Germany
From Kaiser to Fuhrer
Connector
• “where would we be without enough
rules….France. We would we with too
many rules…Germany”
• Stereotypes
• Stereotypes
• Advert
The moustache
Outcomes
• All students to gain an understanding of
German history and outline of the course
• Most to independently write notes
• Some to begin wider reading around the
subject
Where is Germany?
• Germany
Timeline (simple)
Weimar Republic
Restoration + Revolution
1814
962
1871
1918
1930
1945
Holy Roman Empire
German Empire
Third Reich
Split into 4 pairs
• Holy Roman Empire
• Restoration and Reformation
• German Empire
• Weimar Republic
• Third Reich
Holy Roman Empire
•
•
On 25 December 800, Charlemagne founded the Carolingian Empire, which
was divided in 843. The medieval empire resulted from the eastern portion
of this division and existed in varying forms from 962 until 1806. Its territory
stretched from the Eider River in the north to the Mediterranean coast in the
south. Often referred to as the Holy Roman Empire
The monk Martin Luther publicised his 95 Theses in 1517, challenging
practices of the Roman Catholic Church, initiating the Protestant
Reformation. A separate Lutheran church became the official religion in
many German states after 1530. Religious conflict led to the Thirty Years'
War (1618–1648) , which devastated German lands.The population of the
German states was reduced by about 30%. The Peace of Westphalia
(1648) ended religious warfare among the German states, but the empire
was de facto divided into numerous independent principalities. From 1740
onwards, the dualism between the Austrian Habsburg Monarchy and the
Kingdom of Prussia dominated German history. In 1806, the Imperium was
overrun and dissolved as a result of the Napoleonic Wars.
Restoration and Revolution
•
Following the fall of Napoleon Bonaparte, the Congress of Vienna convened in 1814 and founded
the German Confederation (Deutscher Bund), a loose league of 39 sovereign states.
Disagreement with restoration politics partly led to the rise of liberal movements, demanding unity
and freedom. These, however, were followed by new measures of repression on the part of the
Austrian statesman Metternich. The Zollverein, a tariff union, profoundly furthered economic unity
in the German states. During this era many Germans had been stirred by the ideals of the French
Revolution, and nationalism became a more significant force, especially among young
intellectuals. For the first time, the colours of black, red and gold were chosen to represent the
movement, which later became the national colours.
•
In light of a series of revolutionary movements in Europe, which successfully established a
republic in France, intellectuals and commoners started the Revolutions of 1848 in the German
states. The monarchs initially yielded to the revolutionaries' liberal demands. King Frederick
William IV of Prussia was offered the title of Emperor, but with a loss of power; he rejected the
crown and the proposed constitution, leading to a temporary setback for the movement. Conflict
between King William I of Prussia and the increasingly liberal parliament erupted over military
reforms in 1862, and the king appointed Otto von Bismarck the new Prime Minister of Prussia.
Bismarck successfully waged war on Denmark in 1864. Prussian victory in the Austro-Prussian
War of 1866 enabled him to create the North German Federation (Norddeutscher Bund) and to
exclude Austria, formerly the leading German state, from the affairs of the remaining German
states.
German Empire
•
•
The state known as Germany was unified as a modern nation-state in 1871,
when the German Empire was forged, with the Kingdom of Prussia as its
largest constituent. After the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, the
German Empire was proclaimed in Versailles on 18 January 1871. The
Hohenzollern dynasty of Prussia ruled the new empire, whose capital was
Berlin. The empire was a unification of all the scattered parts of Germany
except Austria (Kleindeutschland, or "Lesser Germany"). Beginning in 1884,
Germany began establishing several colonies outside of Europe.
In the Gründerzeit period following the unification of Germany, Emperor
William I's foreign policy secured Germany's position as a great nation by
forging alliances, isolating France by diplomatic means, and avoiding war.
Under William II, however, Germany, like other European powers, took an
imperialistic course leading to friction with neighbouring countries. Most
alliances in which Germany had been previously involved were not
renewed, and new alliances excluded the country. Specifically, France
established new relationships by signing the Entente Cordiale with the
United Kingdom and securing ties with the Russian Empire. Aside from its
contacts with Austria-Hungary, Germany became increasingly isolated.
Weimar Republic
•
•
At the beginning of the German Revolution, Germany was declared a
republic and the monarchy collapsed. However, the struggle for power
continued, with radical-left communists seizing power in Bavaria, but failing
to take control of all of Germany. The revolution came to an end in August
1919, when the Weimar Republic was formally established. The Weimar
Constitution came into effect with its signing by President Friedrich Ebert on
11 August 1919.
Suffering from the Great Depression, the harsh peace conditions dictated by
the Treaty of Versailles, and a long succession of more or less unstable
governments, the people of Germany increasingly lacked identification with
their political system and the "Establishment Parties" in their parliamentary
democracy. This was exacerbated by a widespread right-wing (monarchist,
völkisch, and Nazi) Dolchstoßlegende, which promoted the view that
Germany had lost World War I because of the efforts and influence of those
who wanted to overthrow the government. The top brass of the Weimar
government was accused of betraying the German Nation by signing the
Versailles Treaty, while the radical left-wing communists, such as the
Spartacist League, had wanted a revolution to abolish "capitalist rule" in
favour of a Räterepublik, and were also targeted.
Third Reich (1933–1945)
•
•
On 27 February 1933, the Reichstag went up in flames. Afterwards an
emergency decree was made and some basic democratic rights were
quickly abrogated. An Enabling Act gave the Hitler-led government full
legislative power. Only the Social Democratic Party of Germany voted
against the measure, while the Communists, who were thought to be behind
the fire, were not able to present opposition due to the Reichstag Fire
Decree.[22] A centralised totalitarian state was established by a series of
moves and decrees making Germany a single-party state. Industry was
revitalised, with a focus on military rearmament.[23] In 1936, Germany
reacquired control of the Rhineland, the first of several expansionist moves
to establish Greater Germany.
In 1939, growing tensions from nationalism, militarism, and territorial issues
and a pact promising support from the Soviet Union led the Germans to
launch a blitzkrieg ("lightning war") against Poland, which was followed by
declarations of war from Britain and France. This marked the beginning of
World War II in Europe. As the war continued, Germany and its allies
quickly gained direct or indirect control of the majority of Europe
Homework
• Write a biography / factfile
– Kaiser Wilhelm 1
– Otto von Bismarck
– Half side each
• Next lesson
Review
• Five facts about Germany
–1
–2
–3
–4
–5