Native name	''''
Conventional long name	German Democratic Republic
Common name	East Germany
Continent	Europe
Region	Germany
Country	Germany
Era	Cold War
Event start	Established
Year start	1949
Date start	7 October
Event end	German reunification
Year end	1990
Date end	3 October
Life span	1949–1990
Event1	Final settlement
Date event1	25 September 1990
P1	Allied-occupied Germany
Flag p1	Flag of Germany (1946-1949).svg
P2	German Economic Commission
S1	Germany
Flag s1	Flag of Germany.svg
Image coat	Coat of arms of East Germany.svg
National anthem	"Auferstanden aus Ruinen"("Risen from Ruins")
National motto	"Proletarier aller Länder, vereinigt Euch!" ("Workers of all nations, unite !")
Capital	East Berlin (proclaimed)
Common languages	Official: German Unofficial minority languages: Sorbian
Government type	Socialist republicCommunist state
Legislature	Volkskammer
Title leader	Chairman of the Council of State
Leader1	Wilhelm Pieck (''President'')
Year leader1	1949–60
Leader2	Walter Ulbricht
Year leader2	1960–73
Leader3	Willi Stoph
Year leader3	1973–76
Leader4	Erich Honecker
Year leader4	1976–89
Leader5	Egon Krenz
Year leader5	1989
Leader6	Manfred Gerlach
Year leader6	1989–90
Leader7	Sabine Bergmann-Pohl
Year leader7	1990
Title deputy	Chairman of the Council of Ministers
Deputy1	Otto Grotewohl
Year deputy1	1949–64
Deputy2	Willi Stoph
Year deputy2	1964–73
Deputy3	Horst Sindermann
Year deputy3	1973–76
Deputy4	Willi Stoph
Year deputy4	1976–89
Deputy5	Hans Modrow
Year deputy5	1989–90
Deputy6	Lothar de Maizière
Year deputy6	1990
Stat area1	108333
Stat pop1	16111000
Stat year1	1990
Currency	Mark der DDR (M) until 30 June 1990, named:1948–64 Deutsche Mark (DM)1964–67 Mark der Deutschen Notenbank (MDN)Deutsche Mark (DM) as of 1 July 1990
Cctld	.dd
Calling code	37|]]
Today
Footnotes	Although .dd was reserved as corresponding ISO code for East Germany, it was not entered to the root before the country was disestablished.
Footnotes2	Country code +37 was withdrawn in 1992; the numbers range was divided into ten new country codes, re-allocated among several post-Soviet states and European microstates. }}

The German Democratic Republic (GDR; German: Deutsche Demokratische Republik or DDR), informally called East Germany (German: Ost-Deutschland) by West Germany and other countries, was the officially Communist state established in 1949 in the Soviet zone of occupied Germany and in the East Berlin portion of the Allied-occupied capital city. The German Democratic Republic, which consisted geographically of post-WWII northeast Germany rather than all of eastern Germany, had an area of 107,771 km² (41,610 mi²), bordering Czechoslovakia in the south, West Germany (officially: Federal Republic of Germany) in the south and west, the Baltic Sea to the north, and Poland in the east.

In 1989 a non-violent revolution overthrew the Communists. The Soviets refused to intervene, and the country soon reunited with West Germany and is now part of Germany.

At German reunification on October 3, 1990, new ''Länder'' (states) were formed within the area occupied by the former German Democratic Republic. Following historical borders of provinces that existed before 1952, new federal states (in German usually referred to as ''Die Neuen Bundesländer''; Engl. new federal states) were formed and integrated into the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG). Moreover, the German Democratic Republic was disestablished after the Communist government, of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED), lost the general election on March 18, 1990, and thus its parliamentary majority in the ''Volkskammer'' (People’s Chamber); subsequently, on August 23, 1990, the ''Volkskammer'' re-established the five pre-war states — Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia (disestablished in 1952) — for the reunification of East Germany to West Germany.

Naming conventions

The official name was ''Deutsche Demokratische Republik'' (German Democratic Republic), usually abbreviated as ''DDR'' (GDR). Both terms were used in East Germany with an increasing emphasis on the abbreviated name, especially since East Germany considered West Germans and West Berliners to be foreigners following the promulgation of its second constitution in 1968.

''Ostzone'' (Eastern Zone) or ''Soviet Zone'' were two surrogate names for East Germany that were often used colloquially. The different names used to describe the German Democratic Republic reflected political positions during the Cold War conflict; for example, many Westerners doubted the political sovereignty and democratic constitution of East Germany. Surrogate name usage for East Germany could thus reveal the political leaning of a person or news source. So the media controlled by the East German government emphasised the use of the official name, DDR, while West Germans, western media and statesmen may have used other names such as Middle Germany, emphasising the location of East Germany in the centre of pre-1937 Germany.

The name, Sowjetische Besatzungszone (Soviet Occupation Zone, often abbreviated to SBZ) was used by those who wanted to indicate that East Germany lacked sovereignty, whereas others used ''Ostzone'' or ''der Osten'' ( or ''the East'') to avoid the actual name of the state. The latter term, because it was based plainly on geographic location, was sometimes also used by East Germans. Some West German media referred to East Germany initially as the ''SBZ'' and later consistently named it the ''so-called "GDR"'' (sogenannte "DDR").

However, over time East Germany's abbreviation ''DDR'' became colloquial also among most West Germans and West German media. ''Ostdeutschland'' (an ambiguous term meaning simultaneously East or Eastern Germany) was not commonly used in East or West German common parlance to refer to the German Democratic Republic, because ''Ostdeutschland'' usually referred to the Former eastern territories of Germany.

The term ''Westdeutschland'' (West Germany) when used by West Germans was almost always a reference to the geographic region of Western Germany but not to the area within the boundaries of the Federal Republic of Germany. However, this usage was not always consistent, as, for example, West Berliners frequently applied the term ''Westdeutschland'' to denote the Federal Republic.

History

Explaining the internal impact of the DDR regime from the perspective of German history in the long-term, historian Gerhard A. Ritter (2002) has argued that the East German state was defined by two dominant forces – Soviet Communism on the one hand, and German traditions filtered through the interwar experiences of German Communists on the other. It always was constrained by the powerful example of the increasingly prosperous West, to which East Germans compared their nation. The changes wrought by the Communists were most apparent in ending capitalism and transforming industry, agriculture, in the militarization the society, and the political thrust of the educational system and the media. On the other hand, there was relatively little change made in the historically independent domains of the sciences, the engineering professions, the Protestant churches, and in many bourgeois life styles. Social policy, says Ritter, became a critical legitimization tool in the last decades and mixed Communist and traditional elements about equally.

Origins

At the Yalta Conference during World War II, the Allies (U.S., Britain, and the Soviet Union) agreed on dividing a defeated Germany into occupation zones, and on dividing Berlin, the German capital, among the Allied powers as well. Initially this meant the construction of three zones of occupation, i.e. American, British, and Soviet. Later, a French zone was carved out of the American and British zones.

GDR created 1949

The ruling Communist party, known as the "Socialist Unity Party" (SED), was formed in April 1946 out of the forced merger between the German Communist Party (KPD) and the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). As Walter Ulbricht noted, everything was made to look democratic while in reality Communists retained control in the background. They were totally loyal to Stalin, and realized their regime would collapse if it lost the backing of the Soviet army—as indeed happened in 1989. Historians debate whether the decision to form a separate country was initiated by Stalin or by the SED.

As West Germany was reorganized and gained independence from the occupation, Stalin established the German Democratic Republic in 1949. The creation of the two states made the 1945 division of Germany permanent.

In 1949 the Soviets turned control of East Germany over to the Communist Party, headed by Wilhelm Pieck (1876–1960), who became president of the GDR and remained officially 'Number One' until his death in 1960, while any real power allowed by the Soviets was assumed by SED General Secretary Walter Ulbricht. The old Socialist Party was taken over by the Communists, and Socialist leader Otto Grotewohl (1894–1964) became prime minister.

West Germany saw itself as the legal successor to the Third Reich, shouldering the burdens of legal responsibility for its crimes. By contrast, East Germany renounced ties to the Nazi past, styling itself the "anti-fascist rampart" and proclaiming itself the first socialist state on German soil. It refused to admit the existence of anti-semitism and refused to recognize Israel or reimburse victims of the Holocaust.

Soviet role

In 1955, the USSR declared the Soviet occupation zone — the historic middle portion of Germany — to be a sovereign state named the ''Deutsche Demokratische Republik'' (German Democratic Republic, established in 1949), while the Red Army and the Western Allies' occupation forces remained in place under the tripartite Potsdam Agreement (1945) which established the Allied Occupation of Germany.

The Communist German Democratic Republic was established in the historic "Mitteldeutschland" (Middle Germany). Former German territories east of the Oder and Neisse rivers, mainly the Prussian provinces of Pomerania, East Prussia, West Prussia, Upper Silesia, Lower Silesia, and the eastern Neumark of Brandenburg were thus detached from Germany. To compensate Poland for the USSR's annexation of its eastern provinces, the Allies provisionally established Poland's post-war western border at the Oder-Neisse line at the Yalta Conference (1945). As a result, most of Germany's central territories became the ''Sowjetische Besatzungszone'' (SBZ, Soviet Occupation Zone). All other lands east of the Oder–Neisse line were put under Polish administration, with the exception of historic northern East Prussia, which went to the USSR.

Zones of occupation

In the Yalta and Potsdam conferences, the Allies established their joint military occupation and administration of Germany via the Allied Control Council (ACC), a four-power (US, UK, USSR, France) military government effective until the restoration of German sovereignty. In eastern Germany, the Soviet Occupation Zone (SBZ – ''Sowjetische Besatzungszone'') comprised the five states (''Länder'') of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Brandenburg, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. Disagreements over the policies to be followed in the occupied zones quickly led to a breakdown in cooperation between the four powers, and the Soviets administered their zone without regard to the policies implemented in the other zones. The Soviets withdrew from the ACC in 1948; subsequently as the other three zones were increasingly unified and granted self-government, the Soviet administration facilitated the development of a separate socialist government in its zone.

Yet, seven years after the Allies’ Potsdam Agreement to a unified Germany, the USSR via the Stalin Note (March 10, 1952) proposed German reunification and superpower disengagement from Central Europe, which the three Western Allies (US, France, UK) rejected. Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, a communist proponent of reunification, was dead by March 1953. Similarly, Lavrenty Beria, the First Deputy Prime Minister of the USSR, pursued German reunification, but an internal (Party) ''coup d’étât'' deposed him from government in mid-1953, before he could act on the matter. His successor, Nikita Khrushchev, rejected reunification as equivalent to returning East Germany for annexation to the West; hence reunification went unconsidered until the German Democratic Republic collapsed in 1989.

East Germany and the Eastern Bloc diplomatically recognised East Berlin as the capital city of the German Democratic Republic, but the Western Allies disputed said recognition, considering the entire city of Berlin an occupied territory governed by the martial law of the Allied Control Council. In practice, the ACC’s authority was rendered moot by the Cold War, and the East German government ignored the legal restrictions on integration of East Berlin into the GDR.

Abetted by ACC’s weakness, Cold War political conflicts among the Allies over the status of West Berlin provoked the Berlin Blockade (June 24, 1948 – May 12, 1949), in which the Soviet army stopped all Allied rail, road, and water traffic to and from West Berlin. The Allies countered the Soviets with the Berlin Airlift (1948–49) of food, fuel, and supplies to keep West Berlin alive.

Partition

In 1946, the Communist Party of Germany (''Kommunistische Partei Deutschlands'' — KPD) and the Social Democratic Party of Germany (''Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands'' — SPD) merged to form the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED — ''Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands'') (April 21, 1945), which then won the elections of 1946, held under the oversight of the Soviet army. Being a Marxist-Leninist political party, the SED's government nationalised infrastructure and industrial plants.

In 1948, the German Economic Commission (Deutsche Wirtschaftskomission—DWK) under its chairman Heinrich Rau assumed administrative authority in the Soviet occupation zone, thus becoming the predecessor of an East German government.

On October 7, 1949, the SED established the ''Deutsche Demokratische Republik'' (German Democratic Republic — GDR), based on a socialist political constitution establishing its control of the anti-fascist National Front of the German Democratic Republic (NF — ''Nationale Front der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik''), an omnibus alliance of every party and mass organisation in East Germany. The NF was established to stand for election to the ''Volkskammer'' ("People's Chamber"), the East German parliament. The first (and only) President of the German Democratic Republic was Wilhelm Pieck. However, after 1950, the true ruler of East Germany was Walter Ulbricht, the First Secretary of the SED.

