An Empire of Air
The German writer Jean Paul had said, “Providence had given the French the empire of land, the English that of the sea, and to the Germans that of the air.” What Paul whimsically meant by “Germans” cannot easily be ascertained. The numerous political entities that contained Germans included not only the states of Austria and Prussia, but also various duchies and fiefdoms. This fragmentation would be changed by a very unlikely source---Napoleon.
The Confederation of the Rhine
The impact Napoleon Bonaparte had was so severe that the boundaries of Germany had to be redrawn as a result of France seizing all German territory on the west bank of the Rhine.
The conditions of southern and northern German states differed greatly as a result of this deputation. Bavaria, Baden, and Wurttemberg--- all southern and southwestern states, were built up by Napoleon’s France to counter the strength of Prussia and Austria. These southern German states owed their newfound strength to their imperial French masters, and this client relationship was to take on an even more subservient role to France with the formation of fifteen German states into the Confederation of the Rhine in 1806. Later this confederation was to include nearly every German state, except for Austria and Prussia. After less than a month of the formation of the Confederation of the Rhine, Napoleon; the confederation’s official protector, announced the official end of the thousand-year-old Holy Roman Empire.
Prussian Defeat
In response to this and other insulting provocations, King Frederick William of Prussia concluded a secret agreement with Tsar Alexander. Even before Russia had ratified the treaty, before securing adequate Russian support, Prussia mobilized its army against the French. Charles Breunig points out in The Age of Revolution and Reaction, 1789-1850, that “Prussian troops were outnumbered two to one, and they turned out to be no match for the well-trained armies of Napoleon. On October 14, 1806, before the Russians could arrive to support them, the Prussians were defeated simultaneously at Jena and at Auerstedt.” The French easily rolled through Prussia--- in the process capturing Berlin, pursuing Frederick William and his armies, who had to seek refuge in East Prussia. Napoleon further humiliated Prussia by annexing some of its most precious territories and taking half its population from it.
Austrian Response
Austria, who was not as economically and militarily crippled as Prussia, took on a more proactive role towards France. In A History of Modern Germany, 1800-2000, author Martin Kitchen reveals, “Count Philip Stadion, the first minister, was a conservative southern German, but he was also a fervent patriot. He hoped to mobilize popular sentiment throughout Germany and inspire a war of liberation that would result in the rebirth of the German empire.” But this was an unrealistic vision, as the regular army was no match for Napoleon. Although, this fact was made obscured following Napoleon’s defeat at Aspern in May 1809, as he attempted to cross the Danube River. Alan Schom states in his biography, Napoleon Bonaparte, “French losses were extremely high, probably as many as 16,000 dead and perhaps double that wounded... although Napoleon publicly announced to the world only 4,100 dead and wounded. The Austrians officially suffered 23,000 casualties, and were the clear winners of the unequal two-day battle.”
To Austria’s dismay, the majority of German states showed minimal support, and on June 5, 1809, Napoleon, taking advantage of the situation, delivered a crushing blow to Austrian Archduke Charles’ forces and shortly thereafter entered Vienna. Austria was forced to cede further territories and was obliged to pay insurmountable war indemnities.
