The German Confederation
The German Confederation 1815–1866
The German Confederation was created by the Congress of Vienna on 8 June 1815 after the end of the Napoleonic Wars. It came to an end as a result of the Austro-Prussian War of 1866 that resulted in the North German Confederation in 1867 which included Prussia but excluded Austria and the South German states. During November 1870 the four southern states joined the North German Confederation by treaty.
On 10 December 1870 the North German Confederation renamed the Confederation as the German Empire and gave the title of German Emperor to the King of Prussia as President of the Confederation.
The principal states within the Confederation included (maps follow this table):
| Country |
Capital |
Code |
Main Map |
Insert map |
| Kingdoms |
| Prussia |
Berlin |
PRE |
D5: I4 |
O4: O8: T8: V8: W4: Y2 |
| Bavaria |
Munich |
BAV |
D8: F8 |
R10 |
| Saxony |
Dresden |
KSA |
G6 |
Y8 |
| Hanover (UK Geo 3, Geo 4, Wm were also K. of Hanover) |
Hanover |
HAN |
E4 |
S2: S4: U5 |
| Wurttemberg |
Stuttgart |
WUE |
E9 |
|
| Electorate |
| Hesse-Kassel (to Prussia: Hesse-Nassau 1866) |
Kassel |
HSE |
|
Q2: R6: T8 |
| Grand Duchies |
| Baden |
Karlsruhe |
BAD |
D9 |
|
| Hesse and by Rhine (Hesse to 1816) |
Darmstadt |
GHE |
E7 |
P6: Q9: Q10 |
| Luxembourg (lost territory in the west to Belgium in 1839) |
Luxembourg |
LUX |
C7 |
|
| Mecklenburg-Strelitz |
Neustrelitz |
MST |
F3: G3 |
|
| Mecklenburg-Schwerin |
Schwerin |
MSW |
G3 |
|
| Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach |
Weimar |
SWE |
|
S8: U5: U6: U8: V5: W8 |
| Duchies |
| Anhalt-Bernburg (to Anhalt 1863) |
Bernburg |
ANB |
|
U4: V3: V4: X3 |
| Anhalt-Dessau (Duchy of Anhalt from 1863) |
Dessau |
ANH |
|
U3: W3; W4: X3 |
| Anhalt-Köthen (to Anhalt-Dessau 1847) |
Köthen |
ANK |
|
V4: W3:W4 |
| Brunswick |
Braunschweig |
BSW |
|
S4: T2: U2: U4 |
| Holstein (to Prussia 1866) |
Kiel |
HOL |
E3 |
|
| Limburg (from Netherlands 1839 returned to Netherlands 1866) |
Limburg |
LIM |
C6 |
|
| Nassau (to Prussia: Hesse-Nassau 1866) |
Weisbaden |
NAS |
|
O9 |
| Oldenburg (Grand Duchy from 1829) |
Oldenburg |
OLD |
D4: D7: F3 |
O1 |
| Saxe-Altenburg (from 1826) |
Altenburg |
SAN |
See constituent states: SAB |
| Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (Gotha to SCS & Altenburg to SAN 1826) |
Gotha |
SAB |
|
T6: T7: V7: X7 |
| Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (to 1826) |
Coburg |
SCS |
|
U9 |
| Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (from 1826) |
Coburg and Gotha |
SCG |
See consituent states: SAB: SCS |
| Saxe-Lauenburg (to 1814 and from 1865) |
Ratzeburg |
SLG |
F3 |
|
| Saxe-Meiningen (includes SHN from 1826) |
Meiningen |
SMN |
|
S7:S9: T8: U6: U7: V6: W6 |
| Saxe-Hildburghausen (absorbed into SMN from 1826) |
Hildburghausen |
SHN |
|
U9 |
| Schleswig (from 1848 to 1851 only) |
Schleswig |
SWG |
E2 |
|
| Principalities |
| Hohenzollern-Hechingen (to Prussia 1849) |
Hechingen |
HOG |
E9 |
|
| Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (to Prussia 1849) |
Sigmaringen |
HOS |
E9 |
|
| Liechtenstein |
Vaduz |
LIE |
E10 |
|
| Lippe-Detmold |
Detmold |
LIP |
|
Q3 |
| Lichtenberg (within SAB/SCG to 1834 then sold to PRE) |
Trier |
LTG |
D8 |
|
| Reuss Greiz or Reuss Senior Line |
Greiz |
REU |
|
W8: X8 |
| Reuss Gera or Reuss Junior Line (from 1848) |
Gera |
REJ |
|
W8 |
| Reuss-Schleiz (merged to form the Reuss Junior line 1848) |
Schleiz |
RES |
|
W9 |
| Reuss-Gera (merged to form the Reuss Junior line 1848) |
Gera |
REG |
|
W7 |
| Reuss-Lobenstein (to the Reuss-Gera 1824) |
Lobenstein |
REL |
|
V9 |
| Reuss-Ebersdorf (merged to form the Reuss Junior line 1848) |
Ebersdorf |
REE |
|
U10 |
| Schaumburg-Lippe |
Buckeburg |
SLP |
|
Q2 |
| Schwarzburg-Sondershausen |
Sondershausen |
SSD |
|
U6: U7: U8 |
| Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt |
Rudolstadt |
SRU |
|
T5: T6: T8: U6: U8 V8 |
| Waldeck and Pyrmont |
Arolsen |
WAL |
|
P6: Q3 |
| Landgraviate |
| Hesse-Homburg (from Hesse-Darmstadt 1817 to Prussia 1866) |
