Editing Flag of Germany (section)

=== Revolution and the Frankfurt Parliament ===
[[File:Flag of the German Confederation (war).svg|thumb|{{FIAV|000001}} {{FIAV|historical}} War ensign of the [[Reichsflotte]] (1848–1852)]]
[[File:Image Germania (painting).jpg|thumb|upright|left|''[[Germania (St. Paul's Church, Frankfurt am Main)|Germania]]''. The painting hung inside the ''Paulskirche'' above where the Frankfurt Parliament assembled]]
In the [[German revolutions of 1848–1849|Springtime of the Peoples]] during the [[Revolutions of 1848]], revolutionaries took to the streets, many flying the tricolour. The Confederation's Bundestag, alarmed by the events, hasted to adopt the tricolour (9 March 1848). Liberals took power and made the Bundestag call for general elections for a German parliament, the national assembly. This [[Frankfurt Parliament]] declared the black-red-gold as the official colours of Germany and passed a [[Imperial law regarding the introduction of a German war and civil ensign|law]] stating its civil ensign was the black-red-yellow tricolour.<ref name="flag1848">{{cite web |url=http://www.documentarchiv.de/nzjh/1848/reichsflaggen1848_ges.html |title=Gesetz betreffend die Einführung einer deutschen Kriegs- und Handelsflagge |author=Frankfurt Parliament |work=documentArchiv.de |language=de |trans-title=Act concerning the introduction of a German navy and merchant flag |date=12 November 1848 |access-date=9 August 2007 |archive-date=19 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191019050120/http://www.documentarchiv.de/nzjh/1848/reichsflaggen1848_ges.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Also, a naval war ensign used these colours.
[[File:Maerz1848 berlin.jpg|thumb|200px|Revolutionaries in [[Berlin]], [[Berlin Palace]] in the background (March 1848)]]

In May 1849, the larger states actively fought the revolution and the Frankfurt parliament. In late 1850, the [[German Confederation]] was definitely restored under Austrian-Prussian leadership. The tricolour remained official but was no longer used before 1863 at a conference of the German governments. Afterwards, the most pressing issue was whether or not to include Austria in any future German nation, as Austria's status as a multi-ethnic empire complicated the dream of a united Greater Germany—the {{lang|de|[[Kleindeutschland and Großdeutschland|grossdeutsch]]}} solution. Alternatively, there was the {{lang|de|[[Kleindeutschland|kleindeutsch]]}} (Lesser German) solution for a Germany that encompassed only German lands and excluded Austria. The Prussian–Austrian duality within the Confederation eventually led to the [[Austro-Prussian War]] in 1866. During the war, the southern states allied with Austria adopted the black-red-gold tricolour as their flag, and the 8th German Army Corps also wore black-red-gold armbands.<ref name="GermConf"/> The [[Kingdom of Prussia]] and its predominately north German allies defeated Austria and made way for the realisation of the Lesser German solution a few years later. {{clear}}