Germany (The Eagle's Dawn)

German Empire Deutsches Reich Timeline: The Eagle's Dawn
Flag Coat of arms
Motto:  Gott mit uns "God with us"
Royal anthem:  Heil dir im Siegerkranz "Hail to Thee in the Victor's Crown"
Capital (and largest city)		Berlin
Official languages		German
Regional languages		Danish • Luxembourgish • Upper Sorbian • Lower Sorbian • French • Czech
Demonym		German
Government		Federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy
-	Emperor	Karl
-	Chancellor	Christian Lindner
Legislature		Bundestag Reichstag
History
-	Unification	18 January 1871
-	Current constitution	30 May 1977
Drives on the		right

Germany (German: Deutschland), officially the German Empire (German: Deutsches Reich), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy, Slovenia, Switzerland to the south, the Netherlands and Wallonia to the northwest, France to the southwest, Denmark to the north, and Czechia, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland and Slovakia to the east. The capital and largest city is Berlin.

Since Classical antiquity, the northern territory of today's Germany has been inhabited by various Germanic tribes. An area called Germania was documented before 100 AD. In 800, the Frankish king Charlemagne was crowned emperor of the Roman Empire. Although the title lapsed in 924, it was restored in 962, after Otto I was crowned emperor of the Roman Empire, which led to the creation of the Holy Roman Empire. During the 16th century, the northern German regions became the center of the Protestant Reformation.

During the Napoleonic Wars, the Holy Roman Empire was dissolved in 1806, giving rise to the French puppet states that existed until the last phase of the Napoleonic Wars. After the end of the Napoleonic Wars and during the Congress of Vienna, the German Confederation was established in 1815. During the existence of the German Confederation, there were efforts to unify Germany. Prussian victories in the Second Schleswig War, the Austro-Prussian War, and the Franco-Prussian War led to the creation of the North German Confederation in 1866 and then to the creation of the German Empire in 1871.

In July 1914, after the crisis between Austria-Hungary and Serbia following the assassination of the heir of Austria-Hungary Franz Ferdinand was not resolved, World War I broke out between the Central Powers and the Entente Powers. World War I ended in August 1917 with the victory of the Central Powers, whereby Germany created its own hegemony in Eastern and Western Europe. In July 1937, after Japan invaded China, World War II broke out, and Germany and its allies entered the war against Japan and the Alliance of Free States. World War II ended in April 1942 with an Allied victory, but tensions between Germany and France led to the Cold War between the Imperial Bloc led by Germany and the Syndicalist Bloc led by France. After Heinz Kissinger was appointed chancellor in 1965, Germany became more of an authoritarian state under his leadership. Growing dissatisfaction with Kissinger's rule led to protests in 1977 that led to Kissinger being dismissed by Emperor Wilhelm IV. After the authoritarian governments ended in both Germany and France, relations between these countries improved and this led to the end of the Cold War.

Germany is a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy and a great power. Germany has the largest economy in Europe. Germany is a member of the League of Nations, the Central European Economic Union, and the Alliance of Europe.

History

Unification of Germany (1815-1871)

Map of the German Confederation.

After the end of the Napoleonic Wars and during the Congress of Vienna, the German Confederation was established on 8 June 1815 as a replacement for the Holy Roman Empire, which was abolished during the Napoleonic Wars on 6 August 1806. During the Revolutions of 1848, debates began about the possible unification of Germany. During the German revolutions of 1848, the German Empire was created with the aim of uniting all the German states, but it ultimately failed. The Austrian Empire supported the idea of ​​the Greater German solution, which was supposed to unite all German-speaking states under one state, while the Kingdom of Prussia supported the idea of ​​the Lesser German solution, which was supposed to unite only the northern German-speaking states. Later, tensions began between Austria and Prussia.

On 23 September 1862, King Wilhelm of Prussia appointed Otto von Bismarck as the new Minister-President of Prussia. A week later, Bismarck made a famous speech about the unification of Germany, where he said that it is not possible to unify Germany with the help of words and decisions, but with the help of iron and blood. On 1 February 1864, after Denmark attempted to annex Schleswig, Prussia and Austria invaded Denmark, starting the Second Schleswig War, which ended on 30 October of the same year with a Prussian-Austrian victory, giving Prussia control of Schleswig and Austria control of Holstein. However, this result of controlling Schleswig and Holstein led to increased tensions between Prussia and Austria, which led to the outbreak of the Austro-Prussian War on 14 June 1866, which ended with a Prussian victory on 23 August of the same year. After the end of the war, a treaty was signed between Prussia and other North German states on 18 August, which led to the creation of the North German Confederation. On 23 August, a peace treaty between Prussia and Austria was signed in Prague, confirming the dissolution of the German Confederation.

Proclamation of the German Empire in the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles. Painting from 1885 by Anton von Werner.