On June 16, 1953, workers constructing the new ''Stalinallee'' boulevard in East Berlin rioted against a 10% production quota increase. Initially a labour protest, it soon included the general populace, who added their anti-Soviet discontent to the workers' civil disobedience, and on June 17 similar protests occurred throughout the GDR, with more than a million people striking in some 700 cities and towns. Fearing anti-communist counter-revolution on June 18, 1953, the government of the GDR enlisted the Soviet Occupation Forces to aid the ''Volkspolizei'' ("People's Police") in suppressing the rioters; some fifty people were killed and some 10,000 were jailed. (See Uprising of 1953 in East Germany.)

The German war reparations owed to the USSR impoverished the Soviet Zone of Occupation and severely weakened the East German economy. In the 1945–46 period, the Soviets confiscated and transported to the USSR approximately 33% of the industrial plant and by the early 1950s had extracted some 10 billion dollars in reparations in agricultural and industrial products.

The poverty of East Germany induced by reparations provoked the ''Republikflucht'' ("flight from the republic") to West Germany, aggravating the emigration, continual since the 1940s, from the Soviet zone of Germany to the Western Allied zones, further weakening the GDR's economy. Western economic opportunities and lack of political freedom in East Germany induced a brain drain. In response, the GDR closed the Inner German Border, and on the night of August 12–13, 1961, East German soldiers began erecting the Berlin Wall which prevented anyone from escaping.

In 1971, Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev had Ulbricht removed; Erich Honecker replaced him. While the Ulbricht government had experimented with liberal reform, the Honecker government increased controls upon the populace of the GDR. The new government introduced a new East German Constitution which defined the German Democratic Republic as a "republic of workers and peasants" and hardly mentioned the word "German".

Initially, East Germany maintained that it was the only lawful government of Germany. However, from the 1960s onward, East Germany held itself out as a separate country from West Germany, and shared the legacy of the united German state of 1871–1945. West Germany, in contrast, claimed an exclusive mandate for all of Germany. From 1949 to the early 1970s, West Germany maintained that East Germany was an illegally constituted state. It argued that the GDR was a Soviet puppet regime and thus illegitimate. According to the Hallstein Doctrine (1955), it also did not diplomatically recognise any country — except the USSR — that recognised East German sovereignty.

But in the early 1970s, the ''Ostpolitik'' ("Eastern Policy") of "Change Through Rapprochement" of the pragmatic government of FRG Chancellor Willy Brandt, established normal diplomatic relations with the East Bloc states and the GDR. In the event, the Treaty of Moscow (August 1970), the Treaty of Warsaw (December 1970), the Four Power Agreement on Berlin (September 1971), the Transit Agreement (May 1972), and the Basic Treaty (December 1972) established normal relations between the Germanies, later allowing their integration to the United Nations.

During this time, West Germany adopted the line of "two German states in one German nation". While it respected East Germany's independence, it formally maintained that the GDR was merely a ''de facto'' government within a single German nation of which the FRG was the sole representative. For instance, it did not treat East Germans as foreigners.

The ''Wende''

In 1989, following widespread public anger over the results of local government elections that spring, many citizens applied for exit visas or left the country illegally. In August 1989 Hungary removed its border restrictions and unsealed its border, and more than 13,000 people left East Germany by crossing the "green" border via Czechoslovakia into Hungary and then on to Austria and West Germany. Many others demonstrated against the ruling party, especially in the city of Leipzig. Kurt Masur, the conductor of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, led local negotiations with the government and held town meetings in the concert hall. The demonstrations eventually led Erich Honecker to resign in October, and he was replaced by a slightly more moderate communist, Egon Krenz.

On November 9, 1989, a few sections of the Berlin Wall were opened, resulting in thousands of East Germans crossing into West Berlin and West Germany for the first time. Krenz resigned a few days later, and the SED abandoned power shortly afterward. Although there were some limited attempts to create a permanent democratic East Germany, these were soon overwhelmed by calls for unification with West Germany.

East Germany held its first (and last) legitimate elections in March 1990. The winner was a coalition headed by the East German branch of West Germany's Christian Democratic Union, which advocated speedy reunification. After some negotiations (2+4 Talks) were held involving the two German states and the former Allied Powers which led to agreement on the conditions for German unification. The five original East German states that had been abolished in 1952 were recreated. On 3 October 1990, the five states officially joined the Federal Republic of Germany, while East and West Berlin united as a third city-state (in the same manner as Bremen and Hamburg). The great economic and socio-political inequalities between the former Germanies required government subsidy for the full integration of East Germany to the Federal German Republic.

Politics

There were four periods in East German political history. These included: 1949–1961, which saw the building of socialism; 1961–1970 after the Berlin Wall closed off escape was a period of stability and consolidation; 1971–1985 was termed the Honecker Era, and saw closer ties with West Germany; and 1985–1989 saw the decline and extinction of East Germany.

Organization

The ruling political party in East Germany was the ''Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands'' (Socialist Unity Party of Germany, SED). It was created in 1946 through the Soviet-directed merger of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD) and the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) in the Soviet controlled zone.

The Potsdam Agreement committed the Soviets to supporting a democratic form of government in Germany, and unlike in most Warsaw Pact countries, other non-communist political parties were allowed. Nevertheless, every political party in the GDR had to register with the National Front of Democratic Germany, an alliance of parties and mass political organisations, including:

''Christlich-Demokratische Union Deutschlands'' (Christian Democratic Union of Germany, CDU), merged with the West-German CDU after reunification

''Demokratische Bauernpartei Deutschlands'' (Democratic Farmers' Party of Germany, DBD). This party was of special importance because of farmers' role in the economy. The party merged with the West German CDU after reunification.

''Liberal-Demokratische Partei Deutschlands'' (Liberal Democratic Party of Germany, LDPD), merged with the West German FDP after reunification.

''Nationaldemokratische Partei Deutschlands'' (National Democratic Party of Germany, NDPD), merged with the West German FDP after reunification.

Elections took place at the ''Volkskammer'' but were effectively controlled by the SED/state hierarchy, as Hans Modrow has noted. Elections were held in less-than-secret conditions, with voters given the choice of approving or rejecting "unity lists" put forward by the National Front and predetermining the distribution of seats given to the different parties and mass organisations. As was the case in most communist countries, approval rates of 90% or more were routine.

Voting in East Germany was relatively simple. To vote yes, a voter simply took the ballot paper, which contained only one name—that of the approved candidate—and dropped it into the voting box. A voter could vote against the candidate by crossing out his or her name, but had to do so in a separate voting booth without any secrecy. The consequences for such an act of defiance were severe—loss of one's job or expulsion from school, and close surveillance by the Stasi.

The Volkskammer also included representatives from the ''mass organisations'' like the Free German Youth (''Freie Deutsche Jugend'' or ''FDJ''), or the Free German Trade Union Federation. In an attempt to include women in the political life of East Germany, there was a Democratic Women's Federation of Germany, with seats in the Volkskammer.

Important non-parliamentary mass organisations in East German society included the German Gymnastics and Sports Association (''Deutscher Turn- und Sportbund'' or ''DTSB''), and People's Solidarity (''Volkssolidarität'', an organisation for the elderly). Another society of note was the Society for German-Soviet Friendship.

Following German reunification, the SED was renamed the "Party of Democratic Socialism" (PDS) which subsequently merged with the West German WASG to form the Left Party (''Die Linke''). The Left Party continues to be a political force in many parts of Germany, albeit drastically less powerful than the SED.

Military

Because of East Germany's proximity to the West during the Soviet–American Cold War (1945–91), its four-branch military, the ''Nationale Volksarmee'' (National People's Army, NVA) was among the most advanced of the Warsaw Pact; its branches were:

# Army ''(Landstreitkräfte)'' # Navy ''(Volksmarine'' – People's Navy) # Air Force–Air Defence ''(Luftstreitkräfte/Luftverteidigung)'' # GDR Border Troops ''(Grenztruppen der DDR)''

Every man served eighteen months of compulsory military service; for the medically unqualified and the conscientious objector, there were the ''Baueinheiten'' construction units, established in 1964 in response to political pressure by the national Protestant Church upon the GDR’s government. The armed forces of the GDR also possessed paramilitary reserve forces, such as the ''Kampfgruppen der Arbeiterklasse'' (Combat Groups of the Working Class), and from the Stasi, the Ministry for State Security (Mfs —''Ministerium für Staatssicherheit''), the “''Schild und Schwert der Partei''” (Shield and Sword of the Party).

Administrative districts

Until 1952, the GDR comprised the East Berlin capital city and the five German states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (in 1947 renamed: Mecklenburg), Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, Saxony, their post-war territorial demarcations approximating the pre-war German demarcations of the Middle German ''Länder'' (states) and ''Provinzen'' (provinces of Prussia). Moreover, the western parts of two provinces, Pomerania and Lower Silesia, although prevailingly annexed by Poland, remained politically integral to the GDR.

The East German Administrative Reform of 1952 disestablished the five states and established 14 ''Bezirke'' (districts), named per their capital cities: (i) Rostock, (ii) Neubrandenburg, (iii) Schwerin, (iv) Potsdam, (v) Frankfurt (Oder), (vi) Magdeburg, (vii) Cottbus, (viii) Halle, (ix) Leipzig, (x) Erfurt, (xi) Dresden, (xii) Karl-Marx-Stadt (Chemnitz until 1953 and again in 1990), (xiii) Gera, and (xiv) Suhl; East Berlin was denominated a ''Bezirk'' (district) in 1961.

The disestablished ''Länder'' (states), demarcated as ''Bezirke'' (districts), were renamed so: the northern ''Land'' (state) Mecklenburg was divided among the ''Bezirke'' Rostock, Schwerin, and Neubrandenburg; Brandenburg (containing Berlin) was divided into the Potsdam, Frankfurt (Oder), and Cottbus districts; Saxony-Anhalt was divided into the Halle and Magdeburg districts; the south-western state of Thuringia was divided into the Erfurt, Gera, and Suhl districts; and the south-eastern state of Saxony was divided among the Leipzig, Dresden, and Karl-Marx-Stadt districts.

East Berlin, the capital city of the German Democratic Republic, formed the ''Bezirk'' Berlin, the country’s fifteenth district, retaining special legal status until 1968, when the residents voted in approving the new (draft) constitution. Regardless of the city's four-occupying-power-status, the ACC, and diplomatic objections of the Allied governments, the GDR administered the ''Bezirk'' Berlin as sovereign territory.

Major cities (1988 populations)

Berlin, Hauptstadt der DDR (''English:'' Berlin, Capital of the GDR) (1,200,000)

Leipzig^* (556,000)

Dresden^* (520,000)

Karl-Marx-Stadt^* (317,000) (Name now reverted to Chemnitz)

Magdeburg^* (290,000)

Rostock^* (250,000)

Halle (Saale)^* (236,000)

Erfurt^* (215,000)

Potsdam^* (140,000)

Gera^* (131,000)

Schwerin^* (130,000)

Cottbus^* (125,000)

Zwickau (120,000)

Jena (107,000)

Dessau (105,000)

^* ''"Bezirksstadt" (centre of district)''

Population

The East German population declined by three million people throughout its forty-one year history, from 19 million in 1948 to 16 million in 1990; of the 1948 population, some 4 million were deported from the lands east of the Oder-Neisse line. This was primarily a result of emigration — about one quarter of East Germans left the country before the Berlin Wall was completed in 1961, and after that time, East Germany had very low birth rates. But in the years before reunification the birth rate in East Germany was much higher than in West Germany, and in general the birth rate per woman was never much lower than in West Germany. This compares starkly with Poland, which increased during that time from 24 million in 1950 (a little more than East Germany) to 38 million (more than twice East Germany's population).

Economy

The East German economy began poorly because of the devastation caused by the war, the loss of so many young soldiers, the disruption of business and transportation, the presence of so many refugees, and finally reparations owed to the USSR. The Red Army dismantled and transported to Russia the infrastructure and industrial plants of the Soviet Zone of Occupation. By the early 1950s, the reparations were paid in agricultural and industrial products; and Lower Silesia, with its coal mines and Szczecin, an important natural port, were given to Poland by the decision of Stalin.

