Contents
Most examples of the Culminating Point tell of someone who went too far. This example tells of the opposite. Carl von Clausewitz speaks not only of the culminating point of the attack but also of the culminating point of victory: the moment beyond which every further gain costs more than it brings. Bismarck recognized this moment in 1866, against the will of his king.
A victory in three weeks
Situation
In the summer of 1866 Prussia and Austria go to war over the leadership of Germany. On July 3, 1866, the Prussian army defeats the Austrian army at Königgrätz in Bohemia. The road to Vienna lies open.
Link to the principle
After such a quick victory, the pull to keep going is strong. The army is on the move, the opponent is weakened, the mood is euphoric. It is precisely at this moment that it is decided whether a success will last.
The king wants more
Situation
King Wilhelm I, backed by senior military leaders, wants to humiliate Austria thoroughly: through large cessions of territory and a triumphal entry into Vienna. Bismarck pushes back. He does not want to weaken Austria any further because he will need it as a partner in the future. As early as July 14 he has reached an understanding with the French emperor Napoleon III on the broad outlines of a peace. He gets the king’s consent only when he threatens to resign and Crown Prince Frederick William explicitly takes his side.
Link to the principle
The culminating point of victory is hard to see because every further step at first looks like more gain. Bismarck does the math differently. He does not ask what Prussia can still take now, but what it would cost afterward: a permanently embittered neighbor and the danger that France would intervene.
The preliminary peace of Nikolsburg
Situation
On July 26, 1866, the preliminary peace is signed in Nikolsburg in Moravia. Apart from Venetia, which goes to Italy, Austria loses no territory. It pays a war indemnity, recognizes the dissolution of the German Confederation and accepts a North German Confederation under Prussian leadership from which it is excluded. Prussia annexes Hanover, the Electorate of Hesse, Nassau, Frankfurt, Schleswig and Holstein. Saxony survives as a state. The Peace of Prague of August 23, 1866, confirms these results.
Link to the principle
Bismarck takes a lot, but he takes it where Prussia can hold it: in northern Germany, between its own territories. From Austria itself he takes nothing. That keeps the gain within what can be secured. That is the core of the principle: a victory is worth only as much as what you can defend afterward.
What came of it
Situation
Thirteen years later, in 1879, the German Empire and Austria-Hungary conclude the Dual Alliance, a defensive alliance. Things turn out differently after the war against France in 1870–71. This time France is saddled with the cession of Alsace-Lorraine. The loss shapes Franco-German relations for decades.
Link to the principle
The comparison shows that the culminating point is not only military. A victor can also go too far politically. One way to read the comparison: what succeeded in 1866 – not turning the opponent into a permanent enemy – did not succeed in 1871.
Key takeaways
Key lessons
- After a success, don’t ask first what else you can take; ask what you can hold.
- The greater the victory, the stronger the pull to go too far.
- Don’t humiliate an opponent you will need later as a partner.
- With every further step, factor in who might intervene against you.
- Sometimes you have to convince your own leadership, not the opponent.
Summary
After Königgrätz in 1866, Prussia could have marched on to Vienna. King Wilhelm I and the generals wanted to. Otto von Bismarck recognized that the victory had reached its highest point. With a threat to resign and the help of the crown prince, he pushed through the preliminary peace of Nikolsburg, a peace in which Austria ceded no territory to Prussia. And so the opponent of 1866 became the ally of 1879.
Sources
- Carl von Clausewitz: Vom Kriege. Berlin: Ferdinand Dümmler 1832–1834, Book VII, section on the culminating point of victory (in German).
