7 0 -1 3 ,9 9 1 BUKEY, Evan Burr, 1940- THE GUELPH MOVEMENT IN IMPERIAL GERMANY, 1866-1918. The Ohio State University, Ph.D., 1969 H isto ry , modern University Microfilms, Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan © Copyright by Evan Burr Bukey 1970 THIS DISSERTATION HAS BEEN MICROFILMED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED THE GUELPH MOVEMENT IN IMPERIAL GERMANY 1866-1918 DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Evan Burr Bukey, B. A ., M. A. The Ohio State University 1969 Approved by 4/0 A d v iser Department of History PLEASE NOTE: Not original copy. Some pages have very light type. Filmed as received. University Microfilms PREFACE Throughout the course of German h isto ry the c e n trifu ­ gal habits of particularism have often played as great a role as the centripetal force of nationalism. Even today a trav­ eler crossing the Austro-German frontier to the "Free State of Bavaria ’1 realizes that regional differences remain a visi­ ble feature of German life. Historically, regional sentiment has been accentuated by common dialect, religion, or some­ times a sense of national identity. Thus, at various times in the p a st century p a r tic u la r is t movements have arisen in Catholic Bavaria and the Rhineland, in Alsace-Lorraine, Northern Schleswig, and the Polish parts of Prussia. In Northwestern Germany there existed in the late nineteenth century a strong particularist party not fitting th is p a tte rn . This party - the Guelph movement - appeared soon after the Austro-Prussian war to protest the incorpora­ tion of Hanover in Prussia; it depended on dynasticism, resentment of Prussia, and tradition to gain support. In fact, by rallying landowners, urban workers, Protestant clerics and Roman Catholics around the deposed royal family Guelph leaders formed a political coalition which exercised considerable influence in Hanover for half a century. The origins, appeal, manifestations, and effect of this movement are the subject of this dissertation. I sincerely thank all those who a 3sistod mo in the completion of my project: Irmgard Bokomeyer, Edgar 7/althor, H einrich Waldmann, Dr. Rudolf von Thadden, Georg Wilhelm von Brant, Gerhard Gerkins, G, M. W illis, Professor Richard 7/. Smith, Professor Harold J. Grimm, Virginia Beltz, A. R. M illett, James Schwartz; also the staffs of the Universit&ts Bibliothek - Gottingen, the Nieders&chsisches Staatsarchlv Hanover, and especially the Deutsches Zentralarchiv - Merseburg. A very special debt of thanks goes to II.R.H. Ernest Augustus, Prince of Hanover, for permission to use his family archives in Gmunden and to the Fulbright Kommission in Bad Godesberg for financial assistance during my stay in Germany. Finally, I should like to acknowledge the very great help and encouragement of Professor Georg Schnath, my adviser Professor Andreas Dorpalen, my parents, and above all, my wife Anita. iii VITA 2if. April 19^0 . Born - Cincinnati, Ohio 1962 ................................. B.A., Ohio Wesleyan University, Delaware, Ohio 1961|- . M.A., The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 196ij.-66 ...... Teaching Assistant, Department of H istory, The Ohio State U niversity, Columbus, Ohio 1966-68 .......................... Pulbright Graduate Fellow, Georg August Universit&t, Gottingen, Germany 1968-69 ..................... Teaching Associate, Department of History, The Ohio State U niversity, Columbus, Ohio 1969 ................................. Instructor, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: History ; Modern Germany. Professor Andreas Dorpalen Modern Britain. Professor Phillip Poirier United States History - 1789-1850. Professor Henry H. Simms European Geography. Professor S. Earl Brown iv LIST OP FIGURES Figure Page 1. GROWTH OF THE GUELPH MONARCHY.................................. 38 2. ELECTORAL DISTRICTS IN PRUSSIAN PROVINCE I-IANOVER, 1 8 6 6 - 1 8 7 1 Ii).6 3. RELATIVE STRENGTH OF POLITICAL PARTIES IN PRUSSIAN PROVINCE HANOVER, 1890-1918 . 2J4.8 \ V TABLE OP CONTENTS Pa('o PREFACE................................................................................................ i i VITA .................................................................................................... iv LIST OP FIGURES.............................................................................. v Chapter I . THE GUELPH KINGDOM............................................. 1 I I . THE EXILE POLITICS OF GEORGE V, 1866-I 87 O . 39 I I I . THE RISE OF THE GUELPH MOVEMENT IN HANOVER, 1866-1870 118 IV. THE GERMAN-HANOVERIAN PARTY, I8 7 I-I 8 9 O . llj.7 V. THE GUELPH DYNASTY, 1871-1913 ...................... 181 VI. THE DECLINE OF THE GERMAN-HANOVERIAN PARTY, 1890-1918 211 V II. CONCLUSIONS......................................................................... 2i|_9 BIBLIOGRAPHY.................................................................................. 