Bismarck, Otto von; German statesman. 1815-1898. "The Blacksmith of German Unity". (Allegory of Bismarck's role in the creation of the German Reich after the Franco-Prussian War 1870/71: Bismarck handing Germania the sword "Unitas". Woodcut, c. 1895, after painting, 1890, by Guido Schmitt (1834-1922).