History UsefulNotes / ImperialGermany

* Many people in Victorian and Edwardian Britain apparently lived in mortal fear of Imperial Germany's rising power, because at least three novels exist on the subject of an invasion of Britain by the German Kaiserreich. ''The Battle of Dorking'', from 1871, deals with a British defeat and the dismemberment of the Empire, ''[[Creator/HectorHughMunro When William Came]]'', written in 1913, deals with Britain under German occupation, and ''The Riddle of the Sands'' (1903) concerns two British yachtsmen who discover and thwart a German plan to launch a naval invasion force from the Frisian Islands. This latter work was made into a film in 1979 starring Michael York.

* Represented in the ''WesternAnimation/{{Jumanji}}'' cartoon by the pickelhaube-wearing big game hunter Herr von Richter, complete with monocle and buffalo horn moustache, who is apparently Van Pelt's most hated rival and enters into a contest with him to see who can kill Alan Parrish first.

* UsefulNotes/OttoVonBismarck -- Chancellor from 1871 to 1890.

* UsefulNotes/WilhelmII -- Kaiser from 1888 to 1918.

For more information on the Imperial German military, see UsefulNotes/PrussiansInPickelhauben.

Germany became a major world power at this time, because of its booming economy and powerful army. It produced [[UsefulNotes/DichterUndDenker a lot of leading artists and scientists]], and began to dabble in overseas colonialism and to build up a navy to rival Britain. None of which did it any favors on the foreign policy scene and Wilhelm II was bad at diplomacy and PR to boot with [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarI ultimately predictable results]].

The German Empire consisted of 4 Kingdoms (UsefulNotes/{{Prussia}}, Bavaria, Saxony and Württemberg), 6 Grand Duchies, 5 Duchies, 7 Principalities, 3 Free Cities and 1 Imperial Territory (Alsace-Lorraine). Prussia was by far the most dominant state, as it made up 64% of the empire and the [[UsefulNotes/PrussianKings King of Prussia]] was also the German Emperor. Except for one brief interval, the Chancellor was also Prime Minister in Prussia, but after Bismarck's resignation the Kaiser took a more direct role in the politics of both anyway.

* Many people in Victorian and Edwardian Britain apparently lived in mortal fear of Imperial Germany's rising power, because at least three novels exist on the subject of an invasion of Britain by the German Kaiserreich. ''The Battle of Dorking'', from 1871, deals with a British defeat and the dismemberment of the Empire, '[[Creator/HectorHughMunro 'When William Came]]'', written in 1913, deals with Britain under German occupation, and ''The Riddle of the Sands'' (1903) concerns two British yachtsmen who discover and thwart a German plan to launch a naval invasion force from the Frisian Islands. This latter work was made into a film in 1979 starring Michael York.

* Many people in Victorian and Edwardian Britain apparently lived in mortal fear of Imperial Germany's rising power, because at least three novels exist on the subject of an invasion of Britain by the German Kaiserreich. ''The Battle of Dorking'', from 1871, deals with a British defeat and the dismemberment of the Empire, ''When William Came'', written in 1913, deals with Britain under German occupation, and ''The Riddle of the Sands'' (1903) concerns two British yachtsmen who discover and thwart a German plan to launch a naval invasion force from the Frisian Islands. This latter work was made into a film in 1979 starring Michael York.

A full third larger than modern Germany, it incorporated a large part of modern Poland[[labelnote:1]] At the time, Poland was still partitioned between Austria-Hungary, Russia, and Prussia, with Russia ultimately getting most of it.[[/labelnote]][[labelnote:2]] Poland itself lost all of its eastern territories to the Soviet Union after World War II and was compensated by territories taken from eastern Germany – specifically Silesia, Eastern Brandenburg, most of Pomerania, the southern two-thirds of East Prussia, and the cities of Danzig & Stettin (now Gdansk & Szczecin).[[/labelnote]], Alsace-Lorraine (part of modern France)[[labelnote:3]] In German it was called “Reichsland Elsaß-Lothringen” but the “Lorraine” part was only the border region of Moselle, one ''département'' (about a quarter) of the Lorraine Region. The other departments: Meurthe-et-Moselle, Vosges, and Meuse remained French.[[/labelnote]], small slices of Lithuania[[labelnote:4]] (the German-speaking city then known as Memel, now known as Klaipeda)[[/labelnote]], Belgium[[labelnote:5]] (the city of Eupen and its surroundings, specifically given to Belgium after World War I to punish Germany and partly compensate Belgium for its trouble)[[/labelnote]], Denmark[[labelnote:6]] (the northern half of the ancient Duchy of Schleswig; the southern half remains German)[[/labelnote]], and what is now the Kaliningrad exclave of the Russian Federation[[labelnote:7]] (the ''other'' third of East Prussia including its capital Königsberg)[[/labelnote]]. All had German populations at a time but in some places, primarily the Duchy of Posen (today Poznan in Poland) they were not a majority or "German in sentiment". Be very careful when you talk about this. It may spontaneously combust, and not only with Germans. Ethnic minorities, especially those living near the borders of the Empire (e.g. Poles in the East, Danes in the North, Alsatians in the West) were often discriminated against and tended to vote for separatist or ethnic parties that were mostly ignored by other political forces. Germans were kicked out of many places after UsefulNotes/WorldWarI and far more after UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, but in Germany and these places [[ElephantInTheLivingRoom it's considered polite not to mention this.]]