The socialist centrally planned economy of the German Democratic Republic was like that of the USSR. In 1950, the GDR joined the COMECON trade bloc. In 1985, collective (state) enterprises earned 96.7% of the net national income. To ensure stable prices for goods and services, the state paid 80% of basic supply costs. The estimated 1984 per capita income was $9,800 ($21,000 in 2008 dollars). In 1976, the average annual growth of the GDP was approximately five percent.

Notable East German exports were photographic cameras, under the Praktica brand; automobiles under the Trabant, Wartburg, and the IFA brands; hunting rifles, sextants, and wristwatches.

Until the 1960s, East Germans endured shortages of basic foodstuffs such as sugar and coffee. East Germans with friends or relatives in the West (or any access to a hard currency) and the necessary Staatsbank foreign currency account, could afford Western products and export-quality East German products via Intershop. Consumer goods also were available, by post, from the Danish Jauerfood, and Genex companies.

The government used money and prices as political devices, providing highly subsidised prices for a wide range of basic goods and services, in what was known as "the second pay packet". The economic results were highly negative, and created an increasing differential with the prosperity in West Germany. At the production level, artificial prices made for an inefficient, backward system of semi-barter and resource-hoarding. For the consumer, it led to the substitution of GDR money with time, barter, and hard-currencies. Ironically, the socialist economy became steadily more dependent on financial infusions from hard-currency loans from West Germany. East Germans, meanwhile, came to see their soft-currency as worthless relative to the Deutsche Mark (DM).

Consumption and jobs

The existence of two German states created questions of legitimacy for both states, particularly in the 1950s when the outcome of the Cold War and the future of Germany remained much in doubt. Both German states used consumerism to promote their unique visions of ''Germanness'' (''Deutschtum''). For West Germany, the resumption of prewar patterns of consumption would signify a return to normality. This meant not only an end to the difficult shortages of the "hungry years," but also the curtailing of female employment outside the home.

In East Germany, people who were disgruntled resorted to nasty jokes at the expense of the oppressive regime; their names were recorded, and too many jokes would land a man in prison.

Throughout its history the main criterion for getting a good job was unblinking loyalty to the Communist party bosses. Even in the electronics industry, a relatively modern and competitive sector of the GDR's economy, the criteria of professionalism were secondary to political criteria in personnel recruitment and development. Dubious loyalty meant exclusion from the university and from good jobs.

With a very low birth rate and a high rate of exodus, East Germany was losing workers. The solution was to import low-skilled workers from other Communist countries. Beginning in 1963 with a series of secret international agreements, East Germany recruited workers from Poland, Hungary, Cuba, Albania, Mozambique, Angola and (North) Vietnam. They numbered more than 100,000 by 1989. Their working conditions were bleak, and although they were officially equal to their German counterparts, the foreign workers remained at the bottom of the social ladder with almost no rights.

Religion

Religion was contested ground in the GDR, with the Communists promoting atheism, although some people were loyal to Christian communities.

Atheism

At the beginning, the Communist party had asserted the compatibility of Christianity and Marxism and sought Christian participation in the building of socialism. At first the question of atheism received little official attention. In the mid-1950s, as the Cold War heated up, atheism became suddenly a topic of major interest for the regime for propaganda purposes, both domestic and foreign. University chairs and departments devoted to the study of 'scientific atheism' were founded and much literature (scholarly and popular) on the subject was produced. Then this activity rather quickly subsided in the late 1960s amid perceptions that atheistic propaganda was becoming counterproductive; but official and scholarly attention to atheism was renewed beginning in 1973, though this time there was more emphasis on scholarship and the training of cadre than propaganda. Throughout, attention paid to atheism in East Germany always reflected politics and was never intended to jeopardise the cooperation that was desired from those East Germans who were religious.

Protestants

East Germany historically was about 90% Protestant. Between 1956 and 1971 the leadership of the East German Lutheran Church changed its relations with the state from hostility to cooperation. From the founding of the GDR in 1949, the Communist Party tried to weaken the influence of the church on the rising generation. The church therefore adopted an attitude of confrontation and distance regarding the Communist authorities. Around 1956 this firm stand against the regime began to wither in favour of a more neutral stance and conditional loyalty. The regime was no longer regarded as illegitimate; instead, the church leaders started viewing the authorities as installed by God and, therefore, deserving of obedience by Christians. But on matters where the state demanded something which was not in accordance with the will of God, the church reserved its right to say no. There were both structural and intentional causes behind this development. Structural causes included the hardening of Cold War tensions in Europe in the mid-1950s, which took away the temporary character of the East German state. The loss of church members and discrimination against young Christians also made it clear to the leaders of the church that they had to come into some kind of dialogue with the authorities. The intentions behind the change of attitude varied from a traditional Lutheran acceptance of secular power to a positive attitude toward socialist ideas. There was also a will to cooperate in order to have the ability to criticise from within a position of loyalty.

Manfred Stolpe (b. 1936) became a lawyer for the Protestant church in 1959 before taking up a position at church headquarters in Berlin. In 1969 he helped found the Bund der Evangelischen Kirchen in der DDR, where he negotiated with the Communist government while at the same time working within the truly democratic system of the church's institutions. The international outlook he gained through the church's ecumenical activities helped him in his new job after winning the regional elections for the state of Brandenburg at the head of the SPD list in 1990. Despite accusations of having colluded with the Communist government, Stolpe, cleared of the charges, remained at the head of the Brandenburg government until he joined the federal government in 2002.

Catholics

The smaller Roman Catholic Church had a fully functioning episcopal hierarchy that was in full accord with the Vatican. During the early postwar years, tensions were high. The Catholic Church as a whole and particularly the bishops were resistant to both the regime and Marxist ideology, and the state allowed the bishops to lodge protests, which they did on issues such as abortion. The bishops were, however, closely observed by the Stasi. East Germans accepted hip hop as more than just a music form. The entire street culture surrounding rap entered the region and became an outlet for oppressed youth.

Dissident singer/songwriter Wolf Biermann, although professing to be a dedicated Communist, was not permitted to perform in public, and was deprived of his East German citizenship in 1976, while visiting West Germany. He was not allowed to return to East Germany until 1989.

Singer Nina Hagen, who is the stepdaughter of Biermann, was exiled at the same time.

Governmental support of classical music maintained some fifty symphony orchestras, such as Gewandhausorchester and Thomanerchor in Leipzig; Sächsische Staatskapelle in Dresden; and Berliner Sinfonie Orchester and Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin.

The birth place of Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750), Eisenach, was rendered as a museum about him, featuring more than three hundred instruments, which, in 1980, received some 70,000 visitors. In Leipzig, the Bach archive contains his compositions and correspondence and recordings of his music.

Theatre

East German theatre was originally dominated by Bertolt Brecht, who brought back many artists out of exile and reopened the ''Theater am Schiffbauerdamm'' with his Berliner Ensemble. Alternatively, other influences tried to establish a "Working Class Theatre", played for the working class by the working class.

After Brecht's death, conflicts began to arise between his family (around Helene Weigel) and other artists about Brecht's heritage. Heinz Kahlau, Slatan Dudow, Erwin Geschonneck, Erwin Strittmatter, Peter Hacks, Benno Besson, Peter Palitzsch and Ekkehard Schall were considered to be among Bertolt Brecht's scholars and followers.

In the 1950s the Swiss director Benno Besson with the Deutsches Theater successfully toured Europe and Asia including Japan with ''The Dragon'' by Jewgenij Schwarz. In the 1960s, he became the Intendant of the Volksbühne often working with Heiner Müller.

After 1975 many artists left the GDR because of increasing censorship. A parallel theatre scene sprung up, creating theatre "outside of Berlin" in which artists played at provincial theatres. For example Peter Sodann founded the Neues Theater in Halle/Saale and Frank Castorf at the theater Anklam.

Theatre and cabaret had high status in the GDR, which allowed it to be very pro-active. This often brought it into confrontation with the state. Benno Besson once said, "In contrast to artists in the west, they took us seriously, we had a bearing."

Important theatres include: Berliner Ensemble; – Deutsches Theater; Maxim Gorki Theater; and Volksbühne

Cinema

The prolific cinema of East Germany was headed by the DEFA, ''Deutsche Film AG'', which was subdivided in different local groups, for example ''Gruppe Berlin'', ''Gruppe Babelsberg'' or ''Gruppe Johannisthal'', where the local teams shot and produced films. Besides folksy movies, the movie-industry became known worldwide for its productions, especially children's movies (''Das kalte Herz'', film versions of the Brothers Grimm fairy tales and modern productions such as ''Das Schulgespenst'').

Frank Beyer's ''Jakob der Lügner'' (Jacob the Liar), about persecution of Jews in the Third Reich, and ''Fünf Patronenhülsen'' (Five Cartridges), about resistance against fascism, became internationally famous.

Films about quotidian life, such as ''Die Legende von Paul und Paula'', by Heiner Carow, and ''Solo Sunny'', directed by Konrad Wolf and Wolfgang Kohlhaase, were very popular.

The film industry was remarkable for its production of ''Ostern'', or Western-like movies. Indians in these films often took the role of displaced people who fight for their rights, in contrast to the American westerns of the time, where Indians were often either not mentioned at all or are portrayed as the villains. Yugoslavians were often cast as the Indians because of the small number of American Indians in eastern Europe. Gojko Mitić was well known in these roles, often playing the righteous, kindhearted and charming chief (''Die Söhne der großen Bärin'' directed by Josef Mach). He became an honorary Sioux chief when he visited the United States in the 1990s, and the television crew accompanying him showed the tribe one of his movies. American actor and singer Dean Reed, an expatriate who lived in East Germany, also starred in several films. These films were part of the phenomenon of Europe producing alternative films about the colonization of America.

Because of censorship a certain number of very remarkable movies were forbidden at this time and reissued after the ''Wende'' in 1990. Examples are ''Spur der Steine'' (directed by Frank Beyer) and ''Der geteilte Himmel'' (directed by Konrad Wolf).

Cinemas in the GDR also showed foreign films. Czechoslovak and Polish productions were more common, but certain western movies were shown, though the numbers of these were limited because it cost foreign exchange to buy the licences. Further, movies representing or glorifying capitalistic ideology were not bought. Comedies enjoyed great popularity, such as the Danish ''Olsen Gang'' or movies with the French comedian Louis de Funès.

Since the fall of the Berlin Wall, several movies depicting life in the GDR have been critically acclaimed. Some of the most notable were ''Good Bye Lenin!'' by Wolfgang Becker, ''Das Leben der Anderen'' (The Lives of Others) by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck (won the Academy Award for best Film in a Foreign Language) in 2006, ''Alles auf Zucker!'' (Go for Zucker) by Dani Levi. Each film is heavily infused with cultural nuances unique to life in the GDR.

Sport

East Germany was very successful in the sports of bicycling, weight-lifting, swimming, gymnastics, track and field, boxing, ice skating, and winter sports. The success is attributed to the leadership of Dr. Manfred Hoeppner which started in the late 1960s.

Another supporting reason was doping in East Germany, especially with anabolic steroids, the most detected doping substances in IOC-accredited laboratories for many years. The development and implementation of a state-supported sports doping program helped East Germany, with its small population, to become a world leader in sport during the 1970s and 1980s, winning a large number of Olympic and world gold medals and records.

Another factor for success was the furtherance-system for young people in GDR. Sport-teachers at school were encouraged to look for certain talents in children ages 6 to 10 years old. For older pupils it was possible to attend grammar-schools with a focus on sports (for example sailing, football and swimming). This policy was also used for talented pupils with regard to music or mathematics.

