The German Empire (1871—1918)
The Kingdom of Prussia (1701—1918)
Hundreds of years before the German Empire, Rome ruled most of Europe. Julius Caesar called the people and area of lands he could not conquer Germania, making them different from the conquered Franks (who later became France and the French people). After Rome fell, the people were conquered by the Franks, who ruled them for a few hundred years.
A map of the Roman Empire at its height.
Early Prussia was not a kingdom. It was made up of many groups of people called the Balts, or Baltic People. These people fought off both the Vikings and the powerful Roman Empire. Hard to conquer, Prussia was an independent state for hundreds of years longer than its neighbors. Prussia stayed independent up to the 13th century (the 1200’s). Finally, the High Duke of Poland, Konrad of Masovia, hired someone to conquer Prussia.
Map of the Baltic tribes of Europe
The Teutonic Knights were German soldiers who fought for the Holy Roman Empire. They also fought for Catholicism and the Catholic Pope in Rome. Germany has always been famous for their powerful military. But it still took the Teutonic Knights sixty years to conquer Prussia! Finally, after clans (official groups of people who are related) of Prussia surrendered one by one, Prussia became a German-speaking Christian state in 1295.
An artist’s drawing of the Teutonic Knights in battle
When the different areas in Europe formed the Holy Roman Empire (named after the famous and respected Roman Empire) in 962 AD, Otto I of Germany became the first Holy Roman Emperor. The German states were part of the Holy Roman Empire for almost 700 years. After the fall of the Holy Roman Empire in 1648, the territory of Germany split into many nation-states (states that ruled themselves independently). The state of Prussia started to gain power.
The Holy Roman Empire, and the other countries that existed at the same time
After the Napoleonic Wars across all of Europe (1803-1815), feudalism, the system of landlords and serfs, ended. The German Confederation (united group of states) was created. People wanted freedom and equality. Each German state was very proud and independent. Now that each state was more equal, each one tried to win more power.
Prussia gains power and land, then becomes part of the German Confederation, and then the German Empire
The Industrial Revolution (a time of making things in factories and using machines instead of doing things by hand) brought many good changes to Germany. The economy was very good, and people grew wealthier. But there were still many battles with other countries. Prussia wanted to lead all of the other German states. After Prussia won wars against France and Austria, the rest of Germany agreed. In 1871, King Wilhelm I of Prussia became the first emperor of the new German Empire. With military successes and their king as leader of the empire, Prussia was now the most powerful German state.
An artist’s painting of the Industrial Revolution in Germany
Ms. Ouellet's Social Studies Blog 