Imperial Germany was a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament, the ''Reichstag''. In a shrewd move, Bismarck ensured that Imperial Germany had universal manhood suffrage at a time that property qualifications meant that only about half of British adult males could vote.[[note]]This proportion would be increased to a bit over 60% after the Third Reform Act in 1884, with substantial geographic variability (to wit, 2/3 of Englishmen had the vote after the 1884 Act, but only half of Irishmen did). The proportion did gradually increase over time (as incomes rose but the property qualification remained fixed at £10), but Britain did not achieve true universal manhood suffrage until 1918--at which point certain propertyholding women were also granted the vote.[[/note]] Furthermore, Bismarck introduced an advanced welfare system for the sick, the old, and the infirm. The reason for this is that not doing it might make the workers tensed and difficult to control. So Bismarck gave them something to not lose everything. And yet while it was technically governed by rule of law, its constitution was weak, and a great deal of influence was in the hands of the emperor, aristocrats (Junkers), generals, landowners, and industrialists. While parliament had the power to pass bills, all laws had to be approved by the Chancellor, who was not elected but personally appointed by the Emperor, and was responsible only to him. Thus the true power lay not with the people, but the Kaiser. Although not bad for the age, and not a full-on autocracy like pre-1906 UsefulNotes/TsaristRussia, none of this added up to democracy, even by the standards of the day (when the United States had had nearly full (white)[[note]]And, to be fair, even Black in certain lucky pockets, e.g. New York City, Philadelphia, and Chicago. Also of note--in substantial swathes of the North, there were to a first approximation ''no nonwhites'' (Blacks being rare and the Indians having been overwhelmed and driven out), so "full (manhood) democracy" existed locally across much if not most of the 1870s United States even if it wasn't the case nationally. Even if the United States in 1871 wasn't a "democracy", Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and Michigan were, or at least were pretty close.[[/note]] manhood suffrage and completely responsible popular government since the 1830s,[[note]]And was at that moment in the throes of the grand post-[[UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar Civil War]] Reconstruction experiment in full racial equality; the experiment would not end until 1877[[/note]] Denmark had been a fully parliamentary monarchy with universal manhood suffrage since [[UsefulNotes/RevolutionsOf1848 1849]], and France was at that moment inventing the "parliamentary republic with universal manhood suffrage" model that--with the removal of the qualifier "manhood"--has become the Standard European Government[[superscript:TM]] of today[[note]]Used today by [[UsefulNotes/PoliticalSystemOfGermany Germany]], but, ironically, [[UsefulNotes/FrenchPoliticalSystem not France itself]][[/note]]). But still, not terrible.

Germany became a major world power at this time, because of its booming economy and powerful army. It produced [[UsefulNotes/DichterUndDenker a lot of leading artists and scientists,]] and began to dabble in overseas colonialism and to build up a navy to rival Britain. None of which did it any favors on the foreign policy scene and Wilhelm II was bad at diplomacy and PR to boot with [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarI ultimately predictable results]].

The most famous statesman of the time was UsefulNotes/OttoVonBismarck. Bismarck engineered the unification of Germany through a lot of extremely ruthless and deceptive tricks, but he was so good at it that [[MagnificentBastard you can't help but cheer for the guy]]. He spend his later years juggling a complex alliance system in an attempt to keep the peace in Europe. Historians are divided as to whether he could have kept it up, but Kaiser Wilhelm II booted him out, so we may never know. He also made the famous prediction that [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarI the next war in Europe would start over "some damned silly thing in the Balkans"]]. He was right.

