HERTLING, GEORG COUNT VON, German Chancellor from October, 1917, to September, 1918. Born at Darmstadt in 1843 and died in 1919. After study ing at Munster, Munich, and Berlin, he became in 1882 professor of philosophy at Bonn University. He was the au thor of several works dealing with phi losophy such as: "Matter and Form and Aristotle's Definition of the Soul"; "John Locke and the Cambridge School"; "The Principles of Catholicism and Science"; etc. He served in the Reichstag from 1875 to 1890 and again from 1896 to 1898. In 1912 he was made Bavarian Minister of Foreign Af fairs and Prime 1VIinister, a position he held until his appointment as Imperial Chancellor. In both of these offices he upheld the war policies of Germany and as Chancellor proved to be under the powerful influence of the General Staff of the Army. He did, however, attempt while Chancellor to bring about a re form in the methods of electing the Prussian Landtag which was intended to make that body more representative of the will of the people. These meas
ures, however, were never enacted into law. His foreign policy was equally un successful, though not similarly liberal. He refused to give any guarantee that Belgium would be evacuated by the Germans, nor did he attempt in any way to stop the excesses of the Imperial army and navy. While he was in of fice the Brest-Litovsk peace with Russia was negotiated, which clearly showed him to be in sympathy with the war aims of the Prussian Junkers. The defeats of the German army in France and Bel gium in Aug-ust and September, 1918, marked the defeat also of his policy and brought about his resignation.