German liberals were part of Europe's 1848 revolutions. In the German
areas the goal was to end autocratic rule. With some initial success, a
liberal assembly was convened in Frankfort convention with democratic
ideas. The king of Prussia was offered the position of becoming the
emperor of the German States under the democratic policies of the 1848
assembly. The liberals lacked military power, and the King of Prussia,
who refused the offer. Conservative power was then restored to the
German "States". Without liberal support from Prussia, the 1848
revolution failed. As an aside, however, it caused many Germans to seek a
new home in the United States.
