more and Mao in China killed nearly 7times as many people (you cannot count all 50mil on Adolf's Head. You can count the 6mil Jews and the Soldiers killed in their Blitzkrieg invasions but not some of the other stuff).
it's no war crime if you won the war, if the axis were to win the war the world would remember ww2 as the heroic german people fighting against imperialist countries and fanatic communist regimes. the holocaust would be nearly forgotten by the history. War crimes were talked about to justify the winners.
Wilhelm is often potrayed in history is a war monger but this video shows him in a different light. He seems to have been a man of high intellect and standards. The last speech is that of a world statesman.
Oh yeah, he was a real swell guy, only responsible for the needless deaths of 2 million German soldiers but hey, one helluva statesman right ;-)
It also showed the difference between a conservative and a fascist. Conservatism is about safeguarding traditional views/values, fascism absorbs everything inside the state, including those traditional views and makes a caricature of culture to go to war. Not to say Wilhelm II was a great ruler, he wanted Germany to be the world power of their time and pursued some agressive policies with Weltpolitik, making foes on two fronts. Every European nation in the early XXth desired that first power place though. And Hitler was worse in the end.
Maybe decades in exile finally beat some manner into him. Ww1 was basically a result of chest puffing contest between nicky and willy. 2 inbred monarch with ego several times bigger than their brain
In his youth he wase more agressive and before the war he did all in his intrest for germany, maybe agressive but he stil diden’t start the war, he just gave his word to his austrian ally that he would back them up if the terror attack on his son would be avenged against Serbia. The serbs were the cause and theaustrians declared it.
He was still a warmonger though that is undeniably he broke the European balance of power that Bismark had carefully set up and for uneccesarily provoked Britain by challenging its naval dominance Angering Britain is by far Germany's biggest mistake too , Britain could of been a usuefully benefactor or even ally of the Germans if it wasn't for Germany's challenging of the British
Many in Britain disliked him, but Winston Churchill kept a high admiration for the former Kaiser. When Germany invaded the Netherlands, Churchill offered Wilhelm the chance for him and his family to exile in Britain, and be offered the throne of a defeated Germany which he declined. He wanted the German people to bring him back to his throne. Wilhelm should have made better decisions, but he was a good Ruler and cared about his people. At the beginning of his reign, there were worker strikes and while Bismarck and other Government officials wanted to send in the Army and force them back to work; Wilhelm said that they're his people and he listened to them and ended the riots himself. He did not want WWI, his Generals did.
Churchill just wanted to use him for Propaganda purposes. Churchill's deeply held views for were that the Prussians were the source of all problems in Germany and Churchill played no small part in the erasure of Prussia after the war. He called Prussia "the root of evil" in Germany. In spite of who the person running Germany was was and where he came from, Churchill thought of Southern Germans as peaceful people. Churchill is the reason why the destruction of Prussia became an official war aim of the US/Britain/USSR during the war.
"If there was a Hohenzollern, If there was a Wittelbach, If there was a Hapsburg, If there was a bourbon this whole war would have been avoided"
@@Jim-Tuner the dislike of Prussia wasn't completely unwarranted given that they were a very militaristic culture
@@freewyvern707 I strongly disagree. Prussia historically had a strong and successful military. But the characterization of Prussia by the 1930s as a "militaristic culture" was mostly false. And even if there was a threat from the officer class in Prussia, there should have been better ways of dealing with it than the campaign of ethnic cleansing and cultural warfare that was launched against Prussia at the strong urging of Churchill. To me it was wrong to blame one part of all Germany what happened and to punish that part of Germany in a completely disproportionate way from the rest of Germany. Especially based more on Churchill's ignorance of Germany rather than any true understanding.
That shows how detached from reality he was. WW1 was a slaughter and HE was directly responsible for that. He joined the war after Russia declared war on Austria because the attack on Serbia. He alone could had prevented misery for the German people. He escalated the war, and the result was the war declaration of France on Germany as they were a ally of Russia. Britain came to that war later because Germany attacked Belgium wich were neutral. HE was the one who ordered the slaughter in Flandern. Stupid wasting of his citizen. Its meaningless what his generals wanted, HE was the ruler and HE decided to go to war. Wasting his throne and millions of people. Nobody in Germany wanted HIM back on any possible throne. The British are funny, having a grudge against someone THEY declared war on... EDIT: Actually Germany declared also war on France...because they started to mobilize troops...
Wilhelm and Bismarck have both impressed me when I learn about them. WW1 has no villains, it is all the heroes tragically fighting each other but it is an epic tragedy. WW2 is low drama because arguably it has no heroes left at all, except with class act cunning moves like forbidding a State funeral for Wilhelm with his own Last Will. But those are fewer and farther between than the overall loser belt of tradition and higher tolerance for war crimes the Second War perpetrated. It's a paradox. General Lee knew the South should go out quietly with no statues. Kaiser Wilhelm saw he should pass quietly. They both rejected the temptations to be entombed in pyramids and glorified because of the truly greater good. It's hard to accept that the past is just dust, when it seems to be finer grain and grade than the dust we are made of today. But I don't wish to thwart or insult their realizations of humility. Hmmm. It's all more challenging to solve than it appears.
At first, it was all Glory, Monarchies clashing together but underestimating the total quantity and weight of the WW1, and the start of Prussia's Collapse and Rivalries cutting down, after the German Defeat. The following, under Hitler's regime, it was full of conspiracies. Distrust and Fanatical leadership. The Victories is just as Willheim II described, it contains no Glory. It was just plain, dark cold turbulent destruction at the other side, that it doesn't bring honor to the occupied nation. Allies and Axis are no different, although The Axis' faction weighs more heavily that the Allies' faults perfectly hidden from the masses when they joined the war. At first it is really just Valor, but an underestimated landslide. But the next was much destructive, far from every wars that was given at the past. Now homes of non-combatant, or rather civilians are included into the casualties. It wasn't a field of Wars anymore. Wars doesn't give glory for killing its inhabitants who couldn't fight back. Chivalry is dead along with the grand Monarchies and empires. It completely reshaped everything. The toll of the lives was taken included not just soldiers anymore.
WWII does have its heroes, it's just they're more defined concerning the easy to call Villians. But yes WWI was a with novillains, was a sad war.
WW1 had 1 villain, the ottoman empire, who committed atrocities against Greeks, Assyrians, and Armenians, but that's only my opinion
@@michaelgrigoryan2131 I should interest you to Balkan History, in which all did all to one another
@@battleship6177 Balkans are a place of hellhole politics
What an extraordinary speech at the end there! It is obvious that the Kaiser no longer cared about his throne, but was in anguish over the fate of his people.
I honestly don't understand why you only have 11 likes. Really accurate description of Wilhelm II in exile.
When you make the German Kaiser himself ashamed of being German, you're not bad, you're the worst.
Uhhh the narrator didnt say that,the kaiser himself did actualy say that.
Willy was any thing but a patriot.
