German re-armament
The Prussian General Staff also enjoyed greater freedom from political control than its contemporaries, and this autonomy was enshrined in law on the unification of Germany and the establishment of the German Empire in 1871. It came to be regarded as the home of German militarism in the aftermath of World War I, and the victors attempted to suppress the institution. It nevertheless survived to play its accustomed part in the German re-armament and World War II.