List of states of the German Confederation

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The German Confederation, 1815-1866 (in German) Deutscher Bund.png
The German Confederation, 1815–1866 (in German)

The states of the German Confederation were those member states that from 20 June 1815 were part of the German Confederation, which lasted, with some changes in the member states, until 24 August 1866, under the presidency of the Austrian imperial House of Habsburg, which was represented by an Austrian presidential envoy to the Federal diet in Frankfurt.

German Confederation association of 39 German states in Central Europe from 1815 to 1866

The German Confederation was an association of 39 German-speaking states in Central Europe, created by the Congress of Vienna in 1815 to coordinate the economies of separate German-speaking countries and to replace the former Holy Roman Empire, which had been dissolved in 1806. The German Confederation excluded German-speaking lands in the eastern portion of the Kingdom of Prussia, the German cantons of Switzerland, and Alsace within France which was majority German speaking.

House of Habsburg Austrian dynastic family

The House of Habsburg, also called the House of Austria, was one of the most influential and distinguished royal houses of Europe. The throne of the Holy Roman Empire was continuously occupied by the Habsburgs from 1438 until their extinction in the male line in 1740. The house also produced emperors and kings of the Kingdom of Bohemia, Kingdom of England, Kingdom of Germany, Kingdom of Hungary, Kingdom of Croatia, Kingdom of Illyria, Second Mexican Empire, Kingdom of Ireland, Kingdom of Portugal, and Kingdom of Spain, as well as rulers of several Dutch and Italian principalities. From the 16th century, following the reign of Charles V, the dynasty was split between its Austrian and Spanish branches. Although they ruled distinct territories, they nevertheless maintained close relations and frequently intermarried.

In politics, a diet is a formal deliberative assembly. The term is mainly used historically for the Imperial Diet, the general assembly of the Imperial Estates of the Holy Roman Empire, and for the legislative bodies of certain countries. Modern usage mainly relates to the Kokkai of Japan, called "Diet" in English, or the German Bundestag, the Federal Diet.

Explanation

On the whole, its territory nearly coincided with that remaining in the Holy Roman Empire at the outbreak of the French Revolution, with the notable exception of Belgium. Except for the two rival major powers, Austria and Prussia, and the western left bank of the Rhine (which France had annexed, with tiny Katzenelnbogen), the other member states or their precursors, making up most of present Germany, had been within Napoleon's Confederation of the Rhine.

Holy Roman Empire varying complex of lands that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe

The Holy Roman Empire was a multi-ethnic complex of territories in Western and Central Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. The largest territory of the empire after 962 was the Kingdom of Germany, though it also came to include the neighboring Kingdom of Bohemia, the Kingdom of Burgundy, the Kingdom of Italy, and numerous other territories.

French Revolution social and political revolution in France and its colonies occurring from 1789 to 1798

The French Revolution was a period of far-reaching social and political upheaval in France and its colonies beginning in 1789. The Revolution overthrew the monarchy, established a republic, catalyzed violent periods of political turmoil, and finally culminated in a dictatorship under Napoleon who brought many of its principles to areas he conquered in Western Europe and beyond. Inspired by liberal and radical ideas, the Revolution profoundly altered the course of modern history, triggering the global decline of absolute monarchies while replacing them with republics and liberal democracies. Through the Revolutionary Wars, it unleashed a wave of global conflicts that extended from the Caribbean to the Middle East. Historians widely regard the Revolution as one of the most important events in human history.

Austrian Empire monarchy in Central Europe between 1804 and 1867

The Austrian Empire was a Central European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence, it was the third most populous empire after the Russian Empire and the United Kingdom in Europe. Along with Prussia, it was one of the two major powers of the German Confederation. Geographically, it was the third largest empire in Europe after the Russian Empire and the First French Empire. Proclaimed in response to the First French Empire, it partially overlapped with the Holy Roman Empire until the latter's dissolution in 1806.