@Maximus Meridius The difference is He wasn't trying to make Germany the master of Europe or at least not like Bismarck or Hitler wanted as he as more benevolent
@Philball how did you come to that conclusion lol
@Maximus Meridius I didn't say that he wasn't trying to make Germany master of Europe entirely just not the way Bismarck and Hitler had, do remember his council and generals heavily influenced him and when he tried to prevent the war he was resisted which was my point not that he wasn't being a leader of a power and thus expanding influence but that he wasn't a warmonger by choice. As for the communists ,socialists , syndicalists and others it would either go the way in our world with a revolution of which would be either crushed or like Wilhelm had previously done catered for or perhaps it might not have happened but that's the thing with theoretical scenarios.
Holy shit. Wilhelms final statement on Hitler was so burning, and a perfect description of that man and his state. I dont admire either men but you gotta give credit when its due
I admire Wilhelm. Not only he did what any man in his position would do, but also he did much better.
@@kakalimukherjee3297 it was mainly thanks to his politicians.
"and a perfect description of that man and his state" - more like cringeworthy seething from someone who had become irrelevant. "He is childless and non-religious" sounds more like school-level insults.
@@jonnyjohn5178 it was aperfect descripción of nazi germany A all shallowing state
@@jonnyjohn5178 his quote is relevant today I don't think many western countries are states anymore rather a company feeding u with the product after product giving u material happiness which is only temporary that is why western Europe and Japan developed countries have one of the highest suicide rates despite having one of the best living standards
i was surprised by his words at the end. never before i imagined to hear such an accurate description of the nazis by Wilheim himself
It is a pity that Wilhelm II only found wisdom in exile. For a multitude or reasons his ego needed a check for him to become self-aware. Had the exiled version of Wilhelm been on the throne between 1888-1918, it is possible WWI never happens, or takes a less disastrous course.
Ya I agree. Although it is nice to see the honorable side of Wilhelm II after the fact, he too had the opportunity to stop human suffering when he was in the driver seat and failed to do so.
Yes, strange how being born into executive power gives you a poor perspective on governance
@@jon112785 If we are being honest, Wilhelm was not to blame for the outbreak of WWI.
@@matthewdunphy8524 It’s as if there is a vested interest in nationalist groups to paint a monarch like Wilhelm as the cause of WWI instead of, ya know….. the murderers who actually did cause the war. Who were, nihilistic anarchists……
@@matthewdunphy8524 Not for the outbreak, but he basically threw an entire oil rig into the fire by promising Austria-Hungary to join them in whatever war they might get into. His late enlightenment can not correct his mistakes, but it shows us that there are often more layers to historic persons than we can grasp at first glance.
Simply put; They hated the living s**t out of each other and never wanted anything to do with one another. To the point of blaming one another for Germany’s demise.
well´ Wilhelm wasn't really at fault of Germanys demise first world war would have happened sooner or later europe was a powder keg of every nation having interests they want france wanting to be the strongest power on European continent, same for germany Russia wanted to be there too meanwhile second world war, was entirely avoidable if not for Versailles
@@Gokaes Not just ww2, but many problems like the problems of the middle east could have been directly avoided due to the allies in ww1. They cut them up and introduced a new state made of europeans and americans in already lived in land. Everything they did led to war in the middle east. They also made mistakes that caused lesser wars like the ogaden war between somalia and ethiopia since they took a bunch of somali land during the post ww1 era and gave it to ethiopia. I maintain the controversial opinion that the allies/entente win in ww1 directly led to many wars and that they were more evil than the central powers. In europe alone over 5 million muslims were killed and 5 million more exiled. If we add in the numbers from other fronts where genocide happened like in north africa then we basically had a holocaust in ww1 just less coordinated and by many powers. the allies screwed up so bad in ww1 and just after it that they irreparably ended the possibility of peace for generations to come, so many drawn borders have dumb conflicts put in them on purpose (for example border of iraq and kuwait gives almost all water access to kuwait for no reason).
@@resentfuldragon the bankers controlled the entente
@@elemperadordemexico Something tells me you don’t mean all bankers
@@elemperadordemexico it still does lol. banks, corps, and other money rich entities are legally allowed to bribe politicians in some nations like america. In ones where its illegal they still can do it because if the lawmakers are on your payroll you won't get in trouble.
"Even though I'm exiled, at least I didn't shoot myself in the head." - Wilhelm II, probably
Wilhelm died before the end of world War 2
@@flamepro8202 still he didn't shoot himself in the head
@@flamepro8202 Holy shit he saw the future!
What'd hitler do if he didn't kill himself? South America?
@@artinrahideh1229 NO PLS DONT ESPECIALLY BRAZIL OR ARGENTINA
this goes to show, a monarch beats a dictator every time. Mabey not with bullets and soldier's, but with wisdom and morality.
How do you know? Its probably not even his own words. he was like a company is today, if he does say something stupid he ruins his dynasty name so why would he say something without anyone looking over it? It would be dump
@@AUSTRIABomberman yeah, he’s less likely to do or say stupid stuff because of it
@@AndrewPatterson-xq4qk so why is a monarch more wise? He clearly isnt.
''For the first time i'm ashamed to be a german'' from Wilhelm II that say a lot about the situation of Germany
As much as I shun Kaiser Wilhelm for his incompetence as an emperor, I whole heartedly agree with his sentiments in the end. As someone who loves German history, the line that Germany used to be a nation of poets and musicians but is turning into one of liars and fanatics, really struck a chord in me.
Actually Prussia was a quite effective war machine, and not really a poet country. Germany was shattered into a plethora of small duchies, and every great power of that time liked it that way. The founding of the Reich 1871 was the start of competition with these great powers, also in colonialism. The united Germans were a clear threat to their agendas, and that's why Germany got removed 1918 from the list of great powers.
@@hansjorgkunde3772 Germany is not Prussia
In what ways was he incompetent? Y'all can't still be blaming him for the war.
@@Mshi- He wanted an allience with the Uk so he decided to annoy the british by making a bigger fleet then the british one then dissolved the allience with russia. Yeah, very competent leader
@@Mshi- It was what's been called his "Blank Check" to Austria in 1914 that he's blamed for, that is Austria's invasion of Serbia in response to the assassination of the Archduke Francis Ferdinand. Germany had a military alliance treaty with Austria and in effect Wilhelm gave Austria a "Go ahead" assurance instead of a "This is an agressive war on your part, if you get in trouble you're on your own!" warning. Without the implied support from Wilhelm the Austrians might never have invaded Serbia which started the chain of events that began the World War.
This video enraged Adolf's father, who punished him severely.
“HEY!!! I’m average height for the time, YOU JERK!!!” - Napoleon
@@CTViewer07 “sacré bleeeeeeeeeeeuuuuuu!”
Oversimplified reference goes brrrrrr
@@argon2423 "How about... When he approaches... We run away."
@@ItsWazzza "Genius! *looks to others in the room* He's a genius."
Always portrayed as literally crazy, but his words about Hitler at the end show very clear foresight and reality.
for the man who helped instigate the great war, he sure had some very beautiful final words. Words that still ring true to some degree.
