Status of German Army

• Conscription of two to three years instilled the Prussian military values in the further generations
• They were the most respected army internationally and held in high esteem nationally
• Military officials were only answerable to the Kaiser and had a big influence over him
• In 1906 a German man, Wilhelm Voigt pulled off a shocking con

  ▪ He dressed as a Prussian military officer which allowed him to gain command of a small group of soldiers and ‘confiscate’ 4000 marks from a bank

  ▪ This showed that the military had so much power that they were never questioned by anyone
• The German army was virtually autonomous, while in Russia, generals became sufficiently powerful that in 1914, they were able to threaten the Tsar with defeat if he did not allow their orders for mobilisation to go ahead.
• The German army had the loyal support of the Kaiser, and he was rarely seen out of military uniform in public. 
• The German army swore its oath to the Kaiser, not to the people. 
• Military elites did not have to answer to the Reichstag, and Wilhelm was later as much influenced by generals as his civilian ministers.