After the end of the Austro-Prussian War, tensions between Germany and France began. France tried to form an alliance with Austria and Italy against Prussia but was unsuccessful. Tensions between Germany and France worsened further after both countries tried to put their supporters on the Spanish throne. The tension eventually led to the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War on 19 July 1870. During this war, the French Empire ceased to exist after a republic was proclaimed on 4 September of the same year. During the Siege of Paris, the German monarchs gathered in the Hall of Mirrors of the Palace of Versailles and on 18 January 1871, proclaimed King William I of Prussia as German Emperor, creating the German Empire.

Early years (1871-1914)

Otto von Bismarck, the first German chancellor.

The Franco-Prussian War ended on 28 January 1871 with a German victory and on 10 May a peace treaty was signed in Frankfurt in which Germany acquired Alsace-Lorraine. On 3 March, the first federal elections were held in which the National Liberal Party won, making the party the largest party in the Reichstag. On 21 March, Bismarck was appointed the first chancellor of the German Empire. On 16 April, the constitution was ratified and entered into force on 4 May. Bismarck was aware that Germany did not have good relations with its neighbors such as Austria-Hungary, France and Russia, therefore Bismarck decided to try to ensure peace in Europe and this led to the formation of the League of the Three Emperors between Germany, Austria-Hungary and Russia on 22 October 1873. The main goal of the league was to improve relations between these member countries.

On 10 January 1874, federal elections were held in which the National Liberal Party remained the largest party in the Reichstag. The National Liberal Party remained the largest party in the Reichstag even in the 1877 election. On 24 April 1877, another war broke out between Russia and the Turkey, which ended on 3 March 1878 with a Russian victory. The post-war situation led to a worsening of the relationship between Germany and Russia, as Germany and other European powers did not agree to the Treaty of San Stefano, which would have led to the creation of a large Bulgarian state and Russian influence in the Balkans. Because of this situation, Bismarck decided to convene negotiations between the European powers, which led to the opening of the Congress of Berlin on 13 June, which ended on 13 July with the signing of the Treaty of Berlin and the establishment of Bulgaria as an autonomous state of Turkey. After this, relations between Germany and Russia deteriorated, leading to the end of the League of the Three Emperors, although it was revived in 1881, it existed until 1887.

Berlin Conference.

On 30 July 1878, federal elections were held in which the National Liberal Party remained the largest party in the Reichstag. Meanwhile, relations between Germany and Austria-Hungary improved, leading to the formation of a defensive alliance known as the Dual Alliance on 7 October 1879. On 27 October 1881, federal elections were held in which the Center Party became the largest party in the Reichstag. On 20 May 1882, a new defense alliance was formed between Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy known as the Triple Alliance. On 28 October 1884, federal elections were held in which the Center Party remained the largest party in the Reichstag. On 15 November 1884, a conference began in the city of Berlin with the aim of regulating both European expansion into Africa and trade there. The conference ended with a general agreement on 26 February 1885. Thanks to the conference, Germany acquired the first colonies in Africa and Oceania, creating the German colonial empire. On 21 February 1887, federal elections were held in which the National Liberal Party again became the largest party in the Reichstag.

Wilhelm II, German Emperor.

On 9 March 1888, Wilhelm I died, making his son Frederick the new German Emperor and King of Prussia, but he ruled until his death on 15 June, as Frederick was suffering from cancer of the larynx, making his son Wilhelm II the new German Emperor and King of Prussia. After Wilhelm became the new monarch, disputes began between the Emperor and German Chancellor Bismarck, which led to Wilhelm removing Bismarck from office on 20 March 1890. After Bismarck was dismissed in March 1890, Leo von Caprivi became the new chancellor. On 20 February 1890, a month before Bismarck was removed from office, federal elections were held in which the Center Party again became the largest party in the Reichstag. Industrial and commercial development took place during Caprivi's chancellorship. Caprivi also, despite the fact that he promised to renew the Reinsurance Treaty with Russia, the treaty was not renewed and Caprivi was criticized by supporters of Bismarck. On 15 June 1893, federal elections were held in which the Center Party remained the largest party in the Reichstag. On 26 October 1894, Caprivi resigned, which led to Kaiser Wilhelm II appointing Chlodwig von Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst as the new chancellor.

During Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst's chancellorship, Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst came into conflict with the Emperor over the reform of military legislation. On 16 June 1898, federal elections were held in which, although the Social Democratic Party received the most votes, the Center Party still remained the largest party in the Reichstag. On 17 October 1900, Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst resigned, which led to Kaiser Wilhelm II appointing Bernhard von Bülow as the new chancellor. A day later, the Boxer Rebellion broke out in China, which led to the joining of European powers, including Germany and Japan, in the rebellion. The rebellion ended on 7 September 1901 with the victory of the Eight-Nation Alliance. On 16 June 1903, federal elections were held in which the Center party remained the largest party in the Reichstag. On 31 March 1905, German Emperor Wilhelm visited the Moroccan city of Tangier, which led to the outbreak of the First Moroccan Crisis, which ended on 7 April 1906, with the Algeciras Conference. On 25 January 1907, federal elections were held in which the Center Party remained the largest party in the Reichstag. On 14 July 1909, Bülow resigned, which led to Kaiser Wilhelm II appointing Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg as the new chancellor.