People just lets the worst kinds of politicians get the power, so what he said will always be aplicable to some degree at any time, now more than decades ago.
@@amecampeon01 that's such a ignorant, generic statement that's not helpful in understanding anything at all
Wilhelm II is often misrepresented in my eyes. While he may not have been liked outside of Germany, he was loved in Germany. The emperor was the role model for many, a person to look up to, he was seen as modern and traditional at the same time. Under Wilhelm's rule, science flourished, social laws were introduced, child labor under 12 was abolished and pregnant women could also take time off from work, many popular innovations. German culture was at its peak. In a relatively short period of time, the German Empire became one of the most powerful nations in the world and many did not like that. Not without reason, although Wilhelm II is no longer liked in Germany and one is taught his crimes, even today many Germans call the Empire the Golden Age, especially under Wilhelm II's time.
the thing is attributing most of that to Wilhelm is wrong wilhelm was beloved and overall a good domestic ruler , but the majority of germany's Golden age should be attirubted to the chancellors and politicians and also Germany had the massive advantage of a large industry and population whilst having centuries of infastructure built up by the various states that preceded the German empire if WW1 would of not happend the German golden age would of continued past Wilhem's death , or atleast untill some kind of market crash like the great depression wilhelm is misrepresented but at the same time he shouldn't be given all the credit for Germany's sucess
That's a nice way to see it, i like to think what would of happened if the German Monarchy never fell and I have a lot of intrigue to Wilhelm II (especially because we technically share the same name)
Well yes, the Germans where happy, the people living in the colonies not.
Yes, when the Weimar republic was in power the most popular music of the time was wir wollen unseren alten kaiser.
@@kholeka8475 That goes for all colonies and not just for the 3-4 german ones
Wilhelm II was surprisingly wise. History paints him as a warmongering tyrant, but maybe he really did have the best intentions in mind for his people. More so than Hitler ever did.
yeah ww1 happened only because british didnt like someone having bigger well navy than them they could have stopped ww1 but didnt
@@undeadalex4579 well technically the war started between the Austro-Hungarian and Russian Empires and they dragged everyone else in
Do independent research on Adolf h
@@undeadalex4579 No? The naval race was long over by 1914.
I would say before the war he was a warmongering tyrant. But after the war and with the lost of a whole country he finally realized his mistakes.
Wow... Just wow That final citation gave me goosebumps. Given the time he wrote it, he absolutely nailed the description of Hitlers Regime. Thanks for the great video. Never honestly thought about, what Wilhelm might have thought of the Nazis. I've almost finished my studies to become a history teacher. This will definitely incorporated into my lessons about the Third Reich.
I remember reading about a British pow being led back through the lines into captivity. The Kaiser was up at the front, and the soldier said that he had never seen a kinder face on a man in contrast to the posed pictures taken of him for posterity
The king words at the end about Nazis Germany sum is it up perfectly. That is the best description.
Honestly, Wilhelm's personality and what I like to call "character development" is fascinating. Not only can he be different from what I was taught in school, but he also can be quite the opposite to a monster. Definitely an underrated historical figure, personally, if there should be one German leader who gets all the attention, it should be him, not really Hitler.
You probably shouldn't believe in some History lessons. The Losers will be put down even more and shown as worse than they actually were. While the Victors erase their own Crimes from the book. In fact the Kaiserreich probably was the least cruel or evil empire of that time besides the USA (I mean not like the USA did things at that time except trade themselves into riches). Actual research such as this Video may prove that what is taught in the History Books is not all that accurate. Sure he was cruel but in comparison to others he was rather mild.
@@gr4vityjuli4n yeah Wilhelm didnt even want war. At the time the countrys only knew small wars so an alliance with Österreich (Austria i think) was just seen as something normal. Wilhelm notices to late that the Balkans had very good relations with russia which had alliance with france and britain. Basically the ones who actually responsable for the war are Österreich (Austria) and russia.
@@xXArthurosXx Wilhelm's main failure in my humble opinion was not seeing what a German nation needed to prosper on the European stage. Much of his foreign policy amounted to mimicking the same mistakes of the British and French Empire while simultaneously being late to the party. While he might have been kinder to his people, he lacked Bismarck's foresight in Realpolitik. The issues with the Balkan, Österreich failing as a multi-ethnical state, Germany's need for European peace, the danger of a Europe divided in opposing alliances and the importance of early mobilization in war, which could lead to tensions getting out of control very fast, were all known back then and yet Wilhelm II. mostly had this strange view on achieving national glory, which is even present in his speech to reprimand Hitler shown in this video. The false glory of an overstretched empire and engaging in the global power struggle with France and the UK was precisely what Germany not needed and he and most other German politicians of that time paid a hefty price for that miscalculation. Shifting all the blame on him and Germany is nothing but projection in a certain sense, I think. The German Reich under Wilhelm II. symbolizes all the faults of the European nationalist imperialist ideology, which started in Britain and France, and, I think, ultimately is mostly responsible for the war becoming a world war. Only because everyone was eager to outmaneuver each other and limit each other's power, everyone needed to quickly jump head over heels into a conflict over fucking Serbia. Russia wanted to weaken Austria, Österreich could not let Serbia go or it would be in danger of completely collapsing, Germany could not let Austria collapse or else it would lack power to counteract the French-Russian-alliance, with a France that sported a deep resentment towards Germany, and therefore opted to take the risk in trying to ultimately defeat France, France on the other hand now had the chance to reassert complete dominance over mainland Europe and get revenge for the Franco-Prussian war, and the UK could not let Germany become even more powerful in mainland Europe, so that it needed to intervene, when Germany started to draw minor powers into the war as well. All those actions were ultimately fueled by the foolish idea of what national strength needs to be and how you're either the strongest, equally strong or you perish. And in the end all of them did in their own way. The British and French Empires became unsustainable, Russia walked straight into revolution, Austria collapsed as it was always destined to and Germany lost the unwinnable all-out European war, it should never have let happen. All five acted against their interests as a state by acting in the interest of an empire. All of them should be equally considered guilty imho.
Wilhelm was a … complicated personality-he was highly insecure of both his and Germany’s public perception, which he tried to mask by his saber-rattling and confrontational foreign policy. Nobody ever really loved him at any point in his life, and he spent the entirety of his reign trying to gain that love by posturing himself on the world-stage. His foreign policy (or lack thereof, as he didn’t have true identifiable objectives to accomplish in the foreign realm, only the vague idea of making Germany respected as he thought it should be) may not have caused WWI but it was instrumental in creating the state of the world in which a Great War could occur. Yet, at the same time, he was a pathetic and so very obviously human figure you can’t help but feel bad for him at times, especially when he was in exile…
@@xXArthurosXx - Austria demanded that Austrian authorities go to Serbia and run the investigation of the assassination. The murderer was already in custody, so Serbia rightly said no, and Austria declared war and Russia allied with Serbia, declared war on Austria. Germany, allied with Austria declared war on Russia then France declared war on Germany, and so forth. Some countries, because of treaty obligations, and others, such as France, to take back territory lost in the Franco-Prussian War in 1871. The rulers of England, Germany and Russia were cousins - Queen Victoria's nephews - so their going to war with each other really doesn't make sense to me.
