Alfred Von Kiderlen-Waechter
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Alfred von Kiderlen-Waechter ( Alfred Kiderlen; 10 July 1852 – 30 December 1912) was a German
diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...
and politician who served as Secretary of State and head of the
Foreign Office Foreign may refer to: Government * Foreign policy, how a country interacts with other countries * Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in many countries ** Foreign Office, a department of the UK government ** Foreign office and foreign minister * United ...
from June 1910 to December 1912. He is best known for his reckless role in the
Agadir Crisis The Agadir Crisis, Agadir Incident, or Second Moroccan Crisis, was a brief crisis sparked by the deployment of a substantial force of French troops in the interior of Morocco in July 1911 and the deployment of the German gunboat to Agadir, ...
in 1911, when France militarily expanded its control of Morocco. He demanded compensation in an aggressive saber-rattling fashion, sent a warship to the scene and whipped up nationalist sentiment inside Germany. A compromise was reached with France, which took control of Morocco and gave Germany a slice of the French Congo. However, the British were angry at German aggressiveness and talked of war. The episode, although small itself, permanently soured prewar relations between Berlin and London.Christopher Clark, ''The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914'' (2012) pp 204-13.


Biography

The son of a banker from Wurttemberg, Robert Kiderlen, and Baroness Marie von Waechter, he was born in Stuttgart. His father was elevated to the personal nobility in 1852. In 1868, Alfred's mother, Marie Kiderlen, and her children, Alfred, Sarah and Johanna, were elevated to the hereditary nobility with the name ''von Kiderlen-Waechter'', combining the names and coats of arms of the Kiderlen and Waechter families. His name is occasionally spelled ''Kiderlen-Wächter'', but the correct spelling is ''Kiderlen-Waechter''. Kiderlen-Waechter fought as a volunteer in the
Franco-German War The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Jan ...
(1870–1871) and then studied at different universities and retained throughout his subsequent career a good deal of the jovial manner of a German student ('' burschikos''). Following studies of law, he joined the foreign office in 1879. Some years later, he accompanied the emperor to Russia, Sweden and Denmark. He was minister in the free city of
Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...
in 1894 and was a diplomat stationed in Copenhagen, St. Petersburg, Paris and Constantinople. He served as envoy to Copenhagen from 1895 to 1896. Later still he was transferred to Bucharest, where he spent ten years. In Romania he gathered a deep knowledge of Eastern European politics, which led to a temporary appointment as chief at the foreign office, and he acted also as ambassador at Constantinople during the illness of the actual ambassador. He negotiated the construction of the
Baghdad Railway Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...
. In 1908, he was appointed by von Bülow as Deputy Secretary of Foreign Affairs, and returned to Berlin. He played a central role during the Bosnia Crisis. After badly misunderstanding France and Britain and recklessly stirring up German nationalists with his aggressiveness, he negotiated an agreement with France during the Second Morocco Crisis over Agadir in 1911. After Chancellor
Bernhard von Bülow Bernhard Heinrich Karl Martin, Prince of Bülow ( ; 3 May 1849 – 28 October 1929) was a German politician who served as the chancellor of the German Empire, imperial chancellor of the German Empire and minister-president of Prussia from 1900 to ...
resigned in November 1909, Kiderlen-Waechter became Secretary of State and worked closely with Chancellor
Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg Theobald Theodor Friedrich Alfred von Bethmann Hollweg (29 November 1856 – 1 January 1921) was a German politician who was chancellor of the German Empire, imperial chancellor of the German Empire from 1909 to 1917. He oversaw the German entry ...
on the protracted negotiations with the Triple Entete. Kiderlen-Waechter conducted negotiations in 1911 during the
Agadir Crisis The Agadir Crisis, Agadir Incident, or Second Moroccan Crisis, was a brief crisis sparked by the deployment of a substantial force of French troops in the interior of Morocco in July 1911 and the deployment of the German gunboat to Agadir, ...
and was severely criticised both at home and abroad for his provocative attitude in the incident, which had triggered it. His attempts to reach an understanding with other great powers largely failed. He endeavored to make a friend of Russia. Kiderlen-Waechter died in Stuttgart in 1912. His personal papers are held in the Manuscripts and Archives division of the
Sterling Memorial Library Sterling Memorial Library (SML) is the main library, library building of the Yale University Library system in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Opened in 1931, the library was designed by James Gamble Rogers as the centerpiece of Yale's Go ...
at
Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...
.


References

This article is based on


Further reading

* Barlow, Ima Christina. ''The Agadir Crisis'' (University of North Carolina Press, 1940). * Clark, Christopher. ''The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914'' (2012) pp 204–13. * '' Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels'', ''Adelslexikon'' Band VI, Band 91 der Gesamtreihe, C. A. Starke Verlag, Limburg (Lahn) 1987, * Ralf Forsbach, Alfred von Kiderlen-Wächter (1852–1912). Ein Diplomatenleben im Kaiserreich (= Schriftenreihe der Historischen Kommission bei der Bayerischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Bd. 59), 2 Bde., Göttingen 1997. *
Ernst Jäckh Ernst Jäckh (February 22, 1875 – August 17, 1959) was a German journalist, diplomat, author, and academic who later lived in Great Britain and the United States. He is most known for having advocated for first Germany, and then the United Sta ...
, Kiderlen-Wächter der Staatsmann und Mensch, Briefwechsel und Nachlaß, 2 Bde., Stuttgart/Berlin/Leipzig 1924 * *


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kiderlen-Waechter, Alfred von Foreign secretaries of Germany 1852 births 1912 deaths Politicians from Stuttgart Württembergian nobility