On 1 July 1911, a German gunboat docked at the port in the Moroccan city of Agadir, which led to the outbreak of the Second Moroccan Crisis, which ended on 4 November of the same year after France ceded the territory of French Equatorial Africa to German Cameroon, while Germany ceded a small territory of Cameroon to French Chad. On 12 January 1912, federal elections were held in which the Social Democratic Party became the largest party in the Reichstag. At the end of 1913, a crisis broke out in Alsace-Lorraine after Second Lieutenant Günter Freiherr von Forstner made disparaging remarks about the people of Zabern. The crisis led to a deterioration in relations between Alsace-Lorraine and the rest of Germany.

On 28 June 1914, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie were murdered in the city of Sarajevo by Gavrilo Princip, a member of the Young Bosnia organization. The assassination of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne led to the beginning of the crisis between Austria-Hungary and Serbia. During the crisis, the German government supported Austria-Hungary while Kaiser Wilhelm was at first neutral but later also sided with Austria-Hungary. After the peace talks failed, Austria-Hungary invaded Serbia on 28 July 1914, starting World War I.

World War I (1914-1917)

A German soldier on the Western Front, 1916.

On 1 August 1914, Germany entered the war on the side of Austria-Hungary after declaring war on Russia. However, based on the Schlieffen Plan, Germany initially ignored Russia and declared war on France on 3 August, and a day later Germany invaded Belgium to attack France from the north, leading the United Kingdom to declare war on Germany. Germany initially expected to quickly defeat France in late 1914, which would allow Germany to shift its forces to the Eastern Front. From the beginning, Germany was not doing well because the Entente had successfully conquered some German colonies and the German plan to defeat France by the end of 1914 had failed. However, in 1914, countries such as Sweden, Turkey and Italy joined the side of Austria-Hungary and Germany.

Meanwhile, on the Eastern Front, Russia invaded East Prussia on 17 August 1914. However, Germany was successful in suppressing the Russian army, ending the invasion of East Prussia with a German victory on 14 September. Although Germany and Austria-Hungary failed to capture the territory of present-day Poland in 1914, in 1915 the fighting on the Eastern Front was a success for Germany and Austria-Hungary thanks to Russian defeats in the Gorlice–Tarnów offensive and later to the Russian strategic retreat which led to Germany and Austria-Hungary occupied the territory of today's Poland, Lithuania and Latvia. In the same year, Bulgaria entered the war on the side of the Central Powers. Thanks to the Russian defeats on the Eastern Front, the civil war broke out in Russia on 8 March 1917, and thanks to this, the Central Powers conquered more of the territory of European Russia. The Russian monarchist government decided to surrender due to defeats on the Eastern Front and the outbreak of civil war, which led to the signing of the Treaty of Bryansk on 16 May of the same year, withdrawing Russia from the war.

Later on 20 May, Germany launched a new offensive on the Western Front to capture Paris and force France to surrender. The offensive was successful and on the 6 July some of the first German units were already in the northern part of Paris and on the 14 August Paris was captured and France surrendered. Four days later, the United Kingdom decided to surrender, ending World War I with a victory for the Central Powers.

Interwar period (1917-1937)

Signing of the Treaty of Berlin, 1 February 1918.

On 20 November 1917, a peace conference began in Berlin where peace treaties were negotiated between the victorious Central Powers and the defeated Allies. One of the main peace treaties was the Treaty of Berlin which was signed on 1 February 1918 and entered into force on 15 May of the same year. The terms of the treaty included border and colonial changes. The peace conference was concluded on 21 May. After the war, Germany expanded its territory by acquiring parts of French Lorraine, Luxembourg and Belgian Luxembourg. Germany also expanded its colonial empire in Africa and the Pacific.

German soldiers in Prague during the Austrian Civil War, August 1918.

However, there was no peace after the war, because Germany's ally Austria-Hungary had already been in a civil war since March 1918 due to independence movements in Czechia, Hungary, Slovakia and the southern Slavic states. Although Germany initially supported the Austro-Hungarian government, noticing that Austria-Hungary was unable to suppress the rebellion, Germany eventually decided to intervene in the conflict along with other allies and this led to the end of the civil war. Later on 21 September, a treaty was signed in Vienna between several parties which became effective on 1 December and it led to the abolition of Austria-Hungary and the creation of the German and Italian puppet states. After the end of the Austrian Civil War, Germany acquired Austria and the Sudetenland. On 12 January 1919, the first post-war federal elections were held in which the Social Democratic Party remained the largest party in the Reichstag. On 1 August of the same year, due to the Posen Crisis, the Grand Duchy of Posen was restored to avoid conflict with Poland. Compared to the original Grand Duchy, in the restored Grand Duchy Poles had rights and could learn the Polish language there. The first Grand Duke of the restored Grand Duchy was Prince Leopold of Bavaria, who commanded the German and Austro-Hungarian forces on the Eastern Front during World War I and was also proposed as the first king of the restored Kingdom of Poland.

