Prussian King and first German Emperor Wilhelm I is often regarded as a figure on the periphery of history, said to have complained that is was not easy to be emperor under Otto von Bismarck. But this study is the first to evaluate his extensive archival legacy, revealing that it was Wilhelm I, not Bismarck, who steered Germany down its consequential path following 1848, culminating in the establishment of the empire.

Autorentext
Jan Markert, Forschungszentrum Europa at the University of Trier, Germany.