10 Most Famous Diplomats (part 4)
7. Benjamin Disraeli (1804–1881)
The great diplomat was born into a rich Jewish family. Benjamin did his own education, paying special attention to history. At a young age, Disraeli managed to play on the stock exchange, where he lost all his capital. The attempt to publish a newspaper also ended in failure. But the book “Vivian gray” written by him in 20 books brought the author fame.
But Disraeli did not dream of becoming a writer like his father. He had a more ambitious goal of becoming Prime Minister by the age of 30. But it was only on the fifth attempt that Disraeli got into Parliament. He was already 33 years old, and the finances of the novice politician were in a deplorable state. In 1852, Disraeli took the post of Minister of Finance and became leader of the house of Commons. In 1868, he briefly became Prime Minister, but after losing the election, he found himself in retirement and in opposition. Disraeli set about reforming his conservative party. He developed a program of firm foreign policy that would make England great. In 1874, the politician again took the post of Prime Minister. His primary attention was focused on the issues of the colonies and foreign policy of the state. He stressed that the dilemma was whether to live in a comfortable England, like the continental countries, and wait for their fate, or become a great Empire. The secret to the success of a politician and a diplomat was that no one else could define their goals so clearly, much less achieve them. In 1875, Europe learned that England had secretly bought 40% of the Suez canal shares. Disraeli was a master of secret diplomacy, intrigue, and subterfuge. Thanks to his actions, Queen Victoria was proclaimed Empress of India in 1876. In 1878, a Congress was held to decide the fate of the Balkans after the Russian-Turkish war. The wily Disraeli is said to have become the Central figure in the negotiations. He was able to defend his point of view to Bismarck, and the Russian diplomat showed the train on which he is preparing to leave due to problems in the negotiations. The Russians had to make concessions. In parallel, Disraeli agreed with the Sultan to cede Cyprus to the British, which was to become a strong point on the way to capturing territories in Asia. The diplomat returned home as a hero, earning the Order of the garter from the Queen. Disraeli continued to lead the country, continuing the colonial policy. The diplomat is considered the most prominent political figure in England of the XIX century.
8. Otto von Bismarck (1815–1898)
For centuries, Germany was fragmented. This great politician and diplomat managed to unite it. His parents sent Otto to study law, hoping to see him become a diplomat. But the young Bismarck was a typical representative of the Golden youth-he had fun with friends and fought duels. Such a past, even after defending his dissertation, prevented Bismarck from immediately entering the diplomatic field. Neither political no military career didn’t go well.
At one time, Bismarck showed himself as a practical landowner. But he had another chance to return to politics and in 1847 Bismarck became a member of the United Landtag of Prussia. There, he proved himself in full force thanks to energetic conservative attacks. After working as a Deputy, Bismarck was sent as an Ambassador to Russia. It is believed that communication with Vice-Chancellor Gorchakov had a great influence on him as a diplomat. However, Bismark had already showed the gift of political foresight, having a lively mind. Gorchakov singled out the Ambassador, predicting a great future for him. In Russia, Bismarck learned the language and understood our way of thinking, which helped a lot in the future in politics. After serving as Ambassador to Paris, Bismarck became Prime Minister of Prussia. Here he began to pursue a strict policy of uniting Germany, with iron and blood. We had to fight with Denmark and Austria, and in 1870–1871, France was overwhelmingly defeated. From all the defeated States, the Germans took their historical lands. In 1871, the Empire was proclaimed. Bismarck soon realized that Germany could not dominate Europe as long as some of the Germans remained under the heel of the Habsburgs and Austria. Fearing revenge on the part of France, the diplomat begins rapprochement with Russia. The diplomat did everything possible to avoid forming a coalition against his country. He knew that even with a strong army, Germany could not stand a war on two fronts. As the experience of two world wars has shown, the great German diplomat was right.
