Timeline / 1810 to 1890 / GERMANY / ALL THEMES
Date Country Theme
1812 - 1817 Germany Travelling
John Lewis Burckhardt from Switzerland journeyed to the “Orient”, especially to Aleppo in Syria, to study the Near East and Islam. While there, under the pseudonym Sheikh Ibrahim ibn ‘Abd-Allah and living as a Muslim businessman, he not only translated from English to Arabic Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe, but also rediscovered the city of Petra (Jordan) in 1812.
1813 - 1815 Germany Political Context
The Liberation Wars (and the decisive Battle of Leipzig in 1913) were between Napoleon Bonaparte’s French troops and Central Europe; Napoleon is overthrown.
1814 - 1815 Germany Political Context
The Wiener Kongress (Congress of Vienna) saw the restoration of the political state (the 1792 Ancien Régime), realignment of the borders, and creation of a loosely arranged German Bund (Federation).
1814 - 1815 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
The Wiener Kongress (Congress of Vienna) decides on territorial realignment and the constitutional restoration of Europe.
1815 - 1848 Germany Fine And Applied Arts
The painting by Carl Spitzweg, Der Sonntagsspaziergang (The Sunday Walk, 1841), exemplifies the Biedermeier era (an expression of the popular present reality) in art at this time. Incidentally, Spitzweg’s painting Der arme Poet (The Poor Poet) was the most popular painting in Germany in the 19th century.
1815 - 1848 Germany Migrations
An estimated 60,000 German citizens leave the territory that later becomes the German Bund (Federation).
1815 - 1866 Germany Political Context
German Confederation.
1815 - 1848 Germany Music, Literature, Dance And Fashion
The Biedermeier era in literature (i.e. works by Mörike and von Droste-Hülshoff) is characterised by melancholia, a desire to escape to an idyll and to recapture religion and the homeland.
1816 - 1830 Germany Fine And Applied Arts
Architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel engraved a certain style on Berlin, starting with the Neue Wache (New Guardhouse, 1816–18) and followed by the Konzerthaus at Berlin’s Gandarmenmarkt (1818–21). Opposite the Lustgarten (Pleasure gardens) Date Country Theme on what is now known as Museum Island in Berlin, Schinkel built the first royal museum, the Altes Museum (opened 1830), marking the beginning of the Island’s history.
1817 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
Rise of the Wartburgfest, an assembly of radical students who want to implement the idea of a German National State.
1818 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
Arthur Schopenhauer publishes Die Welt als Wille und Vorstellung (The World as Will and Representation is the title of the latest, 2008, English translation; the first was published in 1883).The second, expanded German edition appeared in 1944.
1819 Germany Political Context
The Karlsbader Beschlüsse (Carlsbad Decrees) was intended to suppress liberal and national movements through censorship of the press and political persecution.
1820 - 1825 Germany Rediscovering The Past
The German naturalists and explorers Wilhelm Friedrich Hemprich and Christian Gottfried Ehrenberg embark on a research tour in cooperation with Martin Lichtenstein (who published Reisen im südlichen Afrika (Tourism in Southern Africa) in 1810 and was appointed director of the Berlin Zoological Museum in 1813) from Cairo to Derna in Libya, along the Nile, and through the Sinai Desert and Lebanon, collecting natural and historical specimens.
1820s - 1860s Germany Travelling
The formation of modern tourism grows in stages, first the nobility, then the educated middle classes and finally citizens of much more modest means. Karl Baedeker, who published the first successful travel book in 1827, was one of the innovators of modern mass tourism. The first group- and corporation-travel tours were inaugurated by the English firm Thomas Cook in 1840. In 1863 the first travel agency opened in Breslau, followed in 1869 by the founding of the German Alp Society, which opened up the Alps to tourism.
1822 - 1829 Germany Political Context
The War between Greece and the Ottoman Empire concludes with Greece attaining its independence with the help of Russia and the Western nations.
