Germany

Germany, also known as the German Empire, is a state in Central Europe.

Great War
On June 28th 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, was assassinated in Sarajevo by a member of the Serbian Black Hand. One month later, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia after the Austrian demands were partially rejected by the Serbian government and Germany rallied to the side of Austria-Hungary. Soon enough Germany found itself at war with the Entente nations of Russia and France, with Britain following shortly behind them after Germany swiftly invaded Belgium and Luxembourg as part of the Schlieffen Plan. Despite the hopes of many within Germany, the advance of the army into France stopped at the Marne and would create a stalemate on the Western Front that would last until 1918. In the East, Germany faced initial failures with the Russians pushing into Eastern Prussia, but eventually after using chemical warfare to gain an advantage they pushed the Russians out of East Prussia and were eventually stalled in Poland. By 1917 Russia collapsed into revolution and thousands of soldiers were transferred to the Western Front.

Collapse of the Eastern Front
Eventually in 1918 the Central Powers signed the Treaty of Brest Litovsk with the Russian Socialist Federative Socialist Republic. The signing of the treaty led to the creation of a new order in Eastern Europe, and Ukrainian resources could now be diverted to Germany in an attempt to alleviate the British blockade on Germany. While the situation within Germany had begun to look bleak as the population began to tired of the war and began to agitate for peace. Eventually nearing the end of 1918, the Germans saw an opening with the buckling of French forces due to widespread mutinies, during a great offensive the Germans broke the French lines and began to advance on Paris. Despite all attempts to avert it the Germans looked to take Paris by the end of spring in 1919.

Treaty of Versailles
By March 1919 France finally agreed to a ceasefire to negotiate for peace with Germany to prevent the occupation of Paris, followed shortly thereafter by Britain, having lost to the United States in their own separate conflict. With the signing of the Treaty of Versailles in June, the balance of power established with the defeat of Napoleon crumbled, being reformed by German policymakers to serve Berlin. From the Entente, Germany annexed various colonies in Africa, connecting their prewar colonies together and realizing the colonial project known as Mittelafrika. In Europe, Germany annexed the Longwy-Briey iron mines and the western slopes of the Vosges from France, annexed Luxembourg in its entirety, and annexed Arlon from Belgium, joining it with the newly annexed Luxembourg.

Spartacist Riots
Despite Germany winning the war, the situation on the home front continued to deteriorate, and more radical elements of the SPD were splitting off forming the USPD and joining the newly founded Spartacus League. Eventually in November 1919 the League, led by Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht began a series of mass protests and strikes across Germany, the Spartacus League called for various reforms to Germany, some which were supported by the German SPD and some which were opposed by most of Germany’s political establishment. Eventually the police were able to disperse the protests and strikes after utilizing increasingly violent methods, which perturbed the members of the SPD and other moderate parties.

Resignation of Ludendorff
After the mass civil unrest, many within Germany blamed Ludendorff. Eventually Ludendorff resigned from his duties as he both was disgraced and had no purpose with his powers. As a result elections were called and led to a plurality for the SPD. With the SPD in a ruling coalition with the Progressive People’s Party (FVP) and Zentrum, all represented by Wilhelm Solf as chancellor, reform seems inevitable and what could change for Germany is not entirely known, but what is known is that Germany is on a path to nurture and grow its democracy, with the support of the German political establishment that goal seems feasible for the country to achieve.