Wilhelm II was a much better man than Hitler. He made mistakes but wasn't a mass murderer. Had the monarchy not abolished after World War 1, Hitler may have never gained power in Germany.
In the series, "Fall of Eagles", the actor who played Wilhelm II, brilliantly conveyed the struggle of the Kaiser to serve his people, serve his ego (when you're an emperor, there's going to be an ego) and deal with Bismarck and during the war, his generals.
As a Slavic, and if I lived during ww2, I would be on Kaiser Wilhelm II’s side. Plus I don’t blame Wilhelm, he wanted to defend his ally.
The thing is if he didn't defend austia-hungary they would lose against russia. The balance of europe would be destroyed anyway. Russia and the austro-hungarian empire wanted to have more influence in the balkans. That's also why Bismarck wasn't able to create an alliance with russia and austria-hungary. When the war was inevitable it was smart to go all out. That was germanys only chance of winning. In my opinion not Wilhelms fault.
@@kerim.s8801 Most likely Austria would had been cut down somewhat, but look its borders after WW1 and millions of deaths. Any war is a crime against the citizen.
@@kerim.s8801 A few generations earlier the Russians would have understood how deeply unacceptable the assassination of a head of state was. Any country would have been hard-pressed to defend Serbia after something so egregious, but I suppose that is the point when it comes to the transition to modern diplomacy.
@@hansjorgkunde3772 so Wilhelm should have given up his ally and let their citizens be slaughtered by Russians as a consequence of a crime committed against Austria-Hungary? Believe it or not, but citizens tend to hate it when their government looks weak and does not fulfill its international obligations
I am also slavic, I am from Poland and I would prefer to live in Poland under the rule of the German Empire, not Nazi Germany. If Hitler had not lost ww2, he would have murder all Poles and all slavic people.
I love how they're almost polar opposite, Wilhelm was a leader that was not well liked but was actually quite decent, and Hitler was almost seen as god-like yet he just made everything worse
That's Propaganda for you. The Nazis mastered it. And Wilhelm, at his rtime In Exile, had no influence.
Depends on the year before ww2 hitler made life in Germany alot better but he was defeated and ended up destroying Germany with his gamble
@@constantinethecataphract5949 well yes but in an other way not really He spent money that he didn't had thanks to scams like the MEFO bills The economy would have collapse anyway without a war because he hoped to get the money to reimburse these bills thanks to spoils of war (while as long as the war was on, the MEFO bills' reimbursement were postponed indefinitely)
Wilhelm II was a genuinely pretty terrible diplomat though, and probably did contribute to the outbreak of WW1. I'd say the hatred of him is somewhat justified, if maybe a little over exaggerated
@@handsomelyditto4215 If Bismarck had agreed to become minister of foreign affairs all of this could have probably be avoided...
Imagine if Wilhelm had Twitter back then.
"Bro you suck so much that your mother died because of your failures at Art School"
He would have been censored.
Omg wilhelm you're so cancelled for not liking the fuhrer, slayydolf, imagine hating on nsdap thats racism and homophobia
Political compass speedrun
04:00 His feelings were not ENTIRELY unjustified. During last two years of WW1, Paul Von Hindenburg and Erich Lundendorff had transformed german empire into a military dictatorship. Wilhelm was pretty much hands off from all the decisions military took, yet he got all the blame for it, while Lundendorff and Hindeburg managed to evade their own responsibility by creating "stabbed in the back"-myth. Hell, they even managed to rebuild themselves into a sort of tragic betrayed heroes in eyes of the public, with Lundendorff becoming a nazi representative in reichstag (He was one of the organisators of Hitler's beer hall putsch, but eventually he and Hitler did drift apart due to power struggle) and Hindenburg becoming the president of germany. It must've been bitter pill for him to swallow, living disgraced in exile while others could at least partially restore their honor.
“Organizers” and “Beer Hall Putsch” should never be used in the same sentence 😂 But yeah Ludendorff was one of the figureheads of that ill-conceived and designed coup
Please let us all be reminded that when Hindenburg and Ludendorff connived to take power by removing the monarchy and signing the armistice in 1918 , no Allied troops had walked on an inch of German soil! A rather rare occurence when contemplating total defeat, no? The truth is the generals created a successful coup and ousted the Kaiser in order to seize power . Who was the Weimar Republic's second president? Hindenburg. This is the blackmail Hitler (via Hindenburg's son Oskar who had the proof) used to force Hindenburg to offer him the Chancellorship in 1933 . You of course know that the declaration of the Weimar Republic was actually a fluke , which is why Ebert had to navigate as he did and Hindenburg had to wait for his moment. Politics....
@@tszirmay Ok, I despise Ludendorff (and to a lesser degree, Hindenburg) as much as the next guy--but there’s no need for this tinfoil nonsense 😂 I mean, some great coup then, as Ludendorff (already the effective ruler of Germany) never returned to power and spent the immediate fallout of the armistice in exile. Plus, you’d think Hindenburg would be more involved in…anything really, if he so desired supreme power so as to conspire the Kaiser’s fall. Like, I’m not sure if your comment was a joke my dude or you’re actually a bonfide nut-if the former, damn good job of satire you’ve got there, parodying the deranged lunacy of Internet randos who always somehow managed to fit Shitler into their fanfics. I like how you snuck in the part about Hindenburg being the second Weimar president, that little detail that seemingly conflicts with the narrative was *chef’s kiss* . Like, this was perfect 👍 But if the latter, well….
@@warlordofbritannia Oh, for you, if you wish : I am the definitely number 2 , the bona fide (you missed the a ) nut as well as a deranged lunatic who spew's inane idiocies whilst living in a house full of mirrors. Ya happy, now ? But what do I really know, you may ask ? I did my first thesis on the NSDAP in 1975 , plus a secondary one about the minute differences between State Socialism (Nazis) and Global Socialism (the Lenin-Trotsky-Stalin trio) in 1976 , as well as extended essays on the Winter War, Vietnam, the Yom Kippur War and in the 90s , a nice analysis on the Yugoslav breakup (on site) that created quite a stir, as I had the sad distinction of predicting Srebrenica. 43 years of endless studies , interviews with countless soldiers from many nations and from both sides of the conflicts . Other than that, I speak 7 languages fluently without the use of google translate (a shitty tool BTW), including German. I am therefore definitely not your dude, even though you seem to be a historian yourself (Civil War). I surely do not deserve to be mocked as my historian friends would be shocked. (nice poetry) . Hindenburg had no alternative constitutionally than to wait for Ebert to pass away in 1925 to take over the presidency. He also despised Hitler and wanted a return of the monarchy but Oskar publicly proclaimed the lie that his father wanted Hitler to rule and therefore to hand him power. Ludendorff was a tool in Adolf's kit.