1824 - 1829 Germany Cities And Urban Spaces
Rosenstein Palace is built by Giovanni Salucci under Wilhelm I; it has been a public museum since 1954.
1825 - 1848 Germany Music, Literature, Dance And Fashion
This era, one marked by the politician and statesman Klemens von Metternich, a supporter of restoration politics and conditions prior to the French Revolution, is satirised by the Junges Deutschland, a movement in literature (i.e. the works of Date Country Theme Büchner, Heine and Grabbe) that is characterised by a rejection of these beliefs in support of a free press and freedom of expression.
1830 - 1871 Germany Cities And Urban Spaces
Due to the rise of industrialisation in Germany, in 1862, the Hobrecht-Plan aims to modernise Berlin over the following 50 years.
1830 - 1840 Germany Economy And Trade
Industrialisation and the Industrial Revolution.
1830 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
The French July Revolution strengthens the power of the Besitzbürgertum (the landed gentry). Revolutions in central and north Germany enforce constitutional state reforms.
1830 - 1847 Germany Political Context
Stimulated by the French July Revolution, the Vormärz (pre-March) Revolution refers to the formation of political programmes and factional movements.
1832 Germany Political Context
From 27 to 30 May an apparently non-political country fair, the “Hambacher Fest”, was held by a German national democratic assembly, demanding freedom, national entity and popular sovereignty.
1832 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
The “Hambacher Fest” demonstrates the liberal, democratic and national opposition in Germany.
1833 Germany Great Inventions Of The 19th Century
First communication by telegram.
1834 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
Standardisation of the Abitur (equivalent to the A-Level system used elsewhere) which allows students to enter German universities.
1834 Germany Travelling
The Sanssouci Palace in Potsdam is connected to Berlin by rail, one of the first electrified railway sections in Old Germany. Since 1911, the Palace has been used as a film location (i.e. The Blue Angel, 1930).
1835 - 1838 Germany Cities And Urban Spaces
The first section of railway is established between Nürnberg and Fürth (6 km); the building of the long-haul between Leipzig and Dresden is finished in 1838. Date Country Theme
1840 - 1880 Germany Cities And Urban Spaces
Development of a railway network across the whole of Germany, much of which still exists today. The most important stations are developed during this period, including: Berlin Ostbahnhof (1842), Nürnberg Central Station (1844), Duisburg Central Station (1846) and Munich Central Station (1849).
Around 1850 - Around 1900 Germany Cities And Urban Spaces
Development of the urban district known as the “Ruhrpott” from where, by around 1850, many factories operated (known particularly for coal mining). Due to rapid urbanisation and lack of housing several important cities expanded rapidly at this time, including Duisburg and Dortmund. The railway network reached the “Ruhrpott” in 1900.
1841 - 1844 Germany Travelling
The Berlin Zoological Gardens was established in 1841 and opened to the public in 1844. The oldest zoo in Germany, today, it hosts more visitors than any zoo in Europe (around 3 million visitors per year).
1842 - 1846 Germany Rediscovering The Past
The Egyptologist Karl Richard Lepsius is appointed director of an expedition to Egypt by Friedrich Wilhelm IV.
1843 Germany Great Inventions Of The 19th Century
Friedrich Gottlob commodifies paper production (the mass production of cheap paper).
1843 - 1876 Germany Fine And Applied Arts
Formation of the Neues Museum (1843–55), built by Friedrich August Stüler, a follower of K. F. Schinkel. Stüler and Carl Busse then design the Alte Nationalgalerie (1867–76).
1844 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
First proletarian uprising: 3000 weavers in Silesia are protesting against the inhumane working conditions and their exploitation. They are all being killed by the Prussian military.
1844 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
The first Proletariat uprising, the Weber Rebellion, witnesses 3,000 weavers in Silesia protesting against inhumane working conditions and exploitation. The uprising is quashed by the Prussian military – which murders them all.