The other best-known characters of the period are, of course, the Kaisers. There were three[[note]]known collectively as "der greise Kaiser, der weise Kaiser, und der scheiße Kaiser" - the senile Emperor, the wise Emperor, and the shitty Emperor. Friedrich was also known as the "leise Kaiser" (the quiet Emperor), because he was no longer able to speak when he took the throne; while Wilhelm II was also known as the ''Reisekaiser'' (traveling Emperor) during his reign, because he sure traveled a lot[[/note]]. The first was Wilhelm I, a conservative old Prussian stalwart with magnificent whiskers who had fought in the Napoleonic Wars and was born in the 18th century. His reign was dominated, politically, by Bismarck. Then came Friedrich III,[[note]] (they were using the Prussian numbering[[/note]] for 99 days. A man of liberal sympathies – he quite admired Britain; he even married UsefulNotes/QueenVictoria's eldest daughter – he was struck down by cancer of the larynx and is a favourite of AlternateHistory. Friedrich III also expressed disgust at the more and more open Antisemitism that reached even the higher echelons of society during his life. Finally and notoriously, Wilhelm II. A infamously [[DramaQueen mercurial]] and [[LargeHam temperamental]] man with what would probably now be diagnosed as ADHD, as well as a strong case for being diagnosed as a clinical {{Narcissist}} with, at the very least, a bad case of InferioritySuperiorityComplex from [[FreudianExcuse major childhood issues concerning his undeveloped and immobilized arm]] due to Erb's palsy from a severely traumatic birth[[labelnote:*]] (while unending people have described Willy as being pompous, overbearing, and unpleasant, it's also conceded he developed his "awesome" façade as one of the only ways he had to deal with a very real and public handicap and a very difficult relationship with his mother. He also had a MoralityPet in his only daughter Viktoria Luise — she was apparently the one person he felt secure enough to stop his constant self-aggrandizment around)[[/labelnote]], he veered between liberal and conservative, strident militarism and sympathy for socialism, and later defeatism and dreams of victory - in other words, he was a picture of the rather-divided German nation as a whole in one man. He also had serious MommyIssues involving both his actual English mother, Vicky, Britain's Princess Royal, and his relationship with Britain. Unlike his father, who had a healthy respect for Britain, Wilhelm was at once awestruck and envious, hating[=/=][[WellDoneSonGuy and desperately wanting the approval and affection of his mother]], but also adoring his grandmother Queen Victoria, disliking many other relatives while still wanting to be British. He admired British power but at the same time resented what he felt was Britain's attempts to keep Germany "in the shade". He fell out with Bismarck and dismissed him, and the rest of his reign was a succession of brief and unmemorable chancellors with himself as the real center of gravity until during the war he was rendered irrelevant by the OHL (''Oberste Heeres Leitung'', Army High Command) who formed a military Junta centered around Generals Hindenburg and Ludendorff and ruled the country 'on his behalf'. Interestingly, UsefulNotes/ImperialJapan, with a constitution and government modeled on Imperial Germany's, also fell prey to [[UsefulNotes/KatanasOfTheRisingSun a much less stable and rational Army-Navy Junta]] in the 1930s [[UsefulNotes/SecondSinoJapaneseWar which got a few tens]] [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII of millions of people killed]].

Imperial Germany has a lot in common with Nazi Germany, and many Nazis began their careers in Imperial Germany. There are indeed, very strong continuities between the two regimes but, there are also continuities between Imperial Germany and the UsefulNotes/WeimarRepublic, and generally people ''do'' distinguish between the Weimar and Nazi eras after all. Likewise, one can trace proto-Nazi ideas across German history, and even European history as a whole. Imperial Germany was anti-democratic, German supremacist, and belligerent by nature and design. It did share the goal of expanding into Eastern UsefulNotes/{{Europe}} that ultimately formed one of the major engines of UsefulNotes/TheHolocaust. Imperial Germany was an authoritarian state run by the Prussian warrior-caste nobility and they also perpetrated [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herero_and_Namaqua_genocide genocide against the Herero people in German Southwest Africa]] (modern-day Namibia).

There were key differences, however. Bismarck did strive to maintain a façade of liberal institutions and civic society, so Imperial Germany did not impose a single nationalistic ideology outside of Prussian hegemony and loyalty to the Kaiser. Opposition political parties such as [[UsefulNotes/{{Socialism}} the Social Democrats, the Marxists]], and others were allowed to run and operate although a SidekickGlassCeiling was strongly maintained to prevent them from being truly effective; and the Reichstag had no say in foreign or domestic policies. While the Kaiserreich did have antisemitism, and the Kaiser ''was'' antisemitic, the militant ethnic hatred of the Nazis hadn't become a thing yet (thousands of German Jews fought and died on equal footing alongside Christian German soldiers during World War I). Wilhelm II, despite remaining a reactionary, intolerant, somewhat bonkers monarch 'til the end and being a bit antisemitic himself, [[EveryoneHasStandards strongly condemned the violent Nazi persecution of Jews]], and he died in 1941 some months before Germany invaded the [[UsefulNotes/SovietRussiaUkraineAndSoOn Soviet Union]] and began exterminating civilians. It is plausible to argue that Imperial Germany wasn't exceptional as both society and government in both domestic and international policy from Anglo-Saxon nations. After all, UsefulNotes/TheBritishEmpire was a racist, expansionist, colonialist empire where suffrage was smaller than in Wilhelmine Germany, and America had Jim Crow laws during the nadir of race relations. It would [[HistoricalVillainUpgrade be quite inexact]] to say they were just like the Nazis, but [[HistoricalVillainDowngrade it would be equally inexact]] to claim they were exceptionally different from their darker imperialist descendants.

