Diesen furchtbaren Krieg und den darauf folgenden Lauf der Geschichte hätten man verhindern können, wenn man nicht diese schwachsinnige Reichsgründung 1871 gemacht hätte.

Das sehe ich natürlich genauso. Und dazu ließe sich kein Geringerer zitieren als Johann Wolfgang von Goethe:

https://mises.org/library/politics-johann-wolfgang-goethe

"what makes Germany great is her admirable popular culture, which has penetrated all parts of the Empire evenly. And is it not the many different princely residences from whence this culture springs and which are its bearers and curators? Just assume that for centuries only the two capitals of Vienna and Berlin had existed in Germany or even only a single one. Then I wonder what would have happened to the German culture and the widespread prosperity that goes hand in hand with culture."

"Think about cities such as Dresden, Munich, Stuttgart, Kassel, Braunschweig, Hanover, and similar ones; think about the energy that these cities represent; think about the effect they have on neighboring provinces, and ask yourself, if all of this would exist if such cities had not been the residences of princes for a long time."

"Frankfurt, Bremen, Hamburg, Luebeck are large and brilliant, and their impact on the prosperity of Germany is incalculable. Yet, would they remain what they are if they were to lose their independence and be incorporated as provincial cities into one great German Empire? I have reason to doubt this."