Questions for Review What was the reason for the revolts of 1848 all over Europe? What was the object of the “Holy Alliance”? What was Bismarck’s purpose in building up a strong army? How did Bismarck defeat Austria? What is a war indemnity? Explain how Bismarck made enemies for Napoleon III. Why were the French alarmed when Spain offered its crown to Prince Leopold of Hohenzollern? What means did Bismarck use to bring on war with France? Was Prussia’s victory a good thing for her people? Chapter XIII. The Balance of Power The recovery of France.—The jealousy of the powers.—The policy of uniting against the strongest.—The dream of Russia.—A war of liberation.—The powers interfere in favor of the Turk.—The Congress of Berlin.—Bismarck’s Triple Alliance.—France and Russia are driven together.—The race for war preparation.—The growth of big navies. Under the third republic,[3] France recovered very rapidly from the terrible blow dealt her by Germany. Her people worked hard and saved their money. In less than two years, they had paid off the last cent of the one billion dollar indemnity, and the German troops were obliged to go home. France had adopted the same military system that Germany had, and required all of her young men to serve two years in the army and be ready at a moment’s notice to rush to arms. She began also to build up a strong navy, and to spread her colonies in Africa and other parts of the world. This rapid recovery of France surprised and disturbed Bismarck, who thought that never again, after the war of 1870, would she become a strong power. He had tried to renew the old “Holy Alliance” between Germany, Russia, and Austria with the idea of preventing the spread of republics. These were the three nations which gave their people very few rights, and which stood for the “divine right of kings” and for the crushing of all republics. Bismarck called this new combination the “Drei-kaiser-bund” or three-emperor-bond. He himself says that the proposed alliance fell to pieces because of the lies and treachery of Prince Gortchakoff, the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs. [3] The first republic began in 1792, when King Louis XVI was beheaded, the second in 1848 when Louis Philippe, the “citizen king,” was driven out.