Grand Duchy of Luxembourg

The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg is a country located in Europe that is Southeast of the Kingdom of Belgium, West of the German Empire and North of the territory of Alsace-Lorraine. Luxembourg is the smallest Puppet State of the German Empire ever known to exist.

## History

### Origins

After the defeat of Napoleon in 1815, Luxembourg was disputed between Prussia and the Netherlands. The Congress of Vienna formed Luxembourg as a Grand Duchy within the German Confederation. The Dutch king became, in personal union, the Grand Duke. Although he was supposed to rule the Grand Duchy as an independent country with an administration of its own, in reality he treated it similarly to a Dutch province. The Fortress of Luxembourg was manned by Prussian troops for the German Confederation. This arrangement was revised by the 1839 First Treaty of London, from which date Luxembourg's full independence is reckoned.

At the time of the Belgian Revolution of 1830–1839, and by the 1839 Treaty establishing full independence, Luxembourg's territory was reduced by more than half, as the predominantly francophone western part of the country was transferred to Belgium.[*citation needed*] In 1842 Luxembourg joined the German Customs Union (Zollverein). This resulted in the opening of the German market, the development of Luxembourg's steel industry, and expansion of Luxembourg's railway network from 1855 to 1875, particularly the construction of the Luxembourg-Thionville railway line, with connections from there to the European industrial regions. While Prussian troops still manned the fortress, in 1861, the Passerelle was opened, the first road bridge spanning the Pétrusse river valley, connecting the Ville Haute and the main fortification on the Bock with Luxembourg railway station, opened in 1859, on the then fortified Bourbon plateau to the south.[*citation needed*]

After the Luxembourg Crisis of 1866 nearly led to war between Prussia and France, the Grand Duchy's independence and neutrality were again affirmed by the 1867 Second Treaty of London, Prussia's troops were withdrawn from the Fortress of Luxembourg, and its Bock and surrounding fortifications were dismantled.

The King of the Netherlands remained Head of State as Grand Duke of Luxembourg, maintaining a personal union between the two countries until 1890. At the death of William III, the throne of the Netherlands passed to his daughter Wilhelmina, while Luxembourg (then restricted to male heirs by the Nassau Family Pact) passed to his third cousin, Adolph of Nassau-Weilburg.

At the time of the Franco-Prussian war in 1870, despite allegations about French use of the Luxembourg railways for passing soldiers from Metz (then part of France) through the Duchy, and for forwarding provisions to Thionville, Luxembourg's neutrality was respected by Germany, and neither France nor Germany invaded the country. But in 1871, as a result of Germany's victory over France, Luxembourg's boundary with Lorraine, containing Metz and Thionville, changed from being a frontier with a part of France to a frontier with territory annexed to the German Empire as Alsace-Lorraine under the Treaty of Frankfurt. This allowed Germany the military advantage of controlling and expanding the railways there.

Luxembourg remained a possession of the kings of the Netherlands until the death of William III in 1890, when the grand duchy passed to the House of Nassau-Weilburg due to the 1783 Nassau Family Pact, under which those territories of the Nassau family in the Holy Roman Empire at the time of the pact (Luxembourg and Nassau) were bound by semi-Salic law, which allowed inheritance by females or through the female line only upon extinction of male members of the dynasty. When William III died leaving only his daughter Wilhelmina as an heir, the crown of the Netherlands, not being bound by the family pact, passed to Wilhelmina. However, the crown of Luxembourg passed to a male of another branch of the House of Nassau: Adolphe, the dispossessed Duke of Nassau and head of the branch of Nassau-Weilburg.

### Invasion

The Germans invaded in 1914 as they then occupied the country until the end of WWI. Their purpose was to invade the Low Countries as to invade Britain who was trying to liberate France from German occupation.

### After WWI

After the War Germany turned Luxembourg into a puppet state ruled by it's Grand Duchess Marie-Adélaïde, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg who then married Philipp Albrecht, Duke of Württemberg who was replaced as heir of the Duchy of Württemberg by his brother. After their marriage the Duchy then transformed into a Puppet State of Germany controlled by the Military Administration and Conservative Catholics who have strict authority over the country as the Duchess is a ceremonial Head of State.

## Government

The Government of Luxembourg is a Constitutional Monarchy in which the Grand Duke/Grand Duchess rules as Head of State of the country. The Grand Duke/Grand Duchess are only ceremonial heads of state as the government is controlled by the Reichkommissar who is appointed by the Germans. The Reichkommissar appoints members of the National Union Government who are elected by the Royal Council of Monarchists who are the leaders of the Monarchist Parties elected into power by Monarchists. The Royal Council then elects a Prime Minister who is appointed by the Grand Duke/Duchess.

#### **Administration of the Luxembourger Reichkommissarat**

* **Grand Duchess:** Marie-Adélaïde
* **Reichkommissarat:** Damian Kratzenberg
* **Prime Minister:** Curt Haase
* **Foreign Minister:** Joseph Bech
* **Armament Minister:** Gustave Farver
* **Minister of Defense:** Max Simon
* **Minister of Intelligence:** Jules Prussen
* **Chief of Staff:** Aloyse Glodt
* **Chief of Army:** Felix Bourbon-Parma
* **Chief of Military Police:** Emile Speller

## Military

Luxembourg only has 400 infantry divisions and 120 Artillery Guns.

## Foreign Relations

* Great Relations with the Kingdom of Belgium and the German Empire
* Bad Relations with the Kingdom of the Netherlands.