Western Civilization II / Unit 11 WC2 1013 short lesson, about 20 seconds
The Spanish Throne, the Leaked Memo, and War With France, 1870
Captions available
The idea
Napoleon III wanted territory for staying out of eighteen sixty-six; Bismarck ignored him. A Hohenzollern candidate for the vacant Spanish throne alarmed France. Bismarck released an edited account of the king's talk with the French ambassador, the Ems Dispatch. Napoleon III, humiliated, declared war.
In practice
The witness names the dispatch and Ambassador Benedetti.
Where people slip
The anchor calls it a leaked memo.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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