After the 30 year war what is now known as Germany was in a terrible state. In the Hagen text it says “The drastic decline in population and general poverty following the end of the Thirty Years’ War were matched by widespread economic stagnation, as the territories of the empire were cut off from the growing transatlantic trade and the fruits of colonial conquests abroad” (70). They were essentially forced to mold themselves into new-styled states in order to survive. Even though the imperial troops tried to fight off enemies, France was attacking and seizing land. 

It was not until the Turkish War that the empire had any success. They finally began winning and thinks to imperial propaganda there was a “wave of enthusiasm for the emperor and the imperial cause” (75). Germany then became a part of Prussia as the leadership shifted to King Frederick I.

 There were many challenges that existed in Prussia because it was constantly fighting for its existence. On top of that, Prussia was a poor empire. “It had practically no natural resources and a relatively small number of inhabitants” (79). Eventually Germany entered the seven year war and Prussia was recognized as an empire. 

However, during this time, Germany had started to push away from the powers of Prussia and become a “sovereign power capable of political action” (84). The identity of Germany evolved as it slowly became individualized from Prussia and began to shape into a new empire. It had been dependent on Prussia but was slowly becoming independent. The challenge now was gaining recognition as an individual.  The German nation “existed in the political sense, but conceded that it was difficult to describe and that many other nations existed within it on lower levels” (86). At this time, Germany had a very fragmented identity, which in part lead to it’s growth. 

The German identity began to change as a new educated class came into existence and a standard language began to develop. Using the standard language, communication was able to develop and as a result, culture began to develop. According to Schulze “The German nation was born in the minds of the intelligentsia, as a cultural entity without direct ties to politics” (91). 

Once the Holy Roman Empire dissolved, Germany evolved even more. What was once an empire with a huge amount of different territories, became an empire with 30 territories. Germans once again had to switch their identity because they now belonged to a completely different amount of land under different leaders. Many people struggled with what Germany actually was. “The subjects of Prussia, Bavaria, Saxony-Gotha, or, say Schwarzburg-Sondershausen might feel somehow “German”, yet many identified themselves more broadly with a cosmopolitan bourgeoisie” (102). 

At this time Germany was not only struggling with its identity, but also with many challenges. The French armies marched through, living off the land and taking all they could from the population. In an address to the German nation, Johann Gottlieb Fichte proclaimed “the nature of the German people was genuine and unspoiled, and that by fighting for their own identity and freedom from French military and cultural domination, Germans were serving the cause of progress” (104). The idea of national unity was not completely prevalent until 1840 during the Rhine crisis in which France made an attempt to expand its borders. “The years following 1840 saw a rebirth of German nationalism and strong growth of organizations promoting it” (119). There was a call for action as the people of German began to fight for recognition as a federal state. 

Finally, King William I of Prussia became the first German emperor in the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles on January 18th, 1871 (142). Germany was officially recognized as a state.