One of the other problems during and after the peace conference was the situation in Egypt, which in March 1917 declared independence from the United Kingdom. Turkey asked to annex Egypt while Germany and other victorious states refused. The situation almost escalated in the outbreak of another Egyptian-Ottoman war, but in the end Turkey did not annex Egypt. After the Egyptian crisis, relations between Germany and Turkey deteriorated. Another situation was in Ukraine, as the Ukrainian Hetman Skoropadskyi was overthrown in 1918, which led to the restoration of the Ukrainian People's Republic. Originally, Germany planned to invade Ukraine with the aim of restoring the Ukrainian state, but in the end it was agreed that the Ukrainian People's Republic could remain. On 14 September 1920, Bethmann Hollweg resigned, which led to Kaiser Wilhelm II appointing Hans Luther as the new chancellor.

Meanwhile, the civil war was still going on in Russia, and during the last phase, royalists and republicans fought each other. Germany thus decided to enter the Russian Civil War with the aim of establishing a pro-German Russian Empire. Although Germany and its allies managed to control European Russia, Siberia was largely difficult to conquer. As the situation led to a stalemate, a treaty was signed between the two sides in Moscow on 4 May 1922, in which it was decided that the Russian Empire would be restored in European Russia while Siberia would remain under the control of the republicans, thus ending the Russian Civil War. After the restoration of the Russian Empire, Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia, who had supported Germany during World War I, became the first empress of the restored Russian Empire.

Signing of the Treaty of Berlin, 21 October 1922.

During and after World War I, there were plans to create an economic union known as Mitteleuropa. After the end of the war, this idea began to be addressed in July 1922, after the leaders of several European states, whether neutral, puppet or victorious states, met in Berlin to discuss the creation of an economic union. After the conclusion of the negotiations, a treaty was signed in Berlin on 21 October of the same year, which entered into force on 1 January 1923, leading to the creation of the Central European Economic Union.

At the end of 1923, the German government headed by Luther was thinking that the imperial territories of Alsace-Lorraine and the Sudetenland should be elevated to monarchies. The idea that Alsace-Lorraine would be elevated to a monarchy was discussed as early as 1907, but in the end nothing happened. Finally, on 1 March 1924, with the approval of the German Emperor, the imperial territories of Alsace-Lorraine and Sudetenland were elevated to Grand Duchy. In Alsace-Lorraine, the first Grand Duke was the son of the German Emperor, Prince Eitel Friedrich of Prussia, while in the Sudetenland, the first Grand Duke was Archduke Franz Salvator of Austria. On 11 January 1924, federal elections were held in which the Social Democratic Party remained the largest party in the Reichstag.

German Communist soldiers during the German Revolution, 1926.

On 11 July 1926, the German Communists attempted to wage a civil war in Germany with the aim of abolishing the monarchy and establishing the German Socialist Republic, which led to the outbreak of an uprising in a few German cities, which ended in a communist defeat on 27 July. After the suppression of the communist revolution, the popularity of both communists and social democrats declined for some time. On 9 March 1927, Luther resigned, which led to Kaiser Wilhelm II appointing Elard von Oldenburg-Januschau, a member of the German Conservative Party, as the new chancellor, making Oldenburg-Januschau the first German chancellor who was a member of a party. In the same year, on 1 August, civil war broke out in China between the Kuomintang and the Chinese Communist Party. The German government decided to support the Kuomintang in the civil war and supplied weapons to the Kuomintang. On 12 January 1929, federal elections were held in which the Social Democratic Party remained the largest party in the Reichstag, but the Center Party began to gain more votes. In the same year, there was a stock market crash in the United States that led to the Great Depression. Germany partially suffered from the Great Depression. the value of the currency may have fallen, but the industry continued to function. States such as Alsace-Lorraine and the Sudetenland were the most affected by the Great Depression.

Japanese soldiers enter the Chinese city of Shenyang during the Mukden incident, 18 September 1931.

