The establishment of German Customs Union: towards the “Customs Union Agreement” of 1833

Abstract

This article presents an overview of economic situation and trade relations in Germany during the 1815 – 1820s, after the end of the Napoleonic Wars. The customs question was especially urgent due to the disparity of territories, and was being resolved in several German states simultaneously. The author examines the Prussian plan of customs union that was implemented in future, as well as the alternative regional projects. For detailed assessment of the indicated projects, analysis is conducted on the flow of import and export of various products on the German territories. This article is founded on the German sources, including maps of German territories and summary statistical tables, which did not previously received wide coverage within the Russian historiography. The topic of establishment of the German Customs Union was in the sidelines for a long time; therefore, this research is relevant for broad audience within the framework of studying the economic history and the history of Germany. The author determines that the period of formation of the German Customs Union was not subjected to comprehensive analysis; the alternative plans of customs unions were not sufficiently covered by the national and foreign historians, despite the extensive source base. The main conclusion consists in description of the actual alternatives to the Prussian plan of customs union, which have not been implemented due to political discrepancies between the members of the South and Middle German unions. Translation of the Customs Union Agreement into the Russian language has not been previously conducted; its provisions would be the subject of the author’s further research.