Editing Hesse (section)

==== German Empire ====

In the 1866 [[Austro-Prussian War]] the states of the region allied with [[Austrian Empire|Austria]] were defeated during the [[Campaign of the Main]]. Following Prussia's victory and dissolution of the German Confederation, Prussia annexed Electoral Hesse, Frankfurt, Hesse-Homburg, Nassau and small parts of Bavaria and the Grand Duchy of Hesse, which were then combined into the [[Province of Hesse-Nassau]]. The name {{lang|de|Kurhessen}} survived, denoting the region around Kassel. The Grand Duchy of Hesse retained its autonomy in defeat because a greater part of the country was situated south of the river [[Main (river)|Main]] and it was feared that Prussian expansion beyond the Main might provoke France. However, [[Upper Hesse]] ({{langx|de|Oberhessen|link=no}}: the parts of Hesse-Darmstadt north of the Main around the town of [[Gießen]]) was incorporated into the [[North German Confederation]] ({{lang|de|Norddeutscher Bund}}), a tight federation of German states established by Prussia in 1867, while also remaining part of the Grand Duchy. In 1871, after France's defeat in the [[Franco-Prussian War]], the whole of the Grand Duchy joined the [[German Empire]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

Around the turn of the 20th century, Darmstadt was one of the centres of the [[Jugendstil]]. Until 1907, the Grand Duchy of Hesse used the Hessian red and white lion ''barry'' as its coat-of-arms.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}