ARNIM, HARRY KARL KURT EDUARD VON, COUNT (1824-81), German diplomatist, was born in Pomerania, Oct. 3 1824, and brought up by his uncle Heinrich von Arnim, who was Prussian ambassador at Paris and foreign minister from March to June 1848. After holding other posts in the diplomatic service Arnim was in 1864 appointed Prussian envoy (and in 1867 envoy of the North German Confederation) at the papal court. In 1869 he proposed that the Governments should appoint repre sentatives to be present at the Vatican council, a suggestion which was rejected by Bismarck, and foretold that the promulgation of papal infallibility would bring serious political difficulties.
After the recall of the French troops from Rome he attempted unsuccessfully to mediate between the pope and the Italian Gov ernment. He was appointed in 1871 German commissioner to arrange the final treaty with France, and was afterwards appointed German envoy at Paris, and in 1872 received his definite appoint ment as ambassador, a post of the greatest difficulty and responsi bility.
Differences soon arose between him and Bismarck; he wished to support the monarchical party which was trying to overthrow Thiers, while Bismarck ordered him to stand aloof from all French parties; he did not give that explicit obedience to his instructions which Bismarck required. In the beginning of 1874 he was re called and appointed to the embassy at Constantinople, but this appointment was immediately revoked. A Vienna newspaper pub lished some correspondence on the Vatican council, including confidential despatches of Arnim's, with the object of showing that he had exhibited greater foresight than Bismarck. It was then found that a considerable number of papers were missing from the Paris embassy, and on Oct. 4 Arnim was arrested on the charge of embezzling State papers. Arnim avoided imprisonment by leaving the country, and in 1875 published anonymously at Zurich a pamphlet entitled Pro nihilo, in which he attempted to show that the attack on him was caused by Bismarck's personal jealousy. For this he was accused of treason, insult to the em peror, and libelling Bismarck, and in his absence condemned to five years' penal servitude. From his exile in Austria he published two more pamphlets on the ecclesiastical policy of Prussia, Der Nunzius kommt! (Vienna, 1878), and Quid faciamus nos? (ib. 1879). He made repeated attempts, which were supported by his family, to be allowed to return to Germany in order to take his trial afresh on the charge of treason; his request had just been granted when he died, May Y 9 1881.
In 1876 Bismarck carried an amendment to the criminal code making it an offence punishable with imprisonment or a fine up to £250 for an official of the foreign office to communicate to others official documents, or for an envoy to act contrary to his instructions. These clauses are commonly spoken of in Germany as the "Arnim paragraphs."