Sports clubs were highly subsidized, especially sports in which it was possible to get international fame. For example, the major leagues for ice hockey and basketball just included each 2 teams (excluding the school and university sport), though a lack of popular interest in both ice hockey and basketball was and is common across the whole of Europe, whether communist or not. Football (soccer) was the most popular sport. Club football teams such as Dynamo Dresden, 1. FC Magdeburg, FC Carl Zeiss Jena, 1. FC Lokomotive Leipzig and BFC Dynamo had successes in European competition. Many East German players such as Matthias Sammer and Ulf Kirsten became integral parts of the reunified national football team. Other sports enjoyed great popularity like figure skating, especially because of sportspeople like Katarina Witt. ;Successful athletes:

Waldemar Cierpinski, athlete

Ernst Degner, racing motorcyclist

Heike Drechsler, athlete

Maxi Gnauck, gymnast

Lutz Heßlich, track cyclist

Falk Hoffmann, diver

Jan Hoffmann, ice skater

Karin Janz, gymnast

Karin Kania, speed skater

Marita Koch, athlete

Christa Luding-Rothenburger, speed skater and track cyclist

Olaf Ludwig, road cyclist

Henry Maske, boxer

Heinz Melkus, auto racing driver

Peter Muecke, rally driver

Meinhard Nehmer, bobsledder

Frank-Peter Roetsch, biathlete

Gustav-Adolf Schur, road cyclist

Gaby Seyfert, ice skater

Jürgen Sparwasser, footballer

Jens Weißflog, ski jumper

Fred Williamowski, rallying motorcyclist

;Track-suit diplomacy The East and the West also competed via sport; GDR athletes dominated several Olympic sports. Of special interest was the only football match between the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic, a first-round match during the 1974 FIFA World Cup, which the East won 1–0, although West Germany, the host, was the eventual champion.

Television and radio

Television and radio in East Germany were state controlled; the ''Rundfunk der DDR'' was the official radio broadcasting organisation from 1952 until German reunification. The organization was based in the ''Funkhaus Nalepastraße'' in East Berlin. ''Deutscher Fernsehfunk'' (DFF), from 1972–1990 known as ''Fernsehen der DDR'' or DDR-FS, was the state television broadcaster from 1952. Reception of Western radio (and even television) broadcasts was widespread.

Telecommunications

By the mid-1980s, East Germany possessed a well-developed communications system. There were approximately 3.6 million telephones in usage (21.8 for every 100 inhabitants), and 16,476 Telex stations. Both of these networks were run by the Deutsche Post der DDR (East German Post Office). East Germany was assigned telephone country code 37; in 1991, several months after reunification, East German telephone exchanges were incorporated into country code 49.

An unusual feature of the telephone network was that in most cases, direct dialing for long distance calls was not possible. Although area codes were assigned to all major towns and cities, they were only used for switching international calls. Instead, each location had its own list of dialing codes with shorter codes for local calls and longer codes for long distance calls. After reunification, the existing network was largely replaced, and area codes and dialing became standardised.

In 1976 East Germany inaugurated the operation of a ground-based radio station at Fürstenwalde for the purpose of relaying and receiving communications from Soviet satellites and to serve as a participant in the international telecommunications organization established by the Soviet government, Intersputnik.

Holidays

Date	English Name	German Name	Remarks
1 January	New Year's Day	Neujahr
''Moveable feast''	Good Friday	Karfreitag
''Moveable feast''	Easter Sunday	Ostersonntag
''Moveable feast''	Easter Monday	Ostermontag	Was not an official holiday after 1967.
1 May	May Day	Tag der Arbeit	International Workers' Day
8 May	Victory in Europe Day	Tag der Befreiung	The translation means "Day of Liberation"
''Moveable feast''	Father's Day / Ascension Day	Vatertag / Christi Himmelfahrt	Thursday after the 5th Sunday after Easter. Was not an official holiday after 1967.
''Moveable feast''		Pfingstmontag	50 days after Easter Sunday
7 October	Republic Day	Tag der Republik	National holiday
''Moveable feast''		Buß- und Bettag	Penultimate Wednesday before the fourth Sunday before December 25. Was not an official holiday after 1967.
25 December		1. Weihnachtsfeiertag
26 December		2. Weihnachtsfeiertag

Ostalgie

The end of the Cold War division of Germany and unification in 1990 inspired initial euphoria.

But for many East Germans, this joy quickly turned to dismay. West Germans often acted as if they had "won" and East Germans had "lost" in unification, leading many East Germans (''Ossis'') to resent West Germans (''Wessis''). Additionally, the dislocations associated with the end of Communism, the disappearance of East Germany and German unification were hardest for East Germany, where unemployment skyrocketed and many East German professionals quickly fled for better jobs in West Germany.

These and other effects of unification led many East Germans to begin to think of themselves more strongly as "East" Germans rather than as simply as "Germans". This produced in many former GDR citizens a longing for certain aspects of the former East Germany, such as full employment and other perceived benefits of the GDR state, termed "Ostalgie" (a blend of "east" and "nostalgia") and depicted in the Wolfgang Becker film ''Goodbye Lenin!''.

Danish historian Feiwel Kupferberg (2002) argues that the real difficulty in German reunification was the discrepancy in the ways the West Germans and East Germans have viewed their Nazi past. The West Germans grimly faced it, atoned for it, and transformed their half of the country into a prosperous, free democracy that valued both individual freedom and responsibility, by contrast, the East Germans absorbed the Soviet-made myth that East Germany was the "victor of history" that successfully resisted the fascists. They blamed their western compatriots for the Nazi atrocities because West Germany had a capitalist economy, which had created Hitler; without capitalism, East Germany was now pure. This attitude, Kupferberg argues, allowed middle classes that had supported Hitler to retain powerful roles in East Germany and there was no radical break with the Nazi regime.

See also

Germany

Berlin

* Berlin Wall

* East Berlin

* West Berlin

History of East Germany

History of Germany since 1945

Inner German border

Iron Curtain

Leaders of East Germany

Ministerrat

West Germany

Armed Forces

Conscientious objection in East Germany

Grenztruppen

Landstreitkräfte

Luftstreitkräfte

National People's Army

Stasi

Volksmarine

Volkspolizei

Media

''Aktuelle Kamera'', GDR's main TV news show

Broadcasting in East Germany

''Der Tunnel'', a film about a mass evacuation to West Berlin through a tunnel

''Good Bye, Lenin!'', a tragicomedy film about the German reunification

Radio Berlin International

Transport

Barkas

Deutsche Reichsbahn – The railway company of the GDR

Interflug – The airline of the GDR

Trabant

Transport in the German Democratic Republic

Wartburg

Other

Education in the German Democratic Republic

Fichtelberg, highest point (1214.6m)

Index of East Germany-related articles

GDR jokes

Ostalgie (Nostalgia, missing the old days.)

Palast der Republik

Dean Reed

Sportvereinigung (SV) Dynamo

Tourism in East Germany

Omoiyari Yosan (DDR government→USSR Forces）

Notes

References and bibliography

Allinson, Mark. ''Politics and Popular Opinion in East Germany 1945–68'' (2000)

Augustine, Dolores. ''Red Prometheus: Engineering and Dictatorship in East Germany, 1945–1990.'' (2007) 411pp

Baylis, Thomas A., David H Childs and Marilyn Rueschemeyer, eds.; East Germany in Comparative Perspective, Routledge. 1989

Childs, David H.. ''The Fall of the GDR,'' Longman Personed.co.uk, 2001. ISBN13:9780582315693, ISBN10: 0582315697

Childs, David H.. & Richard Popplewell. ''The Stasi: East German Intelligence and Security Service,'' Palgrave Macmillan Palgrave.com,Amazon.co.uk 1996.

Childs, David H.. ''The GDR: Moscow's German Ally,'' George Allen & Unwin, 1983. ISBN 0-04-354029-5, 9780043540299.

Childs, David H.. ''The Two Red Flags: European Social Democracy & Soviet Communism Since 1945,'' Routledge, 2000. Informaworld.com

Fulbrook, Mary. The People's State: East German Society from Hitler to Honecker Yale University Press, 2005. 352 pp. ISBN 0-300-10884-2.

Fulbrook; Mary. Anatomy of a Dictatorship: Inside the GDR, 1949–1989 Oxford University Press, 1995

Gray, William Glenn. ''Germany's Cold War: The Global Campaign to Isolate East Germany, 1949–1969'' University of North Carolina Press. 2003

Grix, Jonathan. ''The Role of the Masses in the Collapse of the GDR'' Macmillan, 2000

Jarausch, Konrad H., and Eve Duffy; ''Dictatorship as Experience: Towards a Socio-Cultural History of the GDR'' Berghahn Books, 1999

Kupferberg, Feiwel. ''The Rise and Fall of the German Democratic Republic'' (2002) 228pp; online review

Naimark, Norman M. ''The Russians in Germany: A History of the Soviet Zone of Occupation, 1945–1949'' (1997) excerpt and text search

Port, Andrew I. ''Conflict and Stability in the German Democratic Republic'' Cambridge University Press, 2007.

Pritchard, Gareth, ''The Making of the GDR 1945–53: From Antifascism to Stalinism'' (2000)

Ritter, Gerhard A. "Die DDR in der Deutschen Geschichte," [The GDR in German history] ''Vierteljahrshefte für Zeitgeschichte,'' Apr 2002, Vol. 50 Issue 2, pp 171–200

Steiner, André. ''The Plans That Failed: An Economic History of East Germany, 1945–1989'' (2010)

Spilker, Dirk. ''The East German Leadership and the Division of Germany: Patriotism and Propaganda 1945–1953.'' (2006). online review

Stokes, Raymond G. ''Constructing Socialism: Technology and Change in East Germany, 1945–1990'' (2000)

Zatlin, Jonathan R. ''The Currency of Socialism: Money and Political Culture in East Germany.'' (2007). 377 pp. online review

External links

AHF – Nationale Volksarmee (NVA)

''Auferstanden aus Ruinen'' ''That was the GDR (in German)''

Translations of propaganda materials from the GDR.

Geschichte des ostdeutschen Designs – history of east German design

DDR Museum Berlin – Culture of the GDR

East Berlin, Past and Present

Pictures of the GDR 1949–1973

RFE/RL East German Subject Files Open Society Archives, Budapest

Stamps Catalog of the German Democratic Republic

East German anthem with English and German lyrics

Countries of the world Europe |before = Allied Occupation Zones in Germanyand theGerman Economic Commission(1948–1949) |after = Federal Republic of Germany |years = 1949–1990 }}

Category:Communism in Germany Germany, East Germany, East Category:Eastern Bloc Category:Former polities of the Cold War Germany, East Germany, East Germany, East Germany, East Germany, East Category:German-speaking ex-regions

kbd:Демократ Джэрмэн Республикэ af:Duitse Demokratiese Republiek als:Deutsche Demokratische Republik ar:ألمانيا الشرقية an:Republica Democratica Alemana ast:República Democrática Alemana az:Almaniya Demokratik Respublikası bn:পূর্ব জার্মানি zh-min-nan:Tang-tek be:Германская Дэмакратычная Рэспубліка bar:Deitsche Demokratische Republik bs:Njemačka Demokratska Republika br:Republik Demokratel Alamagn bg:Германска демократична република ca:República Democràtica Alemanya cv:Германи Демократиллĕ Республики cs:Německá demokratická republika cy:Gweriniaeth Ddemocrataidd yr Almaen da:DDR de:Deutsche Demokratische Republik dsb:Nimska demokratiska republika et:Saksa Demokraatlik Vabariik el:Λαϊκή Δημοκρατία της Γερμανίας es:República Democrática Alemana eo:Germana Demokratia Respubliko eu:Alemaniako Errepublika Demokratikoa fa:جمهوری دمکراتیک آلمان fo:Eysturtýskland fr:République démocratique allemande fy:Dútske Demokratyske Republyk gv:Yn Ghermaan Hiar gl:República Democrática Alemá gan:東德 ko:독일 민주 공화국 hy:Գերմանիայի Դեմոկրատական Հանրապետություն hsb:Němska demokratiska republika hr:Njemačka Demokratska Republika io:Est-Germania id:Jerman Timur os:Германы Демократон Республикæ is:Austur-Þýskaland it:Repubblica Democratica Tedesca he:גרמניה המזרחית jv:Jerman Wétan ka:გერმანიის დემოკრატიული რესპუბლიკა sw:Jamhuri ya Kidemokrasia ya Kijerumani ku:Komara Demokratîk a Almanyayê la:Res publica Democratica Germanica lv:Vācijas Demokrātiskā Republika lt:Vokietijos Demokratinė Respublika hu:Német Demokratikus Köztársaság mk:Германска Демократска Република mr:पूर्व जर्मनी arz:المانيا الشرقيه ms:Jerman Timur mn:Зүүн Герман nl:Duitse Democratische Republiek ja:ドイツ民主共和国 no:Den tyske demokratiske republikk nn:Den tyske demokratiske republikken oc:Republica Democratica Alemanda uz:Germaniya Demokratik Respublikasi nds:Düütsche Demokraatsche Republiek pl:Niemiecka Republika Demokratyczna pt:Alemanha Oriental ksh:Deutsche Demokratische Republik ro:Republica Democrată Germană qu:Aliman Dimukratiku Republika ru:Германская Демократическая Республика stq:Aast-Düütsklound sq:Gjermania Lindore scn:Ripùbblica Dimucràtica Tidesca simple:German Democratic Republic sk:Nemecká demokratická republika sl:Nemška demokratična republika szl:Mjymjecko Dymokratyczno Republika sr:Источна Немачка sh:Nemačka Demokratska Republika fi:Saksan demokraattinen tasavalta sv:Östtyskland tl:Silangang Alemanya ta:ஜெர்மன் சனநாயகக் குடியரசு th:ประเทศเยอรมนีตะวันออก tr:Demokratik Almanya Cumhuriyeti uk:Німецька Демократична Республіка ur:مشرقی جرمنی vec:Repùblica Democràtica Todèsca vi:Cộng hòa Dân chủ Đức war:Sinirangan nga Alemanya yi:מזרח דייטשלאנד yo:East Germany zh-yue:東德 zh:東德

