Starting Population     1,543                   % of Worldwide          5.0%                    

                                                Population                                      

Starting Income         25,377                  % of Worldwide          4.0%                    

                                                Income                                          

Starting GDP            315,399                 % of Worldwide GDP      5.1%                    

Starting Surplus        2,314                   % of Worldwide          7.1%
                    

                                                Surplus                                         

Comments: Germany is at the heart of the Holy Roman Empire. Originally inhabited by the barbarous Germans, following the fall of Rome, the area was gradually Christianized, as the Frankish Kingdom expanded ever eastwards. In the 8th century Charlemagne extended his power from the Pyrennes to the Elbe, and was designated "Roman Emperor" by the Pope in the Year of Grace 800. The division of his empire among his heirs led to the confinement of the title to the eastern, German, portions. Even here, in the core of the Empire the authority of the Emperor is thin, and often nonexistent, as the many kingdoms, duchies, counties, baronies, free cities, and so forth have, over the centuries, extracted numerous rights from often weak emperors. Nevertheless, a strong Emperor can often prove a highly effective ruler.