Germany is traditionally a country organized as a federal state. After the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, the German-speaking territories of the empire became allied in the German Confederation (1815–1866), a league of states with some federalistic elements. After the Austro-Prussian War, Prussia led the Northern states into a federal state called the North German Confederation (1867–1870). The Southern states joined the federal state in 1870/71, which was consequently renamed the German Empire (1871–1918). The state continued as the Weimar Republic (1919–1933).
Present-day Germany is a federal republic which combines the States of Germany.
States of the German Confederation edit
| State | Capital | |
|---|---|---|
| Empires (Kaisertümer) | ||
|
Austria (Österreich) (only western Cisleithania) |
Vienna |
| Kingdoms (Königreiche) | ||
|
Bavaria (Bayern) | Munich |
|
Hanover (Hannover) | Hanover |
|
Prussia (Preußen) (excluding Posen, East Prussia and West Prussia) |
Berlin |
|
Saxony (Sachsen) | Dresden |
|
Württemberg | Stuttgart |
| Electorates (Kurfürstentum) | ||
|
Hesse-Kassel (Hessen-Kassel) | Kassel |
| Grand Duchies (Großherzogtümer) | ||
|
Baden | Karlsruhe |
|
Hesse-Darmstadt (Hessen-Darmstadt) | Darmstadt |
|
Luxembourg (Luxemburg) | Luxembourg |
|
Mecklenburg-Schwerin | Schwerin |
|
|
Mecklenburg-Strelitz | Neustrelitz |
|
Oldenburg | Oldenburg |
|
Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach) | Weimar |
| Duchies (Herzogtümer) | ||
|
Anhalt – from 1863 | Dessau |
|
Brunswick (Braunschweig) | Braunschweig |
|
Holstein | Glückstadt |
|
Limburg – from 1839 | N/A |
|
Nassau | Wiesbaden |
|
Saxe-Altenburg (Sachsen-Altenburg) – from 1826 | Altenburg |
|
Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha) – from 1826 | Coburg |
|
Saxe-Lauenburg | Ratzeburg |
|
|
Saxe-Meiningen (Sachsen-Meiningen) | Meiningen |
| Principalities (Fürstentümer) | ||
|
Hohenzollern-Hechingen – to Prussia in 1850 | Hechingen |
|
|
Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen – to Prussia in 1850 | Sigmaringen |
|
Liechtenstein | Vaduz |
|
Lippe | Detmold |
|
Reuss-Gera (Junior Line) | Gera |
|
Reuss-Greiz (Elder Line) | Greiz |
|
Schaumburg-Lippe | Bückeburg |
|
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt | Rudolstadt |
|
|
Schwarzburg-Sondershausen | Sondershausen |
|
Waldeck and Pyrmont (Waldeck und Pyrmont) | Arolsen |
| Landgraviates (Landgrafschaft) | ||
|
Hesse-Homburg (Hessen-Homburg) – from 1817 | Bad Homburg |
| Free Cities (Freie Städte) | ||
|
Bremen | |
|
Frankfurt | |
|
Hamburg | |
|
Lübeck | |
| States merged to form Anhalt | ||
|
Anhalt-Dessau – merged with Anhalt-Bernburg in 1863 | Dessau |
|
|
Anhalt-Bernburg – merged with Anhalt-Dessau in 1863 | Bernburg |
|
|
Anhalt-Köthen – merged with Anhalt-Dessau in 1853 | Köthen |
| States split between Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, Saxe-Meiningen, and Saxe-Altenburg in 1826 | ||
|
Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (Sachsen-Gotha-Altenburg) | Gotha |
|
|
Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (Sachsen-Coburg-Saalfeld) | Coburg |
|
|
Saxe-Hildburghausen (Sachsen-Hildburghausen) | Hildburghausen |
In 1864, Austria and Prussia together became the new sovereign of Holstein (a member of the confederation) and Schleswig (outside the confederation).