Native name
Conventional long name	Federal Republic of Germany
Common name	Germany
National anthem	File:National anthem of Germany - U.S. Army 1st Armored Division Band.oggThe third stanza of ''The Song of the Germans''
Image coat	Coat of Arms of Germany.svg
Map caption
Official languages	German
Demonym	German
Capital	Berlin
Largest city	capital
Government type	Federal parliamentary constitutional republic
Leader title1	President
Leader name1	Joachim Gauck
Leader title2	Chancellor
Leader name2	Angela Merkel
Leader title3	President of the Bundestag
Leader name3	Norbert Lammert
Leader title4	President of the Bundesrat
Leader name4	Horst Seehofer
Sovereignty type	Formation
Established event1	Holy Roman Empire
Established date1	2 February 962
Established event2	Unification
Established date2	18 January 1871
Established event3	Federal Republic
Established date3	23 May 1949
Established event4	Reunification
Established date4	3 October 1990
Accessioneudate	25 March 1957
Euseats	99
Area km2	357,021
Area sq mi	137,847
Area rank	63rd
Area magnitude	1 E11
Percent water	2.416
Population estimate	81,799,600
Population estimate year	2010
Population estimate rank	16th
Population estimate rank	16th
Population density km2	229
Population density sq mi	593
Population density rank	55th
Gdp ppp year	2011
Gdp ppp	$3.089 trillion
Gdp ppp rank	5th
Gdp ppp per capita	$37,935
Gdp ppp per capita rank	18th
Gdp nominal	$3.628 trillion
Gdp nominal rank	4th
Gdp nominal year	2011
Gdp nominal per capita	$44,555
Gdp nominal per capita rank	19th
Hdi year	2011
Hdi	0.905
Hdi rank	9th
Hdi category	very high
Gini	27
Gini year	2006
Gini category	low
Currency	Euro (€)(2002 – present)
Currency code	EUR
Time zone	CET
Utc offset	+1
Time zone dst	CEST
Utc offset dst	+2
Drives on	right
Cctld	.de
Calling code	49
Iso 3166-1 alpha2	DE
Iso 3166-1 alpha3	DEU
Iso 3166-1 numeric	?
Alt sport code	GER
Vehicle code	D
Aircraft code	D
Footnote1	Danish, Low German, Sorbian, Romany and Frisian are officially recognised by the ECRML.
Footnote2	Before 2002: Deutsche Mark (DEM).
Footnote3	Also .eu, shared with European Union member states. }}

Germany (), officially the Federal Republic of Germany (, ), is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km² and has a largely temperate seasonal climate. With 81.8 million inhabitants, it is the most populous member state and the largest economy in the European Union. It is one of the major political powers of the European continent and a technological leader in many fields.

A region named Germania, inhabited by several Germanic peoples, was documented before AD 100. During the Migration Period, the Germanic tribes expanded southward, and established successor kingdoms throughout much of Europe. Beginning in the 10th century, German territories formed a central part of the Holy Roman Empire. During the 16th century, northern German regions became the centre of the Protestant Reformation while southern and western parts remained dominated by Roman Catholic denominations, with the two factions clashing in the Thirty Years' War, marking the beginning of the Catholic–Protestant divide that has characterized German society ever since. Occupied during the Napoleonic Wars, the rise of Pan-Germanism inside the German Confederation resulted in the unification of most of the German states into the German Empire in 1871 which was Prussian dominated. After the German Revolution of 1918–1919 and the subsequent military surrender in World War I, the Empire was replaced by the Weimar Republic in 1918, and partitioned in the Treaty of Versailles. Amidst the Great Depression, the Third Reich was proclaimed in 1933. The latter period was marked by Fascism and World War II. After 1945, Germany was divided by allied occupation, and evolved into two states, East Germany and West Germany. In 1990 Germany was reunified.

Germany was a founding member of the European Community in 1957, which became the EU in 1993. It is part of the Schengen Area and since 1999 a member of the eurozone. Germany is a member of the United Nations, NATO, the G8, the G20, the OECD and the Council of Europe, and took a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2011–2012 term.

It has the world's fourth largest economy by nominal GDP and the fifth largest by purchasing power parity. It is the second largest exporter and third largest importer of goods. The country has developed a very high standard of living and a comprehensive system of social security. Germany has been the home of many influential scientists and inventors, and is known for its cultural and political history.

==Etymology== The English word ''Germany'' derives from the Latin Germania, which came into use after Julius Caesar adopted it for the peoples east of the Rhine. In other languages it has various names.

The German term ''Deutschland'' (originally ''diutisciu land'', "the German lands") is derived from ''deutsch'', descended from Old High German ''diutisc'' "popular" (i. e., belonging to the ''diot'' or ''diota'' "people"; originally used to distinguish the language of the common people from Latin and its Romance descendants). This in turn descends from Proto-Germanic *''þiudiskaz'' "popular" (see also the Latinised form Theodiscus), derived from *''þeudō'', descended from Proto-Indo-European *''tewtéh₂-'' "people".

History

Germanic tribes and Frankish Empire

The Germanic tribes are thought to date from the Nordic Bronze Age or the Pre-Roman Iron Age. From southern Scandinavia and north Germany, they expanded south, east and west from the 1st century BC, coming into contact with the Celtic tribes of Gaul as well as Iranian, Baltic, and Slavic tribes in Eastern Europe. Under Augustus, the Roman General Publius Quinctilius Varus began to invade Germania (an area extending roughly from the Rhine to the Ural Mountains). In AD 9, three Roman legions led by Varus were defeated by the Cheruscan leader Arminius. By AD 100, when Tacitus wrote ''Germania'', Germanic tribes had settled along the Rhine and the Danube (the Limes Germanicus), occupying most of the area of modern Germany; Austria, southern Bavaria and the western Rhineland, however, were Roman provinces.

In the 3rd century a number of large West Germanic tribes emerged: Alemanni, Franks, Chatti, Saxons, Frisii, Sicambri, and Thuringii. Around 260, the Germanic peoples broke into Roman-controlled lands. After the invasion of the Huns in 375, and with the decline of Rome from 395, Germanic tribes moved further south-west. Simultaneously several large tribes formed in what is now Germany and displaced the smaller Germanic tribes. Large areas (known since the Merovingian period as Austrasia) were occupied by the Franks, and Northern Germany was ruled by the Saxons and Slavs.

Holy Roman Empire

On 25 December 800, Charlemagne founded the Carolingian Empire, which was divided in 843. The Holy Roman Empire resulted from the eastern portion of this division. Its territory stretched from the Eider River in the north to the Mediterranean coast in the south. Under the reign of the Ottonian emperors (919–1024), several major duchies were consolidated, and the German king was crowned Holy Roman Emperor of these regions in 962. The Holy Roman Empire absorbed northern Italy and Burgundy under the reign of the Salian emperors (1024–1125), although the emperors lost power through the Investiture Controversy.

Under the Hohenstaufen emperors (1138–1254), the German princes increased their influence further south and east into territories inhabited by Slavs, preceding German settlement in these areas and further east ''(Ostsiedlung)''. Northern German towns grew prosperous as members of the Hanseatic League. Starting with the Great Famine in 1315, then the Black Death of 1348–50, the population of Germany plummeted. The edict of the Golden Bull in 1356 provided the basic constitution of the empire and codified the election of the emperor by seven prince-electors who ruled some of the most powerful principalities and archbishoprics.

Martin Luther publicised his 95 Theses in 1517, challenging the Roman Catholic Church and initiating the Protestant Reformation. A separate Lutheran church became the official religion in many German states after 1530. Religious conflict led to the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648), which devastated German lands. The population of the German states was reduced by about 30%. The Peace of Westphalia (1648) ended religious warfare among the German states, but the empire was ''de facto'' divided into numerous independent principalities. From 1740 onwards, dualism between the Austrian Habsburg Monarchy and the Kingdom of Prussia dominated German history. In 1806, the ''Imperium'' was overrun and dissolved as a result of the Napoleonic Wars.

German Confederation and Empire

Following the fall of Napoleon I of France, the Congress of Vienna convened in 1814 and founded the German Confederation (Deutscher Bund), a loose league of 39 sovereign states. Disagreement with restoration politics partly led to the rise of liberal movements, followed by new measures of repression by Austrian statesman Metternich. The ''Zollverein'', a tariff union, furthered economic unity in the German states. National and liberal ideals of the French Revolution gained increasing support among many, especially young, Germans. In the light of a series of revolutionary movements in Europe, which established a republic in France, intellectuals and commoners started the Revolutions of 1848 in the German states. King Frederick William IV of Prussia was offered the title of Emperor, but with a loss of power; he rejected the crown and the proposed constitution, leading to a temporary setback for the movement.

Conflict between King William I of Prussia and the increasingly liberal parliament erupted over military reforms in 1862, and the king appointed Otto von Bismarck the new Prime Minister of Prussia. Bismarck successfully waged war on Denmark in 1864. Prussian victory in the Austro-Prussian War of 1866 enabled him to create the North German Federation (Norddeutscher Bund) and to exclude Austria, formerly the leading German state, from the federation's affairs. After the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, the German Empire was proclaimed 1871 in Versailles, uniting all scattered parts of Germany except Austria (, or "Lesser Germany"). With almost two thirds of its territory and population, Prussia was the dominating constituent of the new state; the Hohenzollern King of Prussia ruled as its concurrent Emperor, and Berlin became its capital. In the period following the unification of Germany, Bismarck's foreign policy as Chancellor of Germany under Emperor William I secured Germany's position as a great nation by forging alliances, isolating France by diplomatic means, and avoiding war. Under Wilhelm II, however, Germany, like other European powers, took an imperialistic course leading to friction with neighbouring countries. As a result of the Berlin Conference in 1884 Germany claimed several colonies including German East Africa, German South-West Africa, Togo, and Cameroon. Most alliances in which Germany had previously been involved were not renewed, and new alliances excluded the country.

The assassination of Austria's crown prince on 28 June 1914 triggered World War I. Germany, as part of the Central Powers, suffered defeat against the Allies in one of the bloodiest conflicts of all time. An estimated two million German soldiers died in World War I. The German Revolution broke out in November 1918, and Emperor Wilhelm II and all German ruling princes abdicated. An armistice ended the war on 11 November, and Germany was forced to sign the Treaty of Versailles in June 1919. The treaty was perceived in Germany as a humiliating continuation of the war, and is often cited as an influence in the rise of Nazism.

Weimar Republic and Nazi Regime

At the beginning of the German Revolution in November 1918, Germany was declared a republic. However, the struggle for power continued, with radical-left communists seizing power in Bavaria. The revolution came to an end on 11 August 1919, when the democratic Weimar Constitution was signed by President Friedrich Ebert. Suffering from the Great Depression of 1929, the harsh peace conditions dictated by the Treaty of Versailles, and a long succession of unstable governments, Germans increasingly lacked identification with the government. This was exacerbated by a widespread right-wing , or stab-in-the-back myth, which argued that Germany had lost World War I because of those who wanted to overthrow the government. The Weimar government was accused of betraying Germany by signing the Versailles Treaty. By 1932, the German Communist Party and the Nazi Party controlled the majority of parliament, fuelled by discontent with the Weimar government. After a series of unsuccessful cabinets, President Paul von Hindenburg appointed Adolf Hitler as Chancellor of Germany on 30 January 1933. On 27 February 1933 the Reichstag building went up in flames, and a consequent emergency decree abrogated basic citizens' rights. An Enabling Act passed in parliament gave Hitler unrestricted legislative power. Only the Social Democratic Party voted against it, while Communist MPs had already been imprisoned. Using his powers to crush any actual or potential resistance, Hitler established a centralised totalitarian state within months. Industry was revitalised with a focus on military rearmament.

