Germany's Beginnings

Introduction

• We will talk about:
• The roots of German unification
• The events leading up to the unification
• The aftermath of unification

Background

• In the early 1500s the Teutonic Order ruled over Prussian land
• The Protestant Reformation ended the Catholic country, and gave rise to the Duchy of Prussia
• The Kingdom of Poland claimed the Teutonic Order as a vassal
• Prussia was forced to be one as well

Duchy of Prussia

• In 1525 it was a vassal of Poland
• In 1618 it was inherited by the Hohenzollern dynasty of Brandenburg
• Both came under vassalage of Poland

Brandenburg-Prussia

• It became a vassal of Sweden in 1656
• Poland offered Prussian sovereignty if they betrayed Sweden
• Prussia accepted and became the independent Brandenburg-Prussia

Kingdom of Prussia

• In 1701 Frederick III of Brandenburg became king of Prussia
• He dissolved Brandenburg-Prussia
• He declared Prussia an independent country

Expansion Into Germany

• The Austrian War of Succession resulted in Prussia's expansion into the province of Silesia
• Prussia participated in the Partition of Poland, which lead to Prussia, Austria, and Russia splitting Poland between themselves

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Napoleanic Wars

• In 1806 Prussia went to war with France without any allies
• They were defeated and lost much of their land
• Prussia became center for German patriots by
• By 1815 Prussia was once again powerful enough to help defeat Napoleon
• The Holy Roman Empire is dissolved

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Franco-Prussian War

• German Nationalism taking hold
• Prussia had annexed numerous territories in Northern Germany
• Otto von Bismarck wants to unite all German states
• Creates diplomatic crisis between Prussia and France; France declares war
• Prussia easily defeats France, unifies the German states into a German empire

Unification

• There had been many failed attempts at unification since the Napoleon Wars
• The Franco-Prussian War directly led to the first successful attempt
• German Nationalism soared during the war
• German countries recognized Prussia as the dominant German country, and pledged allegiance to them for the sake of Germany

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Aftermath

• Very first time a German Empire is declared (save for Austria)
• Creation of a very powerful state in the heart of Europe for the first time ever
• Worried some World leaders of a unbalanced power distribution in Europe
• Set the stage for World War 1, and consequently, World War 2

Nachwirkungen

• Erstmals eine Deutsche Reich erklärt wird ( außer für Österreich)
• Schaffung eines sehr mächtigen Staat im Herzen Europas zum ersten Mal überhaupt
• Besorgt einige Welt Führer einer unsymmetrischen Stromverteilung in Europa
• Die Bühne für World War 1 und folglich dem 2. Weltkrieg