Post-World War II German historians (such as Fritz Fischer, Hans-Ulrich Wehler, Hans Mommsen, among others) argue that Imperial Germany was the nation most responsible for the outbreak of UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, arguing by citing the existence of long-term political plans and a cabinet meeting with the Kaiser and his generals prove that they knowingly escalated the Balkan situation (which was merely one of many and if handled correctly could have been a non-issue) to opportunistically launch a war to maintain German hegemony in the face of what they saw as Russia eventually exceeding its productivity once it completed industrialization. After the War, Imperial German nationalists and others cunningly exploited the unexpected sympathy it enjoyed in the global Anglosphere by doctoring and or destroying documents in its archives, and patronizing friendly and sympathetic historians to argue that Imperial Germany was either no different from other nations (i.e. collective guilt) or that it was a victim of TallPoppySyndrome from neighbouring superpowers who were jealous of its prosperity. The success of this counter-propaganda (which has a startling resemblance to [[UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar the Lost Cause of the Confederacy]]) can be seen in such instances as UsefulNotes/WinstonChurchill, writing in ''The Gathering Storm'' in 1948 concluded that Germany (and the world) would have been far better off keeping the Hohenzollerns under a true constitutional monarchy than the troubled republic of UsefulNotes/WeimarGermany, which pleased Churchill's general imperialist and bellicose nostalgia and his belief that democracy was only common to Anglo-Saxon nations and its people and not to others.

See also {{Kaiserreich}}, which is about Imperial Germany as it is depicted in fiction.

* The Kaiser also appeared in a 1993 commercial for Tab Clear soda, in which he drinks Tab while planning military strategy with his generals, pops out his monocle into his glass in amazement at the taste, swallows it, coughs it up thereby re-arranging the army men on the map so that divisions are instantly moved into battle, flees in embarrassment aboard an enormous bratwurst-shaped zeppelin, flies all the way to the boglands of Oregon, pricks the balloon accidentally with his Pickelhaube helmet, falls into the mud and thereafter makes a career as the original film-captured Bigfoot, paid by the government as a tourist attraction. Now everything is clear...

* In ''Film/NateandHayes'', their navy is depicted as seeking to establish coaling stations in Australasia with the aide of local slave labor culled by the murderous "blackbirder" Ben Pease. The archetype of the casually cruel and arrogant German officer is somewhat subverted by Admiral Count Von Rittenberg. He is portrayed as being highly squeamish with the violence and slave-trading that occurs throughout the film, and comes across as a man who feels forced to collaborate with the evil Pease out of grim necessity and out of a MyCountryRightOrWrong attitude, determined to hold his own against what he perceives to be a mere pack of pirates in the form of Hayes' crew. Nevertheless, this character ambiguity does not prevent him from meeting a sticky end....

* ''Film/ThreeAmigos'' features a German running guns to the outlaw El Guapo in 1916 Mexico (a reference perhaps to Germany's courting the country's constantly changing governments in the hopes of persuading them to join with them in attacking the United States in RealLife). He is a huge fan of the Amigos' films, but vengefully challenges Ned to a duel out of resentment at having discovered his impressive on-screen sharpshooting was merely special effects. This assumption proves fatal however, when Ned demonstrates that no such trickery was used by gunning his opponent down.

* While most film adaptations of Frankenstein tend to set the story in some sort of generic possibly fictional German-esque Uberwald locale, the 1964 Film/HammerHorror film ''The Evil of Frankenstein'' is explicitly set in the German Empire, complete with pickelhaubes on the constabulary.

* In ''Webcomic/{{Polandball}}'', the [[JustForPun Reichtangle]], who represents a hypothetical Fourth Reich, uses the colours of Imperial Germany's flag. Due to this, he may also be used to represent Imperial Germany itself. The German Empire is usually considered a separate character and is one of Germany's earlier incarnations.

