On This Day

German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck takes possession of Cameroon and Togoland

Otto Eduard Leopold, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (born Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck-Schönhausen; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898) was a German statesman and...

Otto Eduard Leopold, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (born Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck-Schönhausen; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898) was a German statesman and diplomat who oversaw the unification of Germany and served as its first chancellor from 1871 to 1890. Bismarck's Realpolitik and firm governance earned him the nickname Iron Chancellor (Eiserner Kanzler).

From Junker landowner origins, Bismarck rose rapidly in Prussian politics under King Wilhelm I of Prussia. He served as the Prussian ambassador to Russia and France and in both houses of the Prussian parliament. From 1862 to 1890, he held office as the minister president and foreign minister of Prussia.

Historical Significance

Otto Eduard Leopold, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (born Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck-Schönhausen; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898) was a German statesman and diplomat who oversaw the unification of Germany and served as its first chancellor from 1871 to 1890.

Key People

Otto von Bismarck

Events Before

  1. American painter Thomas Eakins (40) weds American painter and photographer Susan Macdowell (32) in a Quaker ceremony in

    American painter Thomas Eakins (40) weds American painter and photographer Susan Macdowell (32) in a Quaker ceremony in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, until his death in 1916

  2. Abolitionist Frederick Douglass marries his second wife suffragist Helen Pitts

    Abolitionist Frederick Douglass marries his second wife suffragist Helen Pitts

  3. First volume of the Oxford English Dictionary, A-Ant, is published

    The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is the principal historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP), a University of Oxford publishing house.

  4. Siege of Khartoum, Sudan, begins by Mahdist forces and lasts ten months

    The siege of Khartoum (also known as the battle of Khartoum or fall of Khartoum) took place from 13 March 1884 to 26 January 1885.

  5. American mechanical engineer Frederick Winslow Taylor (28) weds Louise M. Spooner in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

    American mechanical engineer Frederick Winslow Taylor (28) weds Louise M. Spooner in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Events After

  1. Karl Benz patents the "Benz Patent-Motorwagen" in Karlsruhe, Germany, the world's first automobile with an internal comb

    Karl Benz patents the "Benz Patent-Motorwagen" in Karlsruhe, Germany, the world's first automobile with an internal combustion engine [1]

  2. Inventor Thomas Edison (38) marries 2nd wife Mina Miller (20) in Akron, Ohio

    Inventor Thomas Edison (38) marries 2nd wife Mina Miller (20) in Akron, Ohio

  3. William Gladstone introduces the first Irish Home Rule Bill in the British House of Commons

    The Home Rule movement (Irish: Rialtas Dúchais) was a movement that campaigned for self-government (or "home rule") for Ireland within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

  4. Painter Paul Cézanne (47) weds Marie-Hortense Fiquet (36)

    Painter Paul Cézanne (47) weds Marie-Hortense Fiquet (36)

  5. Nationwide demonstrations and strikes demanding an 8-hour workday begin in the US

    Socialism in the United States has encompassed various types of tendencies, including utopian socialists, anarchists, democratic socialists, social democrats, Marxist–Leninists, and Trotskyists.

More from the 1880s

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on May 19, 1885?
Otto Eduard Leopold, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (born Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck-Schönhausen; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898) was a German statesman and diplomat who oversaw the unification of Germany and served as its first chancellor from 1871 to 1890. Bismarck's Realpolitik and firm governance earned him the nickname Iron Chancellor (Eiserner Kanzler). From Junker landowner origins, Bismarck rose rapidly in Prussian politics under King Wilhelm I of Prussia.
Why is German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck takes possession of Cameroon and Togoland significant?
Otto Eduard Leopold, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (born Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck-Schönhausen; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898) was a German statesman and diplomat who oversaw the unification of Germany and served as its first chancellor from 1871 to 1890.
Who was involved in German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck takes possession of Cameroon and Togoland?
Key figures include Otto von Bismarck.

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