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July 13, 2025 90 mins

What happens when a loose collective of states and political entities see a revolution in France and then invasion by Napoleon? Hint: it probably has to do with secret police.

Following the collapse of the Holy Roman Empire, the Confederation of German State banned together by common language. The experience of being occupied by a foreign enemy and seeing their neighbors bleed from revolution inspired the German States' first collective police network.

Along with the police network also came the development of an extensive international spy ring. They aimed to protect Germany's many sovereigns and prevent petty and political crimes. 

 

Socials:

IG: @secretpolicepodcast

X: hush_popo

Gmail: secretpolicepodcast@gmail.com

Special Thanks to:

Jan Bögel as Paul Hilken

Sources:

Police and State in Prussia 1815-1850 by Alf Lüdtke

The Gestapo: A History of Horror by Jacquese Delarue 

The Gestapo: The Myth and Reality of Hitler’s Secret Police

 

International Policing in Nineteenth-Century Europe: The Police Union of German States, 1851-1866. (2025). Blogspot.com. https://deflem.blogspot.com/1996/09/international-policing-in-19th-century.html

 

Facts About Germany. Geography & Climate. https://www.tatsachen-ueber-deutschland.de/en/germany-glance/geography-climate 

 

Ten Facts About Agriculture. https://www.deutschland.de/en/topic/environment/agriculture-in-germany-ten-facts#:~:text=Grain%20is%20grown%20on%20about,followed%20by%20barley%20and%20rye

 

Global Beer Consumption by Country in 2023. Kirin Holdings. https://www.kirinholdings.com/en/newsroom/release/2024/1219_01.html#:~:text=The%20Czech%20Republic%20consumed%20152.1,31st%20consecutive%20year%20since%201993

 

Sullivan, R. E. (1999, July 26). Charlemagne | Biography, Accomplishments, Children, & Facts. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charlemagne 

 

Wagner, G. A., Krbetschek, M., Degering, D., Bahain, J.-J., Shao, Q., Falguères, C., Voinchet, P., Dolo, J.-M., Garcia, T., & Rightmire, G. P. (2010). Radiometric dating of the type-site forHomo heidelbergensisat Mauer, Germany. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 107(46), 19726–19730. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1012722107

 

The. (1998, July 20). Saint Leo III | Pope, Charlemagne Coronation. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Leo-III

 

Why Did Russia & Prussia Have Such Similar Names? Name Explain. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdqE-u0JJz0&ab_channel=NameExplain 

 

‌Smith and Locke on Property | Adam Smith Works. (2019). Adamsmithworks.org. https://www.adamsmithworks.org/documents/smith-and-locke-on-property 

 

Carl Schurz. (2025). American Battlefield Trust. https://www.battlefields.org/learn/biographies/carl-schurz

1923 – how our history started. (2023). Interpol.int. https://www.interpol.int/Who-we-are/Our-history/How-our-history-started

 

‌Barkin, K. (1998, July 20). Otto von Bismarck | Biography, Significance, Accomplishments, & Facts. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Otto-von-Bismarck/Prime-minister

Proclamation of the German Empire, 1871. (2018, August 23). Palace of Versailles; Versailles. https://en.chateauversailles.fr/discover/history/key-dates/proclamation-german-empire-1871#:~:text=On%2016%20December%201870%20a,in%20the%20Hall%20of%20Mirrors.

The Siege of Paris. (2022, Novemb

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