Mommsen and Imperialism Revisited: From Justifiable Conquest to the Perils of Empire

Abstract

In the first half of the nineteenth century, national and liberal political currents significantly increased politicisation in Schleswig, Holstein, and Denmark. The Three Years’ War (1848–1851) and the Danish defeat in 1864 were pivotal events in this context. Theodor Mommsen’s work, particularly his views on Roman imperialism, remains relevant today. Scholars often claim that Mom­msen laid the foundations for the approach to the past described as ‘defensive imperialism’. Seldom used in this context is Mommsen’s 1865 work Die Annexion Schleswig-Holsteins: ein Sendschreiben an die Wahlmänner der Stadt Halle und des Saalkreises. The work is based on Hegel’s view of history and explains the expansion to the north (the duchies) as a historical necessity. The German navy played a decisive role here, as bases for the navy were another necessity. Mommsen accepted Roman imperialism until the turning point, the Second Punic War. The unification of Italy under Roman rule and the unification of Germany — including the annexation of the duchies — can only be described as acts of imperialism. What he opposed were the dangers inherent in overexpansion. The notion of Mommsen as an anti-imperialist must therefore be rejected or at least contextualised. The conquest of the duchies and the defeat of Denmark in the 1864 war were acceptable because they provided access to the sea and aligned with visions of Germany’s natural frontiers.