German Empire

Flag of the German Empire

The **German Empire** is a nation that is located east of the Kingdom of Alsace-Lorraine, Kingdom of Belgium, Kingdom of the Netherlands and Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, Southeast of the United Kingdom (they are separated by the English Channel), South of the Kingdom of Denmark, North of the Imperial State of Austria, Northwest of the Kingdom of Bohemia and west of it's puppet state the Kingdom of Poland. The German Empire is the strongest nation in all of Europe and has mass political and economic influence over the European Nations of Central Europe, East Europe and South Europe ever since their monarchies were restored and their liberation from Communism.

## History

### First Empire

The first German Empire was founded on 18 January 1871 when the south German states, except for Austria, joined the North German Confederation and the new constitution came into force on April 16, changing the name of the federal state to the German Empire and introducing the title of German Emperor for Wilhelm I, King of Prussia from the House of Hohenzollern. Berlin remained its capital, and Otto von Bismarck, Minister President of Prussia, became Chancellor, the head of government. As these events occurred, the Prussian-led North German Confederation and its southern German allies were still engaged in the Franco-Prussian War.

The German Empire consisted of 26 states, each with their own nobility, four constituent kingdoms, six grand duchies, five duchies (six before 1876), seven principalities, three free Hanseatic cities, and one imperial territory. While Prussia was one of four kingdoms in the realm, it contained about two-thirds of Empire's population and territory, and Prussian dominance had also been constitutionally established, since the King of Prussia was also the German Emperor (German: Kaiser)

The states of Germany had rapidly become industrialized, with particular strengths in coal, iron (and later steel), chemicals, and railways. In 1871, Germany had a population of 41 million people; by 1913, this had increased to 68 million. A heavily rural collection of states in 1815, the now united Germany became predominantly urban. During its 47 years of existence, the German Empire was an industrial, technological, and scientific giant, and by 1913, Germany was the largest economy in Continental Europe and the third-largest in the world.

From 1871 to 1890, Otto von Bismarck's tenure as the first and to this day longest-serving Chancellor was marked by relative liberalism, but it became more conservative afterward. Broad reforms and the Kulturkampf marked his period in the office. Late in Bismarck's chancellorship and in spite of his earlier personal opposition, Germany became involved in colonialism. Claiming much of the leftover territory that was yet unclaimed in the Scramble for Africa, it managed to build the third-largest colonial empire at the time, after the British and the French ones. As a colonial state, it sometimes clashed with the interests of other European powers, especially the British Empire. During its colonial expansion, the German Empire committed the Herero and Namaqua genocide.

Germany became a great power, boasting a rapidly developing rail network, the world's strongest army, and a fast-growing industrial base. Starting very small in 1871, in a decade, the navy became second only to Britain's Royal Navy. After the removal of Otto von Bismarck by Wilhelm II in 1890, the empire embarked on *Weltpolitik* – a bellicose new course that ultimately contributed to the outbreak of World War I. In addition, Bismarck's successors were incapable of maintaining their predecessor's complex, shifting, and overlapping alliances which had kept Germany from being diplomatically isolated. This period was marked by various factors influencing the Emperor's decisions, which were often perceived as contradictory or unpredictable by the public. In 1879, the German Empire consolidated the Dual Alliance with Austria-Hungary, followed by the Triple Alliance with Italy in 1882. It also retained strong diplomatic ties to the Ottoman Empire. When the great crisis of 1914 arrived, Italy left the alliance and the Ottoman Empire formally allied with Germany.

In the First World War, German plans to capture Paris quickly in the autumn of 1914 failed, and the war on the Western Front became a stalemate. The Allied naval blockade caused severe shortages of food. However, Imperial Germany had success on the Eastern Front; it occupied a large amount of territory to its east following the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. The German declaration of unrestricted submarine warfare in early 1917 contributed to bringing the United States into the war. In October 1918, after the failed Spring Offensive, the German armies were in retreat, allies Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire had collapsed, and Bulgaria had surrendered. The empire collapsed in the November 1918 Revolution with the abdications of its monarchs, which left the post-war federal republic to govern a devastated populace.

