Editing Saxony (section)

===19th century===
[[File:Map-saxony1900.png|right|thumb|The Kingdom of Saxony after the [[Congress of Vienna]]]]
{{further|Kingdom of Saxony}}
In 1806, French Emperor [[Napoleon]] abolished the [[Holy Roman Empire]] and established the Electorate of Saxony as a kingdom in exchange for military support. The [[Prince-elector|Elector]] Frederick Augustus III accordingly became King [[Frederick Augustus I of Saxony]]. Frederick Augustus remained loyal to Napoleon during the wars that swept Europe in the following years; he was taken prisoner and his territories were declared forfeit by the allies in 1813, after the defeat of Napoleon. Prussia intended the annexation of Saxony but the opposition of [[Austrian Empire|Austria]], France, and the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|United Kingdom]] to this plan resulted in the restoration of Frederick Augustus to his throne at the [[Congress of Vienna]] although he was forced to cede the northern part of the kingdom to Prussia, which led to the loss of nearly 60% of the Saxon territory,<ref>{{harvp|Pollock|Thomas|1952|p=486}}</ref> and 40% of its population. Most of these lands were merged with the [[Duchy of Magdeburg]], the [[Altmark]] and some smaller territories to become the Prussian [[Province of Saxony]], a predecessor of the modern state of [[Saxony-Anhalt]]. [[Lower Lusatia]] and part of the former Saxe-Wittenberg territory became part of the [[Province of Brandenburg]] and the northeastern part of [[Upper Lusatia]] became part of the [[Province of Silesia]]. The [[rump state|rump]] Kingdom of Saxony had roughly the same extent as the present state, albeit slightly smaller.
[[File:G5241.jpg|thumb|Saxony before the Congress of Vienna compared to present day Saxony]]

Meanwhile, in 1815, the Kingdom of Saxony joined the [[German Confederation]].<ref name="p510">{{harvp|Pollock|Thomas|1952|p=510}}</ref> In the politics of the Confederation, Saxony was overshadowed by Prussia and Austria. King [[Anthony of Saxony]] came to the throne of Saxony in 1827. Shortly thereafter, liberal pressures in Saxony mounted and broke out in revolt during 1830—a [[Revolutions of 1830|year of revolution]] in Europe.<ref name=p510/> The revolution in Saxony resulted in a constitution for the Kingdom of Saxony that served as the basis for its government until 1918.<ref name=p510/>

During the [[German revolutions of 1848–1849|1848–49 constitutionalist revolutions in Germany]], Saxony became a hotbed of revolutionaries, with anarchists such as [[Mikhail Bakunin]] and democrats including [[Richard Wagner]] and [[Gottfried Semper]] taking part in the [[May Uprising in Dresden]] in 1849. (Scenes of Richard Wagner's participation in the May 1849 uprising in Dresden are depicted in the 1983 movie ''[[Wagner&nbsp;(film)|Wagner]]'' starring [[Richard Burton]] as Richard Wagner.) The May uprising in Dresden forced King [[Frederick Augustus II of Saxony]] to concede further reforms to the Saxon government.<ref name=p510/>

In 1854 Frederick Augustus II's brother, King [[John, King of Saxony|John of Saxony]], succeeded to the throne. A scholar, King John translated [[Dante Alighieri|Dante]].<ref name=p510/> King John followed a federalistic and pro-Austrian policy throughout the early 1860s until the outbreak of the [[Austro-Prussian War]]. During that war, Prussian troops overran Saxony without resistance and then invaded Austrian [[Kingdom of Bohemia|Bohemia]].<ref>{{harvp|Pollock|Thomas|1952|pp=510–511}}</ref> After the war, Saxony was forced to pay an indemnity and to join the [[North German Confederation]] in 1867.<ref name="p511">{{harvp|Pollock|Thomas|1952|p=511}}</ref> Under the terms of the North German Confederation, Prussia took over control of the Saxon postal system, railroads, military and foreign affairs.<ref name=p511/> In the [[Franco-Prussian War]] of 1870, Saxon troops fought together with Prussian and other German troops against France.<ref name=p511/> In 1871, Saxony joined the newly formed [[German Empire]].<ref name=p511/>