In 1935, Germany reacquired control of the Saar and in 1936 military control of the Rhineland, both of which had been lost in the Treaty of Versailles. In 1938, Austria was annexed, and in 1939, Czechoslovakia was brought under German control. The invasion of Poland was prepared through the Molotov–Ribbentrop pact and Operation Himmler. On 1 September 1939 the German Wehrmacht launched a blitzkrieg on Poland, which was swiftly occupied by Germany and by the Soviet Red Army. The UK and France declared war on Germany, marking the beginning of World War II. As the war progressed, Germany and its allies quickly gained control of most of continental Europe and North Africa, though plans to force the United Kingdom to an armistice or surrender failed. On 22 June 1941, Germany broke the Molotov–Ribbentrop pact and invaded the Soviet Union. Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor led Germany to declare war on the United States. The Battle of Stalingrad forced the German army to retreat on the Eastern front. In September 1943, Germany's ally Italy surrendered, and German troops were forced to defend an additional front in Italy. D-Day opened a Western front, as Allied forces advanced towards German territory. On 8 May 1945, the German armed forces surrendered after the Red Army occupied Berlin.

In what later became known as The Holocaust, the Third Reich regime had enacted policies directly subjugating many dissidents and minorities. Millions of people were murdered by the Nazis during the Holocaust, including approximately six million Jews, and a sizeable number of Romani people, Jehovah's Witnesses, Poles and other Slavs, Soviet POWs, people with mental and/or physical disabilities, homosexuals, and members of the political and religious opposition. World War II was responsible for more than 40 million dead in Europe. The Nuremberg trials of Nazi war criminals were held after World War II. The war casualties for Germany are estimated at 5.3 million German soldiers millions of German civilians; and losing the war resulted in large territorial losses; the expulsion of about 15 million Germans from the eastern areas of Germany and other countries; mass rape of German women; and the destruction of multiple major cities.

East and West Germany

After the surrender of Germany, the remaining German territory and Berlin were partitioned by the Allies into four military occupation zones. The western sectors, controlled by France, the United Kingdom, and the United States, were merged on 23 May 1949 to form the ''Federal Republic of Germany'' (''Bundesrepublik Deutschland''); on 7 October 1949, the Soviet Zone became the ''German Democratic Republic'' (''Deutsche Demokratische Republik'', or DDR). They were informally known as "West Germany" and "East Germany". East Germany selected East Berlin as its capital, while West Germany chose Bonn as a provisional capital, to emphasise its stance that the two-state solution was an artificial and temporary ''status quo''.

West Germany, established as a federal parliamentary republic with a "social market economy", was allied with the United States, the UK and France. The country enjoyed prolonged economic growth beginning in the early 1950s (). West Germany joined NATO in 1955 and was a founding member of the European Economic Community in 1957. East Germany was an Eastern bloc state under political and military control by the USSR via the latter's occupation forces and the Warsaw Pact. Though East Germany claimed to be a democracy, political power was exercised solely by leading members (''Politbüro'') of the communist-controlled Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED), supported by the Stasi, an immense secret service, and a variety of sub-organisations controlling every aspect of society. A Soviet-style command economy was set up; the GDR later became a Comecon state. While East German propaganda was based on the benefits of the GDR's social programmes and the alleged constant threat of a West German invasion, many of her citizens looked to the West for freedom and prosperity. The Berlin Wall, built in 1961 to stop East Germans from escaping to West Germany, became a symbol of the Cold War.

Tensions between East and West Germany were reduced in the early 1970s by Chancellor Willy Brandt's . In summer 1989, Hungary decided to dismantle the Iron Curtain and open the borders, causing the emigration of thousands of East Germans to West Germany via Hungary. This had devastating effects on the GDR, where regular mass demonstrations received increasing support. The East German authorities unexpectedly eased the border restrictions, allowing East German citizens to travel to the West; originally intended to help retain East Germany as a state, the opening of the border actually led to an acceleration of the ''Wende'' reform process. This culminated in the ''Two Plus Four Treaty'' a year later on 12 September 1990, under which the four occupying powers renounced their rights under the Instrument of Surrender, and Germany regained full sovereignty. This permitted German reunification on 3 October 1990, with the accession of the five re-established states of the former GDR (new states or "neue Länder").

Berlin Republic and the EU

Based on the Berlin/Bonn Act, adopted on 10 March 1994, Berlin once again became the capital of the reunified Germany, while Bonn obtained the unique status of a ''Bundesstadt'' (federal city) retaining some federal ministries. The relocation of the government was completed in 1999. Since reunification, Germany has taken a more active role in the European Union and NATO. Germany sent a peacekeeping force to secure stability in the Balkans and sent a force of German troops to Afghanistan as part of a NATO effort to provide security in that country after the ousting of the Taliban. These deployments were controversial since, after the war, Germany was bound by domestic law only to deploy troops for defence roles. In 2005, Angela Merkel became the first female Chancellor of Germany as the leader of a grand coalition.

Geography

Germany is in Western and Central Europe, bordering Denmark in the north, Poland and the Czech Republic in the east, Austria and Switzerland in the south, France and Luxembourg in the south-west, and Belgium and the Netherlands in the north-west. It lies mostly between latitudes 47° and 55° N (the tip of Sylt is just north of 55°), and longitudes 5° and 16° E. The territory covers , consisting of of land and of water. It is the seventh largest country by area in Europe and the 62nd largest in the world.

Elevation ranges from the mountains of the Alps (highest point: the Zugspitze at ) in the south to the shores of the North Sea (Nordsee) in the north-west and the Baltic Sea (Ostsee) in the north-east. The forested uplands of central Germany and the lowlands of northern Germany (lowest point: Wilstermarsch at below sea level) are traversed by such major rivers as the Rhine, Danube and Elbe. Glaciers are found in the Alpine region, but are experiencing deglaciation. Significant natural resources are iron ore, coal, potash, timber, lignite, uranium, copper, natural gas, salt, nickel, arable land and water.

Climate

Most of Germany has a temperate seasonal climate in which humid westerly winds predominate. The climate is moderated by the North Atlantic Drift, the northern extension of the Gulf Stream. This warmer water affects the areas bordering the North Sea; consequently in the north-west and the north the climate is oceanic. Rainfall occurs year-round, especially in the summer. Winters are mild and summers tend to be cool, though temperatures can exceed .

The east has a more continental climate; winters can be very cold and summers very warm, and long dry periods are frequent. Central and southern Germany are transition regions which vary from moderately oceanic to continental. In addition to the maritime and continental climates that predominate over most of the country, the Alpine regions in the extreme south and, to a lesser degree, some areas of the Central German Uplands have a mountain climate, characterised by lower temperatures and greater precipitation.

Biodiversity

The territory of Germany can be subdivided into two ecoregions: European-Mediterranean montane mixed forests and Northeast-Atlantic shelf marine. the majority of Germany is covered by either arable land (34%) or forest and woodland (30.1%); only 13.4% of the area consists of permanent pastures, 11.8% is covered by settlements and streets.

Plants and animals are those generally common to middle Europe. Beeches, oaks, and other deciduous trees constitute one third of the forests; conifers are increasing as a result of reforestation. Spruce and fir trees predominate in the upper mountains, while pine and larch are found in sandy soil. There are many species of ferns, flowers, fungi, and mosses. Wild animals include deer, wild boar, mouflon, fox, badger, hare, and small numbers of beavers.

The national parks in Germany include the Wadden Sea National Parks, the Jasmund National Park, the Vorpommern Lagoon Area National Park, the Müritz National Park, the Lower Oder Valley National Park, the Harz National Park, the Saxon Switzerland National Park and the Bavarian Forest National Park. More than 400 registered zoos and animal parks operate in Germany, which is believed to be the largest number in any country. The Zoologische Garten Berlin is the oldest zoo in Germany and presents the most comprehensive collection of species in the world.

Politics

Germany is a federal, parliamentary, representative democratic republic. The German political system operates under a framework laid out in the 1949 constitutional document known as the ''Grundgesetz'' (Basic Law). Amendments generally require a two-thirds majority of both chambers of parliament; the fundamental principles of the constitution, as expressed in the articles guaranteeing human dignity, the separation of powers, the federal structure, and the rule of law are valid in perpetuity.

The president is the head of state and invested primarily with representative responsibilities and powers. He is elected by the ''Bundesversammlung'' (federal convention), an institution consisting of the members of the ''Bundestag'' and an equal number of state delegates. The second-highest official in the German order of precedence is the ''Bundestagspräsident'' (President of the ''Bundestag''), who is elected by the ''Bundestag'' and responsible for overseeing the daily sessions of the body. The third-highest official and the head of government is the Chancellor, who is appointed by the ''Bundespräsident'' after being elected by the ''Bundestag''.

The chancellor, currently Angela Merkel, is the head of government and exercises executive power, similar to the role of a Prime Minister in other parliamentary democracies. Federal legislative power is vested in the parliament consisting of the ''Bundestag'' (Federal Diet) and ''Bundesrat'' (Federal Council), which together form the legislative body. The ''Bundestag'' is elected through direct elections, by proportional representation (mixed-member). The members of the ''Bundesrat'' represent the governments of the sixteen federated states and are members of the state cabinets.

Since 1949, the party system has been dominated by the Christian Democratic Union and the Social Democratic Party of Germany with all chancellors hitherto being member of either party. However, the smaller liberal Free Democratic Party (which has had members in the ''Bundestag'' since 1949) and the Alliance '90/The Greens (which has controlled seats in parliament since 1983) have also played important roles.

Germany has a civil law system based on Roman law with some references to Germanic law. The ''Bundesverfassungsgericht'' (Federal Constitutional Court) is the German Supreme Court responsible for constitutional matters, with power of judicial review. Germany's supreme court system, called ''Oberste Gerichtshöfe des Bundes'', is specialised: for civil and criminal cases, the highest court of appeal is the inquisitorial Federal Court of Justice, and for other affairs the courts are the Federal Labour Court, the Federal Social Court, the Federal Finance Court and the Federal Administrative Court. The ''Völkerstrafgesetzbuch'' regulates the consequences of crimes against humanity, genocide and war crimes, and gives German courts universal jurisdiction in some circumstances. Criminal and private laws are codified on the national level in the ''Strafgesetzbuch'' and the ''Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch'' respectively. The German penal system is aimed towards rehabilitation of the criminal and the protection of the general public. Except for petty crimes, which are tried before a single professional judge, and serious political crimes, all charges are tried before mixed tribunals on which lay judges ('''') sit side by side with professional judges.

Constituent states

Germany comprises sixteen states that are collectively referred to as ''Länder''. Each state has its own state constitution and is largely autonomous in regard to its internal organisation. Due to differences in size and population the subdivision of these states varies, especially between city states (''Stadtstaaten'') and states with larger territories (''Flächenländer''). For regional administrative purposes five states, namely Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Hesse, North Rhine-Westphalia and Saxony, consist of a total of 22 Government Districts (''Regierungsbezirke''). Germany is divided into 403 districts (''Kreise'') on municipal level, these consist of 301 rural districts and 102 urban districts.

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Foreign relations

Germany has a network of 229 diplomatic missions abroad and maintains relations with more than 190 countries. it is the largest contributor to the budget of the European Union (providing 20%) and the third largest contributor to the UN (providing 8%). Germany is a member of NATO, the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the G8, the G20, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). It has played a leading role in the European Union since its inception and has maintained a strong alliance with France since the end of World War II. Germany seeks to advance the creation of a more unified European political, defence, and security apparatus.

The development policy of the Federal Republic of Germany is an independent area of German foreign policy. It is formulated by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and carried out by the implementing organisations. The German government sees development policy as a joint responsibility of the international community. It is the world's third biggest aid donor after the United States and France.

