Victoria 3: How To Form The North German Federation

Quick Links

• German Leadership

• Schleswig-Holstein

• The North German Federation

Forming Germany is one of the most popular player goals in Victoria 3. Historically, this happened in 1871 when smaller German states, riding a wave of patriotic fervor after a series of military victories, unified with the much larger Kingdom of Prussia. You can replicate this chain of events in-game, though chances are your story will be a little different each time.

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Creating the North German Federation is the first major step in creating a German Empire, but it requires several goals to be completed first. As Bismarck said, you'll need to resolve them by blood and iron.

Technically, any nation in Victoria 3 whose primary culture is North German can form the Federation, but Prussia is by far the best suited to doing so. As such, this guide will focus on playing as Prussia.

German Leadership

The first and most important hurdle in unifying German is establishing yourself as the sole candidate for German Leadership. At the start of the game, the two viable candidates are Prussia and Austria. Prussia's immediate goal should be winning a war against Austria to press the German Leadership war goal, forcing Austria to give up any claim to leading the German people.

The German Leadership War Goal is unlocked once you research Nationalism. If you expand the University in Berlin by one level and switch it to Philosophy right away, you can get an event that increases its output, speeding up research.

Austria starts with 190 Battalions while Prussia has only 125. You can make up the difference by expanding your weapon manufacturing in Ruhr, but it's still a good idea to seek allies. Russia is the best choice for fighting against Austria due to their shared border.

You should also pay attention to Austria's allies before declaring war; if they're allied with France, you'll have to split your forces between the Austrian front and defending the Rhineland. If they're allied with Great Britain, you'll probably need to delay your attack, as the risk of a naval invasion from the north becomes too great.

Maintain good relations with any Great Powers who are neutral - this makes it less likely that they'll intervene.

While conquering some Austrian territory can boost your economy in the long term, the most important thing is pressing the German Leadership goal. If you have an opportunity to intervene in one of Austria's wars - possibly against the Ottoman Empire - that's a good way to demand the goal without as much risk to yourself.

Victoria 3: Complete Guide To Customs Unions

Customs unions are a great way to expand your economy in Victoria 3.

Schleswig-Holstein

The second prerequisite to forming the North German Federation is to conquer Schleswig, Holstein, or both. On paper, this is much easier than winning a war against Austria, but you'll need some heavy preparation. Since you don't have any land routes for your armies, you'll need to either conquer some smaller German states to the west (which unnecessarily builds up Infamy) or prepare a naval invasion.

Prussia's navy is essentially non-existent at the start of the game; while you're preparing and executing your war with Austria, build up Military Shipyards and Naval Bases along the Baltic coast. The goal is to have forty to fifty Flotillas with which to attack Denmark.

This is a much bigger navy than is strictly necessary to break through the Danish fleet, but you need the extra ships to carry your infantry formations.

Again, be mindful of potential allies. Do everything you can to keep Britain from interfering, and Denmark should be defeated with relative ease. You can even make them a Protectorate if you don't mind a little extra Infamy!

The North German Federation

Once you've asserted your claim over Schleswig-Holstein and taken Austria down a peg, the smaller nations in northern Germany will start to voluntarily join your nation. This happens when a state is in your Customs Union or has a good relationship with you, which will be true for most of them if you've restricted your belligerence to non-German foes.

Once fourteen of the eighteen states with North German as their primary culture are part of Prussia, which shouldn't take long at all after completing the two steps outlined above, you'll automatically receive an event that turns your country into the North German Federation.

From there, the next move is usually to annex the remaining German states, diplomatically or otherwise, until you can form Germany proper using the normal mechanics for doing so - check out the guide below to see how!

Next: Victoria 3: How To Form New Nations