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Why were imperial ministers not fully accountable to the Reichstag?

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Map showing the German Empire as it existed from 1871 to 1918, with its borders outlined and regions color-coded. The map highlights the Kingdom of Prussia in green and the full extent of the German Empire in yellow, including regions such as Bavaria, Saxony, Westphalia, and East Prussia. Neighboring countries like France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Switzerland, Austria-Hungary, and the Russian Empire are also labeled. Major cities such as Berlin, Munich, and Hamburg are marked. — German Empire The German Empire, 1871–1918.

In the German Empire, imperial ministers were not fully accountable to the Reichstag because the constitution was designed to vest primary decision-making power in the monarch and the chancellor.1

Under this system, imperial ministers were appointed by and held responsible to the emperor rather than the legislature. While the chancellor required the support of the Reichstag to pass legislation, he did not need its confidence to remain in office. Furthermore, the military was not responsible to the civil government, leaving the emperor as the sole authority capable of coordinating military policy with civil and diplomatic affairs.12

Although members of the Reichstag could question the chancellor, the government’s reliance on indirect taxes and the parliament's limited control over the military budget—which was typically voted on only every five or seven years—circumscribed the power of the lower house. Consequently, the legislative bodies were rarely consulted on foreign affairs, and the executive remained largely independent of parliamentary oversight.31