born July 10, 1852, Stuttgart, Württemberg
died Dec. 30, 1912, Stuttgart
German diplomat.
A career diplomat, he became foreign secretary in 1910 and pursued a belligerent foreign policy, working to establish Germany as the leading power in Europe through the Triple Alliance . In the second of the Moroccan crises (1911), he refused conciliatory offers by the French government and excluded Britain from negotiations. Although German expansionists denounced the peace treaty as too lenient, Kiderlen's brusque and forceful posturing during the crisis significantly aggravated the international tensions that led to World War I.