German unification: before, during and after Napoleon

By 1815:

• there was no single German state
• by 1800, 23 million Germans were divided into 314 states
• the states were controlled slightly under the influence of the Holy Roman Emperor (who was also the Emperor of Austria
• Germany at this point lacked any frontiers
• aside from Austria, the only other state that had real power and dominance was Prussia
• in 1805-6, Napoleon Bonaparte I defeated Austria then Prussia, forcing the Empire to collapse

Napoleon's impact:

• on the left of the Rhine, France had annexed the territory
• Napoleon decided that obviously 314 stated were far too many, especially since some of the states were actually single cities. So he re-organised them into 39
• not…