Meanwhile, Japan, which was becoming a more nationalist and militaristic country, conducted a false flag operation in the Chinese city of Mukden on 18 September 1931 to gain an excuse to invade Manchuria. After the incident, the Japanese invasion of Manchuria began, which ended on 27 February 1932 with a Japanese victory, whereby Japan created the puppet state of Manchukuo, where the last Chinese emperor of the Qing dynasty, Puyi, became the first emperor. These events were condemned by the German government and this eventually led to the German government deciding to send troops to China against both the communists and Japan, which led to a worsening of German-Japanese relations. Meanwhile, in the United Kingdom, which had been hit hard by the Great Depression, Oswald Mosley won the 1933 general election for the New Party, becoming the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom under the Mosley government became a more nationalist and authoritarian country. Former allies during World War I, Japan and the United Kingdom formed a new alliance on 21 April 1934, called the Alliance of Free States. In the same year, on 12 January, federal elections were held in which the Center Party again became the largest party in the Reichstag. On 13 October 1935, Oldenburg-Januschau resigned, which led to Kaiser Wilhelm II appointing Carl Friedrich Goerdeler, also a member of the German Conservative Party, as the new chancellor.

Due to the growing tension between China and Japan and the possible outbreak of another Sino-Japanese War, the Kuomintang and the Chinese Communist Party decided to stop fighting each other, sign an armistice and start working together, which led to the formation of an alliance called the Second United Front on 24 December 1936. In the evening hours of 7 July 1937, there was a firefight between the Chinese Army and the Japanese Army on the Marco Polo Bridge, which led to the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War and also to the outbreak of World War II.

World War II (1937-1942)

British soldiers during the Battle of Bunde, July 1937.

After Japan invaded China on 7 July 1937, Germany and its allies declared war on Japan, which led to the United Kingdom joining the war and declaring war on Germany and Germany's allies. The United Kingdom first invaded the Netherlands to attack Germany from the west. After the British had largely taken control of the Netherlands on 29 July of the same year, some British troops began entering German territory. In addition to Germany, the United Kingdom also invaded Flanders and Wallonia. On 17 August, Turkey, which no longer had good relations with Germany, entered the war on the side of the Alliance of Free States and invaded Egypt. As Turkey joined the war, West Russia invaded the Turkish puppet state of the North Caucasus. Meanwhile, Germany launched more or less successful counterattacks against British troops in the west. The British defeats in western Germany led to the creation of a plan for the United Kingdom to invade France, which was still neutral, without declaring war, so that they could invade Germany from the southwest. The plan was completed in February 1938 and on 1 June 1938 the United Kingdom invaded France without declaring war, which led to other syndicalist states joining the war on the side of France and the Allies.

As early as January 1939, the British army controlled all of Flanders and Wallonia, large parts of the provinces of Hanover and the Rhine, Luxembourg and the northern parts of France. At first it seemed that the United Kingdom and its allies would win the war, but this changed after Canada, then a dominion of the United Kingdom, invaded the United States in July 1939, so the United States joined the war on the side of Germany. The Canadian invasion of the United States turned out to be a big mistake for the United Kingdom as the United Kingdom was not able to send an army to North America to help Canada. Although Canada initially controlled almost all of New England and the northern parts of the United States, the United States later mounted successful counterattacks. Meanwhile, Germany and Italy made successful attacks on British colonies in Africa. Germany and Italy later began sending military aid to Egypt against Turkey.

German soldiers during the Battle of Maastricht, March 1941.

In late 1940 to early 1941, Germany began more successful counter-attacks on western British-occupied Germany. Germany also began to slowly liberate Flanders, the Netherlands and Wallonia from British occupation while the Commune of France also began successful counter-attacks. On 4 June 1941, ten months before the end of the war, Wilhelm II died, making his son Wilhelm the new German Emperor and King of Prussia. Meanwhile, members of the Alliance of Free States such as the United Kingdom and Turkey began to collapse into civil wars, which only helped the Allies more. In early 1942, the Mosley government in the United Kingdom was overthrown, leading to the new British government led by Ernest Thurtle announcing its surrender. Meanwhile, Japan, despite losing allies, did not surrender but faced rebellions in Korea and occupied territory in China, and later in January 1942, Japan was invaded by the United States. The Japanese army was no longer successful in counterattacking. On 22 March 1942, the Battle of Tokyo began between the Japanese army and the American army, which ended on 8 April with the Japanese defeat, thus ending World War II with the victory of the Allies.

Cold War (1942-1977)

Signing of the Treaty of Berlin, 21 October 1942.

Just as after the end of World War I, a peace conference began on 1 July 1942 in Berlin, where peace treaties were negotiated between the victorious Allies and the defeated Alliance of Free States. One of the main peace treaties was the Treaty of Berlin, which was signed on 21 October and entered into force on 21 December. Similar to the 1918 peace treaty, the terms of the treaty included border and colonial changes. The peace conference was concluded on 31 October. After the end of World War II, Germany and France emerged as superpowers and later tensions between these states began.