  1. The Austrian Empire, excluding the Kingdom of Hungary, the Principality of Transylvania, and the Kingdom of Croatia (all of which became parts of the apostolic kingdom of Hungary within the Danubian Dual Monarchy), the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia (constituting parts lost to Italy in 1859- viz. 1866), the Duchy of Bukovina, and the kingdoms of Dalmatia and Galicia
    1. Archduchy of Austria (split into Upper Austria and Lower Austria in 1849)
    2. Kingdom of Bohemia
    3. Margraviate of Moravia
    4. Grand Duchy of Salzburg
    5. Duchy of Carinthia
    6. Duchy of Carniola
    7. Duchy of Upper and Lower Silesia
    8. Duchy of Styria
    9. Littoral (consisting of Gorizia and Gradisca, Istria and Trieste)
    10. County of Tyrol
    11. Vorarlberg
  2. The Kingdom of Prussia (excluding Posen, East Prussia and West Prussia)
    1. Brandenburg
    2. Pomerania
    3. Rhine Province (until 1822 the Grand Duchy of the Lower Rhine and the Province of Jülich-Cleves-Berg)
    4. Saxony
    5. Silesia
    6. Westphalia
  3. The Kingdom of Bavaria (the third largest member)
    1. Upper Bavaria
    2. Upper Franconia
    3. Swabia
    4. Upper Palatinate
    5. Middle Franconia
    6. Lower Bavaria
    7. Lower Franconia
    8. Palatinate
  4. The Kingdom of Saxony
  5. The Kingdom of Hanover
  6. The Kingdom of Württemberg
  7. The Electorate of Hesse
  8. The Grand Duchy of Baden
  9. The Grand Duchy of Hesse
  10. The Duchy of Holstein (in personal union with the Kingdom of Denmark, was not a former member of the Confederation of the Rhine)
    1. The Duchy of Schleswig (a fief of Denmark and together with the Duchy of Holstein in personal union with the Kingdom of Denmark, was not a former member of either the Holy Roman Empire or the Confederation of the Rhine. The secessionist (pro-German) government of Schleswig-Holstein (1848–51) joined Schleswig to the Confederation. This was not recognized by the Confederation and the Danish government, and the peace settlement in 1851 specified that Schleswig was not a member.
  11. The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg (lost over half of its territory in the west to Belgium in the breakup of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1839, and thereby causing Duchy of Limburg to become a member.)
  12. The Duchy of Limburg (became a member in 1839 as a compensation for territorial losses in the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg that were caused by the breakup of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.)
  13. The Duchy of Brunswick (prior Brunswick-Lunenburgian Principality of Wolfenbüttel)
  14. The Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
  15. The Duchy of Nassau
  16. The Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach
  17. The Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (to 1825)
  18. The Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (to 1826)
  19. The Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (from 1826)
  20. The Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen
  21. The Duchy of Saxe-Hildburghausen (Saxe-Altenburg from 1826)
  22. The Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
  23. The Duchy of Oldenburg (Grand Duchy from 1829)
  24. The Duchy of Anhalt-Dessau (Duchy of Anhalt from 1863)
  25. The Duchy of Anhalt-Bernburg (to 1863)
  26. The Duchy of Anhalt-Köthen (to 1847)
  27. The Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen
  28. The Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt
  29. The Principality of Hohenzollern-Hechingen (merged in Prussia in 1850)
  30. The Principality of Liechtenstein
  31. The Principality of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (merged in Prussia in 1850)
  32. The Principality of Waldeck and Pyrmont
  33. The Principality of Reuss Senior Line
  34. The Principality of Reuss Junior Line
  35. The Principality of Schaumburg-Lippe
  36. The Principality of Lippe
  37. The Landgraviate of Hesse-Homburg (from 1817)
  38. The Duchy of Lauenburg
  39. The Free and Hanseatic City of Lübeck
  40. The Free City of Frankfurt upon Main
  41. The Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (still a constitutive state of federal Germany)
  42. The Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (still a constitutive state of federal Germany)

The four free cities were republics by constitution, while all the others were monarchies, some constitutional and some absolutist.

A republic is a form of government in which the country is considered a “public matter”, not the private concern or property of the rulers. The primary positions of power within a republic are not inherited, but are attained through democracy, oligarchy or autocracy. It is a form of government under which the head of state is not a hereditary monarch.

A constitutional monarchy is a form of monarchy in which the sovereign exercises authority in accordance with a written or unwritten constitution. Constitutional monarchy differs from absolute monarchy in that constitutional monarchs are bound to exercise their powers and authorities within the limits prescribed within an established legal framework. Constitutional monarchies range from countries such as Morocco, where the constitution grants substantial discretionary powers to the sovereign, to countries such as Japan and Sweden where the monarch retains no formal authorities.

Absolute monarchy is a form of monarchy in which the monarch holds supreme authority and where that authority is not restricted by any written laws, legislature, or customs. These are often hereditary monarchies. In contrast, in constitutional monarchies, the head of state's authority derives from and is legally bounded or restricted by a constitution or legislature.

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