Imperial Germany was a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament, the ''Reichstag''. In a shrewd move, Bismarck ensured that Imperial Germany had universal manhood suffrage at a time that property qualifications meant that only about half of British adult males could vote.[[note]]This proportion would be increased to a bit over 60% after the Third Reform Act in 1884, with substantial geographic variability (to wit, 2/3 of Englishmen had the vote after the 1884 Act, but only half of Irishmen did). The proportion did gradually increase over time (as incomes rose but the property qualification remained fixed at £10), but Britain did not achieve true universal manhood suffrage until 1918--at which point certain propertyholding women were also granted the vote.[[/note]] Furthermore, Bismarck introduced an advanced welfare system for the sick, the old, and the infirm. The reason for this is that not doing it might make the workers tensed and difficult to control. So Bismarck gave them something to not lose everything. And yet while it was technically governed by rule of law, its constitution was weak, and a great deal of influence was in the hands of the emperor, aristocrats (Junkers), generals, landowners, and industrialists. While parliament had the power to pass bills, all laws had to be approved by the Chancellor, who was not elected but personally appointed by the Emperor, and was responsible only to him. Thus the true power lay not with the people, but the Kaiser. Although not bad for the age, and not a full-on autocracy like pre-1906 UsefulNotes/TsaristRussia, none of this added up to democracy, even by the standards of the day (when the United States had had nearly full (white)[[note]]And, to be fair, even Black in certain lucky pockets, e.g. New York City, Philadelphia, and Chicago. Also of note--in substantial swathes of the North, there were to a first approximation ''no nonwhites'' (Blacks being rare and the Indians having been overwhelmed and driven out), so "full (manhood) democracy" existed locally across much if not most of the 1870s United States even if it wasn't the case nationally. Even if the United States in 1871 wasn't a "democracy", Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and Michigan were, or at least were pretty close.[[/note]] manhood suffrage and completely responsible popular government since the 1830s,[[note]]And was at that moment in the throes of the grand post-[[UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar Civil War]] Reconstruction experiment in full racial equality; the experiment would not end until 1877[[/note]] Denmark had been a fully parliamentary monarchy with universal manhood suffrage since [[UsefulNotes/RevolutionsOf1848 1849]], and France was at that moment was inventing the "parliamentary republic with universal manhood suffrage" model that--with the removal of the qualifier "manhood"--has become the Standard European Government[[superscript:TM]] of today[[note]]Used today by [[UsefulNotes/PoliticalSystemOfGermany Germany]], but, ironically, [[UsefulNotes/FrenchPoliticalSystem not France itself]][[/note]]). But still, not terrible.

Imperial Germany was a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament, the ''Reichstag''. In a shrewd move, Bismarck ensured that Imperial Germany had universal manhood suffrage at a time that property qualifications meant that only about half of British adult males could vote.[[note]]This proportion would be increased to a bit over 60% after the Third Reform Act in 1884, with substantial geographic variability (to wit, 2/3 of Englishmen had the vote after the 1884 Act, but only half of Irishmen did). The proportion did gradually increase over time (as incomes rose but the property qualification remained fixed at £10), but Britain did not achieve true universal manhood suffrage until 1918--at which point certain propertyholding women were also granted the vote.[[/note]] Furthermore, Bismarck introduced an advanced welfare system for the sick, the old, and the infirm. The reason for this is that not doing it might make the workers tensed and difficult to control. So Bismarck gave them something to not lose everything. And yet while it was technically governed by rule of law, its constitution was weak, and a great deal of influence was in the hands of the emperor, aristocrats (Junkers), generals, landowners, and industrialists. While parliament had the power to pass bills, all laws had to be approved by the Chancellor, who was not elected but personally appointed by the Emperor, and was responsible only to him. Thus the true power lay not with the people, but the Kaiser. Although not bad for the age, and not a full-on autocracy like pre-1906 UsefulNotes/TsaristRussia, none of this added up to democracy, even by the standards of the day (when the United States had had nearly full (white)[[note]]And, to be fair, even Black in certain lucky pockets, e.g. New York City, Philadelphia, and Chicago. Also of note--in substantial swathes of the North, there were to a first approximation ''no nonwhites'' (Blacks being rare and the Indians having been overwhelmed and driven out), so "full (manhood) democracy" existed locally across much if not most of the 1870s United States even if it wasn't the case nationally. Even if the United States in 1871 wasn't a "democracy", Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and Michigan were, or at least were pretty close.[[/note]] manhood suffrage and completely responsible popular government since the 1830s,[[note]]And was at that moment was in the throes of the grand post-[[UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar Civil War]] Reconstruction experiment in full racial equality; the experiment would not end until 1877[[/note]] Denmark had been a fully parliamentary monarchy with universal manhood suffrage since [[UsefulNotes/RevolutionsOf1848 1849]], and France was at that moment was inventing the "parliamentary republic with universal manhood suffrage" model that--with the removal of the qualifier "manhood"--has become the Standard European Government[[superscript:TM]] of today[[note]]Used today by [[UsefulNotes/PoliticalSystemOfGermany Germany]], but, ironically, [[UsefulNotes/FrenchPoliticalSystem not France itself]][[/note]]). But still, not terrible.

Imperial Germany has a lot in common with Nazi Germany, and many Nazis began their careers in Imperial Germany. There are indeed, very strong continuities between Imperial Germany and Nazi Germany but, there are also continuities between Imperial Germany and the Weimar Republic, and generally people ''do'' distinguish between the Weimar and Nazi eras after all. Likewise, one can trace proto-Nazi ideas across German history, and even European history as a whole. Imperial Germany was anti-democratic, German supremacist, and belligerent by nature and design. It did share the goal of expanding into Eastern Europe that ultimately formed one of the major engines of UsefulNotes/TheHolocaust. Imperial Germany was an authoritarian state run by the Prussian warrior-caste nobility and they also perpetrated [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herero_and_Namaqua_genocide genocide against the Herero people in German Southwest Africa]] (modern-day Namibia).

