Unification of Germany

Holy Roman Empire

Loose federation of mostly German states and principalities, headed by an emperor elected by the princes. It lasted from 962 to 1806.

Charlemagne

King of the Franks and first Holy Roman Emperor

Otto I

Crowned emperor by pope in 962 CE; some regard him as the first emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.

Crusades (1095-1291)

Series of wars and pilgrimages with the goals of retaking the Holy Land for Christians; originally called in 1095 by Pope Urban II after a request from the Emperor of Byzantine and the Patriarch of the Eastern Orthodox church

Teutonic Knights

Militant crusading order of Christian soldiers who fought against Muslim Turks during the Crusades. Founded in Acre in 1192, they later focused on fighting Pagans in the Baltic and conquered Prussia.

Old Prussia

A Baltic country of Slavic people related to Poles and Russians. They were pagans who were conquered and wiped out by the Teutonic Knights in the 1200s.

Protestant Reformation

A religious movement of the 16th century that began as an attempt to reform the Roman Catholic Church and resulted in the creation of Protestant churches.

1517

The year the Protestant Reformation began

Martin Luther

German monk who led the Protestant Reformation

95 Theses

Arguments written by Martin Luther against the Catholic church. They were posted on October 31, 1517, nailed to the cathedral door in Wittenberg, Germany.

Thirty Years War

(1618-1648 CE) War within the Holy Roman Empire between German Protestants and their allies (Sweden, Denmark, France) and the emperor and his ally, Spain; ended in 1648 after great destruction with Treaty of Westphalia.

Napoleon

French general who became Emperor of France and conquered most of Europe between 1797 and 1815 before being defeated at Waterloo.

Bourbon Dynasty

French ruling family overthrown by the French Revolution. They had already established France as an aggressive military nation.

Emancipation of the Jews

Abolition of discriminatory laws applied especially to Jews, recognition of Jews as equal to other citizens, and formal granting of citizenship. Napoleon granted Jews across his lands this right in 1804.

Confederation of the Rhine

A federation of German states organized under Napoleon I in July 1806. Formerly under the rule of the Holy Roman Empire, which was dissolved the same year, the new federation placed itself under the "protection" of Napoleon and was governed by one of his close allies

Congress of Vienna

Meeting of representatives of European monarchs called to reestablish the old order after the defeat of Napoleon in 1814-1815.

German Confederation

Association of 39 German states established at the Congress of Vienna that replaced the Holy Roman Empire from 1815 to 1866.

Frankfurt

Capital of the German Confederation

Austria

Hapsburg ruled Catholic empire of many nationalities, but dominated by the Germans. Many nationalists looked to it for support in unifying the Germans.

Hapsburg Dynasty

A family that controlled Spain, part of Italy, and part of the Holy Roman Empire. It was extremely powerful until the Thirty Years' War and continued to rule Austria until 1918.

Prussia

A former kingdom in north-central Europe including present-day northern Germany and northern Poland. Ruled by the Protestant Hohenzollern family. Many Germans looked to it as a unifying force.

Kleindeutsch

Meaning "small German." The argument that the German-speaking portions of the Austrian Hapsburg Empire should be excluded from a united Germany.

Grossdeutsch

This means "great German;" it was the argument that the German speaking portions of the Austrian Hapsburg Empire should be included in a united Germany.

Zollverein

The name of the free trade zone that German states created in 1818. Prussia dominated it and excluded Austria, using it to bind the German Confederation to Prussia.

Frederick the Great

(1712-1786), King of Prussia from 1740 to 1786. Enlightened despot who enlarged Prussia by gaining land from Austria when Maria Theresa became Empress.

1848 Revolutions

Revolutions in Europe from liberalism and nationalism. Wanted change, but all were suppressed.

Metternich System

Established by the ultra-conservative Austrian chancellor. The system bearing his name sought to restore pre-Napoleonic rulers to their thrones, restore the European balance of power, and repress liberal and democratic ideas. He was forced to resign in 1848.

Otto von Bismarck

German statesman under whose leadership Germany was united (1815-1898)

Frederick William IV

Prussian king who was selected by the German National Assembly at Frankfurt as their leader because they thought he was reform-minded. Said he would not accept the crown from the gutter.

German National Assembly

Met at Frankfurt in 1848 to unite the German nation and offered the Crown to the King of Prussia. Forcibly dissolved when the revolution failed in November.

Wilhelm I

Became King of Prussia in 1858 and appointed Bismarck as Chancellor. Became the first Kaiser of the German Empire in 1871.

Polish Crisis

Period of unrest and rebellion against Russia by the Poles in 1863. Bismarck gave the Russian Tsar support and won Russia as an ally.

Prussia-Denmark War

First of the 3 unification wars. In 1864 the King of Denmark had taken control over the German speaking territories of Schleswig and Holstein. Prussia and Austria invaded Denmark and won, splitting the new territories between them.

Seven Weeks War

Second unification war. In 1866 Bismarck provoked Austria into declaring war on Prussia, and then in very efficient manner Prussia, with the use of new technology, shocked the world by quickly defeating Austria in seven weeks.