States of the North German Confederation edit
| State | Capital | |
|---|---|---|
| Kingdoms (Königreiche) | ||
|
Prussia (Preußen) as a whole (including Lauenburg) |
Berlin |
|
|
Saxony (Sachsen) | Dresden |
| Grand Duchies (Großherzogtümer) | ||
|
|
Hesse (Hessen) (Only Upper Hesse, the province north of the river Main) |
Giessen |
|
|
Mecklenburg-Schwerin | Schwerin |
|
|
Mecklenburg-Strelitz | Neustrelitz |
|
|
Oldenburg | Oldenburg |
|
Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach) | Weimar |
| Duchies (Herzogtümer) | ||
|
|
Anhalt | Dessau |
|
|
Brunswick (Braunschweig) | Braunschweig |
|
|
Saxe-Altenburg (Sachsen-Altenburg) | Altenburg |
|
|
Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha) | Coburg |
|
|
Saxe-Meiningen (Sachsen-Meiningen) | Meiningen |
| Principalities (Fürstentümer) | ||
|
Lippe | Detmold |
|
|
Reuss-Gera (Junior Line) | Gera |
|
|
Reuss-Greiz (Elder Line) | Greiz |
|
|
Schaumburg-Lippe | Bückeburg |
|
|
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt | Rudolstadt |
|
|
Schwarzburg-Sondershausen | Sondershausen |
|
|
Waldeck and Pyrmont (Waldeck und Pyrmont) | Arolsen |
| Free and Hanseatic Cities (Freie und Hansestädte) | ||
|
|
Bremen | |
|
|
Hamburg | |
|
|
Lübeck | |
States of the German Empire edit
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| State | Capital | |
|---|---|---|
| Kingdoms (Königreiche) | ||
|
|
Prussia (Preußen) as a whole | Berlin |
|
|
Bavaria (Bayern) | Munich |
|
|
Saxony (Sachsen) | Dresden |
|
|
Württemberg | Stuttgart |
| Grand Duchies (Großherzogtümer) | ||
|
|
Baden | Karlsruhe |
|
|
Hesse (Hessen) | Darmstadt |
|
|
Mecklenburg-Schwerin | Schwerin |
|
|
Mecklenburg-Strelitz | Neustrelitz |
|
|
Oldenburg | Oldenburg |
|
|
Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach) | Weimar |
| Duchies (Herzogtümer) | ||
|
|
Anhalt | Dessau |
|
|
Brunswick (Braunschweig) | Braunschweig |
|
|
Saxe-Altenburg (Sachsen-Altenburg) | Altenburg |
|
|
Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha) | Coburg |
|
|
Saxe-Meiningen (Sachsen-Meiningen) | Meiningen |
| Principalities (Fürstentümer) | ||
|
|
Lippe | Detmold |
|
|
Reuss-Gera (Junior Line) | Gera |
|
|
Reuss-Greiz (Elder Line) | Greiz |
|
|
Schaumburg-Lippe | Bückeburg |
|
|
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt | Rudolstadt |
|
|
Schwarzburg-Sondershausen | Sondershausen |
|
|
Waldeck and Pyrmont (Waldeck und Pyrmont) | Arolsen |
| Free and Hanseatic Cities (Freie und Hansestädte) | ||
|
|
Bremen | |
|
|
Hamburg | |
|
|
Lübeck | |
| Imperial Territories (Reichsländer) | ||
|
Alsace–Lorraine (Elsass-Lothringen) | Straßburg |
States of the Weimar Republic edit
| State | Capital | |
|---|---|---|
| Free States (Freistaaten) | ||
|
Anhalt | Dessau |
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|
Baden | Karlsruhe |
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|
Bavaria (Bayern) | Munich |
|
Brunswick (Braunschweig) | Braunschweig |
.svg){kind=small}
|
Coburg – to Bavaria in 1920 | Coburg |
|
Hesse (Hessen) | Darmstadt |
|
Lippe | Detmold |
|
Mecklenburg-Schwerin | Schwerin |
|
|
Mecklenburg-Strelitz | Neustrelitz |
|
Oldenburg | Oldenburg |
.svg){kind=small}
|
Prussia (Preußen) | Berlin |
|
Saxony (Sachsen) | Dresden |
|
Schaumburg-Lippe | Bückeburg |
|
Thuringia (Thüringen) – from 1920 | Weimar |
.svg){kind=small}
|
Waldeck-Pyrmont – to Prussia (Pyrmont joined Prussia in 1921, Waldeck followed in 1929) |
Arolsen |
|
Württemberg | Stuttgart |
| Free and Hanseatic Cities (Freie und Hansestädte) | ||
|
Bremen | |
|
Hamburg | |
|
Lübeck | |
| States merged to form Thuringia in 1920 | ||
|
|
Gotha | Gotha |
|
Reuss | Gera |
.svg){kind=small}
|
Saxe-Altenburg (Sachsen-Altenburg) | Altenburg |
|
|
Saxe-Meiningen (Sachsen-Meiningen) | Meiningen |
.svg){kind=small}
|
Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach) | Weimar |
|
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt | Rudolstadt |
|
|
Schwarzburg-Sondershausen | Sondershausen |
See also edit
- List of former sovereign states
- List of states in the Holy Roman Empire (962–1806)
- States of Germany, about the modern states