### Aftermath of the First Empire's Downfall

The Treaty of Versailles imposed post-war reparation costs of 132 billion gold marks (around US$269 billion or €240 billion in 2019, or roughly US$32 billion in 1921), as well as limiting the army to 100,000 men and disallowing conscription, armored vehicles, submarines, aircraft, and more than six battleships. The consequential economic devastation, later exacerbated by the Great Depression, as well as humiliation and outrage experienced by the German population are considered leading factors in the rise of Adolf Hitler and Nazism.

The Nazi seizure of power in 1933 led to the establishment of a dictatorship, World War II, and the Holocaust. After the end of World War II in Europe and a period of Allied occupation, Germany was divided into the Federal Republic of Germany, generally known as West Germany, and the German Democratic Republic, East Germany. The Federal Republic of Germany was a founding member of the European Economic Community and the European Union, while the German Democratic Republic was a communist Eastern Bloc state and member of the Warsaw Pact.

### Rise of the Second Empire

The Second German Empire had risen during World War III when the Soviets invaded Germany after their disastrous failures in Afghanistan (due to Imperial Iran) and East Asia (due to Japan, America and their Asian allies with the monarchist revolution in Asia) invaded Europe through the Warsaw Pact Communist states and west Germany. The invasion of west Germany was successful due to the fact the Republic had fallen after the Soviets captured west Berlin and massacred the West German government officials which resulted in chaos in West Germany as the Soviets crossed into West Germany itself.

Monarchists rallied the people, Military and Police to their side as they with Veterans fought hard against the forces of Soviets and their Satellite States. However they were unexpectedly victorious due to the fact that the forces of the Warsaw pact joined them when their states abandoned communism after fierce revolutions. The Monarchists took over Berlin's government office and declared the restoration of the House of Hohenzollern (the ruling house of Prussia) as the monarchs of Germany. The constitution was drafted and Louis Ferdinand, Prince of Prussia was then crowned as Ludwig I, Kaiser of Germany. The Soviets then waged war against Germany, but Germany's army with their allies then fought against the Soviets in the Satellite States which resulted in brutal gunfights in cities, suburbs and the countryside with all kinds of destruction.

The Soviets then invaded Turkey, Greece, Italy, Austria and Finland to defeat Germany, but Germany won as the Soviets after killing the government officials of those countries left them in chaos to put down rebellions in their country. However that was a big no no as the Germans with the Iranians funded monarchist revolutions in those countries which were successful and it resulted in their countries siding with Germany against the Soviets. The opposition against the Soviets was victorious after America nuked the Soviet Union and China to help it's allies be successful in the destruction of the Soviet Union.

Germany had turned the countries of Austria, Bulgaria, Albania, Poland, Lithuania, Estonia and Finland into monarchies ruled by their respective monarchs. Germany created a Grand Duchy of Courland as a Puppet State to be the home of the Baltic Germans who were forcefully removed from the Baltic regions after, during and before WWII. Latvia and Estonia became independent republics with Czechoslovakia and Hungary as they desired to not be ruled by monarchies. Louis after the war ruled until 1994 in which he died and his paternal Grandson Georg Frederich became Kaiser of Germany.

Germany became a prosperous state under Ludwig I and his grandson Frederich IV who helped the nation grow economically, politically and militarily to the point that Germany became a great power once again. Germany then economically, politically and militarily strengthened it's puppet states to make them not dependent on Germany and successful against the looming threat of Russia so Germany and all of them do not become subjected to Communism once again.

## Government

### Executive Branch

Germany is a semi-federal semi-constitutional monarchy ruled by the German Kaiser (the king of Prussia in a permanent personal union). According to the Imperial Constitution of 1871, its Chancellor and Government are appointed by - and answer only to - the Kaiser, but legislation needs to be approved by the Reichstag, a chamber elected proportionally by universal male suffrage, and the Bundesrat, consisting of representatives from each of the constituent states. Despite its rather authoritarian nature, the German political system is very much designed in favor of multi-party coalitions, who secure a majority for the Kaiser's Chancellor, thereby gaining a considerable amount of influence on the government's policies.

