Question: when did germany take alsace lorraine from france
Answer: The Imperial Territory of Alsace - Lorraine ( German : Reichsland Elsaß - Lothringen or Elsass - Lothringen , French : Terre d'Empire d'Alsace - Lorraine or Alsace - Moselle ) was a territory created by the German Empire in 1871 , after it annexed most of Alsace and the Moselle department of Lorraine following its victory in the Franco - Prussian War .