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Battle of Leipzig
Defeat for Napoleon, by Austrian, Prussian and Russian armies.
Helped develop a sense of national pride for Germany. -
Congress of Vienna
Meeting of European nations: Prussia, Austria, Britain, Russia and France. France's monarchy was restored and they had no decision-making powers during the conference -
German Confederation
Metternich System's solution for Germany:
- Reduction of German states from 230 to 39. The states remained independent, the Confederation wasn't a political entity.
- Confederation was based on the boundaries of the Holy Roman Empire.
- Structure was done by Diet, who was always chaired by the Austrian Representative -
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Emergence of Prussia as a major state
Within the German confederation, mostly due to the Zollverein -
Abolishment of internal customs barriers by Prussia
Abolished 67 barriers because they hindered trade, and this encouraged other German states to do the same. -
Murder of August Von Kotzebue
Murdered by a member of a liberal student organisation. -
Carlsbad Decrees
- Each university was to have an 'extraordinary commissioner assigned to it to supervise teaching. Liberal professors were removed from their posts.
- Member states of the Confederation and the Diet were to censor newspaper press
- Central investigating commission was set up to uncover organisations promoting liberal or nationalist ideas.
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Hambach Festival
Nationalists organised festival where liberal and nationalist ideas, were openly discussed. It was disguised as a nonpolitical country fair.
Young Germany = group established which called for a united Germany based on liberal principles. -
Six Articles
Limited the rights of elected assemblies in states which had constitutions, and declared the supremacy of federal law over the laws of individual states. -
Ten Articles
Banned political meetings and festivals, also banned wearing the colours of student associations. -
Zollverein
Prussia forms a customs union with 18 other German states. -
Prussian Friedrich Wilhelm IV
Succeeded to the throne.
He was a complex and unstable character, who believed God expected him to rule his subjects firmly but kindly.
He relaxed censorship and gave more power to the Diet -
Weavers Uprising
Several thousand weavers smashed the newly-introduced machinery that had driven down their wages in Silesia. Thereafter, the Prussian government repressed them with great brutality. This uprising attracted extensive attention among then German thinkers and writers such as Heinrich Heine and Karl Marx. -
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High rents, bad harvests, rising food prices.
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Meeting at Heidelberg
Met by representatives from Prussia, Bavaria, Württemberg, Baden, Nassau and Frankfurt.
This led to the summoning of Vorparlament. -
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German revolutions of 1848–1849
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Schleswig-Holstein War
German-speaking areas rebelled against an attempt to fully integrate them into Denmark.
Prussian army involved but withdrew without consulting the FP. -
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Frankfurt Parliament
National parliament that met as a consequence of the 1848 revolutions. -
Provisional Central Power - Provisorische Zentralgewalt
A provisional central government was formed to carry out parliamentary decisions before a constitution was formed. Led by liberal Austrian Archduke Johann. -
Refused imperial crown of German constitution
'pick up a crown of mud and wood from the gutter'
Wilhelm refused the imperial crown offered by the national assembly in Frankfurt because as a true conservative he would accept it only from the German princes, he didn't recognise the legal authority of the parliament. He also destroyed the constitution drafted by that assembly. -
New Prussian Constitution
Wilhelm IV established a new constitution, which included a two-chamber parliament but which he still had essential powers in time of emergency. eg. he could collect taxes without approval. -
Erfurt Union
Short-lived union of German states, proposed by Wilhelm IV -
Autumn Crisis
Political-military conflict where the ultra-conservative Austrian Empire led those German states that wanted to restore the German Confederation after the revolution of 1848-1849, while Prussia wanted to create a new federal state (the Erfurt Union). This almost led to war in Germany, which was finally avoided by Prussia's backing down. -
Humiliation of Olmütz
Treaty between Prussia and Austria were Prussia agreed to abandon the Erfurt Union -
Restoration of German Confederation
Smaller German states rejected Schwarzenberg's plan and so in May there was an agreement which essentially restored the German Confederation -
Restoration of German Confederation
Some of the smaller states rejected Schwarzenberg's plan as it favoured the larger states and so in May 1851 an agreement was signed which essentially restored the German Confederation. -
War with Denmark
Prussian and Austrian forces crossed the border into Schleswig. Denmark fought Prussia and the Austrian Empire. Like the First Schleswig War, it was fought for control of the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein -
Treaty of Vienna
A peace treaty signed in Vienna between the Austrian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Kingdom of Denmark. The treaty ended the Second War of Schleswig. -
Gastein Convention
Prussia would administer Schleswig and Austria would similarly govern Holstein. Austria also sold its rights over Lauenburg to Prussia. -
Austro-Prussian War
Fought between Austria and Prussia, each helped by allied within the German Confederation. Prussia was aided by Italy, in agreement that if the won the Italian, Austrian-governed Venetia would we granted back to Italy. -
Period: to
Austro-Prussian War
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Treaty of Prague
Peace treaty signed by Austria and Prussia that effectively ended the Austro-Prussian war. Treaty wasn't very harsh towards Austria as Bismarck knew that maintaining Austria's place in Europe would be better for Prussia's future. -
Luxembourg Crisis
A diplomatic dispute and confrontation in 1867 between the French Empire and Prussia over the political status of Luxembourg. It was resolved in the Treaty of London, May 1867. -
North German Confederation
German federation/political union in which Prussia took over northern states and a federal state with a federal constitution was created. The confederation was governed by the federal council and the parliament (Reichstag) and Bismarck was appointed chancellor of the Reichstag which practically meant that he answered to the king as the president of the Confederation. This did not include the South German states at first. -
Spanish succession crisis
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Ems Telegram
Incited the Second French Empire to start the Franco-Prussian War. The actual dispatch was an internal message from Wilhelm I to Bismarck, reporting demands made by the French ambassador. Bismarck released an altered/changed statement to the press that stirred up emotions in France and Germany. -
Franco-Prussian War
A conflict between the French Empire and the North German Confederation led by Prussia. The conflict was caused primarily by France's determination to restore its dominant position in Europe, which it had lost following Prussia's victory over Austria in 1866 -
Period: to
Franco-Prussian War
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Wilhelm I becomes Kaiser
Wilhelm I is declared German Emperor or Kaiser in the palace of Versailles. Bismarck preferred this as it didn't make it seem as if Prussia was making an unreasonable claim to authority over the southern states. -
Creation of the German Empire
Founded when the south German states joined the NGC and the new constitution was formed changing the name of the federal state to the German Empire and introducing the title of Kaiser for Wilhelm I. Berlin remained its capital and Bismarck, became Chancellor. As these events occurred, the Prussian-led North German Confederation and its southern German allies were still engaged in the Franco-Prussian War.