26 terms in 1L
Empire to democracy, 1871–1929
In 1871, Germany became a unified empire for the first time. A written constitution set out who held power — and real au
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
Empire to democracy, 1871–1929
Under Kaiser Wilhelm I, Chancellor Bismarck ran Germany with enormous personal power. An elected parliament called the R
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
Empire to democracy, 1871–1929
Kaiser Wilhelm II ruled Germany as an autocrat — meaning he held personal power over government. He clashed repeatedly w
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
Empire to democracy, 1871–1929
After unification in 1871, Germany built one of the world's most powerful industrial economies. It rapidly expanded coal
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
Empire to democracy, 1871–1929
Kaiserreich Germany had a rigid social pecking order. A military-obsessed elite sat at the top, while millions of indust
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
Empire to democracy, 1871–1929
By 1914, Germany was a powerful but deeply unstable country. Rapid industrial growth and a rigid class system sat alongs
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
Empire to democracy, 1871–1929
The First World War destroyed Germany's imperial government. Military defeat in 1918 triggered a revolution that swept a
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
Empire to democracy, 1871–1929
Between 1919 and 1924, the new Weimar Republic faced violent attempts to overthrow it from both the left and the right.
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
Empire to democracy, 1871–1929
After years of crisis, Germany entered a period of relative stability from 1924. Politician Gustav Stresemann played a c
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
Empire to democracy, 1871–1929
Germany's economy collapsed after the First World War, hit by war debts, reparations, and hyperinflation. Foreign loans
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
Empire to democracy, 1871–1929
The First World War tore apart German society, leaving poverty, grief, and resentment behind. The Weimar Republic then b
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
Empire to democracy, 1871–1929
By 1929, Germany had survived revolution, hyperinflation and political violence. The Weimar Republic looked more stable,
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
Empire to democracy, 1871–1929
Between 1871 and 1929, Germany underwent a dramatic transformation from an autocratic empire — where power rested with t
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
The impact of Nazism, war and division, 1929–1991
Germany's democratic government fell apart after 1929. Hitler and President Hindenburg together destroyed it and replace
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
The impact of Nazism, war and division, 1929–1991
Nazi Germany was a dictatorship built on a radical racist ideology. Hitler used fear, propaganda, and a chaotic governin
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
The impact of Nazism, war and division, 1929–1991
After World War Two, the four Allied powers — the USA, USSR, Britain, and France — divided Germany into occupation zones
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
The impact of Nazism, war and division, 1929–1991
Germany's economy collapsed during the Great Depression of the early 1930s. The Nazis then rebuilt it through state cont
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
The impact of Nazism, war and division, 1929–1991
The Nazis tried to reshape German society around race, loyalty, and conformity. Their policies excluded and persecuted m
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
The impact of Nazism, war and division, 1929–1991
By 1949, Germany lay physically ruined, politically divided between Allied occupiers, and socially traumatised by twelve
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
The impact of Nazism, war and division, 1929–1991
After 1949, West Germany built a new democratic system with deliberate safeguards against dictatorship. Konrad Adenauer
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
The impact of Nazism, war and division, 1929–1991
After Adenauer left office in 1963, West Germany was governed by a series of chancellors from different parties. They al
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
The impact of Nazism, war and division, 1929–1991
From the 1960s onwards, groups outside West Germany's parliament challenged the government through street protests, poli
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
The impact of Nazism, war and division, 1929–1991
West Germany rebuilt its shattered economy after 1945 and grew into one of the world's richest nations. Historians call
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
The impact of Nazism, war and division, 1929–1991
West Germany rebuilt its society after 1949, but the Nazi past left deep marks. Living standards rose sharply, yet tensi
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
The impact of Nazism, war and division, 1929–1991
In 1990, Chancellor Helmut Kohl led the reunification of East and West Germany into a single state. The new Germany had
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991
The impact of Nazism, war and division, 1929–1991
From the collapse of Weimar democracy — Germany's fragile parliamentary system established after World War One — through
The quest for political stability: Germany, 1871–1991