During the Cold War, Germany's partition by the Iron Curtain made it a symbol of East-West tensions and a political battleground in Europe. However, Willy Brandt's Ostpolitik was a key factor in the ''détente'' of the 1970s. In 1999, Chancellor Gerhard Schröder's government defined a new basis for German foreign policy by taking part in the NATO decisions surrounding the Kosovo War and by sending German troops into combat for the first time since World War II. The governments of Germany and the United States are close political allies. The 1948 Marshall Plan and strong cultural ties have crafted a strong bond between the two countries, although Schröder's vocal opposition to the Iraq War suggested the end of Atlanticism and a relative cooling of German-American relations. The two countries are also economically interdependent: 8.8% of German exports are U.S.-bound and 6.6% of German imports originate from the U.S.

Military

Germany's military, the ''Bundeswehr'', is organized in ''Heer'' (Army), ''Marine'' (Navy), ''Luftwaffe'' (Air Force), ''Zentraler Sanitätsdienst'' (Central Medical Services) and ''Streitkräftebasis'' (Joint Support Service) branches. , military spending was an estimated 1.5% of the country's GDP, that is position 99 in a ranking of all countries; absolutely, German military expenditure is the eighth-highest in the world. In peacetime, the Bundeswehr is commanded by the Minister of Defence. If Germany went to war, which according to the constitution is allowed only for defensive purposes, the Chancellor would become commander in chief of the ''Bundeswehr''.

the Bundeswehr employs 188,000 professional soldiers, 31,000 18–25 year-old conscripts who serve for at least six months. The German government plans to reduce the number of soldiers to 170,000 professionals and up to 15,000 short-time volunteers (''voluntary military service''). Reservists are available to the Armed Forces and participate in defence exercises and deployments abroad, a new reserve concept of their future strength and functions was announced 2011. , the German military had about 6,900 troops stationed in foreign countries as part of international peacekeeping forces, including about 4,900 Bundeswehr troops in the NATO-led ISAF force in Afghanistan and Uzbekistan, 1,150 German soldiers in Kosovo, and 300 troops with UNIFIL in Lebanon.

Until 2011, military service was compulsory for men at age 18, and conscripts served six-month tours of duty; conscientious objectors could instead opt for an equal length of ''Zivildienst'' (civilian service), or a six-year commitment to (voluntary) emergency services like a fire department or the Red Cross. On 1 July 2011 conscription was officially suspended and replaced with a voluntary service. Since 2001 women may serve in all functions of service without restriction, but they are not subject to conscription. There are presently some 17,500 women on active duty and a number of female reservists.

Economy

Germany has a social market economy with a highly qualified labour force, a large capital stock, a low level of corruption, and a high level of innovation. It has the largest national economy in Europe, the fourth largest by nominal GDP in the world, and the fifth largest by PPP in 2009. The service sector contributes approximately 71% of the total GDP, industry 28%, and agriculture 0.9%. The average national unemployment rate in 2010 was about 7.5%.

thumb|300px|left|Germany Exports (2009) by Product Category. MIT/Harvard Economic Complexity Observatory.Germany is a founding member of the EU, the G8 and the G20, and was the world's largest exporter from 2003 to 2008. In 2009 it remained the second largest exporter and third largest importer of goods. Most of the country's exports are in engineering, especially machinery, automobiles, chemical goods and metals. Germany is a leading producer of wind turbines and solar-power technology. Annual trade fairs and congresses are held in cities throughout Germany.

Germany is an advocate of closer European economic and political integration. Its commercial policies are increasingly determined by agreements among European Union (EU) members and by EU legislation. Germany introduced the common European currency, the euro, on 1 January 2002. Its monetary policy is set by the European Central Bank. Two decades after German reunification, standards of living and per capita incomes remain significantly higher in the states of the former West Germany than in the former East. The modernisation and integration of the eastern German economy is a long-term process scheduled to last until the year 2019, with annual transfers from west to east amounting to roughly $80 billion. In January 2009 the German government approved a €50 billion economic stimulus plan to protect several sectors from a downturn and a subsequent rise in unemployment rates.

Of the world's 500 largest stock-market-listed companies measured by revenue in 2010, the Fortune Global 500, 37 are headquartered in Germany. 30 Germany-based companies are included in the DAX, the German stock market index. Well-known global brands are Mercedes-Benz, BMW, SAP, Siemens, Volkswagen, Adidas, Audi, Allianz, Porsche, and Nivea. Germany is recognised for its specialised small and medium enterprises. Around 1,000 of these companies are global market leaders in their segment and are labelled hidden champions.

The list includes the largest companies by turnover in 2009. Unranked are the largest bank and the largest insurance company in 2007:

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style="text-align:center;"	Rank	Name||	Headquarters	Revenue(Mil. €)	Profit(Mil. €)	Employees(World)
1	Volkswagen AG ||	Wolfsburg	108,897	4,120	329,305
2	Daimler AG ||	Stuttgart	99,399	3,985	272,382
3	Siemens AG ||	Munich/Berlin	72,488	3,806	398,200
4	E.ON AG ||	Düsseldorf	68,731	7,204	87,815
5	Metro AG ||	Düsseldorf	64,337	825	242,378
6	Deutsche Post AG ||	Bonn	63,512	1,389	475,100
7	Deutsche Telekom AG ||	Bonn	62,516	569	241,426
8	BASF	BASF SE |>style="text-align:left;"| Ludwigshafen ||	57,951	4,065	95,175
9	BMW AG ||	Munich	56,018	3,126	107,539
10	ThyssenKrupp AG ||	Essen/Duisburg	51,723	2,102	191,350

Infrastructure

With its central position in Europe, Germany is a transport hub. This is reflected in its dense and modern transport networks. The motorway (Autobahn) network ranks as the third largest worldwide in length. Germany has established a polycentric network of high-speed trains. The InterCityExpress or ''ICE'' network of the Deutsche Bahn serves major German cities as well as destinations in neighbouring countries with speeds up to 300 kph (186 mph). The largest German airports are Frankfurt Airport and Munich Airport, both hubs of Lufthansa, while Air Berlin has hubs at Berlin Tegel and Düsseldorf. Other major airports include Berlin Schönefeld, Hamburg, Cologne/Bonn and Leipzig/Halle. Both airports in Berlin will be consolidated at a site adjacent to Berlin Schönefeld, which will become Berlin Brandenburg Airport in 2012.

, Germany was the world's sixth largest consumer of energy, and 60% of its primary energy was imported. Government policy promotes energy conservation and renewable energy. Energy efficiency has been improving since the early 1970s; the government aims to meet the country's electricity demands using only renewable sources by 2050. In 2010, energy sources were: oil (33.7%); coal, including lignite (22.9%); natural gas (21.8%); nuclear (10.8%); hydro-electric and wind power (1.5%); and other renewable sources (7.9%). In 2000, the government and the nuclear power industry agreed to phase out all nuclear power plants by 2021. Germany is committed to the Kyoto protocol and several other treaties promoting biodiversity, low emission standards, recycling, and the use of renewable energy, and supports sustainable development at a global level. The German government has initiated wide-ranging emission reduction activities and the country's overall emissions are falling. Nevertheless the country's greenhouse gas emissions were the highest in the EU .

Science and technology

Germany's achievements in sciences have been significant, and research and development efforts form an integral part of the economy. The Nobel Prize has been awarded to 103 German laureates. For most of the 20th century, German laureates had more awards than those of any other nation, especially in the sciences (physics, chemistry, and physiology or medicine).

The work of Albert Einstein and Max Planck was crucial to the foundation of modern physics, which Werner Heisenberg and Max Born developed further. Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen discovered X-rays and was the first winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1901. Numerous mathematicians were born in Germany, including Carl Friedrich Gauss, David Hilbert, Bernhard Riemann, Gottfried Leibniz, Karl Weierstrass, Hermann Weyl and Felix Klein. Research institutions in Germany include the Max Planck Society, the Helmholtz Association and the Fraunhofer Society. The Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize is granted to ten scientists and academics every year. With a maximum of €2.5 million per award it is one of highest endowed research prizes in the world.

Germany has been the home of many famous inventors and engineers, such as Johannes Gutenberg, credited with the invention of movable type printing in Europe; Hans Geiger, the creator of the Geiger counter; and Konrad Zuse, who built the first fully automatic digital computer. German inventors, engineers and industrialists such as Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin, Otto Lilienthal, Gottlieb Daimler, Rudolf Diesel, Hugo Junkers and Karl Benz helped shape modern automotive and air transportation technology. Aerospace engineer Wernher von Braun developed the first space rocket and later on was a prominent member of NASA and developed the Saturn V Moon rocket, which paved the way for the success of the US Apollo program. Heinrich Rudolf Hertz's work in the domain of electromagnetic radiation was pivotal to the development of modern telecommunication.

Germany is also one of the leading countries in developing and using green technologies. Companies specializing in green technology have an estimated turnover of 200€ billion. Especially the expertise in engineering, science and research of Germany is eminently respectable. The lead markets of Germany's green technology industry are power generation, sustainable mobility, material efficiency, energy efficiency, waste management and recycling, sustainable water management.

Demographics

With its estimated population of 81.8 million in January 2010, Germany is the most populous country in the European Union and ranks as the 16th most populous country in the world. Its population density stands at 229.4 inhabitants per square kilometre. The overall life expectancy in Germany at birth is 79.9 years. The fertility rate of 1.4 children per mother, or 7.9 births per 1000 inhabitants in 2009, is one of the lowest in the world. Since the 1970s, Germany's death rate has continuously exceeded its birth rate. The Federal Statistical Office of Germany forecast that the population will shrink to between 65 and 70 million by 2060 (depending on the level of net migration).

German nationals make up 91% of the population of Germany. , about seven million foreign citizens were registered in Germany, and 19% of the country's residents were of foreign or partially foreign descent (including persons descending or partially descending from ethnic German repatriates), 96% of whom lived in West Germany or Berlin. The United Nations Population Fund lists Germany as host to the third-highest number of international migrants worldwide, about 5% or 10 million of all 191 million migrants. As a consequence of restrictions to Germany's formerly rather unrestricted laws on asylum and immigration, the number of immigrants seeking asylum or claiming German ethnicity (mostly from the former Soviet Union) has been declining steadily since 2000. In 2009, 20% of the population had immigrant roots, the highest since 1945. , the largest national group was from Turkey (2.5 million), followed by Italy (776,000) and Poland (687,000). About 3 million "Aussiedler"—ethnic Germans, mainly from Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union—have resettled in Germany since 1987.

Germany has a number of large cities. The largest conurbation is the Rhine-Ruhr region (11.5 million ), including Düsseldorf (the capital of North Rhine-Westphalia), Cologne, Dortmund, Essen, Duisburg, and Bochum.

Religion

Christianity is the largest religion in Germany, with around 51.5 million adherents (62.8%) in 2008, of which 30.0% are Catholics and 29.9% are Protestants, belonging to the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD); the remainder consists of small denominations (each less than 0.5% of the German population). Protestantism is concentrated in the north and east and [[Roman Catholicism in Germany|Roman Catholicism]] is concentrated in the south and west; 1.6% of the country's overall population declare themselves Orthodox Christians.

The second largest religion is Islam with an estimated 3.8 to 4.3 million adherents (4.6% to 5.2%), followed by Buddhism with 250,000 and Judaism with around 200,000 adherents (0.3%); Hinduism has some 90,000 adherents (0.1%). All other religious communities in Germany have fewer than 50,000 adherents. Of the roughly 4 million Muslims, most are Sunnis and Alevites from Turkey, but there are a small number of Shi'ites and other denominations. German Muslims, a large portion of whom are of Turkish origin, lack full official state recognition of their religious community. Germany has Europe's third largest Jewish population (after France and the United Kingdom). Approximately 50% of the Buddhists in Germany are Asian immigrants.

Germans with no stated religious adherence make up 34.1% of the population, especially in the former East Germany and major metropolitan areas. German reunification in 1990 greatly increased the country’s non-religious population, a legacy of the state atheism of the previously Soviet-controlled East. Christian church membership has decreased in recent decades, particularly among Protestants.

Languages

German is the official and predominant spoken language in Germany. It is one of 23 official languages in the European Union, and one of the three working languages of the European Commission. Recognised native minority languages in Germany are Danish, Low German, Sorbian, Romany, and Frisian; they are officially protected by the ECRML. The most used immigrant languages are Turkish, Kurdish, Polish, the Balkan languages, and Russian; 67% of German citizens claim to be able to communicate in at least one foreign language and 27% in at least two languages other than their own.