One of the main reasons for the tension between France and Germany that led to the beginning of the Cold War was the Spanish Civil War between the republican government supported by France and the nationalist and monarchist faction supported by Germany, which broke out in July 1936. Although between 1936 and 1937 the nationalist and monarchist faction carried out successful actions against the Republican government, after 1937 the nationalist and monarchist faction were not so successful while the Republican government carried out somewhat successful counter-attacks. During World War II, the Spanish Civil War was at a stalemate as both sides were not receiving military aid from other states. After the end of the Second World War in April 1942, large actions began again in Spain, but none of the parties achieved success. After the Berlin Peace Conference was concluded in October 1942, military aid for both sides began to arrive again.

The situation in Spain almost escalated to the outbreak of another world war, but finally in March 1943, leaders from France, Germany, the Spanish Republic and the nationalist faction met in Dresden where they discussed the possible division of Spain into Castile controlled by the nationalist and monarchist faction and Aragon controlled by the Spanish government of the Republic. Finally, both sides agreed and on 14 April they signed a treaty that led to the division of Spain into Castile and Aragon. Despite the end of the Spanish Civil War, relations between France and Germany did not improve, and the date of 14 April 1943, when the Treaty of Dresden was signed, is considered the beginning of the Cold War.

German soldiers in Vietnam, 1944.

Meanwhile, after World War II ended in 1942, the Chinese Civil War resumed between the German-backed Kuomintang and the French-backed Chinese Communist Party. Meanwhile, on 14 January 1944, the first post-war federal elections were held in which the Center Party remained the largest party in the Reichstag. The Chinese Civil War ended on 17 August 1944 with the victory of the Kuomintang, leaving the Kuomintang in power while the Chinese Communists fled into exile either in the Far East or in other communist and syndicalist states. In the same year, on 13 July, an uprising broke out in German Indochina which led to the beginning of the Indochina War. During the Indochina War, France and other syndicalist states supported the syndicalist and communist movements in Indochina, but in the end these movements were defeated because they did not receive much military support. Meanwhile, relations between Germany and Italy began to deteriorate. The reason for the deterioration of the relationship between these states was that Italy also proved to be a superpower after World War II and, moreover, Italy had its own influence in the Balkans. Later, on 21 February 1945, Italy, Bulgaria and their puppet states left the Central European Economic Union and established the Mediterranean Union. These events between Germany and Italy are referred to as the German-Italian Split. In May 1946, leaders from the German puppet states and pro-German states met in Berlin to discuss the formation of a military alliance. Finally, on 21 July 1946, a treaty was signed in Berlin that led to the creation of a military alliance called the Reichspakt.

Meanwhile, Germany was not so successful in suppressing the pro-independence uprisings in Indochina as the uprisings were greatly supported by citizens in Indochina who wanted to abolish monarchies and establish democratic republics. Meanwhile in Germany it was decided that the Province of Hanover and the Duchy of Brunswick would merge together which eventually happened, with the approval of the Emperor, leading to the creation of the Kingdom of Hanover-Brunswick on 20 June 1947, with the Duke of Brunswick and Head of the House of Hanover, Ernest Augustus, as the first monarch. Meanwhile, on 14 January 1949, federal elections were held in which the Center Party remained the largest party in the Reichstag. The Indochina War ended after a ceasefire was reached in the Vietnamese city of Bảo Lộc between the two sides on 27 July 1951, ending the war with the victory of the independence movements. Later on 14 September of the same year, leaders from Germany, Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam met in the Chinese city of Taipei where they signed a peace treaty that became effective on 5 December, recognizing the independence of Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam.

On 2 August 1953, Goerdeler resigned, which led to Kaiser Wilhelm III appointing Hans Schütz, a member of the Center Party, as the new chancellor. On 15 January 1954, federal elections were held in which the Center Party remained the largest party in the Reichstag. Later, the new German government thought about the possible destruction of the Kingdom of Italy and its influence without Germany having to invade Italy. Later, the government began to notice pro-independence movements in the Balkans and decided that there would be an uprising that Germany would support. In the end, the government decided to support the Slovenian independence movement so that, if the uprising in Slovenia succeeded, it would send arms across the border between Germany and Slovenia for the Slovenian insurgents. On 1 March 1955, an uprising broke out in the Slovenian city of Ljubljana, which led to the outbreak of the Third Balkan War and the outbreak of new Italian Wars.

Slovenian insurgents during the Battle of Škofja Loka, May 1955.

The Slovenian uprising turned out to be a success because the Duchy of Slovakia slowly began to dissolve and later the uprisings of other Italian puppet states in the Balkans broke out. Later, another problem started for Italy, namely the uprising in the Italian colonies in July 1956, which started the Italian Colonial War. Italy's failure to suppress rebellions in the Balkans and in the colonies led to dissatisfaction with the Italian government and the monarchy, which eventually led to the outbreak of a pro-republican uprising in the city of Milan on 16 April 1958, starting the Italian Civil War. The Kingdom of Italy ceased to exist in February 1959 when Italy broke up into several states while the Italian Monarchy fled to Sardinia where the Kingdom of Sardinia was restored thus ending the Italian Wars. Meanwhile in Germany, on 26 July 1958 Schütz resigned, which led to Kaiser Wilhelm III appointing Alfons Gorbach, a member of the Center Party, as the new chancellor. On 16 January 1959, federal elections were held in which the Center party remained the largest party in the Reichstag.

