german confederation

English - English

Definition of german confederation in English English dictionary

(1815-66) Organization of the states of central Europe, established by the Congress of Vienna to replace the destroyed Holy Roman Empire. It was a loose political association of 39 German states, formed for mutual defense, with no central executive or judiciary. Delegates met in a federal diet dominated by Austria. Amid a growing call for reform and economic integration, conservative leaders, including Klemens, prince von Metternich, persuaded the confederation's princes to pass the repressive Carlsbad Decrees (1819), and in the 1830s Metternich led the federal diet in passing additional measures to crush liberalism and nationalism. The formation of the Zollverein and the Revolutions of 1848 undermined the confederation. It was dissolved with the Austro-Prussian War (1866) and the establishment of the North German Confederation

Related Terms

North German Confederation

(1867-71) Union of the German states north of the Main River, formed after Prussia's victory in the Seven Weeks' War. The confederation recognized the individual states' rights but was effectively controlled by Prussia, whose king served as its president and whose chancellor was Otto von Bismarck. Its constitution served as a model for that of the German Empire, with which it merged in 1871

Hyphenation

ger·man con·fed·e·ra·tion

Turkish pronunciation

cırmın kınfedıreyşın

Pronunciation

/ˈʤərmən kənˌfedərˈāsʜən/ /ˈʤɜrmən kənˌfɛdɜrˈeɪʃən/