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Napoleon Invades German Lands
On January 1, 1806, Napoleon invaded the German lands with the French army. During this timespan, Napoleon made many territorial changes in Germany. On January 1, 1812, Napoleon's army was defeated. -
House of Krupp
The House of Krupp was a factory that produced steel and weapons for Germany. The Krupp family was a German dynasty of industrialists. The Krupps started the first major steel-works in Germany in 1811, and their enterprise expanded rapidly to become one of the world's largest companies and Germany's leading supplier of armaments. -
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Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was an assembly that lasted from September 1814 to June 1815 that reorganized Europe after the Napoleonic Wars. The settlement was the most comprehensive treaty that Europe had ever seen. The Final Act was completed on June 1815. -
Otto Von Bismark Birth
Otto Von Bismark was born on April 1,1815, at his families estate in the Prussian heartland west of Berlin. Germany became a unified union under Otto Von Bismark. -
Zollverein
The Zollverein was a coalition of German states formed to manage tariffs and economic policies within their territories. The zollverein was organized by the Zollverein treaties and formally came into existence on January 1, 1834. -
Frederick William IV is offered the throne
On June 7, 1840, Frederick William was offered the throne in Prussia. He was king of Prussia from 1840-1861 when he was proved to be an unreliable and erratic leader duriing the German Revlution of 1848. -
Frankfurt Assembly
The Frankfurt Assembly was the first freely elected parliament for all of Germany elected on May 1, 1848. Its existence was part of the result of the "March Revolution" in the states of the German Confederation. -
Blood and Iron Speech
On September 30, 1862, Otto Von Bismarck gave his famous "Blood and Iron" speech before the Landtag, the Prussian Legislature. In his speech, Bismarck claimed that the international policy of a modern state is built upon the willingness to fight (Blood), and the willingness to spend vast amounts of public treasure in creating giant armies (Iron). -
Bismarck declares war on Denmark
In 1863, the King of Denmark declared Schleswig and Holstein to be a part of Denmarck. Prussia and Austria then teamed up and declared war on Denmark, which resulted in an easy win over Denmark. -
Bismarck declares war on Austria
In 1866, Bismarck created a treaty with Austria that said that Prussia was to control Schleswig and Austria would control Holstein. This treaty backfired and resulted in the defeat of Austria by the Prussian army. -
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Campaign against the Socialists
On January 1, 1870, there was a campaign against the Socialists. This campaign started due to the fact that Bismarck feared that socialists would sabotage the loyalty of German workers and turn them toward revolution. Bismarck had laws passed that took away socialists groups, banned their meetings, and shut down their newspapers, but again, this backfired on Bismarck. -
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Franco Prussian War
The Franco Prussian War was a coalition of German states led by Prussia, and France that lasted from July 19,1870 to May 10, 1871. France was soon defeated by Prussia. The war marked the end of French Hegemony in continental Europe and resulted in the creation of a unified Germany. -
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Campaign against the Church (Kulturekampf)
When a Catholic threat was announced, Bismarck's response was to launch the Kulturekampf, which was the battle for civilization. The battle lasted from January 4, 1871 to January 1, 1878. The goal of the battle was to make Catholics put loyalty to the state above allegiance to the Church. This battle failed because the Church had faithful Catholics to rally and it showed Bismarck's mistake, which allowed him to work to make peace with the Church. -
Second Reich is Created
On January 10, 1871, German nationalists celebrated the birth of the Second Reich. A Reich is an empire and they named it this because they considered it heir to the Holy Roman Empire. -
William I of Prussia becomes Emperor
On Jnauary 18, 1871, William I of Prussia became known as the Kaiser of Germany. He was one of the most recognizable public figures of World War I. -
Bismarck becomes Chancellor
On March 21, 1871, Otto Von Bismarck became Chancellor of Germany. Germany became a unified nation under the leadership of the "Iron Chancellor," Otto Von Bismarck. -
Constitution drafted by Bismarck
The Constitution of the German Empire was the basic law of the German Empire from 1871 to 1919. German historians often refer to it as Bismarck's Imperial Constitution, in German the Bismarcksche Reichsverfassung. -
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Population growth of 1871-1914
The states of Germany had rapidly become industrialized, with strengths in coal, iron, chemicals, and railroads. The industrialization provided families with more jobs and money, which allowed them to expand their families. In 1871, Germany had a population of 41 million people, and by 1914, there was a population of 68 million people. -
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Economic Development
During this time period, Germany was making many economic advancements. They started to create railroads to connect the German states and they made tariffs to protect businesses and prevent their economy from collapsing when the economic depression hit Europe. -
William II becomes Kaiser
William I was taken out of power in 1888 and was replaced by his son, WIlliam II. William II believed in the Divine Right Theory and was a strong opponent of socialism, German militarism, and imperialism. -
Bismarck Resigns
On March 18, 1890, Bismarck resigned after disagreeing with the new emperor, William II. He retired to his estate near Hamburg and died there on July 30, 1898.
