Wolfgang Zank

The German melting-pot : multiculturality in historical perspective

List of Figures Introduction PART ONE: THE GENESIS OF A MELTING-POT From Germania to the Holy Roman Empire of the Germanic Nation From Reformation to Enlightenment: Political Fragmentation and Cultural Unification 1792-1871: The Shaping of Germany PART TWO: A MELTING POT UNDER PRESSURE Germany after 1871: Some General Aspects and Trends The Four Main Milieux The Uniting Force of Federalism: Southern Germany in Contrast to Alsace Lorraine The Jews Native Non-German Minorities Immigrants and East-West Migrants Some Conclusions: Cultural Conflicts and Integration in the Kaiserreich PART THREE: A MELTDOWN World War I: The Primary Catastrophe of the Century The Weimar Republic The Third Reich, World War II, and Genocides PART FOUR: A MELTING POT MODERNIZED The Integration Miracle Unification and Current Problems Summary: How a Melting-Pot Works References Index

A Region of Crises: North Africa under the influence of Arab, African and European Integration Processes

The countries of North Africa are members of the Arab League and have participated in efforts at strengthening Arab cooperation. At the same time they are, save Morocco, members of the African Union (AU) and they have also been under the influence of the European Union (EU), especially Morocco and Tunisia, but increasingly also Egypt (see Chapter 7 in this volume). Although the so-called Arab Spring was predominantly the result of internal developments, it can be argued that these overlapping processes of regionalization have exerted an impact on the current political and social crises.

The First World War — The Primary Catastrophe of the Century

When on 1 August 1914 the authorities announced mobilization, the streets of Berlin and other cities quickly filled with jubilating crowds. Three days later the Reichstag unanimously endorsed the war credits, and Kaiser Wilhelm II said: ‘I don’t know parties any more, I only know Germans.’ Millions of workers loyally followed the call to arms, and so did Poles and Danes. It looked as if, after decades of bitter strife, Germany was really united.

The Third Reich, the Second World War and Genocide

The formation of Hitler’s government meant an immediate boost to the morale of the Nazi movement and a severe blow to the spirit of its opponents. The Nazis gained control over strong power instruments such as the Prussian police and, for the first time, could use the radio for their propaganda. This produced a political dynamism which Hitler’s conservative allies could not have imagined.

From Reformation to Enlightenment – Political Fragmentation and Cultural Unification

The feeling that change was necessary was widespread at the end of the fifteenth century. Many feuds made it apparent that the worldly order did not function appropriately. The long-lasting agrarian crisis had impoverished large sections of the peasantry; most of the peasants were obliged to work for the noblemen, and their obligations were increasing. The church could not give much consolation — its credibility was ruined. Too obvious were the discrepancies between its preaching and the actual behaviour of its servants, too appalling the instrumentalization of religion in order to accumulate worldly opulence. In large numbers the souls of disappointed believers turned to mystical or heretical movements. Social unrest and subversive conspiracies were frequent.

The Uniting Force of Federalism: Southern Germany in Contrast to Alsace-Lorraine

The cultural tension lines gave good potential breeding conditions for separatism, which could become actual in all those cases where a regional dominant culture was in conflict with the main lines of Prussian politics. This was the case with the Polish- and Danish-speaking regions (see next chapter), but also many regions with a German-speaking population were potential candidates. Surprisingly enough, with the exception of Alsace-Lorraine, there was no separatist current of political importance. The integration of the southern German states is one of the successes of the Kaiserreich. Alsace-Lorraine, however, offers an interesting case of unsufficient integration, and will be studied first.

Germany after 1871 — Some General Aspects and Trends

The Germany of 1871 was a federation of 22 monarchical states and three towns (plus Alsace-Lorraine under special status). The constitution of the Kaiserreich combined federal and unitarian, authoritarian and democratic aspects in a particular way.1 Foreign policy, customs, trade, communication and economic legislation were to be regulated centrally, but it was for the single states to implement the laws. The Reich had hardly any central administration at all. The states also retained important fields of legislation such as schooling.

1792–1871: the Shaping of Germany

On 20 April 1792 the French National Assembly passed a declaration of war against Emperor Franz II. The war quickly received an all-embracing international character. The French revolutionaries were unexpectedly successful in mobilizing and inspiring large armies. In 1795 they had conquered modern Belgium and the Netherlands and stood firmly along the Rhine. In 1797 (Peace of Campo Formio) the Rhine was officially established as France’s eastern border. Huge areas inhabited by German-speaking people passed under French rule.

The Four Main Socio-Cultural Milieux

In the 1860s the conflict between liberals and conservatives was still the main cleavage which divided Germany. To recap, a cleavage is a long-lasting conflict line, with institutionalized cultures on both sides of the divide. In 1848/9 the cleavage had produced civil war, and in the 1860s, during the Prussian Verfassungskonflikt both sides stood against each other in a bitter confrontation. The liberals were a predominantly urban movement, the conservatives stood strongest in the countryside, as, for instance, the elections to the Prussian Lower House in 1863 showed.1 In the countryside the conservatives became the strongest party among the low-tax voters. The fact that the humble people in the countryside had a strong tendency to vote for the conservatives was one of the reasons why in 1867/71 Bismarck conceded the equal franchise at the Reichstag elections.

Unification and Current Problems

In autumn 1989 the GDR imploded. The Berlin Wall fell on 9 November, and less than a year later, on 3 October 1990, the new Lander of the GDR became members of an enlarged Federal Republic of Germany. Many obervers interpreted the German unification as the natural outcome of history. To divide a nation was seen as ‘unnatural’, so it was ‘natural’ to unite it again. Ex-Chancellor Willy Brandt expressed this in a classical way after the fall of the Berlin Wall: ‘Now what belongs together, grows together.’ Again the German nation was seen as kind of organic being.