Blood and Iron (speech) iron chancellor." Blood and Iron (speech) Blood and Iron (German: "Blut und Eisen") is the name given to a speech made by Otto von Bismarck given on 30 September 1862, at the time when he was Minister President of Prussia, about the unification of the German territories. It is also a transposed phrase that Bismarck uttered near the end of the speech that has become one of his most widely known quotations. In September 1862, when the Prussian House of Representatives was refusing to approve an increase in military spending desired by King Wilhelm I, the monarch appointed Bismarck Minister
Chancellor of Germany German, the archbishop of Mainz was "ex officio" German archchancellor, a position he held until the end of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, while "de jure" the archbishop of Cologne was chancellor of Italy and the archbishop of Trier of Burgundy. These three prince-archbishops were also prince-electors of the empire electing the King of the Romans. Already in medieval times, the German chancellor had political power like Archbishop Willigis (archchancellor 975–1011, regent for King Otto III of Germany 991–994) or Rainald von Dassel (Chancellor 1156–1162 and 1166–1167) under Emperor Frederick Barbarossa. In 1559, Emperor Ferdinand I established the agency