German Empire

Germany, 1871–1918. Draft, not yet reviewed

The German Empire existed from the unification of Germany in 1871 until the November Revolution in 1918, when Germany became a republic. The empire was founded on 18 January 1871, when the south German states, except for Austria, Switzerland and Liechtenstein, joined the North German Confederation. Prussia contained about two-thirds of the Empire's population and territory, and the king of Prussia was also the German Emperor. By 1913 Germany was the largest economy in continental Europe and the third largest in the world.

Seat of power: Berlin

Rulers

Wilhelm I

King of Prussia, 1861–1888

He appointed Otto von Bismarck as Minister President to force through his proposals on the military budget, beginning a partnership that lasted for the rest of his life. Even though he had considerable power as Kaiser, Wilhelm largely left the affairs of governance to Bismarck.

Portrait of Wilhelm I: Wilhelm Kuntzemüller, Public domain, file

Wilhelm II

King of Prussia, 1888–1918

In March 1890 the Kaiser dismissed Chancellor Otto von Bismarck and assumed direct control over his nation's policies. He and his government did much to alienate the German Empire from most of Europe by initiating a massive naval build-up, contesting French control of Morocco and backing Austria-Hungary's annexation of Bosnia. He left virtually all decisions regarding strategy and organisation of the war effort to the German Supreme Army Command.

Portrait of Wilhelm II: Studio of Thomas Heinrich Voigt, Public domain, file

Frederick III, German Emperor

King of Prussia, 1888–1888

He ruled as German Emperor and King of Prussia for 99 days in 1888, until his death. He planned to institute responsible government, turning the Empire into a liberal constitutional monarchy inspired by Britain, but illness prevented him from effectively establishing policies to achieve this.

Portrait of Frederick III, German Emperor: Reichard & Lindener, Public domain, file

Culture

The empire had a parliament called the Reichstag, which was elected by universal male suffrage.
Otto von Bismarck, the first chancellor of the German Empire, introduced pioneering social programs that laid the foundation for the modern European welfare state.
The German Empire became an industrial, technological, and scientific power in Europe, and one-third of all Nobel Prizes went to German inventors and researchers.
In the 1880s Germany entered the colonial race, acquiring territories in Africa, the Pacific, and China and building the world's third-largest colonial empire.

Picture

The Prussian King Wilhelm I was proclaimed German Emperor at the Palace of Versailles, outside Paris, France, after the joint victory of the German states in the Franco-Prussian War.

Image: Anton von Werner, Public domain, file

Sources

Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.