@@tszirmay It was the Army with useful idiots from SPD that ousted Kaiser. I don't even blame Ebert and Socialists for that, they walked in on a done deal. Generals lost the war but Kaiser had the ultimate responsibility. He deserved part of the blame but his main failure was that he didn't act against people who were destroying Germany.
The speech at the end is so true and it can be use for many nations.
Even the civilians forgot about such simple fact
You are right. And I'm afraid, a speech of a czar about Putin would sound very similar.
It could apply to any of the welfare states that run the state as the central figure in people's life.
If Wilhelm was ashamed to be a german before WW2, I wonder how he would have felt after, seeing the atrocities of the concentration camps and such.
@Average Pahlavi Enjoyer the Kaiser never started the backstab myth, Ludendorff led his own proto-fascist movement that actually had more of a chance to start it (he and his wife would go as far as to make anti-semitic claims involving the Death of Mozart. the Kaiser himself wouldn't really have the time nor mind to do this). as for his Grandfather Whilhelm I; He actually gave the Jews in Germany their Rights back after centuries of oppression after the Franco-Prussian war. otherwise, I think that Wilhelm II is a Perfect Candidate within Human History to Study for Real-life "Character Development". something our modern societies claiming to be so free often forget to somehow manage in our arrogance. our entertainment is full of PC Mary and Gay-ry sues that it often ends up one dimensional and Stale often Affirming literal Stereotypes.
He would be enraged I think. Wilhelm was never a big fan of Jews to my knowledge, but he never advocated for slaughtering them and other minorities. Heck, I've read Hitler had planned a mass genocide of the Slavs in order to make most of Eastern Europe part of a "Greater German Reich" (Among others, Poland, Ukraine, and even a western region of Russia would be purged forever and resettled). Knowing his own cousin was a Russian, Wilhelm probably would want to kill Hitler personally for seeking to carry that out.
@@thunderbird1921 "Had planned" is a bit of an understatement, it was already happening. More slavs died in the Holocaust than Jews. Villages and towns were wiped off the face of the earth.
Furious, Enraged. Any words that is going to make the Kaiser, angry and ashamed the same time, that he might possibly and somehow manifest an army of Prussian soldiers and generals to manhunt Hitler. If such a thing possible, but Germany is still under the clutch of Hitler's control even if the Emperor himself is still alive to witness it until the end of the European wars.
he was also lucky that he died right before Barbarossa if he saw it happen - he might have predicted the destruction of his beloved Germany and died in a depression
The quote at the end really got to me. ...imagine a Germany without hitler. if another successor were to take her into a more "familial" direction. 😔 "...and all that could have been"
What a spine-chilling and insightful assessment, in the words of the Kaiser quoted at the end of the video! Very impressed by the content, that throws into harsh focus the yawning gulf between Hohenzollern Germany and Hitlerite Germany.
Wilhelm may not have been the best of monarchs, or people, but he certainly was a level of magnitude better than the dictators that popped up all over the world after his reign, such as Hitler, Mussolini and Stalin, the old king still probably rolls in his grave if he could hear what happens in his land
Also if he was still in charge after WWI I don't think he would have given a demagogue like Hitler so much power the way Hindenburg did.
@@barbiquearea Hindenburg needed to make Hitler Chancellor, as he was the leader of the biggest party. In fact, although it is commonly known that Hitler became Chancellor in 1933, he didn't got the entire power until Hindenburg's death. When in 1930's presidential election Hindenburg candidated, he prolonged Hitler's rule by years, as he only won by a couple of votes. Hindenburg hated Hitler, as the latter was a proletarian, Nazi, while heself was a Reactionary Monarchist.
Agreed, although I would still put people like Mussolini in a different category than Hitler. Unlike Hitler, Mussolini at least had a wife and kids, so he was not a "man alone" in the way Wilhelm described Hitler. His fascist ideology was notably less racist and had a lower body count than Hitler's national socialism.
Stalin was 100 times better than Wilhelm.
@@kholeka8475 Wilhelm never used a secret police to oppress his own people and neither did he cause millions and millions of his own people to die out of paranoia You are comparing a somewhat mediocre king/emperor who still did a lot of good and tried to make his nation better, to a paranoid genocidal maniac who didn't even care about his own children, Nevermind the millions of poor russians ukrainians and other Soviets that starved to death because of his idiotic policies or got shot by the secret police for so called "dissidence"
I think it's cool that Wilhelm studied the Nazi ideology, realized the inherent incompatiblity with itself at the core of the system and proceeded to call it out. There are a lot of people now-a-days who fail to make that key distinction when criticizing current political movements.
If it fits their rage then it doesn't matter. It's always right in their eyes.
Read the letter Wilhelm II. wrote to Poultney Bigelow on the 15.08.1927
perhaps he was uniquely qualified - having served as the head of the state for 30 years he knew what will work and what won't
Yeah just like Wokeness.
@@wifi961 ... What?
Now this is what I were looking for, for like 2 years. Thank you for uploading.
I recommend the movie "The Exception" to anyone watching this video. It's a fictional story surrounding Kaiser Wilhelm's last days before his death while in exile. It touches upon a lot of topics mentioned in this video and brings history to life.
wilhelm is not the only one to blame there are many to blame for the great war
But his idiocy was a major part in it. His aggressive and indecisive diplomacy led to major powers like Britain, Russia and the US banding against Germany. Bismarck himself always wanted to make sure that Germany would gain as many allies as possible and isolate France but Wilhelm ll. ruined everything that his forebears had achieved... He never deserved to be on the throne in the first place...
@@scanida5070 he mad many mistakes but he did care for his own people, he done what he thought was right for germany. Unlike a certain austrian artist with a silly mustache.
@@coltonbarnes7861 and that's by going to a costly yet pointless war and wasting millions of innocent german lives. Honestly, he should have let the austrians deal with the serbian insurgency and the russian menace themselves( they did betray the russians after all during the crimean war)
@@t.f.r287 its far more complicated than that, wilhelm did not think it would spiral into a world war, and austria was germanys greatest ally if they got defeated then germany would be at the mercy of the other great powers of europe
@@t.f.r287 well Wilhelm didn't want the war. During the july crisis he was on a cruise ship and when he heard the news he tried to avoid a war. But the generals pushed him to mobilize against Russia etc. So basically the military pushed for war.
Excellent video, as always to the point
I often dream of a world were early 20th century madness didn't happen. Unfortunately, it's only in hindsight that we can tell the Entente doomed the world as they sang victory, and that old man Willy was Cyrus the Great compared to the man that followed
Love this channel ! been here since 50k
The eloquence and precision of the final speech in this video is Truly Epic!!! 🤠👍
"Wake me up when the monarchy is restored" **dies** - Kaiser Wilhelm
F
The World is blind and doesn’t see monarchism must be restored world wide.
The ending quote hits hard
It was the german monachy that imported Lenin to Russia and fund his socialist campain. It was a huge mistake and a sin germany would pay dearly for.
