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- The German Empire ( or Deutsches Kaiserreich) is the common name given to the state officially named German Reich (literally: "German Realm"), designating Germany from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II. The German Empire consisted of 27 constituent territories (most of them ruled by royal families). While the Kingdom of Prussia contained most of the population and most of the territory of the Reich, the Prussian leadership became supplanted by German leaders and Prussia itself played a lesser role. As Dwyer (2005) points out, Prussia's "political and cultural influence had diminished considerably" by the 1890s. Its three largest neighbours were rivals Imperial Russia to the east, France to the west and ally Austria-Hungary to the south. Germany industrialized rapidly after 1850, with a foundation in coal, iron (and later steel), chemicals and railways. From a population of 41 million people in 1871, it grew to 68 million in 1913. From a heavily rural nation in 1815, it was now predominantly urban. During its 47 years of existence, the German Empire operated as an industrial, technological and scientific giant, receiving more Nobel Prizes in science than Britain, France, Russia and the United States combined. It became a great power, boasting a rapidly growing economy and the world's strongest army and a fast-growing industrial base. Its navy went from being negligible to second only behind the Royal Navy in less than a decade. After the removal of the powerful Otto von Bismarck in 1890 following the death of Emperor Wilhelm I, the young Emperor Wilhelm II engaged in increasingly reckless foreign policies that left the Empire isolated. Its network of small colonies in Africa and the Pacific paled in comparison to the British and French empires. When the great crisis of 1914 arrived, it had only two weak allies (the Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires) left. In World War I its plans to quickly capture Paris in 1914 failed and the Western Front (against Britain and France) became a stalemate. The Allied naval blockade made for increasing shortages of food. However, Germany, as a result of the Communists' determination to end Russian involvement in World War I, carved large Eastern territories following the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. German declaration of unrestricted submarine warfare in early 1917 was designed to strangle the British; it failed because of the use of a trans-Atlantic convoy system. But the declaration - along with the Zimmermann Telegram - did bring the United States into the war, with its large reserves of money, food, and soldiers. Meanwhile German troops had become radicalised by the Russian Revolution. The high command under Paul von Hindenburg and Erich Ludendorff increasingly controlled the Reich as they gambled on one last offensive in spring 1918 (before the Americans could arrive in force). It failed and by October the armies were in retreat, the Austro-Hungarian Empire had collapsed, and the German people had lost faith in the political system. The Empire collapsed overnight in the November 1918 Revolution as all the royals abdicated and a republic took over.
- The German Empire is a small & developing nation with citizens primarily of German ethnicity whose religion is Christianity. The nation is located in Central Europe. Its technology is progressing moderately and its citizens enjoy an average amount of technological improvements within the nation. Its citizens pay extremely high taxes and many despise their government as a result. The citizens of the German Empire work diligently to produce Pigs and Silver as tradable resources for their nation. It is a mostly neutral country when it comes to foreign affairs. It will usually only attack another nation if attacked first. When it comes to nuclear weapons the German Empire will not research or develop nuclear weapons. The military of the German Empire has been positioned at all border crossings and is arresting all drug traffickers. The German Empire allows its citizens to openly protest their government, even if it means violence. It has an open border policy, but in order for immigrants to remain in the country they will have to become citizens first. The German Empire believes in the freedom of speech and feels that it is every citizen's right to speak freely about their government. The government gives foreign aid when it can, but looks to take care of its own people first. The German Empire will not make deals with another country that has a poor history of inhuman treatment of its citizens.
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