Deutsches Reich

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Deutsches Reich was the official name for Germany from 1871 to 1945 in the German language. Its literal meaning in English is "German Realm", however it is more usually only part-translated as "German Reich" (for a more detailed translation/explanation of the term 'Reich' read the article Reich).

The history of Germany during this time is conventionally broken into three distinct periods, the names of which are much more commonly used for referring to the state than the official term:

• the German Empire or "Second Reich" (Zweites Reich), from 1871 to 1918
• the Weimar Republic, from 1919 to 1933
• Nazi Germany or "Third Reich" (Drittes Reich), from 1933 to 1944 (during the final two years of Nazi rule the state was formally known as the "Großdeutsches Reich", or "Greater German Reich")
• ex 1945 the occupied Deutsches Reich. Even as late as 1973 the Bundesverfassungsgericht declared the Deutsches Reich as still in existence but "handlungsunfähig (incapable of action)".

Before 1871 the term Deutsches Reich was also sometimes used informally in German when referring to the Holy Roman Empire (962–1806). After 1871 that empire was sometimes referred to in German as the Altes Reich ("Old Empire") and after the 1920s as "First Reich" (Erstes Reich).