The German tariff of 1902 was a

protectionist Protectionism, sometimes referred to as trade protectionism, is the economic policy of restricting imports from other countries through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, import quotas, and a variety of other government regulations. ...

law passed by the '' Reichstag'' (under the guidance of

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

Bernhard von Bülow Bernhard Heinrich Karl Martin, Prince of Bülow (german: Bernhard Heinrich Karl Martin Fürst von Bülow ; 3 May 1849 – 28 October 1929) was a German statesman who served as the foreign minister for three years and then as the chancellor of t ...

) that raised

tariffs A tariff is a tax imposed by the government of a country or by a supranational union on imports or exports of goods. Besides being a source of revenue for the government, import duties can also be a form of regulation of foreign trade and polic ...

on agricultural imports into

Imperial Germany The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

. It became law on 25 December 1902.

Background

One of Bülow's predecessors,

Leo von Caprivi Georg Leo Graf von Caprivi de Caprara de Montecuccoli (English: ''Count George Leo of Caprivi, Caprara, and Montecuccoli''; born Georg Leo von Caprivi; 24 February 1831 – 6 February 1899) was a German general and statesman who served as the cha ...

, had negotiated commercial treaties with

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

that had led to increased imports of foreign grain. Along with good harvests this caused a decline in the prices of

wheat Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...

and rye until 1894, when they increased until 1898. In 1898 the price of wheat in

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...

was 39s.10d. per imperial quarter. This declined to 32s.1d. in 1900 but rose again to 35s.2s. in 1902. The price of rye in Prussia remained steady: it was 7s.3d. per cwt. in 1898 and 7s.2d. in 1902. The agrarian interest (represented by the

Junker Junker ( da, Junker, german: Junker, nl, Jonkheer, en, Yunker, no, Junker, sv, Junker ka, იუნკერი (Iunkeri)) is a noble honorific, derived from Middle High German ''Juncherre'', meaning "young nobleman"Duden; Meaning of Junke ...

-dominated

German Agrarian League The ''Bund der Landwirte'' (Agrarian League) (BDL) was a German advocacy group founded 18 February 1893 by farmers and agricultural interests in response to the farm crisis of the 1890s, and more specifically the result of the protests against the ...

) complained of

urbanisation Urbanization (or urbanisation) refers to the population shift from rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change. It is predominantly the ...

caused by industrialisation; this was robbing the land of agricultural workers. They denounced the policy of the trade treaties that had facilitated the increase in industrial exports but which had also increased agricultural imports. Instead, they lobbied for increased duties for all branches of agriculture. Their pressure was the decisive factor in bringing about higher rates of agricultural protection. Bülow's policy was to increase tariffs in the hope that these would give greater leverage to the government in the negotiations due when the treaties expired in 1906. He also wished for greater specialisation in the tariff schedules to enable specific duties to be lowered without having to reduce those on others. The tariff bill was introduced in the ''Reichstag'' in 1901 but due to the intense debate over it, the bill was not passed until December 1902.

Rates

The tariff schedule introduced maximum and minimum duties on wheat, rye, oats and malting barley. These minimum rates were the lowest that could be levied in any future commercial treaty. The maximum duty on wheat was 7.50 marks per 100kg, the minimum duty was 5.50 marks. The maximum duty on rye and oats was 7 marks, the minimum was 5 marks. The maximum duty on malting barley was 7 marks, the minimum 4 marks. In the treaties negotiated afterwards, the minimum rates on grain (which came into force in March 1906) were generally used. The duty on maize was raised to 5 marks; on flour to 18.75 marks; on butter and cheese 30 marks; on eggs 6 marks; on meat 45 marks; on bullocks, cows and pigs 18 marks and on wine 24 marks.Tracy, p. 88.

Notes

{{reflist, 2

References

*Percy Ashley, ''Modern Tariff History: Germany–United States–France'' (New York: Howard Fertig, 1970). *

Alexander Gerschenkron Alexander Gerschenkron (russian: Александр Гершенкрон; 1 October 1904 – 26 October 1978) was a Russian-born American economic historian and professor at Harvard University, trained in the Austrian School of economics. Born i ...

, ''Bread and Democracy in Germany'' (New York: Howard Fertig, 1966). *Michael Tracy, ''Government and Agriculture in Western Europe, 1880–1988'' (London: Harvester Wheatsheaf, 1989).

Background

Rates

Notes

References

Further reading