What would modern day Prussia be like?
Prussia is still there. And so long as the land area is soaked in Prussian blood, it will remain so forever - I dont care how many beautiful buildings are ripped down, I dont care if the whole population is shifted - it is and will remain Prussia.The provinces in the East, are no longer under German administration, yes… but that also happened many centuries ago when the Poles reigned over it from the Teutonic Knights. It doesnt mean it then became Polish. Just like India didnt become “Britain” just because the British reigned over it. It means nothing. Further to this, the Germany we know today - is a result of Prussian engineering and craft. Undermined by the Austrians and the French, they never thought it could or would be done. A Greater Prussia if you will (if we can say the North German Confederation was Prussia also). There is more to Prussia than just the military element. Again, the uneducated enemies of Prussia, who now write the books - pass their opinions as gospel and people swallow it up. I recommend the book “The Rise and Fall of Prussia” AKA Prussia Without Myth. A very very good read, written by a Prussian, not by a biased fool.So to answer, what would it be like IF still under German administration?There would of still been a decline, as Prussia became in charge BUT absorbed by the Reich in 1871. The Reich became a bigger thing than Prussia alone. And Prussia couldnt rule Prussia any longer. The Reichstag took power over the Prussian Assembly and made the decisions for everyone. So you could then have an elected Bavarian running Prussian foreign affairs, or a Hessian in charge of the Prussian Treasury, or a Saxon in charge of the Justice System. And these people, well, they are still brother Germans and meant good - but their way of doing things, it just wasnt Prussian. And the way Prussians did things is what set them apart from the rest. The virtues and enlightenment, the tolerance and open borders…. ended up amounting to nothing much when only a small part of the collective. All people will remember is the militarism, because thats what the Potsdam Conference wanted.Today, if under German administration, it would be an industrial land. If before 1933 it became independent as a Free-State, it would today be agricultural - though the Russians would of still seized it. Its always been a Grand Prize for them in history. And thats why they have a good chunk of it today.
What's so good about Prussia?
I teach history classes at a middle school, and one day we were learning about how Prussia is no longer a country. One girl in the class who is usually pretty quiet said, "Prussia DIES?" very loudly. I was wondering if someone could tell me what this is all about?
Does Prussia still exist today?
As a legal entity, Prussia ceased to exist in 1947 when Freistaat Preußen was dissolved. As a country, Prussia ceased to exist in 1871 when the Prussian sovereign became the German sovereign, creating for the first time in history a country called Germany.But in spirit, Prussia is very much still here with us today. The Federal Republic of Germany inherited most of its frameworks from the former Germany, which was essentially Prussia 2.0 until the time of National Socialism. The military traditions of the Bundeswehr were built on Prussian traditions. Prussian values continue to exist as stereotypical “German” values. If you want to see how “German” values differ from “non-German” values, juxtapose the cultures of Germany except the south, southern Germany, Austria, and Switzerland :)There is a reason why Swabians and Bavarians are the butt of German jokes :D
How did the Congress of Vienna provide stability for Europe?
I'm doing a research paper on the Congress of Vienna, Metternich, and the Concert of Europe and how through these..they provided stability for Europe for a good 40 years.
Should eastern Europe's borders be restored to pre-World War II status?
This is really a matter of opinion but I couldn't help but ask other knowledgeable people about this considering everything going on in Crimea. World War II and geography are two of my biggest interests and the two are certainly linked. In eastern Europe after the war Stalin not only redrew the borders but deported entire ethnic groups west. Since then they have remained and the situation has stabilized, but let's not forget that this happened only about 70 years ago when my grandfather was fighting in Europe himself. Should the borders be restored? For the past few centuries Silesia, Pomerania, and Prussia were undoubtedly German. Vilnius was dominated by Jews and Poles, not Lithuanians. Western Belarus, like the area around Brest, and far western Ukraine, like the area around Lviv, were firmly Polish. Northern Bukovina belonged to Czechoslovakia. The border regions in Karelia, the Vyborg Peninsula, and the Petsamo region were Finnish. Another slightly unrelated possibility could be the return of the Romanian and Ukrainian parts of Bessarabia to now independent Moldova. Should these borders be restored and resettlement allowed? I'm American and haven't the money to take trips to these areas, so any of you from these areas should let me know if you are. Also, the Sudetenland is out of the question for a border change. It definitely belongs in the Czech Republic but Germans really should be allowed to return home.
How is Prussia not a country anymore?
Prussia unified Germany and the Prussian royal family ruled Germany until the Emperor's abdication in 1918. Most of the Prussian homeland was ceded to Poland and Russia after WWII when the USSR occupied the country. EDIT What is today Prussia, around Kaliningrad, was evacuated by the Third Reich as the Soviets advanced farther. More were forced to leave by the Soviets after they occupied it and the Soviets moved Russians there. When the USSR withdrew, they held a vote and the people that live it what was Prussia voted to remain governed by Russia as most Germans had fled.