1848 Germany Political Context
Establishment of the first parliament in German history (at the Paulskirche, Frankfurt am Main), and elaboration of the German Imperial Constitution. Date Country Theme
1848 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
Liberal regimes, now with seats in government, herald a series of liberal reforms in all German states. After riots in Berlin, Prussian King Frederick William IV promises liberal and national reforms.
1848 - 1890 Germany Music, Literature, Dance And Fashion
The era of Realism in literature (i.e. the works of Raabe, Fontane and Busch) is characterised by exact descriptions of reality, subjective narration and irony.
1848 Germany Political Context
The German National Assembly meets in Frankfurt.
1848 - 1849 Germany Political Context
The Pre-March Revolution involves a series of protests, gatherings and disturbances, but by July 1849 the Bundes troops are victorious and the revolution fails.
1848 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels publish the Communist Manifesto.
1849 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
Popular movements in Saxony, Baden and the Pfalz attempt to put into effect the Constitution of the Empire, but they are defeated by Prussian troops.
1849 Germany Political Context
The Prussian King Friedrich Wilhelm IV refuses the German Imperial Crown.
1849 Germany Political Context
The German National Assembly approves the Constitution of the German Empire.
1850 - 1870 Germany Music, Literature, Dance And Fashion
Surveillance, spying and so on, creates fear and leads to political persecution of musicians (e.g. both Richard Wagner and Gottfried Semper are forced into exile). Music of this era falls under the label “late Romanticism” (i.e. when emotional expression and freedom of style are enhanced), and new genres are born; i.e. symphonic poetry (Franz List) and musical drama (Richard Wagner’s Tristan and Isolde, 1865).
1851 Germany International Exhibitions
The First World Fair is opened by Prince Albert in London.
1853 Germany Economy And Trade Date Country Theme
Levi Strauss & Co founds the first company to manufacture blue jeans.
1854 Germany Great Inventions Of The 19th Century
Heinrich Göbel invents the light bulb.
1856 Germany Rediscovering The Past
A Neanderthal is discovered and examined by Johann Carl Fuhlrott and Hermann Schaaffhausen. Rudolf Virchow, friends with the famous archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann, claims that the Neanderthal is not prehistoric man. He is wrong.
1857 - 1859 Germany Economy And Trade
The Great Depression, which starts in the United states with the panic of 1857, represents the first global economic crisis.
1858 Germany Political Context
King Wilhelm I – later Kaiser (Emperor) of the Second Empire – assumes his regency.
1859 Germany Great Inventions Of The 19th Century
Johann Phillipp Reis invents the telephone.
1862 Germany Political Context
Otto von Bismarck becomes prime minister of Prussia.
1864 Germany Great Inventions Of The 19th Century
The chemist Julius Lothar Meyer (1830–95) develops the first periodic table of chemical elements.
1864 Germany Political Context
As a consequence of the Prussian–Danish war, Denmark retracts its demand for Schleswig and Holstein.
1866 - 1871 Germany Economy And Trade
Formation of the North German Confederation in 1866/7 sees a federation of the 22 independent states of northern Germany, with nearly 30 million inhabitants. It was the first modern German nation-state and the basis for the later German Empire (1871–1918).
1866 Germany Great Inventions Of The 19th Century
Werner von Siemens invents the dynamo.
1867 - 1885 Germany Fine And Applied Arts Date Country Theme
King Ludwig II of Bavaria sets in motion the building of his second palace, Linderhof (1869–85), the smallest of the large palaces he had built, and the only one he lived to see completed. The king’s penchant for the so called Moorish style can be seen in several elements, such as the Moorish Kiosk (1867) and the Moroccan House (1878). The King’s House on the Schachen (1869–72), built with a Turkish Hall by Georg von Dollmann, further attests to Ludwig’s admiration for the “Oriental” style.
1868 - 1886 Germany Cities And Urban Spaces
Ludwig II (r. 1864–86) had several palaces built during his reign. The most famous among these are Neuschwanenstein (1868–92, still in construction when Ludwig died), Neues Schloss Herrenchiemsee (1878–86, built along the lines of Versailles, but never completed), and Linderhof (1869–85), the only palace the king lived to see completed.
