The State of Germany

Until 1870-71 "Germany" was little more than an idea. The nation-state formed in 1871 lasted less than 50 years. Hitler destroyed the republic founded in 1919 and expanded into non-German regions. Defeat in 1945 led to territorial loss and partition. In 1989 the German Democratic Republic collapsed and was absorbed into the Federal Republic of Germany a year later.;What has been the role of nationalism in this history? A series of essays are deployed to approach this question. A study of the role of patriotism in the Holy Roman Empire is followed by essays on the role of the national idea in the Napoleonic period, during the revolutions of 1848, and in the unification of Germany. The national idea in the Second Empire is approached through a study of one of its leading political figures, Bernhard von Bulow. The nature of the German "mission" in eastern Europe is examined in an essay on German academics in the Weimar Republic and the Third Reich.;There is a study of the impact Hitler had on German nationalism. For the period after 1945 essays consider the survival of nationalism in immediate post-war Germany, the extent to which different national identities were formed in a divided Germany, and how far a reunified Germany will be committed to a genuinely supra-national European identity. In his introduction the editor surveys the changing role of nationalism over this whole period and in his conclusion asks what role the national idea played in the "remaking" of a nation-state in 1989-90. Each essay contains a short list of suggestions for further reading. The essays are aimed at the general reader.;At a time when people are trying to understand the significance of German reunification and are concerned about the re-emergence of nationalism in Europe, this book should put such concerns into an historical perspective. Readers will be able to see the very different and changing roles the national idea has played in modern German history and to relate that to what is happening now.