.:German Empire:. .:Deutsches Reich:.

The German Empire (German: Deutsches Reich, called by some German historians as Kaiserlich Deutsches Reich or Kaiserreich) refers to Germany from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871 to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of Wilhelm II (28 November 1918). Deutsches Reich remained the official name of Germany throughout the Weimar period and most of the Nazi period until 1943, when it was changed to Großdeutsches Reich ("Great German Empire").

During its 47 years of existence, the German Empire emerged as one of the most powerful industrial economies on Earth and a great power, until it collapsed following its military defeat in World War I and the concurrent November Revolution. The most important bordering states were Imperial Russia in the east, France in the west, and Austria-Hungary in the south.