1870 Germany Economy And Trade
The Deutsche Bank is founded by Georg von Siemens.
1871 Germany Cities And Urban Spaces
Berlin becomes the imperial capital.
1871 Germany Political Context
The German Empire, a union of sovereign states and free cities, is established under Prussian leadership.
From 1871 Germany Economy And Trade
The capital market is enlivened by France’s payment of 5 million French francs, paid to Germany as compensation following the war between the two countries (1870–1).
1872 - 1879 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
As a consequence of the Kulturkampf the influence of the Catholic Church is limited in Germany.
1873 - 1878 Germany International Exhibitions
The Moorish Kiosk, built for the World Exhibition in Paris in 1878, was subsequently bought for Linderhof Palace Park by Ludwig II. The Moroccan House, which was actually built in Morocco for the International Exhibition in Vienna in 1873 and acquired by a private individual after the king’s death, was bought by the German state in 1980 and reconstructed in the Palace Park in 1998.
1873 Germany Economy And Trade
The Krupp Corporation is the largest industrial concern in Europe.
1873 Germany Music, Literature, Dance And Fashion Date Country Theme
Levi Strauss, a German citizen in exile in America, requests the patent for blue Jeans.
1873 Germany Rediscovering The Past
The development of Classical Archaeology is strongly influenced by Heinrich Schliemann in the second half of the 18th century when for example he finds the “Gold of Troy”.
1873 - 1880 Germany Economy And Trade
The economic crash known as the Gründerkrise sees companies and banks shut down and a rise in unemployment and social dissatisfaction.
1874 - 1890 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
“Medicine is a social science, and politics is nothing more than medicine on a large scale”, Rudolf Virchow stated in defence of public health and the building of hospitals in Berlin (i.e. Friedrichshain (1874), Moabit (1875, now closed) and Am Urban (1890); even parks and playgrounds were important to improve city life for the proletariat, Virchow continued.
1876 Germany Great Inventions Of The 19th Century
Robert Koch discovers bacteriology.
1878 - 1890 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
The anti-Socialist laws known as Sozialistengesetz prohibit socialist organisations, meetings and publications.
1879 Germany International Exhibitions
The Great Industrial Exposition is held at the Lehrter Bahnhof in Berlin, where one of main attractions is the first electric locomotive from Siemens & Halske.
1879 Germany Economy And Trade
The German Empire moves from a free-trade system to protective duty.
1880 Germany Travelling
The dome of Cologne is completed (construction began in 1248). It is the tallest church building in the world at the time.
1881 Germany Great Inventions Of The 19th Century
Werner von Siemens develops the tram.
1882 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
Robert Koch discovers the cause of tuberculosis. Date Country Theme
1883 - 1889 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
Imperial Chancellor Otto von Bismarck initiates German social laws and the basic system for a modern social state.
1884 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
The goal in founding the Society for German Colonization was to acquire colonial territories overseas.
1884 - 1890 Germany Great Inventions Of The 19th Century
Gottlieb Daimler develops the petrol engine and Rudolf Diesel invents the diesel engine.
1884 - 1885 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
Germany establishes protectorates in south-west Africa, Cameroon, Togo, East Africa and New Guinea.
1886 Germany Great Inventions Of The 19th Century
Karl Benz and Gottlieb Daimler invent the modern automobile.
Since 1886 Germany Travelling
Seven weeks after the death of King Ludwig II in 1886, Neuschwanstein Castle – built in order that the king could withdraw from public life – opened to the public.
1887 Germany Great Inventions Of The 19th Century
Emil Berliner invents the phonograph.
1888 Germany Rediscovering The Past
Julius Stinde writes Frau Buchholz im Orient. He has already documented the cities of Cairo, Jerusalem, Athens, and Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey).
1890 Germany Reforms And Social Changes
Emperor Wilhelm II dismisses Bismarck; and so begins the era of the emperor’s personal regiment.