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Napoleon Invades German Lands
On January 1, 1806, Napoleon invaded the German lands with the French army. During this timespan, Napoleon made many territorial changes in Germany. On January 1, 1812, Napoleon's army was defeated. -
Otto Von Bismarks birth
Otto Von Bismark was born on April 1,1815, at his families estate in the Prussian heartland west of Berlin. Germany became a unified union under Otto Von Bismark. -
German Confederation
After the Congress of Vienna, the German states were reorganized into the German Confederation. This grouping united them again into their own German country, but without Napoleon ruling it. This was a positive event in the timeline of German Nationalism because it was the beginning of a combined German country without foreign rule. -
The Zollverein
The Zollverein was a coalition of German states formed to manage tariffs and economic policies within their territories. The zollverein was organized by the Zollverein treaties and formally came into existence -
The throne offer
Frederick William was offered the throne by Prussia. He was king of Prussia from 1840-1861 when he was proved to be an unreliable and erratic leader duriing the German Revlution of 1848. -
Blood and Iron Speech
On September 30, 1862, Otto Von Bismarck gave his famous "Blood and Iron" speech before the Landtag, the Prussian Legislature. In his speech, Bismarck claimed that the international policy of a modern state is built upon the willingness to fight (Blood), and the willingness to spend vast amounts of public treasure in creating giant armies (Iron). -
Bismarck elected Prime Minister
This was a positive event for German Unification. It was the beginings of a strong leader who would lead the German Confederation to unification through 'iron and blood'. -
Danish War and Seven Weeks' War
Prussia prevented Denmark from gaining Schleswig and captured Holstein from Austria. These new territorial gains were positive in the way that Prussia expanded territorially, promoting a pride in the achievments of its military. -
Bismarck declares war on Austria
In 1866, Bismarck created a treaty with Austria that said that Prussia was to control Schleswig and Austria would control Holstein. This treaty backfired and resulted in the defeat of Austria by the Prussian army. -
Franco-Prussian War
Prussia initiated a war against France, who came and began to attack the southern german states. The southern states then ran for help to Prussia, who then advanced into France and gained the southern states into the North German Confederation. This was positive because it united all of the german states together. -
Bismarck becomes Chancellor
Otto Von Bismarck became Chancellor of Germany. Germany became a unified nation under the leadership of the "Iron Chancellor," Otto Von Bismarck. -
Germany Adopts Constitution
Germany accepted a constitution and set up a new government for the empire. This was positive because Germany now had a stable government and a strong leader with set rules to go by. -
Economic Development
During this time period, Germany was making many economic advancements. They started to create railroads to connect the German states and they made tariffs to protect businesses and prevent their economy from collapsing when the economic depression hit Europe.