CTV » |-aill|||lK-4JJ • -^ V •^ VmOO^* «>^ "^ * ©IIS * •< f I * '^ *o • ft *0 * •J' c*- ^oV^ . "^^^O^ 4 o » 3, 9 9^ t^^^ 5^. ^ L^' HISTORY OF GERMANY. A SHORT HISTORY OF GERMANY BY Mrs. H. C. HAWTREY WITH ADDITIONAL CHAPTERS BY AMANDA M. FLATTERY 3 4i,> PUBLISHED FOR THE BAY VIEW READING CLUB Central Office, 165 Boston Boulevard DETROIT, MICH. 1903 iTI --0 H^ THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. Two Copies Received JUL to 1903 •J Copyrigiil Entry Buss OL XXc N» COPY B. Copyright, 1903, by LONGMANS, GREEN, AND CO. r t" t KOBERT DRUMMOND, PRINTER, NEW YORK. PREFACE. It would be absurd to suppose that a History of Germany could be written within the compass of 300 pages. The merest outline is all that could be given in this little book, and very much of vast interest and im- portance has necessarily been omitted. But some knowledge of the political events of former days is necessary for all persons—more especially trav- ellers—who desire to understand and appreciate the customs, buildings, paintings, etc., of any country, and it is hoped that short continental histories may be useful to many who have not time or opportunity for closer study. My aim in the present volume has been simply to give one marked characteristic of each King or Emperor's reign, so as to fix it in the memory; and to show how Prussia came to hold its present position of importance amongst the continental powers of Europe. Emily Hawtrey. iiL BOOK I. HISTORY OF GERMANY. INTRODUCTION. CHAPTER I. The mighty Teutonic or German race in Europe did not begin to play its part in history until the decline of the Roman Empire ; but we must all of us feel the warm- est interest in it when it does begin, for it represents not only the central history of Europe in the Middle Ages, but also the rise of our own forefathers in their home and birthplace of Germany. To understand something of these ancestors, we must go back to the Origin of Races in the earhest known history of the World. The Caucasian Race was divided into three branches : Caucasian E, The Aryan, or Indo-European; IL, The Semitic; III., The Hamitic. The Aryan branch. The races of progress and civil- Aryans, ization, to which we ourselves belong, include nearly all the nations of Europe: Greeks, Latins, Kelts, Teutons, Sclavonians, beside the Asiatic races of Persia and the Hindoos. Our several languages show an affinity with Sanscrit and Zend, the old Hindoo and Persian lan- guages, as if springing from a common stock. But we know nothing; of the Kelts and Teutons until Kelts and ^ , , • . r ,...., we find them migratmg from their Asiatic homes and Teutons, settling themselves in new habitations in the West. (?').' — : 2 HISTORY OF GERMANY. The Kelts were the first to arrive and take possession of Central Europe, probably as far back as 1500 B.C. ( ?), After a time the fiercer Teutons poured into Europe, carrying all before them, and pushing the Kelts into the extremities of the Western lands, where we find the Keltic element still existing in Ireland, Wales, the High- Keltic — Tribes, lands of Scotland, Belgium, Brittany and Spain—leav- ing Central Europe to the Teutons; and the plains of Eastern Europe to the Sclavonians, who soon followed (Bulgarians, Avars, and Lithuanians). The Rhine was the Keltic Border. There were over fifty Germanic or Teutonic Tribes, Tribes^ of whom the chief were Goths, of Scandinavia (where Gothland, Godoland, etc., still mark their dwelling-places). In 200 A.D. they moved southwards, and are found as a powerful nation North of the Danube, subdi- vided into Visigoths (West Goths), of Spain. Ostrogoths (East Goths), of Moldavia, Wallachia and North Italy. The Goths were the first tribe to receive Christianity. Vandals and Burgimdii, kinsmen of the Goths. Vandals, of Spain (Vandalusia) and North Africa in 439 A.r>. The Dukes of Mecklenburg claim descent from them, and still call themselves " Princes of the Van- dals." Burgimdii, settled between the Rhone and the Alps. Switzerland was part of the Burgundian Kingdom. Siievi, or Swabians, of Spain, Gaul and the country known as Swabia. Alemanni, on the upper course of the Rhine, giving their name to Germany amongst the Franks. Thuringians, East of the Franks. INTRODUCTION. 