Needle Gun

The first rifle known to use a bolt action. Gave Prussia a massive advantage of Danish and Austrian forces.

Helmuth von Moltke (the elder)

Prussian general who led armies to repeated victories using brilliant tactics.

Napoleon III

(1852-1870) Former Louis Napoleon, who became president of the Second Republic of France in 1848 and engineered a coup d'etat, ultimately making himself head of the Second Empire.

Crimean War

War fought between the Russian Empire on one side and an alliance of the British Empire, French Empire, the Ottoman Empire, the Kingdom of Sardinia, and the Duchy of Nassau on the other. (1853-1856)

North German Confederation

Replaced the German Confederation after the Seven Weeks War. Prussia dominated the new government, excluding Austria.

South German Kingdoms

The Catholic German states which remained independent and allied to Austria after the Seven Weeks War

Bavaria

The largest and most powerful of the independent Catholic kingdoms of South Germany

Balance of Powers

The idea that the great powers of Europe should remain equal in strength and would unite against any one of them attempting to gain more power and against any new power trying to rival them.

Great Powers of Europe

Great Britain, France, Russia and Austria-Hungary. Sometimes also included the Ottoman Empire (the sick man of Europe).

Schleswig

North German Duchy with a large Danish minority which was ruled by the King of Denmark, but not part of the Kingdom of Denmark. Its annexation by that kingdom in 1864 sparked the Prussian-Danish War. Was occupied by Prussia afterwards.

Hollstein

North German Duchy ruled by the King of Denmark but not part of the Kingdom of Denmark. Was occupied by Austria following the Prussian-Danish War, then invaded by Prussia in the Seven Weeks War of 1866.

Duchy

A territory ruled by a duke or duchess

Principality

Territory ruled by a prince

Prince Leopold of Hohenzollern

After overthrowing Queen Isabella II (a Bourbon), the Spanish in 1868, still very much a pro-monarchy nation, desired a new house to rule their country free of French influence (even though the Spanish Bourbons after Napoleon had been). They picked this man of the House of Hohenzollern, brother to King Wilhelm I of Prussia. Being the head of the house, King Wilhelm chose whether his brother would accept or not, and he declined three times. This man never ruled Spain which collapsed into an unstable republic in 1873.

Count Benedetti

French diplomat, one of the instigators of the Franco-Prussian War. Tried to demand a Hohenzollern should never become King of Spain, intruded on Wilhelm I when he was bathing.

Ems Telegram

A telegram in which Wilhelm I reported to Bismarck on his meeting with Count Benedetti. Bismarck then altered the telegram to appear insulting to the French diplomat and released it to media, enraging the French and provoking Napoleon III into declaring war on Prussia.

Bastille Day

July 14th, the French National holiday which recalls the start of the French Revolution in 1789.

Mobilisation

Bringing an army to full war readiness, moving the troops to the borders to take action. Prussia proved much faster at this than France.

Metz

Half the French Army ended up surrounded in this fortress town after Prussian forces split the French Army in half.

Battle of Sedan

Prussian forces defeated the second half of the French Army on 1 September 1870, capturing Napoleon III himself and forcing the collapse of the Second French Empire.

Third French Republic

New French government formed after the surrender of Napoleon III. They continued on the war hoping for foreign support, fighting with increasing desperation.

Siege of Paris

The four-month Prussian assault on the French capital after Napoleon III's surrender in 1870. Ended with French surrender on 28 January 1871.

German Empire (Second Reich)

Proclaimed in the Hall of Mirrors at the French Palace of Versailles on 18 January 1871. It united the North German Confederation and the South German Kingdoms in a single state with the Prussian King Wilhelm I as Kaiser (Emperor).

Versailles

French palace built by Louis XIV and considered the largest and most expensive in Europe.

Treaty of Frankfurt

Signed on 10 May 1871, it ended the Franco-Prussian War.

Alsace-Lorraine

German speaking region of France which the new German Empire annexed by the Treaty of Frankfurt. This loss of traditionally French land outraged France and they swore revenge no matter how long it took.

5 billion francs

This was the sum France had to pay Prussia after the Franco-Prussian War. It was to cover the cost of a German Army of occupation in France.

Vatican States

French held territory in Italy which the French also lost at the end of the Franco-Prussian War, resulting in a united Italy with Rome as its capital.

Paris Commune

The revolutionary municipal council, led by radicals, that engaged in a civil war (March-May 1871) with the National Assembly of the newly established Third Republic, set up after the defeat of Napoleon III in the Franco-Prussian War. Hailed as the first workers/Communist government.

Realpolitik

Political realism or practical politics, especially policy based on power rather than on ideals. Promoted by Bismarck as the best way to accomplish things.

Iron and Blood

Bismarck's plan for uniting Germany by using military power, "The great questions of the day will not be settled by means of speeches and majority decisions but by Iron and Blood "

Three Emperors' League

Alliance of Germany, Austria-Hungary and Russia's emperors formed in 1873; the three most conservative powers of Europe. Formed by Bismarck to deal with Germany's threat of encirclement.

Colonies

Bismarck had little interest in these, as he viewed them as a financial drain and not an asset. Nevertheless he sought to gain a few to assert Germany's place as a great power.