National Liberal Party (Germany)
|
National Liberal Party
Nationalliberale Partei |
|
|---|---|
| Founded | 1867 |
| Dissolved | 1918 |
| Split from | German Progress Party |
| Succeeded by | German People's Party |
| Ideology | National liberalism (Germany) |
| Political position | Centre-right |
| International affiliation | None |
The National Liberal Party (German: Nationalliberale Partei, NLP) was a liberal political party of the German Empire, which flourished between 1867 and 1918. During the unification of Germany, it became the strongest party in the Reichstag parliament.
A first national liberal parliamentary group was formed on 17 November 1866 by several right-wing deputies of the German Progress Party in the Prussian Landtag around Eduard Lasker and Hans Victor von Unruh. They put aside their differences with Minister President Otto von Bismarck over domestic policy due to their support for his highly successful foreign policy, which resulted in the unification of Germany as a constitutional monarchy. The National Liberal Party was founded in 1867, it advocated the interests of the Grand Burghers (German Großbürger) and business magnates. Its first chairman was Rudolf von Bennigsen. In the 1871 election the party reached 30.1% of the votes, becoming the strongest group in the Reichstag parliament with 119 seats.
The National Liberals' period of great dominance was between 1871 and 1879, when they were Bismarck's chief allies in the Reichstag, and were avid supporters of the Kulturkampf measures. The stabilization of the new state was in a large degree only feasible because of National Liberal party support and guidance of Bismarck´s domestic policies, especially in regards to national economics and the legal foundations of the second German empire. Weights and measurements were standardized, a common German market and a national bank, the Reichsbank, created and the numerous regional currencies replaced with the Reichsmark. The liberal economic policies, although temporarily unpopular in the recession of the 1870s, laid the groundworks for the economic boom the German nation experienced at the turn of the 19th century.
...
Wikipedia