The Revolutions of 1848 in the German states

Backlash in Prussia

By late 1848, the Prussian aristocrats (among them Otto von Bismarck) and generals had regained power in Berlin. They had not been defeated permanently during the incidents of March, they had only retreated temporarily. General von Wrangel led the troops who recaptured Berlin for the old powers, and King Frederick William immediately rejoined the old forces. In November, the king dissolved the new Prussian parliament and put forth a constitution of his own (based upon the work of the assembly, but maintaining the ultimate authority of the king).

Related Topics:
Otto von Bismarck - Constitution

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Elaborated in the following years, the constitution came to provide for an upper house (Herrenhaus), and a lower house (Landtag), chosen by universal suffrage but under a three-class system of voting ("Dreiklassenwahlrecht"): representation was proportional to taxes paid, so that more than 80 % of the electorate controlled only one-third of the seats.

Related Topics:
Three-class system of voting - Taxes

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