This study explores German literary figures’ reflections on the empire from the Enlightenment to the Romantic era. It helps shed light on a central theme often overlooked in the gaps between disciplines. The Holy Roman Empire never became a quantité négligeable for writers like Wieland, Herder, Schiller, and Goethe, nor for Jean Paul, Eichendorff, and Kleist. Instead, it formed an important reference point for their thinking and writing.