A Brief Overview of "German" History

Religious association in the German Empire (or German Reich), which was impacted by the Reformation.  The green areas indicate stronger Catholic influence, while the tan areas indicate strong Protestant influence.  Courtesy of Angr on Wikimedia Commons.  (Click to enlarge.)

Welcome to my first German Family History Blog.  In this series, I will be discussing basics of German genealogical research.  In today’s post, I will be giving a brief history of “Germany,” going from 1500 onward.  This summary will help modern researchers better understand central Europe and provide them with a basic foundation.

“Germany” within the Holy Roman Empire:

During the 16^th century, modern-day Germany was part of the Holy Roman Empire.  Rulers of the Holy Roman Empire—and later on, German rulers—were called Kaiser, which was derived from the Latin Caesar.  Most of the subjects were Roman Catholic by tradition.  One monk, Martin Luther who is credited with beginning the Protestant Reformation, voiced opposition to religious teachings and practices.  Hostilities between Catholics and Protestants escalated into wide-spread conflict, called the Thirty Years War (1618-1648).

During 1648, various treaties established the Peace of Westphalia.  At this time, the Holy Roman Empire had roughly 300 territories.  Some of the areas were very small, sometimes just a few square miles.  Napoleon Bonaparte rose to power and began conquering nearby regions and merged them into the French Empire.  In 1806, the Holy Roman Emperor Francis II was forced to resign after losing multiple battles.  Napoleon created a French satellite-state called the Confederation of the Rhine.

Rise of Germany as a Military Power

Seeking their own autonomous leadership, 39 territories replaced the Confederation of the Rhine with the German Confederation in 1815.  About 50 years afterwards, the Kingdom of Prussia rose to prominence and led the creation of the North German Confederation (1866-1871). 

Neighboring Austria had exerted its influence on Hungary and southern-Slavic nations, especially Yugoslavia.  Since the mid-19^th century, tensions had been building up between European powers.  The assassination of Franz Ferdinand, an Austrian prince, brought about the Great War (or World War I).  Despite general enmity towards Austrian leaders (particularly from the British Empire, Russia, and France), the German Kaiser ran to their aid.  Germany and Austria were defeated by the opposing combatants.  The former was required to make war reparations and once again cede territory to neighboring countries (including France).

German Nationalism Emerges Again

Following this defeat, the “German states” formed the Weimar Republic in 1919, named after the new capital.  Many national parties sought to restore the former prestige and glory of the Empire.  One of these groups, known as the Nazis (the National Socialist German Workers' Party) surpassed the others.  On 30 January 1933, their leader Adolf Hitler became Chancellor.  The party promised economic and social reform to the impoverished citizens.

Hitler began wanted to bring together German-speaking areas, including Austria along with parts of the Czech Republic and Poland—the latter through invasion.  These military advances provoked reaction by neighboring countries.  The resulting World War II began in 1939 and claimed millions of lives—both in soldiers and civilians.  After enduring brutal warfare with German forces, soldiers from the newly formed Soviet Union entered Berlin in 1945.  After the surrender of Nazi Germany, the nation was divided between France, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Soviet Union.  The Soviets also built a wall separating eastern Germany from their western counterpart.  In 1990, the Berlin Wall came down and Germany was re-united once more.

Even through recent times, “Germany” has gone through numerous changes.  For much of its history, the nation we know today was split among various kingdoms, duchies, states, and cities.  It took nearly 150 years for their national ambition to be fully realized.  About 10% of Canadians and almost 20% of Americans claim German descent.  Despite the ethnic diversity of the United States, the most widely claimed ancestry is German.  Thanks for reading this week’s blog!  Next week, I will be discussing documents and their usefulness.