Unlike many other European countries, the German Empire is a federation of de jure equal constituent states; De facto however, Prussia is by far the biggest and most influential German state. Due to the German constitution, the King of Prussia is allowed to call himself "German Emperor" (*Deutscher Kaiser*); However, he is not authorized to call himself "Emperor of Germany" (*Kaiser von Deutschland*), as that would deeply anger the other German states, which view themselves as sovereign nations, as well as Austria, which is still considered part of the cultural region of Germany.

Before unification, German territory (excluding Austria and Switzerland) was made up of 27 constituent states. These states consisted of kingdoms, grand duchies, duchies, principalities, free Hanseatic cities and one imperial territory. The free cities had and still have a republican form of government on the state level, even though most of the Empire is constituted as a monarchy.

Each component of the German Empire sends representatives to the Federal Council (*Bundesra*t) and, via single-member districts, the Imperial Diet (*Reichstag*). The extent to which the German Emperor can, for example, intervene on occasions of disputed or unclear succession is much debated on occasion—for example in the inheritance crisis of the Lippe-Detmold of 1895.

Unusually for a federation, the German states maintain limited autonomy over foreign affairs and continue to exchange ambassadors and other diplomats both with each other and directly with foreign nations. Shortly after the Empire was proclaimed, Bismarck implemented a convention in which his sovereign would only send and receive envoys to and from other German states as the King of Prussia, while envoys from Berlin sent to foreign nations always received credentials from the monarch in his capacity as German Emperor. In this way, the Prussian foreign ministry is largely tasked with managing relations with the other German states while the Imperial foreign ministry manage Germany's external relations.

### Cabinet

* Frederich IV - Emperor
* Armin Laschet - Prime Minister
* Heiko Maas - Foreign Minister
* Peter Altmaier - Economics Minister
* Anja Karliczek - Education Minister
* Hans Dieter Pötsch - Industry Minister
* Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer - Minister of Defense
* Vice admiral Thomas Daum - Minister of Intelligence
* General Eberhard Zorn - Chief of Staff
* Lieutenant General Alfons Mais - Chief of Army
* Admiral Rainer Brinkmann - Chief of Navy
* Air Marshall Ingo Gerhartz - Chief of Air Force

### Legislative Branch

The Bundestag is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to a lower house of legislatures, similar to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. The Bundestag was established by Title III of the Basic Law for the German Empire. The members of the Bundestag are representatives of the German people as a whole, are not bound by any orders or instructions and are only accountable to their electorate. The minimum legal number of members of the Bundestag (German: *Mitglieder des Bundestages*) is 598; however, due to the system of overhang and leveling seats the current 20th Bundestag has a total of 736 members, making it the largest Bundestag to date.

The Bundestag is elected every four years by German citizens aged 18 or over. Elections use a mixed-member proportional representation system which combines first-past-the-post elected seats with a proportional party list to ensure its composition mirrors the national popular vote. An early election is only possible in the cases outlined in Articles 63 and 68 of the *Grundgesetz*. The Bundestag has several functions. Together with the Bundesrat the Bundestag makes up the legislative branch of the Federal Government. The individual states (Bundesländer) of Germany participate through the Bundesrat in legislative process similar to an upper house in a bicameral parliament; however, the *Grundgesetz* considers the Bundestag and Bundesrat to be separate from each other. The Bundestag and Bundesrat nevertheless work together in the lawmaking procedure on the federal level. The Bundestag also elects and oversees the chancellor, Germany's head of government, and sets the government budget.

### Constituent Autonomous States

There are 16 Constituent States that have Autonomy within the German Empire. These Autonomous States have the right to have their own Minister and Parliament, they have their own factions within the Ministries of the German Empire, and they have Infantry Brigades within the Imperial Army that they have personal command over. These Autonomous Constituent States consist of 4 Kingdoms, 6 Grand Duchies, 2 Duchies and 4 Princpitalities which makes all 16 Constituent Autonomous monarchies.

