Editing Flag of Germany (section)

=== North German Confederation and the German Empire (1867–1918) ===<!-- [[North German Confederation]] and [[German Empire]] both link to here -->
{{see also|Reichskriegsflagge|Flag of the German Empire}}
{{Infobox flag
| Name = North German Confederation and the German Empire
| Image = File:Flag of the German Empire.svg
| Use = 010110
| Symbol = {{FIAV|010110}} {{FIAV|historical}}
| Proportion = 2:3 (3:5 in 1933–1935)
| Adoption = *{{Start date and age|1867}} (first 2:3 ratio)
*{{Start date and age|1933}} (second 3:5 ratio)
| Relinquished = *{{Start date and age|1919}} (first 2:3 ratio)
*{{Start date and age|1935}} (second 3:5 ratio)
| Design = A horizontal tricolour of black, white, and red
| Designer = 
| Type = 
}}

Following the dissolution of the German Confederation, Prussia formed its unofficial successor, the [[North German Confederation]], in 1866 with the signing of the [[North German Confederation Treaty|Confederation Treaty]] in August 1866 and then the ratification of the [[North German Constitution|Constitution of 1867]]. This national state consisted of Prussia, the largest member state, and 21 other north German states.

The question regarding what flag should be adopted by the new confederation was first raised by the shipping sector and its desire to have an internationally recognisable identity. Virtually all international shipping that belonged to the confederation originated from either Prussia or the three Hanseatic city-states of [[Bremen (state)|Bremen]], [[Hamburg]], and [[Free City of Lübeck|Lübeck]]. Based on this, [[Adolf Soetbeer]], secretary of the Hamburg Chamber of Commerce, suggested in the {{lang|de|Bremer Handelsblatt}} on 22 September 1866 that any planned flag should combine the [[Flag of Prussia|colours of Prussia]] (black and white) with the [[Hanseatic flags|Hanseatic colours]] (red and white). In the following year, the [[North German Constitution|constitution of the North German Confederation]] was enacted, where a horizontal black-white-red tricolour was declared to be both the civil and war ensign.<ref name="NDBconst">{{cite web |url=http://www.documentarchiv.de/nzjh/ndbd/verfndbd.html |title=Constitution of the North German Confederation |work=documentArchiv.de |language=de |date=27 June 1867 |access-date=24 February 2008 |archive-date=28 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191028010740/http://www.documentarchiv.de/nzjh/ndbd/verfndbd.html |url-status=live }} See Article 55.</ref>

King [[William I, German Emperor|Wilhelm I of Prussia]] was satisfied with the colour choice: the red and white were also taken to represent the [[Margraviate of Brandenburg]], the [[Prince-elector|Imperial elector state]] that was a predecessor of the Kingdom of Prussia.<ref name="Rabbow2007"/> The absence of gold from the flag also made it clear that this German state did not include the "black and gold" monarchy of Austria. In the [[Franco-Prussian War]], the remaining southern German states allied with the North German Confederation, leading to the [[unification of Germany]]. A new constitution of 1871 gave the federal state the new name of German Empire and the Prussian king the title of Emperor. The [[German Empire]] retained black, white, and red as its national colours.<ref name="GEconst">{{cite web |url=http://www.documentarchiv.de/ksr/verfksr.html |title=Constitution of the German Empire |work=documentArchiv.de |language=de |date=16 April 1871 |access-date=24 February 2008 |archive-date=17 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191017045814/http://www.documentarchiv.de/ksr/verfksr.html |url-status=live }} See Article 55.</ref> An ordinance of 1892 dealt with the official use of the colours.

The black-white-red tricolour remained the flag of Germany until the end of the German Empire in 1918, in the final days of [[World War I]].

A visually near-identical flag was used as the national flag of the [[Republic of Upper Volta]], adopted upon the country's independence in 1958 and used until 1984, when the nation was overthrown and re-established as [[Burkina Faso]].