Federal Republic of Germany : Past and Today

1871-1918

Germany is one of the most famous countries in the world located in Europe. On January 18, 1871 the German empire was founded after the end result of the three successful wars by Prussia, the North German state. The empire consisted of 63% Protestant, 36% Catholic and 1% Jews. 67% of the population lived in the rural community and the rest lived in towns and cities.  Literacy rate of the German empire was also good and on par with the remaining world.

The German empire was ruled under the constitution mainly developed by Otto von Bismarck who was the prime minister of North German Confederation. The constitution was developed to give powers to the chancellor and monarch in order to make major and key decisions. The system consisted of two houses, one of Reichstag for signifying the people and the other one named Bundesrat to symbolize the twenty five states.  In the books, Reichstag had the capacity to disapprove any bill but practically the lower house power was promised by the government’s dependence on oblique taxes and by the keenness to consent the military budget after every five years. Most of the lawmaking plans were presented to the Bundesrat initially and then to the Reichstag only if the upper house agreed.

The predicament that was to curse the empire’s existence was the lack of correspondence between Prussian and the imperial political coordination. The lower house in Prussia was elected according to the three class suffrage method. The three class suffrage was an electoral act which permitted the wealthiest 15% of the male population to select about 85% of the delegates.  The executives were required to get majority from the two separate governing bodies which were elected by fundamentally unlike authorizations. Another problem for the government was that the selected ministers were mainly from the civil service or armed forces and were inexperienced in parliamentary affairs.  In 1888 William II (1888-1918), the new emperor started to show his control by asking for the chancellor’s resignation, who was 74 years old at that time.  So, this is how Bismarck, the engineer of German union left the party in an embarrassing comportment.

In the World War I, German Empire was one of the vital states to lose the war. German empire jumped into the war after the announcement of war against Serbia by its ally Hungary-Serbia. Although Germany’s territory remained safe during the war but it suffered economically. The blockade by the Royal Navy caused severe shortages of food popularly known as the Turnip Winter. The German trounce in the war prompted the German Revolution of 1918-1919.

1918-1945

At the end of the month of October 1918, the German Revolution started to rise from the city of Wilhelmshaven when a group of Navy Units repudiated to sail for a final huge level operation in the war. These units believed that it was not a good operation as the war was almost lost. On 3rd November 1918, the conflict started to spread in other cities and towns of Germany. During that time, many worker’s and soldier’s associations were formed. Hindenburg and other senior commanders lost faith in the Kaiser government. Kaiser and all the princes were abandoned. On November 9th 1918, Phillip Scheidemann a Social Democrat announced a Republic.

On August 11th, 1919 Weimar constitution arrived into force with Friedrich Ebert being the first President. Germany was also known by the unofficial name of Weimar Republic from 1919 to 1933. The Weimar Republic being a dark horse appeared to face copious problems which included hyperinflation, political mayhem and litigious dealings with the champions of World War I. The people of Germany blamed Weimar Republic of agreeing to the mortifying terms of the Treaty of Versailles. Most the requirements were fulfilled by the Germans in the Treaty of Versailles. However, the Weimar Republic continued to face challenges in the coming years.

The Wall Street Crash of 1929 ignited the beginning of worldwide economic crisis commonly known as the Great Depression. Germany was knocked firmly by this economic catastrophe and increased the German nuisance. The Darmstätter und Nationalbank, one the biggest German Banks came to a halt. In 1932, around 6,000,000 people were unemployed in Germany. Things in the country continued to worsen. Economic predicament was followed by the political calamity in the country.

In 1933, NSDAP the Nazis came into power. The Nazi regime was able to bring economic and political disasters closer to an end. The unemployment was massively reduced and the labor strikes were also curbed. Adolf Hitler was accepted as the chancellor and some of the most hostile events in the history of mankind started to unfold during his rule.  When Hitler gained control of executive and legislative stems of the government, he along with his allies continued to crush the foes. The formation of concentration camps started to unfurl their grip on the opposing forces. Ones defying the Hitler were treated in a very callous approach. Many people were massacred under the Hitler rule in the most barbaric techniques ever known to the world.

In 1938, Adolf Hitler allied with the Empire of Japan by ending the Sino-German agreement because he considered the Empire of Japan to be stronger, modern and powerful. When the World War II started, Adolf Hitler proclaimed Britain as main enemy. On September 1st, Germany invaded Poland. However, in this reaction Britain and France surprised Hitler by declaring war on Germany. The tussle between the European powers continued in the period of World War II. German Nazi forces continued the military offensive against other nations. World War II is one of the bloodiest and deadliest episodes in the record of the human race.

In 1944, the defeat of Nazi army was clear. The Allied forces were moving towards Berlin. When Hitler came to know that his generals were losing on the front, in a meeting with few of his trusted men, he admitted that “everything was lost” and pronounced that he would stay in Berlin until the closing stages and would shoot himself. It was April 30th, 1945 when Soviet hordes were few blocks away, Hitler shot himself and died. Adolf Hitler has many bad things associated with his name but the most horrific and cruel act connected with him will be the Holocaust.

After 1945

After the fall of Hitler and Nazi forces, Germany was divided into two parts, East and West respectively. In the cold war Germany was divided between the western Allies and eastern Soviets. During this period Germans had little influence in the government affairs. Federal Republic of Germany popularly known as West Germany had a parliamentary model of government and followed the footsteps of a capitalist economy.  On the other hand, German Democratic Republic which is usually known as East Germany was much close to the Soviet system of government.

In 1955, West Germany became an emergent and flourishing economy in the region. West Germany had great relations with France and USA. It also joined North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and European Economic Community afterwards developed into the European Union. On the other hand, East Germany continued to rust and decline. Its economy was mainly systematized to meet the requirements of Soviet Union. East Germany continued to face the heat even after the years of partition. On November 1989, the fall of Berlin Wall started and the citizens were seen demolishing the Berlin Wall. In 1990, both parts of Germany were united again.

Today, Germany is a well known and peaceful country in the world. It is thriving in all the fields and witnessing a beautiful present and a great future. Germany is a market with skilled labor with a high level of capital stock. It is the third largest exporter of commodities in the world. Some of the famous German companies include Volkswagen, Daimler, BMW, Siemens and Metro. Germany is also growing in the field of science and technology. 107 Germans have been awarded by the Nobel Prize which shows that Germany is producing high quality brains. Not only this, Germany is the seventh most visited country in the world which clearly states how good tourism industry is in the country with Berlin being the third most visited destination in Europe.

It is a delight to see a country which faced so many problems in the past is now leading with example and other nations should adopt similar approach to become a successful country in the world. If you liked the article, then let us know by commenting below.