Charles IV1347
Founds a hereditary monarchy
Germany · Government / Government of Germany. Chronological records rendered directly from the World History Database.
Founds a hereditary monarchy
Centralizes the administration
A liberal, supports the Bavarian constitution against Metternich
Grants Bavaria a Liberal Constitution
The Government cannot raise a loan without an elected representative Assembly. Promises to give Prussia a Constitution
The Diet is united against Frederick Williams idea of a representative Assembly. Refuses to allow a written Constitution. Refuses to allow a fully representative Assembly. Calls a national assembly, it is not a representative body, but rather a United Diet comprising all the provincial estates, which had the right to grant taxes and loans but no right to meet at regular intervals. Allows freedom of the press
The Declaration of the Basic Rights, a model for all German democratic institutions
Rejects the Imperial Crown offered by the Parliament of Frankfurt
The Gagernsche Program is accepted but endless constitutional debate leads to Gagerns resignation
Develops a union under Prussia & forces the constitution through the Union Parliament
Attempts to establish the Erfurt Union, a union of German states excluding Austria, but abandons the idea in the face of Austrian resistance
Refuses to abandon the constitution after Schwarzenburgs offer to divide Germany
Prussia will defend Austria if it accepts Prussia within the German Confederation
Promulgates a new constitution that created a Parliament with two chambers, an aristocratic upper house and an elected lower house.
The constitution also reserved for the king the power of appointing all ministers, reestablished the conservative district assemblies and provincial diets, and guaranteed that the bureaucracy and the military remained firmly in the hands of the king.
The lower house is elected by all taxpayers, but in a three-tiered system based on the amount of taxes paid so that true universal suffrage is denied.
Sends a telegram to Bismarck to solve the Constitutional Crisis in Prussia
Persuades William not to abdicate & ends the Constitutional Crisis
The House of Deputies passes a resolution declaring that it could no longer come to terms with Bismarck, the King dissolves the Diet, accusing it of trying to obtain unconstitutional control over the ministry
Allies with Austria after the Danish King declares unification with Schleswig-Holst
Elections take place for the new Reichstag
Draws up the Constitution of the North German Confederation
Elections take place for the new Reichstag. The Prussian landtag and the North German Governments accept a new Constitution. Appointed Head of the North German Confederation
Creates a Customs Parliament including the south German States
The Customs Union fails, "no man is humiliated who does not feel himself humiliated"
Refuses the crown offered to him by the new Confeferation of a united Germany
Declared Emperor of a united German Reich in the Galerie des Glaces in Versailles
Creates a semi-independent "Congress Poland" ruled by an aristocratic Assembly
Proclaims the Polish Congress of State for military & economic resources for Germany
Ludendorff and Hindenburg become the leaders of the military-industrial dictatorship 3rd Supreme Command
Ludendorff becomes the dominant figure in the 3rd Supreme Command and after the resignation of Theobald Bethmann Hollweg takes political, military and economic control of Germany
supporter of the monarchy until the abdication of the Kaiser ("If the Kaiser abdicates, the social revolution is inevitable. But I do not want it, I hate it like sin", he says to Max von Baden
From November 1918 through January 1919, Germany is governed dictatorially by the Council of Peoples Commissioners.
The Ebert-Groener pact stipulates that the Government would not attempt to reform the Army so long as the army swore to protect the state.
To ensure that his fledgling Government is able to maintain control over the country, Ebert makes an uneasy pact with the OHL, now led by Ludendorffs successor General Wilhelm Groener.
Begins preparations for elections to the new National Constitutional Assembly
Proclaims the new "Free German Republic" without any Party or Government authorization
Liebknechts proclamation ends the German Monarchy and an entirely Socialist provisional Government took power under Eberts leadership. Ebert favoured retaining the monarchy under a different ruler but Scheidemann proclaimes the German Republic, in response to the unrest in Berlin and in order to counter a declaration of the "Free Socialist Republic" by Karl Liebknecht. Calls for a National Constitutional Assembly
Ebert leads the new Government for the next several months, notably using the army under support of Minister of Defence Gustav Noske to suppress the Spartacist uprising, commonly identified with Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht
A Socialist Republic under Kurt Eisner is established
Assassinated & a communist revolt suppressed, Bavaria joins the Weimar Republic
When the Constituent Assembly met in Weimar in February, 1919, Ebert was chosen to be the first president of the German Republic
In Hitler's 1945 political testament he appoints Admiral Karl Doenitz to succeed him, but he names Doenitz as President, not Fuhrer, thereby re-establishing a constitutional office which had lain dormant since Hindenburgs death in 1934
The Allied Berlin Declaration abolishes all the institutions of German civil Government, and establishes that the constitution no longer holds any legal force
The Basic Laws are drawn up to provide West Germany with a working constitution. The Basic Law rests on the will of the people of the western Lander. A Federal Assembly, the Bundestag, is to be elected every 4 yrs by universal suffrage. A Constitution is postponed until re-unification
The Basic Law (Grundgesetz), invests the Chancellor (German, Bundeskanzler) with broad powers to initiate Government policy & for that reason, some observers refer to the German political system as a "Chancellor democracy"
The Chancellor's authority emanates from the provisions of the Basic Law and in practice from his or her status as leader of the party (or coalition of parties) holding a majority of seats in the Bundestag (federal Parliament)
With the founding of the Federal Republic, the German Chancellor is now officially addressed as "Herr Bundeskanzler"
Becomes West Germany's 1st President
The FDR & DDR agree to send reresentatives to the United Nations to discuss free elections. Russia opposes free elections in Germany
This factsheet is generated from stored World History Database records matching the country, broad category, detailed category and exact Event value shown above. Duplicate display records are collapsed; database wording is otherwise preserved. Source provenance varies by record, so formal academic citation should be checked against the relevant primary source, archive or specialist historical reference.