Bad Homburg |
HHG |
D7 |
P10 |
| Free and Hanseatic Cities |
| Lubeck |
Lubeck |
LUE |
F3 |
|
| Bremen |
Bremen |
BRM |
E4 |
|
| Hamburg |
Hamburg |
HBG |
E3: F3 |
|
| Free City |
| Frankfurt upon Main (to Prussia: Hesse-Nassau 1866) |
Frankfurt |
FUM |
|
P10 |
The states within the Austrian Empire and its influence that were in the 1815 Confederation were:
Kingdom of Bohemia
Archduchy of Austria (split into Upper and Lower 1849)
Margraviate of Moravia
Duchy of Salzburg
Duchy of Carinthia
Duchy of Carniola
Duchy of Upper and Lower Silesia
Duchy of Styria
Country of Gorizia and Gradisca
Margraviate of Istria
Imperial Free City of Trieste
Princely County of Tyrol
Vorarlberg
Not included were:
Kingdom of Hungary
Grand Principality of Transylvania
Kingdom of Croatia (all of which became parts of the apostolic kingdom of Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia
Duchy of Bukovina
Kingdom of Dalmatia
Kingdom of Galicia
Kingdom of Lodomeria
Kingdom of Illyria
The North German Confederation 1815–1866
The North German Confederation was a federation of 22 independent states of northern Germany. It was formed by a constitution accepted by the member states in 1867 and controlled military and foreign policy. It included the new Reichstag, a parliament elected by universal manhood suffrage and a secret ballot. The Reichstag could debate and deal with budgets, but it had limited power compared to the Federal Council which represented the member states. The Confederation was dominated by its designer and first and only Chancellor, Otto von Bismarck, who was also the prime minister of the Kingdom of Prussia, which had 80% of the population
| Country |
Capital |
Code |
| Kingdoms |
| Prussia |
Berlin |
PRE |
| Saxony |
Dresden |
KSA |
| Grand Duchies |
| Hesse (only Upper north of River Main) |
Giessen |
HEG |
| Mecklenburg-Strelitz |
Neustrelitz |
MST |
| Mecklenburg-Schwerin |
Schwerin |
MSW |
| Oldenburg |
Oldenburg |
OLD |
| Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach |
Weimar |
SWE |
| Duchies |
| Anhalt |
Dessau |
ANH |
| Brunswick |
Braunschweig |
BSW |
| Lippe |
Detmold |
LIP |
| Saxe-Altenburg |
Altenburg |
SAG |
| Saxe-Coburg and Gotha |
Coburg and Gotha |
SCG |
| Saxe-Meiningen |
Meiningen |
SMN |
| Principalities |
| Reuss Greiz or Reuss Senior Line |
Greiz |
REU |
| Reuss Junior Line |
Gera |
REJ |
| Schaumburg-Lippe |
Buckeburg |
SLP |
| Schwarzburg-Sondershausen |
Sondershausen |
SSD |
| Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt |
Rudolstadt |
SRU |
| Waldeck and Pyrmont |
Arolsen |
WAL |
| Free and Hanseatic Cities |
| Lubeck |
Lubeck |
LUE |
| Bremen |
Bremen |
BRM |
| Hamburg |
Hamburg |
HBG |
The Thuringen States were an especially complex mish-mash of tiny countries with multiple enclaves in the region of the modern state of Thuringen.
Their boundaries varied during the course of the life of the Confederation. The adjacent map shows the status at the start of the Confederation in 1815.
Not all enclaves are labelled, but they are coloured to indicate their relationships.
[Note that there are Prussian, Bavarian, Hessen and Saxon enclaves in the area as well.]
By the demise of the Confederation in 1866 the following states survived having merged with their associated neighbours through various arrangements including sales and extinctions of princely families as outlined in the above tables and the lower map.
Reuss Greiz or Reuss senior line - REU
Reuss junior line - REJ
Saxe-Altenburg - SAN
Saxe-Coburg and Gotha - SCG<
Saxe-Meiningen - SMN
Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach - SWE
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt - SRU
Schwarzburg-Sondershausen - SSD
The following northern states did not join the brief North German Confederation in 1866:
• Kingdoms: Bavaria, Wuttenburg (both joined the Empire in 1871)
• Grand Duchies: Baden (joined the Empire in 1871), Hesse and by Rhine (south of the Main), Luxembourg
• Principalities: Liechtenstein
The German Empire 1871-1918
See Guide entitled, German (Empire). |