What a fascinating video. It never crossed my mind to ask this question but I'm glad to have the answer.
Thank u for that refreshing new perspective of the Kaiser. I am German but I did just learn about the times until the start of WWI so this perspective after he got exiled is very interesting
Wilhelm: "Hey, nice work with France. So how about that monarchy thing?" Hitler: "No." That was one too many ouchies for Wilhelm to handle. So a year later he kicked the bucket.
Is that an Oversimplified reference?
@@squadron3224 yes
wtf bro you didn't watch the video?
@@herc9275 what do you mean i watched the whole video?
Nein
Man you gotta respect the end.
Interestingly, some religious leaders shared that view Wilhelm held (that the Nazis were totally unbiblical and were fundamentally destroying Germany's society). Men like Dietrich Bonhoeffer even accused Hitler of blasphemy because he tried to make himself head of the German church. Sadly Bonhoeffer and many like him paid the price for their objection, being executed in camps or prisons. I've actually read that Hitler secretly disliked Christianity strongly, believing it to be promoting weakness amongst the public.
That final description from the old monarch seriously made me think of some nations around the world today.
That was interesting. Thankyou for sharing this video.
Wilhem's opinion of Hitler behind closed doors was much less favourable. In a 1938 interview with Ken magazine, he said of the dictator:"There is a man alone, without family, without children, without God...He builds legions but he doesn’t build a nation. A nation is created by families, a religion, tradition: it is made up out of the hearts of mothers, the wisdom of fathers, the joy and the exuberance of children. [Of Germany under Hitler he says]...an all-swallowing State, disdainful of human dignities and the ancient structure of our race, sets itself up in place of everything else. And the man who, alone, incorporates in himself this whole State, has neither a God to honour nor a dynasty to conserve, nor a past to consult
Did Wilhelm know about Hitler and Nazi?
@@glamrockmichael6632 yes there is a literally a video about this on history matter channel lol
oof
Damn that's based as fuck.
did you even watch the damn video? 9:41
Fun Fact: Wilhelm I didn’t even want to be The German Emperor in the first place. He just wanted to stay King of Prussia and was angry the title was being overshadowed by his new one. But he was eventually convinced to take it and unify Germany after literal hours of debate between him, his Son, and Bismarck
I would say the interview at the end was more than very accurate.
That final passage is SO powerful! It's something to think deeply about, honest words that transcend time, boarders, and politics.
With all his errors, his final judgment on the absolute immorality and absurdity of nazism is the most accurate description of that regime I have ever seen. He goes straight to the root of evil, just in a few sentences.
It’s so ironic that someone like you who claims to be against nazism has an alm name which is literally used by racists to hate black people
It was fascinating words that still apply today. Look at the world we live in today. It shows that people push for something so aggressively that they forget the reason they pursued said thing in the first place, and it just becomes about pursuing said thing for the sake of pursuing it. The world is very much that way now. Look at the entire first world. We are the loneliest we have ever been because of technology. Our family units are dying thanks to bad laws, lowering wages and a growing welfare state. We are having less children. Our political causes become our religion and are all consuming the way Nazi Germany’s were, we are without God.
The same god that tells you to r@pe women?@@FrankMaster73
Although Wilhelm was rather foolish during his reign as Kaiser I do believe in his later years in exile he became a much wiser man
He could've been a better ruler, but well... time changes, and time, is faster than you realize it, as time will also rob your life. But the development of the Kaiser is amazing, also after studying Nazism, he is convinced that he couldn't get in with it, and that Monarchy should re-implemented. Although his development is far.. far too late that it, is almost a shame. He could've listened to Bismarck's words for taking more allies on their side before doing the wars so that they could beat the french, or at least made a stalemate and not a defeat. But he's a complex individual. Yet Willheim II only wants glory to his empire, and not viewed as a villain who reenacts a Holocaust Genocide of humanity to the innocents. Which were not soldiers but people he should protect, Jews are included in that community under his Empire.
@@assaulthetz380 well said
And Wilhelm was not only foolish during his reign. He made many good or even great decisions while he could. One could argue that if Queen Victoria would have handled her daughters in a better way (as in more loving), Wilhelm would have grown up completely different, and who knows what mights has happened instead.
@@xwormwood i think now we just never understand...):
Great video, well done.
I always was interested in that idea :) Thank you sir
Watch the movie The Exception. It does a good job at humanizing Wilhelm II and showing him living his life in exile when the Nazis occupy the Netherlands and put him under a new guard detail. Christopher Plummer did a great job portraying the fallen Kaiser. Showing him reflect back on his life and coming to terms with losing his throne.
Where can I watch it
Mm one interesting aspect of the exiled Kaiser was that in WW1, he left the Netherlands alone. I'm told that when the Nazis in WW2 then invaded, early arriving officers at his exile home proclaimed this great achievement. He in no uncertain terms said you have made a terrible mistake re the Dutch, who never threatened you. I never invaded them in WW1. You have made enemies of them by your actions. And it took many years post WW2 for older Dutch to forgive the germans for their occupation..
That speech in the end. How can someone be such a gamer and not support the gamer party?
Cuz Willy was a gamer Not a larper lol
@@freetime5803 >anime pic >hoi4 gameplay >calling someone a larper
@@nonameacc gigachad_yes.jpg
I would guess ol willie had that conservative but absolute not extremist view that alot of boomers in our day have,they know whats up,they know something is wrong. But what? Theyre still not so sure to say.
Absolute monarchy is better than National Socialist Nazi race theory.
As a French, i approve Wilhem's quote at the end of the video.
Great video
The Kaiser should have told his relatives in Britain all his suspicions. That may have put an end to Hitler even sooner.
And what would they have done
WTF? Didnt you listen? They HATED him!
yeah let's trust the dude that cause ww1 to start another war just because he don't like a german politician, seems very logic
I don't think that it would have achieved anything. Everyone knew that Hitler was an anti-semite. However, no sane human being could have foreseen the evil of the holocaust.
@@kholeka8475 Of course I listened. This is just my opinion. It doesn’t mean its right, I’m just putting myself in the Kaiser’s shoes if I had that knowledge of what Hitler was up to before most people.
I always thought Wilhelm II was an idiot leader who put in motion the fall of the German Empire that my family fought for in WW1, but learning about this has changed my opinion. I think his last actions of opposition and hatred to Hitler and all that he stood for may have redeemed him tbh.
He was a bad/mediorce leader which can be blamed on his botched upbringing on his mothers part and his inferiority complex from his damaged left arm which resulted in his character flaws of being a erratic and glory hound(seeker)
@@asatru1986 did you even watch the video?
@Maksym Wilhelm didn't put Germany into a golden age though. That was Bismarck and when he got old Wilhelm replaced him and rode on his popularity until Germany began losing WWI
Germany failed because the republic was weak.
@Ben Connor Yeah, just because Bin Laden said he didnt like ISIS, doesnt mean he was a great freedom fighter.
As W. Churchill said:"We should have never forced the German emperor (meaning Kaiser Wilhelm II.) to abdicate."