There were key differences, however. Bismarck did strive to maintain a façade of liberal institutions and civic society, so Imperial Germany did not impose a single nationalistic ideology outside of Prussian hegemony and loyalty to the Kaiser. Opposition political parties such as the Social Democrats, the Marxists, and others were allowed to run and operate although a SidekickGlassCeiling was strongly maintained to prevent them from being truly effective; and the Reichstag had no say in foreign or domestic policies. While the Kaiserreich did have antisemitism, and the Kaiser ''was'' anti-Semitic, the militant ethnic hatred of the Nazis hadn't become a thing yet. Wilhelm II, despite remaining a reactionary, intolerant, somewhat bonkers monarch 'til the end and being a bit anti-Semitic himself, [[EveryoneHasStandards strongly condemned the violent Nazi persecution of Jews]], and he died in 1941 some months before Germany invaded the Soviet Union and began exterminating civilians. It is plausible to argue that Imperial Germany wasn't exceptional as both society and government in both domestic and international policy from Anglo-Saxon nations. After all, UsefulNotes/TheBritishEmpire was a racist, expansionist, colonialist empire where suffrage was smaller than in Wilhelmine Germany, and America had Jim Crow laws during the nadir of race relations. It would [[HistoricalVillainUpgrade be inexact]] to say they were just like the Nazis, but [[HistoricalVillainDowngrade it would be equally inexact]] to claim they were exceptionally different from their darker imperialist descendants.

The name 'UsefulNotes/{{Germany}}' for centuries was used as a geographical term to refer to the many states and nations that made up the area between France, Austria, Poland-Lithuania, the Netherlands, and Sweden. Most of these weren't really able to object when the Great Powers used the region as a battlefield, but in 1871, Germany was unified for the first time ever (though the UsefulNotes/HolyRomanEmpire was a basically German institution, it hadn't been meaningfully unified since the 10th century). Now, some historians have stated, Germany had turned from a sponge (i.e. soft and absorbing attacks) to a block of iron. And the way it paraded around in uniform all day and had won its unity through force of arms, it looked like it would pick a fight at the next opportunity. Its neighbors were pretty uncomfortable with that.

->''Forever flourishing,\\
Our flag shall boldly wave,\\
O'er the high seas!\\
O how majestically\\
Over the land and sea,\\
The German eagle casts\\
Its fiery gaze!''

The name 'Germany' for centuries was used as a geographical term to refer to the many states and nations that made up the area between France, Austria, Poland-Lithuania, the Netherlands, and Sweden. Most of these weren't really able to object when the Great Powers used the region as a battlefield, but in 1871, Germany was unified for the first time ever (though the UsefulNotes/HolyRomanEmpire was a basically German institution, it hadn't been meaningfully unified since the 10th century). Now, some historians have stated, Germany had turned from a sponge (i.e. soft and absorbing attacks) to a block of iron. And the way it paraded around in uniform all day and had won its unity through force of arms, it looked like it would pick a fight at the next opportunity. Its neighbors were pretty uncomfortable with that.

* ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shout_at_the_Devil_%28film%29 Shout at the Devil]]'' (1976) takes place along the border between Kenya and German East Africa in 1914. The plot is [[VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory inspired]], in part, by the story of the light cruiser ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMS_K%C3%B6nigsberg_(1905) SMS Königsberg]].''
* While most film adaptations of Frankenstein tend to set the story in some sort of generic possibly fictional German-esque Uberwald locale, the 1964 Hammer film The Evil of Frankenstein is explicitly set in the German Empire, complete with pickelhaubes on the constabulary.

* The anime version of ''LightNovel/SagaOfTanyaTheEvil'' sets the story in a rather obvious FantasyCounterpartCulture to the Kaiserreich during a parallel-universe version of World War One (as opposed to the manga which was more obviously inspired by World War Two) complete with largely period-accurate uniforms and weapons.

* The novel and film adaptations of ''Literature/AllQuietOnTheWesternFront'' (the American-made [[FilmAllQuietOnTheWesternFront1930 1930]] and 1979 versions as well as the German-made [[Film/AllQuietOnTheWesternFront2022 2022 version]]) deal with the trenches of UsefulNotes/WorldWarI from their perspective.

* The novel and film adaptations of ''Literature/AllQuietOnTheWesternFront'' (the American-made 1930 and 1979 versions as well as the German-made [[Film/AllQuietOnTheWesternFront2022 2022 version]]) deal with the trenches of UsefulNotes/WorldWarI from their perspective.