#### List of Constituent States

##### **Kingdoms:**

* Kingdom of Bavaria
* Kingdom of Hanover
* Kingdom of Saxony
* Kingdom of Württemberg

##### **Grand Duchies:**

* Grand Duchy of Baden
* Grand Duchy of Hesse
* Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg
* Grand Duchy of Oldenburg
* Grand Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
* Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach

##### **Duchies**

* Duchy of Anhalt
* Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen

##### **Principalities**

* Principality of Lippe-Westphalia
* Principitality of Reuss
* Principality of Schaumburg-Lippe
* Principality of Waldeck and Pyrmont

## Military

### Army

The *Deutsches Heer* (German Army) is the largest and most powerful army in all of Europe ever since their ferocious fight with the Soviet Union. the border of Germany and France and the currently mothballed Ludendorff Line in Elsass-Lothringen form the basis of defense in the west and North, while the many Eastern European satellites act as buffer states against Russia in the east. The Army consists of the military units of the former western republic in the west and Soviet Satellite in the east. The Army is able to call it's proxy forces which are the armed forces of Germany's allies and Satellite States to back them up if needed.

### Navy

The Imperial German Navy covers the coast of Germany and it's Satellite States in East and South Europe as a way to protect Germany from the expansionist Russian Federation who desires to wage war with Europe and create an Empire in Europe to take the place of Siberia which was stolen from Russia by China and Japan. Germany's Navy rules the waves of the Northern Sea and the Mediterranean Sea and has ports within it's allies and Satellite States under German control to project German power in the seas and protect all of Europe from Russian expansionism,

### Air Force

The Imperial German Air Force is the Air Force of Germany used to protect the airspace of Imperial Germany and it's allies and Satellites from any aggression from Britain, France and Russia. The Air Force consists of the warplanes of the former West German and East German Air Forces and various drones used to spy and attack enemies of the Empire.

## Economy

Germany has a social market economy with a highly skilled labour force, a low level of corruption, and a high level of innovation. It is the world's third-largest exporter and third-largest importer of goods, and has the largest economy in Europe, which is also the world's fourth-largest economy by nominal GDP, and the fifth-largest by PPP. Being home to the modern car, the automotive industry in Germany is regarded as one of the most competitive and innovative in the world, and is the fourth-largest by production. The top ten exports of Germany are vehicles, machinery, chemical goods, electronic products, electrical equipments, pharmaceuticals, transport equipments, basic metals, food products, and rubber and plastics.

### Infrastructure

With its central position in Europe, Germany is a transport hub for the continent. Its road network is among the densest in Europe. The motorway (Autobahn) is widely known for having no general federally mandated speed limit for some classes of vehicles. The Intercity Express or *ICE* train network serves major German cities as well as destinations in neighboring countries with speeds up to 300 km/h (190 mph). The largest German airports are Frankfurt Airport and Munich Airport. The Port of Hamburg is one of the top twenty largest container ports in the world.

### Tourism

Berlin has become the third most visited city destination in Europe. Domestic and international travel and tourism combined directly contribute over €105.3 billion to German GDP. Including indirect and induced impacts, the industry supports 4.2 million jobs. Germany's most visited and popular landmarks include Cologne Cathedral, the Brandenburg Gate, the Reichstag, the Dresden Frauenkirche, Neuschwanstein Castle, Heidelberg Castle, the Wartburg, and Sanssouci Palace. The Europa-Park near Freiburg is Europe's second most popular theme park resort.

## Demographics

### Ethnic Groups

Germany is the most populous country in Europe, the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the nineteenth most populous country in the world. Its population density stands at 227 inhabitants per square kilometre (588 per square mile). The overall life expectancy in Germany at birth is 80.19 years (77.93 years for males and 82.58 years for females). The fertility rate of 1.41 children born per woman (2011 estimates) is below the replacement rate of 2.1 and is one of the lowest fertility rates in the world. Since the 1970s, Germany's death rate has exceeded its birth rate. However, Germany is witnessing increased birth rates and migration rates since the restoration of the Second German Empire. Germany has the third oldest population in the world, with an average age of 47.4 years.