The king's final comments were spot on. I did not know about these comments.
But what did Wilhelm think of Hitler's paintings?
Yeah he's was failed art school soon he's visit him
those paintings are much better than anything i paint, i acutaly think they are not bad. Hitler is a monster nontheless but maybe if he had some success as a painter we would have seen a radical different history...
Sheiße
@@Gardstyle35 or if the allies didn't make it their mission post ww1 to be as ruthless as possible. To this day conflicts they either started or contributed to still rage on. Peace in the middle east is impossible due to them carving it up in a way that angers neighbors (for example giving almost all iraqs water access to kuwait), and creating israel in the middle east. In east africa they divided up the somalis and gave portions to their neghbors causing conflicts still important to this day. They broke many nations in asia that where still fragmented but never had an imperialistic spirit like some of them do now. The list goes on.
@@resentfuldragon the UK and US love wars they can‘t without it they gain the most look in both world wars britain is involved first stalling the war us waits and finish it after all of the enemy soldiers are exhausted they loot and take the credits (WW2 werner von braun future Nasa lead) and operation paperclip etc to this day us starts wars in the middle east for oil ressources look at the current situation with ukraine russia just defends its border ukraine wants no war at all but us threatens russia
*Für den Kaiser*
BF1
Er ist tot.
Was
🇵🇱🇵🇱🇵🇱🇵🇱🇵🇱 Kaiser kaputt
Wilhelm II,quite possibly one the most under-appreciated European leaders of the Modern Era. He just wanted to defend his allies,i don’t blame him.
The 2016 film "The Exception" is an excellent fictional account of the Kaiser's final days, living in exile in the Netherlands following the German invasion and occupation of that nation. Christopher Plummer is perfect in his portrayal of the aging Kaiser Wilhelm II, a man with no power but still highly concerned with what's going on in Germany under the Nazis. There's a scene in this film where Hitler sends Heinrich Himmler (Eddie Marsan) to visit the Kaiser. It's a chilling moment in an overall excellent film!
When Wilhelm took power Germany had friendly relations with Russia, A-H, Italy, Ottomans and UK. He was basically handed a perfect geopolitical situation on a golden platter by Bismarck. France was isolated, weak, humiliated, agressive and disliked by all other powers. It did not have good relation with Russia(an ideological enemy) or UK (colonial rival)
@TDI for Life Germany invaded France through their Allie’s Belgium
@@mysteryjunkie9808 Belgium was irrelevant to UK’s decision. UK was already allied with France and Russia against Germany
@@fusionreactor7179 it wasn't the UK was allied with France but they were still hesitant to join
@@borgerchainsaw1016 they really weren’t. UK was actively hostile to Germany for like a decade before the war. Citing Belgium as an excuse to join was just a justification to make it seem “defensive”
@@fusionreactor7179 Why would they have waited to use Belgium when they could've just used France
This enraged German kaiser, who punished HIM severly
Oversimplified
"Start of a dark era to come" Yeah right, it must be a real dark era to a have a society free of violence, almost zero unemployment, no more usury, no more exploration and slavery from the banks. Germans being encouraged to be healthy, to educate body and mind. Wooow, thank God thats over, such a dark time indeed
Free of violence? The 3rd reich was built upon violence. They imprisoned and murdered political oponents, jews, anyone that spoke out against them and many more. They stole children from families and even got children pregnant. But sure, whatever, freedom
My respect for Wilhelm after hearing what he had to say at the end 📈📈📈📈📈📈
Your levels of blind acceptance to his claim is also ridiculously high. Can't believe we have so many people like you around
@@parable8711nazo
@@supernimo739gaming7and you play Roblox, shush little boy
@@AFN.90210 make me
@@supernimo739gaming7 😱😱😱😱😰😨😰😳😳🙀😨🙀😨🙀😰😳😳😰🙀😰 omg daddy please don't I'm so scared 💀
I’m not too sure as to why Germany put their Emperor on exile but I must say based on this history, Wilhelm sounded like he truly care for his people and nation. It was a shame that the German of that time couldn’t look through the flaw and admire the true intent of this leader. For a monarchy, I would say the most basic quality that they should have must be compassion, love for their people and dignity.
He was originally offered to remain head of a new Constitutional Monarchy, but he refused to be a pawn of politicians. Wilhelm the second hated Being told what he should do - that's why he fired Bismarck and went into exile.
The reason for why the Kaiser fled into exile is because not only did a civil convict break out, but seeing as he was the figurehead of the Monarchy he received much of the blame regardless if he was the cause thus afraid tried to abdicate as Kaiser but retain the crown of Prussia but since that was impossible due to the German Constitution he abdicated in full and the following Republic had little sympathy for monarchists as they were afraid of them returning to power
@@tada-kun982 To be paraded around by Socialists, yeah, I get why he hated that.
@@sirsteam6455 well actually his chancellor just signed the abdication
Congratulations “you have won using *my* troops” will always be my favorite quote from this man.
Nicely explained.
This video is very educational and good. The ending quotes of Wilhelm II was very accurate.
Wilhelm was the physical manifestation of just how divided and messed-up Imperial Germany was, which can be blamed on Bismarck. The Iron Chancellor was a genius, but he lacked foresight regarding how to run the state: at no point did he consider how to keep the complex system he had established going in the event that something happened to him. He could have emulated Richelieu and cultivated a successor to help Wilhelm, or he could have emulated Mazarin (Richelieu's successor) and taken Wilhelm as a protégé, but he tried to turn him into a puppet instead, and failed. The system in question basically made Prussia get too much focus, with Bavaria nipping at its heels. Wilhelm kept flip-flopping on which section to favor, while also trying to assert himself on the world stage. His reason? That crippled arm, which he only got because the doctor who delivered him was a moron; and while I don't know for sure, he may have developed mental problems from the get-go because the midwife decided to spank the bejeezus out of him to get him to make any noise. I am not in any way trying to absolve Wilhelm of his shortcomings, of which he had several, but he was a complicated man with vices and virtues, like any human being. He certainly had a number of things in common with Hitler, at least outwardly, but in the end, I find him less reprehensible than the Austrian would-be painter whose actions led to the destruction of Germany.
No, it was the practitioners of Weltpolitik that screwed everything up. The peace relied on the delicate balancing act Bismarck was performing, dismissing Bismarck meant that system fell apart.
How much responsibility can you place on Bismarck? pre war Germany as late 19th and early 20th century European powers went, was stable and not messed up. There was law and order on the streets and unlike France, it's divisions where not violent. Even Britain had more social problems, with the workers of the most industrialised nation starting to demand better working conditions. Germanies main social problems of the time was the growing demand for more parliamentary representation and a push for a constitutional monarchy. This is an issue that can't be laid at the feet of Bismarck but instead an issue of the very philosophy of Authoritarianism. I suppose you can blame Bismarck for successfully repressing the parliament factions and leaving the issue to have to be perpetually maintained by Wilhelm but the monarchist faction that surrounded Wilhelm did an excellent job of managing that issue for him, nipping in the bud most the scandals that befell Wilhelm. Ultimately although more parliamentarian influence would have inevitably grown over the years regardless, the First World War was his sole downfall, not Bismarck. Especially since the war would have almost certainly gone a different way had Wilhelm stuck to the foreign policies laid out to him by Bismarck. Bismarck should have seen Germanies inevitable clash with Russia, but he simply couldn't have forswore Wilhelm's unnecessary falling out with Britain with his unnecessary Naval challenge, and there was zero chance he could see Germany needlessly falling out with the US. Wilhelm's downfall was solely his own, and almost entirely due to his foreign policy pre war.