* While not referred to by name, they are heavily implied to be the aggressive militaristic power seeking the treasure and advanced destructive weaponry of Laputa in ''Anime/CastleInTheSky''. The pickelhaubes on the soldiers are a dead giveaway, as is the quantity of enormous war zeppelins (though Miyazaki's fondness for elaborate flying machines makes them considerably more advanced'' and complex than anything the Germans possessed in real life, with dozens of huge propellers, whole batteries of guns etc.)

The other best-known characters of the period are, of course, the Kaisers. There were three[[note]] (known collectively as "der greise Kaiser, der weise Kaiser, und der scheiße Kaiser" - the senile Emperor, the wise Emperor, and the shitty Emperor)[[/note]]. The first was Wilhelm I, a conservative old Prussian stalwart with magnificent whiskers who had fought in the Napoleonic Wars and was born in the 18th century. His reign was dominated, politically, by Bismarck. Then came Friedrich III,[[note]] (they were using the Prussian numbering[[/note]] for 99 days. A man of liberal sympathies – he quite admired Britain; he even married UsefulNotes/QueenVictoria's eldest daughter – he was struck down by cancer of the larynx and is a favourite of AlternateHistory. Friedrich III also expressed disgust at the more and more open Antisemitism that reached even the higher echelons of society during his life. Finally and notoriously, Wilhelm II. A infamously [[DramaQueen mercurial]] and [[LargeHam temperamental]] man with what would probably now be diagnosed as ADHD, as well as a strong case for being diagnosed as a clinical {{Narcissist}} with, at the very least, a bad case of InferioritySuperiorityComplex from [[FreudianExcuse major childhood issues concerning his undeveloped and immobilized arm]] due to Erb's palsy from a severely traumatic birth[[labelnote:*]] (while unending people have described Willy as being pompous, overbearing, and unpleasant, it's also conceded he developed his "awesome" façade as one of the only ways he had to deal with a very real and public handicap and a very difficult relationship with his mother. He also had a MoralityPet in his only daughter Viktoria Luise — she was apparently the one person he felt secure enough to stop his constant self-aggrandizment around)[[/labelnote]], he veered between liberal and conservative, strident militarism and sympathy for socialism, and later defeatism and dreams of victory - in other words, he was a picture of the rather-divided German nation as a whole in one man. He also had serious MommyIssues involving both his actual English mother, Vicky, Britain's Princess Royal, and his relationship with Britain. Unlike his father, who had a healthy respect for Britain, Wilhelm was at once awestruck and envious, hating[=/=][[WellDoneSonGuy and desperately wanting the approval and affection of his mother]], but also adoring his grandmother Queen Victoria, disliking many other relatives while still wanting to be British. He admired British power but at the same time resented what he felt was Britain's attempts to keep Germany "in the shade". He fell out with Bismarck and dismissed him, and the rest of his reign was a succession of brief and unmemorable chancellors with himself as the real center of gravity until during the war he was rendered irrelevant by the OHL (''Oberste Heeres Leitung'', Army High Command) who formed a military Junta centered around Generals Hindenburg and Ludendorff and ruled the country 'on his behalf'. Interestingly, UsefulNotes/ImperialJapan, with a constitution and government modeled on Imperial Germany's, also fell prey to [[UsefulNotes/KatanasOfTheRisingSun a much less stable and rational Army-Navy Junta]] in the 1930s [[UsefulNotes/SecondSinoJapaneseWar which got a few tens]] [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII of millions of people killed]].

* The novel and film adaptations of ''Literature/AllQuietOnTheWesternFront'' deal with the First World War from their perspective.