Four sizeable groups of people are referred to as "national minorities" because their ancestors have lived in their respective regions for centuries: There is a Danish minority in the northernmost state of Schleswig-Holstein; the Sorbs, a Slavic population, are in the Lusatia region of Saxony and Brandenburg; the Roma and Sinti live throughout the country; and the Frisians are concentrated in Schleswig-Holstein's western coast and in the north-western part of Westphilia.

### Religion

Christianity was the largest religion in Germany, with 66.8% of respondents identifying as Christian, of which 3.8% were not church members. 31.7% declared themselves as Protestants, including members of the Evangelical Church in Germany (which encompasses Lutheran, Reformed, and administrative or confessional unions of both traditions) and the free churches (*Evangelische Freikirchen*); 31.2% declared themselves as Roman Catholics, and Orthodox believers constituted 1.3%. According to data from 2016, the Catholic Church and the Evangelical Church claimed 28.5% and 27.5%, respectively, of the population,

### Languages

German is the official and predominant spoken language in Germany. It is one of 24 official and working languages of the European Union, and one of the three procedural languages of the European Commission. German is the most widely spoken first language in the European Union, with around 100 million native speakers. Recognized native minority languages in Germany are Danish, Low German, Low Rhenish, Sorbian, Romany, North Frisian and Saterland Frisian; they are officially protected by the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. The most used immigrant languages are Turkish, Arabic, Kurdish, Polish, the Balkan languages and Russian. Germans are typically multilingual: 67% of German citizens claim to be able to communicate in at least one foreign language and 27% in at least two.

### Education

Responsibility for educational supervision in Germany is primarily organised within the individual states. Optional kindergarten education is provided for all children between three and six years old, after which school attendance is compulsory for at least nine years. Primary education usually lasts for four to six years. Secondary schooling is divided into tracks based on whether students pursue academic or vocational education. A system of apprenticeship called *Duale Ausbildung* leads to a skilled qualification which is almost comparable to an academic degree. It allows students in vocational training to learn in a company as well as in a state-run trade school. This model is well regarded and reproduced all around the world.

Most of the German universities are public institutions, and students traditionally study without fee payment. The general requirement for university is the *Abitur*. According to an OECD report in 2014, Germany is the world's third leading destination for international study. The established universities in Germany include some of the oldest in the world, with Heidelberg University (established in 1386) being the oldest. The Humboldt University of Berlin, founded in 1810 by the liberal educational reformer Wilhelm von Humboldt, became the academic model for many Western universities. In the contemporary era Germany has developed eleven Universities of Excellence.

### Health

Germany's system of hospitals, called *Krankenhäuser*, dates from medieval times, and today, Germany has the world's oldest universal health care system, dating from Bismarck's social legislation of the 1880s. Since the 1880s, reforms and provisions have ensured a balanced health care system. The population is covered by a health insurance plan provided by statute, with criteria allowing some groups to opt for a private health insurance contract. According to the World Health Organization, Germany's health care system was 77% government-funded and 23% privately funded as of 2013. In 2014, Germany spent 11.3% of its GDP on health care.

## Culture

Culture in German states has been shaped by major intellectual and popular currents in Europe, both religious and secular. Historically, Germany has been called *Das Land der Dichter und Denker* ('the land of poets and thinkers'), because of the major role its scientists, writers and philosophers have played in the development of Western thought. A global opinion poll for the BBC revealed that Germany is recognised for having the most positive influence in the world in 2013 and 2014. Germany is well known for such folk festival traditions as Oktoberfest and Christmas customs, which include Advent wreaths, Christmas pageants, Christmas trees, Stollen cakes, and other practices. There are a number of public holidays in Germany determined by each state.