At Potsdam Bismarck found his old friends of the Guard and the Court; they were all in silent despair.  What could they do to save the monarchy when the King himself had deserted their cause?  Some there were who even talked of seeking help from the Czar of Russia, who had offered to come to the help of the monarchy in Prussia and place himself at the head of the Prussian army, even if necessary against their own King.  There was already a Liberal Ministry under Count Arnim, Bismarck’s old chief at Aachen; the Prussian troops were being sent to support the people of Schleswig-Holstein in their rebellion against the Danes; the Ministers favoured the aspirations of Poland for self-government; in Prussia there was to be a Constituent Assembly and a new Constitution drawn up by it.  Bismarck did what he could; he went down to Schoenhausen and began to collect signatures for an address of loyalty to the King; he wished to instil into him confidence by appealing to the loyalty of the country against the radicalism of the town.  Then he hurried back to Berlin for the meeting of the Estates General, which had been hastily summoned to prepare for the new elections.  An address was proposed thanking the King for the concessions he had made; Bismarck opposed it, but he stood almost alone.

“I have not changed my opinion,” he said, “in the last six months; the past is buried, and I regret more bitterly than any of you that no human power can reawaken it, now that the Crown itself has cast the earth on its coffin.”

Two men alone voted against the address—­Bismarck and Herr von Thadden.  “It is easy to get fame nowadays,” said the latter; “a little courage is all one requires.”

Courage it did require; Berlin was terrorised; the new National Guard was unable to maintain order; men scarcely dared to appear in the streets in the ordinary dress of a gentleman.  The city was full of Polish insurgents, many of whom had only just been released from prison.  When the National Assembly came together, it became the organ of the extreme Republican party; all the more moderate men and more distinguished had preferred to be elected for that general German Assembly which at the same time was sitting at Frankfort to create a new Constitution for the whole Confederation.  How quickly had the balance of parties altered:  Vincke, until a few months ago the leader of the Liberals, found himself at Frankfort regarded as an extreme Conservative; and Frankfort was moderate compared to Berlin.  At this time an ordinary English Radical would have been looked upon in Germany as almost reactionary.  Bismarck did not seek election for either of the Assemblies; he felt that he could do no good by taking part in the deliberations of a Parliament, the very meeting of which seemed to him an offence against the laws and welfare of the State.  He would indeed have had no logical position; both Parliaments were Constituent Assemblies; it was the duty of the one to build up