The situation after the Italian Wars caused difficulties for the pro-Italian states such as South France which was invaded by the Commune of France on 21 June 1960, thus starting the French War which ended with the victory of the Commune of France on 11 February 1962, whereby the Commune of France annexed South France. Another pro-Italian state was Bulgaria, where another civil war broke out on 5 October 1961, which ended on 9 September 1962 with a republican victory, thus establishing the Republic of Bulgaria. On 17 August 1962, Wilhelm III died, making his son Wilhelm the German Emperor and King of Prussia. On 17 January 1964, federal elections were held in which the Center Party remained the largest party in the Reichstag. On 4 April 1965, Gorbach resigned, which led to Kaiser Wilhelm IV appointing Heinz Kissinger, a member of the German Conservative Party, as the new chancellor.

Heinz Kissinger, Chancellor of Germany and Minister-President of Prussia from 1965 to 1977.

Kissinger was known for his anti-communist and anti-syndicalist views. When Kissinger noticed the victory of the Fascist parties in England and France, Kissinger decided that there would be coups in the puppet and neutral states where the leftist government was in power to prevent the emergence of new communist and syndicalist states. The German government and the Imperial Intelligence Service started Operation Eagle, which was campaigning to overthrow left-wing governments both in German puppet states and in some neutral states. For the most part, the German-backed coup d'etats were successful. Meanwhile, in German Africa, an uprising broke out in the city of Brazzaville on 4 June 1966, leading to the start of the German Colonial War.

A destroyed German tank during the German Colonial War, 1966.

Later, other uprisings broke out in other African cities in German Africa. In addition to the uprisings in the German colonies in Africa, uprisings also broke out in other German colonies such as Malaysia and New Guinea. Kissinger, horrified by a possible German defeat similar to the German defeat in Indochina, began to consider operations that could quickly suppress the insurgency. Some operations, such as the bombing of some colonial territories that were under the control of the rebels, were a controversial decision, as several civilians lost their lives, which only led to more support for the rebels against German rule in the colonies. Meanwhile, the first African states were proclaimed in German Africa. Although the rebels in the colonies had a lot of support from the local citizens, Germany still had its puppet states and some of them sent military aid to Germany. Meanwhile, in Germany, on 17 January 1969, federal elections were held in which the Center Party remained the largest party, but more people began to vote for the Independent Social Democratic Party, which was for stopping the colonial war and ending the Cold War in a peaceful way.

Since the 1970s, Kissinger's government has become unpopular due to military coups in puppet countries, colonial war and Kissinger's intimidation of the opposition. On 18 January 1974, federal elections were held in which the Independent Social Democratic Party became the largest party in the Reichstag. After the victory of the Independent Social Democratic Party, Kissinger, who was horrified to learn the election results, considered a possible ban on left-wing political parties, including the Independent Social Democratic Party. Although Kissinger's cabinet contained mostly anti-socialist politicians, many of them realized that banning left-wing parties would not be a good solution and would lead to both a decline in the government's popularity and the outbreak of civil war.

Anti-government protests in Berlin, 14 February 1977.

On 2 February 1977, anti-government protests began in Berlin. In the beginning, these were small protests, but later they spread to other German cities and even to other countries. The protests and revolutions during 1977 are known as the Revolutions of 1977. When Kissinger began to notice more support for the protests, he considered suppressing the protests. However, this idea was rejected by both cabinet ministers and Kaiser Wilhelm IV, which led to many ministers resigning their leadership positions rather than supporting Kissinger. However, Kissinger stood his ground while the Emperor was still against it, and finally on 25 February 1977, the Emperor decided to dismiss Kissinger, which led to Kaiser Wilhelm IV appointing Richard von Weizsäcker, a member of the Center Party, as the new chancellor. After Kissinger was removed from power, reforms took place. The new chancellor, Richard von Weizsäcker, announced that the first general elections would be held in March and the new constitution would come into force in May. Weizsäcker also announced that all German puppet states would become independent. Weizsäcker also announced that Germany was ending the colonial war and that it would recognize all states that had declared independence, thus ending the colonial war with the victory of the independence movements.

Bruno Kreisky, the first Chancellor of Germany who was elected in the first general election.

Although the reforms became popular, Kissinger and his allies such as Friedhelm Busse, Otto Ernst Remer, Franz Schönhuber and others were against the reforms and on 3 March, the day before the first general elections were held, they attempted to overthrow the new government and restore a Kissinger government that would abolish the monarchy. However, the coup failed and Kissinger and his allies were later put on trial and eventually all were sentenced to prison. On 4 March, the first general elections were held, in which the Independent Social Democratic Party won and Bruno Kreisky became the first chancellor to be elected in the first general elections. Kreisky took office on 25 March. The new government headed by Kreisky also started other reforms.

