Bismarck's primary political goal was the unification of Germany under Prussian leadership, but he understood that this could only be achieved through a combination of diplomacy, military strategy, and deft manipulation of the various German states. By provoking France into declaring war, Bismarck played on French fears of a united Germany under Prussian leadership, and in the subsequent victory, the southern German states were drawn into the newly formed German Empire. In the history of Germany, the Kulturkampf (Cultural Struggle) was the seven-year political conflict (1871–1878) between the Catholic Church in Germany led by Pope Pius IX and the Kingdom of Prussia led by Chancellor Otto von Bismarck.