Appendix to the Public Lectures
GA 85
1 April 1895, Weimar
Translated by Steiner Online Library
36. Speech at a Bismarck Commemoration
[ 1 ] […] Of the unofficial speeches, the most noteworthy was that of Dr. Rudolf Steiner, an Austrian who had already celebrated the great German statesman at the very first student banquet. Bismarck, he said, was the finest Germanic hero, to whom even the German-Austrians looked up with reverence because he offered comfort. In the struggles against the Czech-Hungarian opposition and the “black journeymen,” the name Bismarck had acted like a spark that ignited the movement. In 1870, the Austrians had been forced to stand aside when it came to achieving German unity. In the struggle against darkness for the sake of freedom, they would stand shoulder to shoulder with the Germans and fight together against the cultural decay brought by Rome. In the name of freedom, the speaker called on those present to give three cheers for Prince Bismarck.