The diversity of Germany’s regional railways prior to 1920 is evident in the autonomy of major state railways and regional networks, such as those in Bavaria, Prussia, Oldenburg, and the Palatinate. This landscape was complemented by the Imperial Railways in Alsace-Lorraine, which were the first railways to be directly subordinate to the German Empire.

Clicking on the link in the “Region” column will take you to the corresponding images of the state railways.

Region	Name	Explanation
Baden	Großherzoglich Badische Staatseisenbahnen (G.Bad.St.E.)	A pioneer of early broad-gauge railways and operator of the Black Forest Railway.
Bavaria	Königlich Bayerische Staatseisenbahnen (K.Bay.St.B.)	The second-largest network with a high degree of autonomy in vehicle manufacturing.
Alsace-Lorraine	Kaiserliche General-Direktion der Eisenbahnen in Elsaß-Lothringen	The first national railway network directly under the authority of the German Empire, with its headquarters in Strasbourg.
Mecklenburg	Großherzoglich Mecklenburgische Friedrich-Franz-Eisenbahn (M.F.F.E.)	A rural rail network designed to provide transportation access to the Baltic Sea region.
Oldenburg	Großherzoglich Oldenburgische Staatseisenbahnen (G.O.E.)	A small, efficient network designed to provide targeted connections to the coastal ports of northwestern Germany.
Palatinate	Pfälzische Ludwigsbahn-Gesellschaft, Pfälzische Maximiliansbahn-Gesellschaft und Gesellschaft der Pfälzischen Nordbahnen	A dense network on the left bank of the Rhine with a strong industrial focus on coal and iron.
Preussia and Hesse	Königlich Preußische und Großherzoglich Hessische Staatseisenbahngemeinschaft (K.P.u.G.H.St.E.)	The dominant and pioneering rail network of the German Empire.
Saxonia	Königlich Sächsische Staatseisenbahnen (K.Sächs.St.E.B.)	A leader in innovation in the construction of challenging mountain railways and narrow-gauge rail networks.
Württemberg	Königlich Württembergische Staats-Eisenbahnen (K.W.St.E.)	A specialist in steep routes such as the Geislinger Steige.