3 Franks (so-called from an ancient word meaning "battle- axe "), of the Lower Rhine, Belgium, and later of Gaul. Saxons, of Holstein, Denmark, and afterwards of Britain, Angles, of Schleswig. Jutes, of Denmark (Jutland). Marcomanni (Marchmen), first of the Rhine and later of Bohemia. Lombardii ("Longobardi"), of North Italy since the sixth century, said to have come from Brandenburg. Scandinavians, or Norsemen, of Norway and Sweden. Frisians, by the North Sea. Gepidce, settled in Hungary, 453 a.d. Chatti (Catti), from whom the Grand Dukes of Hesse claim lineal descent; said to be absorbed into the Franks in third century. Cherusci, to the South of Hanover. Hermann, "the Deliverer," was of this tribe. — CHAPTER II. B.C. 200. The inhabitants of Germany were ignorant of the art of writing, and we have no records of their own from which to form a correct history. It is to the Romans their nearest neighbors, inhabiting Italy on the south and Gaul on the west—that we must turn for some ac- count of the "Barbarian Teutons." The Romans were a cultivated, clever race, the con- querors of the world, and the centre of historical interest and civilization. From their writings we learn that the land to the north of the Danube—lying between the Rhine on the one hand and the Vistula and Carpathian Mountains on the other, and bounded on the north by the Baltic Sea—was inhab- ited by a fair-haired race of men of gigantic stature, broad shoulders, blue eyes, and keen, fierce looks. The Romans regarded these giant forms with fear, and called Germans, them Wehr-mdnnev (or warriors), Germans. From childhood upwards the Germans used every possible means to render themselves strong and hardy; even the new-born baby was plunged into cold water. The dress of the men was simply a short linen garment, confined at the waist by a girdle, or a coat made from the skins of wild beasts sewn together; the children ran about un- clothed, secure against wind and weather, healthy, active and bold. Country. The land was rich in vegetation; on all sides stretched vast morasses and pathless forests, in which roamed wild beasts—bison, boars, stags, wolves and bears, etc.; the 4 INTRODUCTION. 5 air was damp and cold, for the sun's rays could not pen- etrate the thick foliage of the forests, of which one alone is known to have been sixty days' journey long, and nine days' journey wide. Agriculture and farming were indeed carried on, but after a very rude and imperfect fashion. The meadows were rich with long grass for pasture, the earth teemed with salt and iron, which the people soon learnt to make use of. The rivers ran as they do now, but uncrossed by bridges ; he who desired to cross must either make a raft or swim! The life was rude and simple. The inhabitants lived in the open air, building no cities or villages, for the confined life of the Roman towns appeared to them only fit for prisoners. Each man had his own Houses. Kttle house, the rude walls made of boughs and branches of trees filled up with mud, the roofs thatched with straw, the grander ones made of rough-hewn stones and some painted in streaks of various colors. The favorite oc- cupations for the men were hunting and war; children were trained to the use of weapons from infancy. Women also went to war, not so much to fight as to en- courage the men ; at other times the women were busied with the care of cattle and fields; their food consisted of milk, bread, meat, roots, washed down with clear water. Food, though very soon they learnt to brew a good glass of strong beer! Certain virtues were conspicuous in their characters, virtues. Truth and honor were held in high esteem; a promise or a handclasp could be relied upon with certainty, and to break faith with one another invariably incurred the deepest disgrace. Hospitality also was insisted upon, and the best that could be procured was always set he- tore the stranger. Love of home and "the Fatherland" was a strong point even in those early days. HISTORY OF GERMANY. Faults. At the same time they cared for nothing except hunt- ing and war, and when not occupied with either they lay on mats or played at dice ; and to this day it is said of an idler that he is "lying on the bearskin." They carried gambling to such an extent that a man would stake not only his house and property, but also his wife and child, and even himself to be sold as a slave. Worship. They worshipped the heathen gods of Nature: Wodin: the All-Father, who had made the world and from whom twelve other gods emanated. Donar, or Thor: the god of thundery weather, bring- ing rain upon the earth. Hertha: goddess of the earth (earth-mother). Freya: goddess of love. The Sun: bringing all the fruits of the earth to maturity. Hulda: the moon and stars, giving hght at night, and with a crowd of little children's souls around her. Hellia: goddess of the nether world, dwelling in deep darkness. Etc. After-life. They believed in eternal Hfe, in heaven and hell, call- ing them Walhalla and Hela.