| German Empire | |
|---|---|
 Imperial standard of the German Emperor (1871–1918) | |
| Preceded by | Kingdom of Prussia |
| Followed by | Abolished 1918 |
The term German Empire (Deutsches Kaiserreich) commonly refers to Germany from its foundation as a unified nation-state on 18 January 1871 until the abdication of its last Kaiser, Wilhelm II, was proclaimed on 9 November 1918. Germans, when referring to the Reich in this period under the Kaisers, 1871 to 1918, typically use the term Kaiserreich.[1]
Federal prince (Bundesfürst) was the generic term for the royal heads of state (monarchs) of the various states making up the German Empire. The empire was a federal state, with its constituent states remaining sovereign states. In total, there were 22 federal princes of the German Empire and additionally three republican heads of state and the steward of the imperial territory ruled by Alsace-Lorraine. The states became part of the Kaiserreich by an 1871 treaty. The Kaiser as head of the empire was granted the title German Emperor (the style "Emperor of Germany" being deliberately avoided), and was simultaneously a federal prince as King of Prussia, the sovereign of its largest federal state. Of the princely heads of state, 4 held the title King (König) (the Kings of Prussia, Bavaria, Saxony, and Württemberg), 6 held the title Grand Duke (Großherzog), 5 held the title Duke (Herzog), and 7 held the title Prince (i.e. Sovereign Prince, Fürst).
Following the unilateral proclamation of the abdication of Wilhelm II on 9 November 1918 by German Chancellor Maximilian von Baden[2] and the German Revolution of 1918–19, the German nobility and royalty as legally defined classes were abolished on 11 August 1919 with the promulgation of the Weimar Constitution, under which all Germans were made equal before the law, and the legal rights and privileges, and all following German Houses, titles, insignia and ranks of nobility were abolished.
The list does not include local rulers in German colonies such as Yuhi V of Rwanda, Mwambutsa IV of Burundi and Aweida of Nauru.
- ^ Harper's magazine, Volume 63. Pp. 593. While the term Reich does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people, the term Kaiserreich literally denotes an empire - particularly a hereditary empire led by a literal emperor, though Reich has been used in German to denote the Roman Empire because it had a weak hereditary tradition. In the case of the German Empire, the official name Deutsches Reich is properly translated as "German Realm"; under its constitution the King of Prussia, as head of state, officially "presided" over a confederation of German states, and held "the title of German Emperor" in the sense of an emperor who was German, rather than emperor of a German state.
- ^ Röhl, John C. G. (10 March 2016). Daniel, Ute; Gatrell, Peter; Janz, Oliver; Jones, Heather; Keene, Jennifer; Kramer, Alan; Nasson, Bill (eds.). "Wilhelm II, German Emperor". 1914–1918-online. International Encyclopedia of the First World War. Freie Universität Berlin. Retrieved 28 May 2024.