2$^ I THE GUELPH KINGDOM The Kingdom of Hanover as it existed in 1Q66, was the fourth largest state of the German Confederation. With a population of nearly two million people and an area of ll).,983 square miles it belonged to the so-called German mid­ dle states which had emerged from the Congress of Vienna in 1815. As such its fate was tied up with the larger and more important members of the Confederation. The rulers of Hanover were the Guelphs, a family which proudly claimed to be the oldest ancestral dynasty in Germany and which m aintained im portant fa m ilia l and p o l i t i ­ cal ties with nearly all major states of Europe. The Queen of England was a Guelph as were the members of the princely families of Oldenburg and Brunswick; dynastic relations also existed with the rulers of Austria, Russia and Prussia. The destinies of Hanover and the Guelphs were thus inter­ twined. It was .this fact which gave the kingdom an inflated sense of importance and which was to determine its eventual f a t e . The Guelphs were originally of Swabian origin. Their oldest known forebear was Count We If who had lived in the eighth century and had been the father-in-law of Charlemagne's son - Louis the Pious. Although the Swabian line died out 1 in 1055, the dynasty continued on the distaff side and man­ aged to secure large tra c ts of te r r ito r y around L&neburg in northwest Germany. By the twelfth century all Saxony belonged to the Guelphs, and the head of the line, Henry the Lion, had become the most powerful German prince of his era. The subsequent struggle between the houses of Guelph and Hohenstaufen for control of the medieval German empire wrought- havoc in Europe fo r the next century. At the end of it.the Guelphs found themselves s till potent but confined to their hereditary estates in northern Germany. In I23j? these were consolidated into the Duchy of Brunswick-L\!ineburg. Throughout the coming centuries the Guelphs gradually recov­ ered their strength and expanded their holdings between the Harz, Elbe, and Weser. Unfortunately, constant partitions nullified the effectiveness of this aggrandizement and weakened the power of the dynasty. At one time, seven dif­ ferent houses existed simultaneously. By 1682, however, the Celle branch of the family had managed to absorb most of the rival duchies, and in that year the head of the line, Ernest Augustus, Duke of Calenberg-Gttttingen, issued a patent of primogeniture and indivisibility. Ten years later, in return for promises of assistance against the Turks, he was awarded, as ruler of Hanover, the rank and title of Elector of the Holy Roman Empire. An even more significant event occurred in 17l4» At that time, accord­ ing to the Act of Settlement of 1701, the Elector of Hanover, George Louie, also became King of Great Britain and Ire land. By becoming associated with England Hanover developed into a state with extra-German concerns. Its soldiers, for example, served not only throughout Europe but in India as well. Its trade interests became, dependent on those of Great Britain. In return for the export of grain, fodder and linen, for instance, it received the industrial manu- o factures of England. In short, Hanover’s personal union with Great Britain put it in an unusual position: on the one hand the state had never been so prosperous or v/ell entrenched; on the other its dominant position in northwest Germany was a r t i f i c i a l and its t e r r ito r y coveted by i t s neighbors. Just how tenuous the Guelph position could be was revealed during the Napoleonic wars. In 180£ Prance suddenly occupied Hanover, and then gave it to Prussia to administer. The next year the Prussians were defeated at Jena. But Hanover did not regain its independence. Instead it now became p a rt of Prance’s s a t e l l i t e Kingdom of W estphalia. In 1810 the northern half of the one-time Electorate, •*-More complete yet s till succinct accounts of these events can be found in; Ernst B&ttner, Geschichte Niedersachsens (Leipzig, 1931), I, pp. 1-7* George Schnath et. al., Geschichte des Landes Niedersachsen (W&rzburg, 1962), pp"^ 1-1^2. and Georg Schnath, Vom Sachsenstamm zum Lande Niedersachsen (Hildesheim, 1966 ), pp. 1-50. ^Schnath, Geschichte. p. including the city of Hanover and the North Sea coast, was annexed to Prance i t s e l f .3 Many Hanoverians refused to accept the occupation of their country and joined the "King’s German Legion", an elite unit of the British army. This exile legion distinguished itself in Portugal and Spain dur­ ing the Peninsular War and became a source of pride for most Hanoverians A The Congress of Vienna, in l8lL}.-l5, not only recon­ stituted Hanover, but also elevated it to the status of a kingdom within the German Confederation. This had an inspiring effect on the state for it strengthened its sense of sovereignty. Backed by the military resources of the Confederation as well as the naval power of Great Britain, Hanover seemed to have attained a state of permanent secu­ rity.