HIS109Y1 Lecture Notes - German Confederation
Document Summary
1804: francis ii was the last holy roman emperor; he dissolved the hre and created the austrian empire (smaller) and became francis i. Napoleon reorganizes german states into the confederation of the rhine in 1806. This began as a union of 15 states but expanded to include almost every german state except for austria and prussia. France believed they were liberating their conquests however this created resentment against france. This also awoke the german national conscience which began with writers, artists and intellectuals that looked for folk tales and traditions which were common to all german people. Similar developments occurred in spain & italy; they appealed to a common language and culture to push back against french rule. The awakening of this nationalism made it hard for monarchs to re-establish themselves after the defeat of napoleon. Napoleon"s attempt to invade russia in 1812 was the turning point towards defeat.
