The Evolution of Germany

Originally published in 1955, this book concisely charts the development of the states of Germany backwards, from the post-war partition into two republics, through the ruthless unification imposed by Hitler and the efficient federation created by Bismarck to the acute disunity of the 400 separate sovereignties existing in Germany after the Peace of Westphalia. The book also covers regional and geographical differences, natural resources, the class system and population problems.

Part 1: Peoples of Germany 1. Prehistoric Germany 2. The Germanic Tribes 3. The Tribal Regions 4. Northerners and Southerners 5. Easterners and Westerners 6. Germans versus Slavs 7. Germans versus Latins 8. German Expansion in Europe Part 2: The Resources of Germany 1. Forest and Clearing 2. River and Fortress 3. The Peasants and the Land 4. The Nobility and Their Privileges 5. The Townsmen and Their Leagues 6. Industrial Revolution 7. Population Problems Part 3: The States of Germany 1. East and West Germany Since 1945 2. The Nazi State: Hitler’s ‘Greater Germany’ 3. The Weimar Republic 4. The Hohenzollern Empire: Bismarck’s ‘Lesser Germany’ 5. The Plan for German Unity of 1848-49 6. The German Bund of 1815-66 7. Napoleon’s ‘Third Germany’: The Confederation of the Rhine 8. The Consolidation and Partition of Prussia 9. The Habsburg Empire as a ‘German’ Power 10. The Lesser States of Germany Part 4: Germany and the World 1. Germany and the Roman Empire 2. The Carolingian Experiment 3. The Holy Roman Empire: Myth and Reality 4. Germany and the Medieval Papacy 5. Germany and the Reformation 6. Germany and the Renaissance 7. Germany and the Aufklärung 8. Germany and the French Revolution 9. Germany and the Expansion of Europe 10. German Emigration: European and Overseas 11. Conclusion: Germany’s Place in an Integrated Europe

John A. Hawgood