Let me make something clear: I am NOT blaming Bismarck for EVERYTHING, but one of the main reasons why everything fell apart after he was dismissed was because HE DESIGNED IT TO BE THAT WAY. He could keep the peace, yes, but why didn't he take steps to ensure the system could keep working after he died? Suppose he died in office. What then? Did he have a plan for that? If so, I haven't heard of it, and would like to hear it. To paraphrase Simon Whistler, in his retirement years, Bismarck RANTED rather than TAUGHT. He stubbornly kept expecting to come crawling back to him and begging him to return as chancellor, when he could have put his nation before his personal vanity and left behind some INSTRUCTIONS on how to keep things from turning to shit once he was gone. He was an excellent politician who could keep things running smoothly while he was in charge, but one of the reasons he ultimately fell is because he tried to manipulate Wilhelm into supporting some pretty brutal anti-Catholic policies, which Wilhelm refused to do, declaring he wouldn't kick off his reign by bathing in the blood of his subjects. Bismarck threatened to resign, and Wilhelm didn't follow the script Bismarck had expected him to; since he had just tried to push through a dickish policy, Wilhelm had less reason to trust him; and since he had been backstabbing or bullying so many other politicians, he had little to no support. Bismarck created a state that only HE could run, and he reveled in the power it gave him. But would it have killed him to groom somebody to keep things going after he died? No, but he didn't. He petulantly waited to be called on, and when he wasn't, he penned self-serving memoirs that turned him into an icon. Regarding Wilhelm, I freely admit that his actions were his own, and I am not trying to excuse them. But Bismarck played a role in shaping him into the unqualified monarch he ultimately was, and that needs to be remembered, too. I condemn Wilhelm for his mistakes, but Bismarck needs to be condemned for his, as well. Bismarck tried to turn him into a puppet by urging him to stand up to his more liberal-minded parents, but that worked too well: Wilhelm became so belligerent that he ended up deciding he didn't have to take crap from Bismarck, either. Whoopsie.
@@pyromania1018 Bismarck was the only statesman of his time who could pull Realpolitik off and keep the peace. Balancing diplomatic relations between all nations of interests is difficult if those nations you are trying to engage in diplomatic relations with are enemies are each other.
@@potatoman8609 I know, and he made no attempts to change the fact that he was the only statesman who could do that, meaning that it would fall apart once he was no longer there regardless of the reason, something he surely could have prevented if he had prepared someone else to fill his shoes once he was either dead or had to retire. Or if he hadn't been so excessively authoritarian. Now, those who came after him had time to try to find something to keep it going, or fix the system before it came apart, but he had kept them down for so long that they didn't really know how--because he WANTED it that way.
Wilhelm II was a very strange man and even to his allies wasn't exactly a keen diplomat (he said some very foolish things to the Emperor of Austria-Hungary for example) but at least he spoke out against a truly evil leader.
It's like an Anti-hero of a character, who heavily dislike the antagonist of the story.
Knowledgia : Everyone blamed him for the great war. Austria : *Nervous sweating*
Wilhelm honestly wrote a whole ass diss track in the last part there
*If Kaiser Wilhelm was THIS spiteful towards Hitler, imagine what Otto Von Bismarck would have to say- NO, what he would have done! I firmly believe he would march right to Hitler's house door, slap him across the face and barrage him with insults while the guards are too afraid to do anything.*
Haha! I would love to see this
He would probably punch him in the face...maybe
I think Bismarck would be appalled on multiple levels - for one that a failed painter from Austria would hold his office and take responsiblity over his legacy, or the extremely risky foreign policy of the Third Reich. Bismarck in his later years did everything to prevent a coalition of more than two great powers against Germany, his successors however got more and more careless until the powder keg finally blew up in 1914 and Hitler basically just said "fuck it, let's go straight for round two".
@@pg1448 If there's an alternate Dimension where there's two German nation, one is the German Nazi under Hitler's Regime, the other is the Prussian empire, at least after Willheim II stepping down, Bismarck was the chancellor then somehow brought as a Kaiser, but not King of Germany, unlike Willheim II having two titles. I would imagine, the same technological marvel of the Prussian army facing against the German Nazi legion and joining the Allied faction somehow, to push away Hitler is going to be an Epical fictional alt. History story. Although the Prussian empire (now continent) is just extending behind the western france.
@ethnicnationalist94 Hitler more so for being vicious and senseless.
If only he didn't sacked Bismarck then... oh how he must've regretted his decisions.
He had no other choice. The social democrats enforced it and Bismarck made some poor domestic descisions...
Better yet, if Frederick III had not of died from throat cancer. Lived long enough to turned Germany into a constitutional monarchy. Bismarck still needed to be fired, that was not the problem. It was just that he was fired by the wrong Keiser.
Willy was to much of a narcissist, that he would admit his wrong doings.
Bismarck had gone as far as he could go anyway. And its difficult to know if Bismarck could have sustained his foreign policy system if he had stayed in power longer. He had to go because he was out of touch domestically in Germany and was in the way of the next generation of leaders. I don't know that the alliance with Russia could be saved. He could perhaps have prevented the aggressive naval competition with Britain and preserved relations there. And Bismarck was as much of an egotistical narcissist as the Kaiser ever was.
Wilhem is like the Obi-Wan Kenobi in Reality. I mean he failed at Germany( Anakin ), gets exiled and has to see what horrible things it does ( Darth Vader )
Well, I guess I'll memorize your videos if I ever become a history teacher, and share them with my students lol
While a deeply flawed man, it says a lot that even Wilhelm II knew that Hitler was dangerous.
This dude is asking the real questions!
One of my favorite facts that was left out was how Wilhelm II specifically said that no Nazi symbolism be present at his funeral. This was rejected for the minuscule, mostly-military funeral that was given to Wilhelm. I will not pretend that Wilhelm II was a good leader, but he was a man who could have been great in a different time.
May we all take these lessons from history and insure that they are never repeated.
The Kaiser's birthday is tomorrow my guys
Yay
Happy birthday to our glorious Kaiser!
@@Britishball said by a littler British ball
You mean the day he got crippled like dead horse?
@@kholeka8475 Yessir god bless him
That last quote by Wilhelm was facts 💯
There was actually a dude who made the Kaiser litterally question his patriotism, like he litterally said "For the first time, I am ashamed to be German." Like damn.
9:35 these words are very telling in regards to the state of our world today.