The other best-known characters of the period are, of course, the Kaisers. There were three[[note]] (known collectively as "der greise Kaiser, der weise Kaiser, und der scheiße Kaiser" - the senile Emperor, the wise Emperor, and the shitty Emperor)[[/note]]. The first was Wilhelm I, a conservative old Prussian stalwart with magnificent whiskers who had fought in the Napoleonic Wars and was born in the 18th century. His reign was dominated, politically, by Bismarck. Then came Friedrich III,[[note]] (they were using the Prussian numbering[[/note]] for 99 days. A man of liberal sympathies – he quite admired Britain; he even married UsefulNotes/QueenVictoria's eldest daughter – he was struck down by cancer of the larynx and is a favourite of AlternateHistory. Friedrich III also expressed disgust at the more and more open Antisemitism that reached even the higher echelons of society during his life. Finally and notoriously, Wilhelm II. A infamously [[DramaQueen mercurial]] and [[LargeHam temperamental]] man with what would probably now be diagnosed as ADHD, as well as a strong case for being diagnosed as a clinical {{Narcissist}} with, at the very least, a bad case of InferioritySuperiorityComplex from [[FreudianExcuse major childhood issues concerning his undeveloped and immobilized arm]] due to Erb's palsy from a severely traumatic birth[[labelnote:*]] (while unending people have described Willy as being pompous, overbearing, and unpleasant, it's also conceded he developed his "awesome" façade as one of the only ways he had to deal with a very real and public handicap and a very difficult relationship with his mother. He also had a MoralityPet in his only daughter Viktoria Luise — she was apparently the one person he felt secure enough to stop his constant self-aggrandizment around)[[/labelnote]], he veered between liberal and conservative, strident militarism and sympathy for socialism, and later defeatism and dreams of victory - in other words, he was a picture of the rather-divided German nation as a whole in one man. He also had serious MommyIssues involving both his actual English mother, Vicky, Britain's Princess Royal, and his relationship with Britain. Unlike his father, who had a healthy respect for Britain, Wilhelm was at once awestruck and envious, hating[=/=][[WellDoneSonGuy and desperately wanting the approval and affection of his mother]], but also adoring his grandmother Queen Victoria, disliking many other relatives while still wanting to be British. He admired British power but at the same time resented what he felt was Britain's attempts to keep Germany "in the shade". He fell out with Bismarck and dismissed him, and the rest of his reign was a succession of brief and unmemorable chancellors with himself as the real center of gravity until during the war he was rendered irrelevant by OHL (''Oberste Heeres Leitung'', Army High Command) who formed a military Junta centered around Generals Hindenburg and Ludendorff and ruled the country 'on his behalf'. Interestingly, UsefulNotes/ImperialJapan, with a constitution and government modeled on Imperial Germany's, also fell prey to [[UsefulNotes/KatanasOfTheRisingSun a much less stable and rational Army-Navy Junta]] in the 1930s [[UsefulNotes/SecondSinoJapaneseWar which got a few tens]] [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII of millions of people killed]].

* The Galactic Empire from ''Anime/LegendOfGalacticHeroes'' bases itself on this, although how in doing so they managed to omit pickelhaubes from their uniforms absolutely beggars belief.

The other best-known characters of the period are, of course, the Kaisers. There were three[[note]] (known collectively as "der greise Kaiser, der weise Kaiser, und der scheiße Kaiser" - the senile Emperor, the wise Emperor, and the shitty Emperor)[[/note]]. The first was Wilhelm I, a conservative old Prussian stalwart with magnificent whiskers who had fought in the Napoleonic Wars and was born in the 18th century. His reign was dominated, politically, by Bismarck. Then came Friedrich III,[[note]] (they were using the Prussian numbering[[/note]] for 99 days. A man of liberal sympathies – he quite admired Britain; he even married UsefulNotes/QueenVictoria's eldest daughter – he was struck down by cancer of the larynx and is a favourite of AlternateHistory. Friedrich III also expressed disgust at the more and more open Antisemitism that reached even the higher echelons of society during his life. Finally and notoriously, Wilhelm II. A infamously [[DramaQueen mercurial]] and [[LargeHam temperamental]] man with what would probably now be diagnosed as ADHD, as well as a strong case for being diagnosed as a clinical {{Narcissist}} with, at the very least, a bad case of InferioritySuperiorityComplex from [[FreudianExcuse major childhood issues concerning his undeveloped and immobilized arm]] due to Erb's palsy from a severely traumatic birth[[labelnote:*]] (while unending people have described Willy as being pompous, overbearing, and unpleasant, it's also conceded he developed his "awesome" façade as one of the only ways he had to deal with a very real and public handicap and a very difficult relationship with his mother)[[/labelnote]], he veered between liberal and conservative, strident militarism and sympathy for socialism, and later defeatism and dreams of victory - in other words, he was a picture of the rather-divided German nation as a whole in one man. He also had serious MommyIssues involving both his actual English mother, Vicky, Britain's Princess Royal, and his relationship with Britain. Unlike his father, who had a healthy respect for Britain, Wilhelm was at once awestruck and envious, hating[=/=][[WellDoneSonGuy and desperately wanting the approval and affection of his mother]], but also adoring his grandmother Queen Victoria, disliking many other relatives while still wanting to be British. He admired British power but at the same time resented what he felt was Britain's attempts to keep Germany "in the shade". He fell out with Bismarck and dismissed him, and the rest of his reign was a succession of brief and unmemorable chancellors with himself as the real center of gravity until during the war he was rendered irrelevant by OHL (''Oberste Heeres Leitung'', Army High Command) who formed a military Junta centered around Generals Hindenburg and Ludendorff and ruled the country 'on his behalf'. Interestingly, UsefulNotes/ImperialJapan, with a constitution and government modeled on Imperial Germany's, also fell prey to [[UsefulNotes/KatanasOfTheRisingSun a much less stable and rational Army-Navy Junta]] in the 1930s [[UsefulNotes/SecondSinoJapaneseWar which got a few tens]] [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII of millions of people killed]].