A Brief Overview of "German" History
“Germany” within the
Holy Roman Empire:
During the 16th 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-19th 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.
Looks impressive to me. I think you are doing great!. Lots of hard work well done.
ReplyDeleteLooks impressive to me. I think you are doing great!. Lots of hard work well done.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this - in some of the family trees in Australia I am investigating there is German heritage and so really appreciate your project
ReplyDeleteFor a second I thought you meant Austria (but then I understood that you actually meant Australia). That's actually really fascinating, I would have never imagined that being the case.
DeleteWow. Very impressive.
ReplyDeleteThis is a nice introduction to the history of Deutschland (Germany). My dad was stationed in southern Germany, so my family was living there when the Iron Curtain came down.
ReplyDeleteBraedon, are you the son of Greg and Noni Davies of Nauvoo Pageant fame?
ReplyDeleteSorry, it's been a while since I've checked up on this blog. Anyways, yes I am their son. I've been in the pageant a few times. How do you know them?
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