Meanwhile, in Posen and other Polish-speaking territories, where since February there have been protests demanding that these territories be annexed to Poland, Kreisky decided to go to Poland, where he met with the new Prime Minister of Poland, Kazimierz Sabbat, who discussed the Polish-speaking territories in Germany. Finally, on 1 May, a treaty was signed between the two parties in Warsaw, which entered into force on 21 August, whereby the Polish-speaking territories in Germany were annexed to Poland. Meanwhile, on 30 May, a constitution came into force that limited the power of the emperor. Later, Kreisky decided that the Chancellor of Germany would no longer be the Minister-President of Prussia, which led to the first state elections in Prussia being held on 4 June, in which Rainer Barzel won for the Center Party, thus becoming the first Minister-President to be elected in the first Prussian state elections. Later, the German government resolved the situation of the Lusatian Serbs and finally decided that the State of Lusatia would be created, which led to the creation of the Duchy of Lusatia on 15 June, and Prince Johann Georg of Hohenzollern became the first duke of Lusatia.

(WIP)

Government and politics

Germany is a federal constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system. The head of state is the emperor (currently Karl). The executive power is represented by the government headed by the Chancellor (currently Christian Lindner).

Legislative power in Germany is vested in a parliament consisting of two legislatures, the Bundestag and the Reichstag.

Federal states

(WIP)

Kingdoms

Name	Population	Capital		Monarch
Kingdom of Bavaria (Königreich Bayern) (German) (Kinereich Bayern) (Bavarian)	16,748,261	Munich		Francis
Kingdom of Hanover-Brunswick (Königreich Hannover-Braunschweig)	7,194,325	Hanover		Ernest Augustus III
Kingdom of Prussia (Königreich Preußen)	8,191,417	Berlin		Karl
Kingdom of Saxony (Königreich Sachsen)	3,746,917	Dresden		John II
Kingdom of Württemberg (Königreich Württemberg)	9,651,419	Stuttgart		Charles II

Grand Duchies

Name	Population	Capital		Monarch
Grand Duchy of Alsace-Lorraine (Großherzogtum Elsass-Lothringen) (German) (Grand-Duché d'Alsace-Lorraine) (French)	2,732,072	Straßburg		Frederick II
Grand Duchy of Baden (Großherzogtum Baden)	2,114,635	Karlsruhe		Bernhard
Grand Duchy of Hesse (Großherzogtum Hessen)	5,328,024	Darmstadt		Louis VI
Grand Duchy of Luxembourg (Großherzogtum Luxemburg) (German) (Groussherzogtum Lëtzebuerg) (Luxembourgish) (Grand-Duché de Luxembourg) (French)	1,078,634	Luxembourg		Henri
Grand Duchy of Oldenburg (Großherzogtum Oldenburg)	940,128	Oldenburg		Christian
Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (Großherzogtum Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach)	253,668	Weimar		Michael
Grand Duchy of the Sudetenland (Großherzogtum Sudetenland) (German) (Sudetské velkovévodství) (Czech)	3,207,021	Reichenberg		Charles II

archduchies

Name	Population	Capital		Monarch
Archduchy of Austria (Erzherzogtum Österreich)	11,207,638	Vienna		Charles V

Duchies

Name	Population	Capital		Monarch
Duchy of Anhalt (Herzogtum Anhalt)	321,490	Dessau		Joachim Ernst II
Duchy of Lusatia (Herzogtum Lausitz) (German) (Łužiske wojewódstwo) (Upper Sorbian) (Łužyske wójwodstwo) (Lower Sorbian)	1,847,936	Cottbus		Charles
Duchy of Saxe-Altenburg (Herzogtum Sachsen-Altenburg)	221,085	Altenburg		George III
Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Herzogtum Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha)	93,514	Gotha		Andrew
Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen (Herzogtum Sachsen-Meiningen)	71,073	Meiningen		Konrad

Principalities

Name	Population	Capital		Monarch
Principality of Lippe (Fürstentum Lippe)	259,748	Detmold		Stephen
Principality of Schaumburg-Lippe (Fürstentum Schaumburg-Lippe)	36,901	Bückeburg		Alexander
Principality of Schwarzburg (Fürstentum Schwarzburg)	92,355	Rudolstadt		Frederick II
Principality of Waldeck and Pyrmont (Fürstentum Waldeck und Pyrmont)	78,642	Arolsen		Wittekind

Free and Hanseatic Cities

Name	Population	Capital
Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (Fürstentum Lippe)	810,963	Bremen
Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg)	2,137,645	-
Free and Hanseatic City of Lübeck (Freie und Hansestadt Lübeck)	220,165	Lübeck