1. Politics, economics, and society in postwar Germany

2. Parameters: Occupation Partition (through 1989-90) Cold War
Political and economic integration into the western alliance
Reconstruction and recovery
Benefits of cheap labour flowing from the east (until Berlin Wall, 1961)
Continuing prosperity (albeit with high unemployment since reunification)

3. Politics Parties licensed first at provincial level
Drafting a constitution: Establishing constitutional government
The system:
Parliamentary and federal
President – a figurehead with circumscribed roles
Chancellor
Elected by Bundestag
Removable only via constructive vote of no confidence
Provinces (laender) represented in Bundesrat (upper house), veto over all legislation affecting them

4. Parties and political forces
Transformation of the party system
The 1949 election: “the last election of Weimar?”
The 5% threshold and its impact:
Successive reduction in the number of parties
smaller parties absorbed into Christian Democratic fold
By 1957, a three party system
From 1983, a four party system
From 1990, a five party system

5. The party system:
_____________________________
PDS Greens SPD FDP CDU

6. The parties Christian Democratic Union (CDU)
Self-styled volkspartei (people’s party)
Led by Konrad Adenauer
Social Democratic Party (SPD)
Re-established as a Marxist party
From 1959, a party of moderate the left (Marxist rhetoric removed from program)
Free Democratic Party (FDP), a smaller liberal party
Greens: a left alternative
Party of Democratic Socialists: former east German Communists

7. Society – pre 1970s The political mood in the 1950s
A sense of exhaustion?
Quiescence?
A society turned in on itself
Discomfort with conflict
Comfortable with Adenauer’s campaign promise: “No experiments”
Silence: little discussion, public or private, on holocaust
Strong sense of law (rechtstaat) – laws must be obeyed

8. Society –1970s and beyond Less quiescent, more conflictual
More discussion within parties
More participatory & more vocal
Citizens’ initiatives
Protest groups
Red Brigades
Willingness to come to terms with the holocaust
Some problems absorbing immigrants and asylum-seekers

9. Politics: A consensual rather adversarial democracy
Decisions reached by quiet negotiation
among political parties
With provincial governments, represented in the upper house
Between government and organized interests
Inclusion of opposition parties

10. Coalitions 1949-1966 Centre-right Christian Democrats & Free Democrats
Grand coalition
Social Democrats & Christian Democrats
Social-liberal
Social Democrats and
Free Democrats
Christian Democrats, Free Democrats
1998-present
Red-green
Social Democrats and Greens

11. Explaining the new Germany
How was it possible to establish a liberal democracy in the aftermath of Nazism?
Impact of affluence
Narrowing of political agenda and political options
Exclusion of extreme parties and options
The levelling effects of Nazism