History of Germany

Germany wears its riches well: elegant big-city charm, small picture-postcard towns, pagan-inspired harvest festivals, a wealth of art and culture and the perennial pleasures of huge tracts of forest, delightful castles and fine wine and beer are all there for the savouring.

Deep in the heart of Europe, Germany has had a seminal impact on Continental history. From Charlemagne and the Holy Roman Empire to Otto von Bismarck's German Reich, Nazism and the rise and fall of the Berlin Wall, no other nation has moulded Europe the way Germany has - for better or worse.

Pre-20th-Century History
Germany's hill-and-trough history kicked in early: from the time that everyone's favourite fossils, the Neanderthals, left their jaw-jutting remains in the Neander Valley near Düsseldorf, this joint has been in the thick of it. All of Europe's great empires got their paws into Germany, but none was ever able to count all its inhabitants as faithful subjects. Different pockets of fierce resistance met the Roman legions (50 BC to the 5th century AD), the Frankish conqueror, Charlemagne (up to the early 9th century), and Otto the Great's Holy Roman Empire (from late in the 10th century). By the time the house of Habsburg, ruling from Vienna, took control in the 13th century it was little more than a conglomerate of German-speaking states run by parochial princes.

The Habsburgs muddled on until the devastating Thirty Years War (1618-48), sparked by ongoing religious and nationalist conflicts. Europe had been simmering ever since 1517 when Martin Luther tacked 95 suggestions for improved service to his local church door in Wittenberg. It took a bloody good stoush to settle everyone down and secure the rights of both Protestants and Catholics. Germany lost a third of its population in the process. Local princes assumed complete sovereignty over a patchwork of some 300 states, which made it all too easy for Napoleon to come along in the early 19th century and start adding them to his scrapbook. The French never quite managed to subdue Prussia, which became the centre of German resistance. It was Prussia that led the 1813 war that put an end to Napoleon's German aspirations in a decisive battle at Leipzig. In 1866 Otto von Bismarck, chancellor of Prussia, annexed most of Germany, consolidating his position as the biggest wig in Europe with a resounding victory over France in 1871. The Prussian king, Wilhelm I, was instated as Kaiser and a united Germany hit the world stage for the first time.

Modern History
Wilhelm II dismissed Bismarck in 1890, lingered long enough to lead Germany into WWI, then snuck off to Holland in 1918 when he realised the war wasn't going to end in a ticker-tape parade. Germany struggled with civil unrest and a disastrous peace, uniting only in dislike of the reigning Weimar Republic. Then came Adolf Hitler, an Austrian drifter and German army veteran who was able to turn general disaffection into a focused lunacy. In 1933 his National Socialist German Worker's (or Nazi) Party assumed brutal and absolute authority over Germany. Extravagant military spending and blasé border bending gave way to outright aggression, WWII, and the unrivalled horror of the Holocaust. Even the Germans were surprised by the success of their initial invasions, but by 1943 a litany of heavy losses set the tone for the sluggish march to 1945's unconditional surrender.

Postwar Germany, its cities largely rubble, was divided up between the Allies, with Britain, France and the USA consolidating the western portion into the Federal Republic of Germany, and the Soviet zone transmogrifying into the communist German Democratic Republic. This formula for division was repeated in Berlin. West Germany received massive injections of US capital, attracting many workers from the miserable economic conditions in the East until some bright Communist spark had the idea of building a wall around West Berlin and sealing the rest of the border. The Cold War's icy eye focused on Berlin. Over the next 25 years West Germany became one of the world's most prosperous nations while its communist Siamese sibling suffered. The collapse of communism in Eastern Europe has no more potent symbol than the opening of the Berlin frontier in 1989 - one of world history's better parties.

Recent History
Helmut Kohl's era as chancellor, marked by the reunification of Germany, came to an end in 1998 when a 'red-green' coalition of Social Democrats and Greens took office under Gerhard Schroeder. In 2005 Angela Merkel, a Christian Democrat at the head of a 'grand coalition' with the Social Democrats, became the first woman, the first East German and the first scientist to serve as chancellor.

Although the euphoria of reunification has subsided and there is some resentment and disaffection from both sides, Germany is working towards true unity in typically sedulous fashion. In the 1900s Germany absorbed the majority of refugees from the former Yugoslavia, and these and other immigrants have recently been the targets of racist attacks. However, the extreme right wing, although insidious and occasionally violent, is politically weak. Germany suffers from high unemployment, structural problems in the economy and fierce competition in world markets but at least so far social dislocation has been minimal. In recent years, the economic and social integration of Germany's large Turkish minority has been the subject of public debate.

For most Germans the highlight of 2006 was the FIFA Football World Cup held throughout the country, with the final (won by Italy's Azzurri)held in Berlin. Although the home side failed to win the trophy the event was hugely successful and almost totally trouble-free.

General Information
* Capital City: Berlin
* Language: German is the native language, though in urban areas knowledge of English is high particularly amongst younger people. In large cities it is usually no problem to find service people who speak English, however in villages and suburbs English may not be frequently spoken. If you are having difficulties, look for someone who appears to be a student or a business person.
* Size: Germany is a relatively large country. At 357,022 Km2 it is the 63rd largest country in the world. For comparison Germany is smaller than France and Spain but slightly larger than Poland. Germany is about 25% smaller than the US state of California.
* Population: With nearly 82 million people, Germany is the most populated country in Europe.
* Money: The official currency of Germany is the Euro. Other currencies such as the US Dollar are not generally accepted; however exchange booths and ATMs are widely available.
* Visas: US citizens do not require visas only a valid passport. Schengen visas, accepted by many European countries are valid here. For information about visas to Germany, see this list of German Embassies and Consulates.
* Religion: The Christian population of Germany is almost equally divided between Catholic and Protestants with the Catholics more dominant in the south and the Protestants more dominant in the North. About 5% of the population is Muslim, which reflects Germany’s strong ties to Turkey. Germany has a relatively large population of Jewish citizens, most having arrived relatively recently from Russia, but they make up less than 1% of the population.


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