Standard German is a West Germanic language and is closely related to and classified alongside English, Low German, Dutch, and the Frisian languages. To a lesser extent, it is also related to the East (extinct) and North Germanic languages. Most German vocabulary is derived from the Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family. Significant minorities of words are derived from Latin and Greek, with a smaller amount from French and most recently English (known as Denglisch). German is written using the Latin alphabet. German dialects, traditional local varieties traced back to the Germanic tribes, are distinguished from varieties of standard German by their lexicon, phonology, and syntax.

Education

Over 99% of Germans age 15 and above are estimated to be able to read and write. However, a growing number of inhabitants are functionally illiterate. Responsibility for educational oversight in Germany lies primarily with the individual federated states. Since the 1960s, a reform movement attempted to unify secondary education in a ''Gesamtschule'' (comprehensive school); several West German states later simplified their school system to two or three tiers. A system of apprenticeship called ''Duale Ausbildung'' ("dual education") allows pupils in vocational training to learn in a company as well as in a state-run vocational school.

Optional kindergarten education is provided for all children between three and six years old, after which school attendance is compulsory for at least nine years. Primary education usually lasts for four years and public schools are not stratified at this stage. In contrast, secondary education includes three traditional types of schools focused on different levels of academic ability: the ''Gymnasium'' enrols the most gifted children and prepares students for university studies; the ''Realschule'' for intermediate students lasts six years; the ''Hauptschule'' prepares pupils for vocational education.

The general entrance requirement for university is Abitur, a qualification normally based on continuous assessment during the last few years at school and final examinations; however there are a number of exceptions, and precise requirements vary, depending on the state, the university and the subject. Germany's universities are recognised internationally; in the Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) for 2008, six of the top 100 universities in the world are in Germany, and 18 of the top 200. Nearly all German universities are public institutions, charging tuition fees of €50–500 per semester for each student.

Health

Germany has the world's oldest universal health care system, dating back to Otto von Bismarck's Social legislation in 1883. Currently the population is covered by a basic health insurance plan provided by statute. According to the World Health Organization, Germany's health care system was 77% government-funded and 23% privately funded . In 2005, Germany spent 11% of its GDP on health care. Germany ranked 20th in the world in life expectancy with 77 years for men and 82 years for women, and it had a very low infant mortality rate (4 per 1,000 live births).

, the principal cause of death was cardiovascular disease, at 41.1%, followed by malignant tumours, at 25.5%. , about 82,000 Germans had been infected with HIV/AIDS and 26,000 had died from the disease (cumulatively, since 1982). According to a 2005 survey, 27% of German adults are smokers. A 2007 study shows Germany has the highest number of overweight people in Europe.

Culture

From its roots, culture in Germany has been shaped by major intellectual and popular currents in Europe, both religious and secular. Historically Germany has been called ''Das Land der Dichter und Denker'' (the land of poets and thinkers). The federated states are in charge of the cultural institutions. There are 240 subsidised theatres, hundreds of symphonic orchestras, thousands of museums and over 25,000 libraries spread in Germany. These cultural opportunities are enjoyed by many: there are over 91 million German museum visits every year; annually, 20 million go to theatres and operas; 3.6 million per year listen to the symphonic orchestras. The UNESCO inscribed 33 properties in Germany on the World Heritage List.

Germany has established a high level of gender equality, promotes disability rights, and is legally and socially tolerant towards homosexuals. Gays and lesbians can legally adopt their partner's biological children, and civil unions have been permitted since 2001. Germany has also changed its attitude towards immigrants; since the mid-1990s, the government and the majority of Germans have begun to acknowledge that controlled immigration should be allowed based on qualification standards. Germany has been named the world's second most valued nation among 50 countries in 2010. A global opinion poll for the BBC revealed that Germany is recognised for having the most positive influence in the world in 2011.

Arts

! align=center	Ludwig van Beethoven	! align=center

Numerous German painters have enjoyed international prestige through their work in diverse artistic styles. Matthias Grünewald, and Albrecht Dürer were important artists of the Renaissance, Caspar David Friedrich of Romanticism, and Max Ernst of Surrealism. Architectural contributions from Germany include the [[Carolingian architecture">Carolingian and Ottonian styles, which were precursors of Romanesque. The region later became the site of Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque art. Germany was particularly important in the early modern movement, especially through the Bauhaus movement founded by Walter Gropius. Ludwig Mies van der Rohe became one of the world's most renowned architects in the second half of the 20th century. He conceived of the glass façade skyscraper.

German music includes works by some of the world's most well-known classical music composers, including Ludwig van Beethoven, Johann Sebastian Bach, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Johannes Brahms, and Richard Wagner. , Germany is the fourth largest music market in the world and has influenced popular music through artists such as Kraftwerk, Alphaville, Boney M., Nena, Nico, Nina Hagen, Scorpions, Die Toten Hosen, Tokio Hotel, Rammstein, and Paul van Dyk.

Literature and philosophy

German literature can be traced back to the Middle Ages and the works of writers such as Walther von der Vogelweide and Wolfram von Eschenbach. Well-known German authors include Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Friedrich Schiller. The collections of folk tales published by the Brothers Grimm popularised German folklore on an international level. Influential authors of the 20th century include Thomas Mann, Bertolt Brecht, Hermann Hesse, Heinrich Böll, and Günter Grass. German-speaking book publishers produce some 700 million books every year, with about 80,000 titles, nearly 60,000 of them new. Germany comes third in quantity of books published, after the English-speaking book market and the People's Republic of China. The Frankfurt Book Fair is the most important in the world for international deals and trading, with a tradition spanning over 500 years.

German philosophy is historically significant. Gottfried Leibniz's contributions to rationalism; the establishment of classical German idealism by Immanuel Kant, Johann Gottlieb Fichte, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel and Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling; Arthur Schopenhauer's composition of metaphysical pessimism; the formulation of communist theory by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels; Friedrich Nietzsche's development of perspectivism; Gottlob Frege's contributions to the dawn of analytic philosophy; Martin Heidegger's works on Being; and the development of the Frankfurt school by Max Horkheimer, Theodor Adorno, Herbert Marcuse and Jürgen Habermas have been particularly influential. In the 21st century Germany has contributed to the development of contemporary analytic philosophy in continental Europe, along with France, Austria, Switzerland and the Scandinavian countries.

Media

German cinema dates back to the earliest years of the medium with the work of Max Skladanowsky, which was particularly influential with German expressionists such as Robert Wiene and Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau. Director Fritz Lang's ''Metropolis'' (1927) is referred to as the first modern science-fiction film. In 1930 the Austrian-American Josef von Sternberg directed ''The Blue Angel'', the first major German sound film. During the 1970s and 1980s, New German Cinema directors such as Volker Schlöndorff, Werner Herzog, Wim Wenders, and Rainer Werner Fassbinder put West German cinema on the international stage. The annual European Film Awards ceremony is held every other year in Berlin, home of the European Film Academy (EFA); the Berlin Film Festival, held annually since 1951, is one of the world's foremost film festivals.

More recently, films such as ''Good Bye Lenin!'' (2003), ''Gegen die Wand (Head-on)'' (2004), ''Der Untergang (Downfall)'' (2004), and ''Der Baader Meinhof Komplex'' (2008) have had international success. The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film went to the German production ''Die Blechtrommel (The Tin Drum)'' in 1979, to ''Nowhere in Africa'' in 2002, and to ''Das Leben der Anderen (The Lives of Others)'' in 2007. Germany's television market is the largest in Europe, with some 34 million TV households. Around 90% of German households have cable or satellite TV, with a variety of free-to-view public and commercial channels.

Cuisine

German cuisine varies from region to region. The southern regions of Bavaria and Swabia, for instance, share a culinary culture with Switzerland and Austria. In all regions, meat is often eaten in sausage form. Organic food has gained a market share of ca. 2%, and is expected to increase further. Although wine is becoming more popular in many parts of Germany, the national alcoholic drink is beer. German beer consumption per person is declining, but at 121.4 litres in 2009 it is still among the highest in the world. The Michelin guide has awarded nine restaurants in Germany three stars, the highest designation, while 15 more received two stars. German restaurants have become the world's second-most decorated after France.

Sports

Twenty-seven million Germans are members of a sports club and an additional twelve million pursue sports individually. Association football is the most popular sport. With more than 6.3 million official members, the German Football Association (''Deutscher Fußball-Bund'') is the largest sports organisation of its kind worldwide. The Bundesliga attracts the second highest average attendance of any professional sports league in the world.

The German national football team won the FIFA World Cup in 1954, 1974 and 1990 and the UEFA European Football Championship in 1972, 1980 and 1996. Germany hosted the FIFA World Cup in 1974 and 2006 and the UEFA European Football Championship in 1988. Among the most well-known footballers are Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Müller, Jürgen Klinsmann, Lothar Matthäus, and Oliver Kahn. Other popular spectator sports include handball, volleyball, basketball, ice hockey, and tennis.

Germany is one of the leading motor sports countries in the world. Constructors like BMW and Mercedes are prominent manufacturers in motor sport. Additionally, Porsche has won the 24 Hours of Le Mans, an annual endurance race held in France, 16 times, and Audi has won it 9 times. Formula One driver Michael Schumacher has set many motor sport records during his career, having won more Formula One World Drivers' Championships and more Formula One races than any other driver; he is one of the highest paid sportsmen in history.

Historically, German sportsmen have been successful contenders in the Olympic Games, ranking third in an all-time Olympic Games medal count, combining East and West German medals. In the 2008 Summer Olympics, Germany finished fifth in the medal count, while in the 2006 Winter Olympics they finished first. Germany has hosted the Summer Olympic Games twice, in Berlin in 1936 and in Munich in 1972. The Winter Olympic Games took place in Germany once in 1936 in the twin towns of Garmisch and Partenkirchen.

See also

References

;Work cited

External links

deutschland.de – Official Germany portal (non-profit)

Official site of German Chancellor

Deutsche Welle – Germany's international broadcaster

Germany at ''UCB Libraries GovPubs''

Facts about Germany – by the German Federal Foreign Office

Destatis.de – Federal Statistical Office Germany

Key Development Forecasts for Germany from International Futures

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Name	The Demise
Background	group_or_band
Origin	Limerick City, Ireland
Genre	Punk rock
Years active	2004-Present
Associated acts	Ocean Over Head
Website	Official SiteBebo PageMySpace Page
Current members	Mike Nolan - ''Guitar/Vocals'' Fabian Barrett - ''Bass/Vocals'' Kieran Hayes - ''Drums/Vocals'' James Nestor - ''Guitar/Vocals''
Past members	Daniel Purcell Greg Ellerker }}

The Demise are a 4-piece Irish punk rock band from Limerick City, Ireland and are also the founding members of the mangaboy¦records music collective in Limerick City. They have been playing shows and recording music since 2004. For most of the time they have been around they were a 3-piece with just Mike, Fabian and Kieran in the band after Greg left. But then decided to get another guitarist which ended up being James. They have played all over Ireland and also in Germany and have supported bands like Capdown, The Supersuckers and Gang Green.

In 2006 they entered the Coca-Cola Blastbeat National Competition of over 400 bands and reached the finals. As a result of winning the regional heats the song Right On Time was recorded in The Factory recording studio in Dublin and was included in the Coca-Cola Blastbeat Vol. 4 Double CD which reached No. 16 in The Irish compilation charts. In 2007 they were picked to play the 2FM 2MORO TOUR with The Flaws, Messiah J & The Expert and also another limerick band, Giveamanakick in Trinity Rooms, Limerick.

They have also had local and national radio air play which includes the Live 95FM Breakfast Show and also Dan Hegarty's show on 2FM as part of the 2FM 2MORO TOUR.

In the closing months of 2007 the Band went into the studio to work on their first full length album, working with producer Owen Lewis at Breakline Productions as well as the famous Grouse Lodge Studios in Co. Westmeath, a studio which has recorded artists such as Snow Patrol, Bloc Party, Muse and Michael Jackson and was also used to record R.E.M.'s 14th Studio album.

In April 2008 the group released Their first single from these recording sessions entitled Social Suicide This song was only released as a digital download.

The Demise supported Rise Against at The Academy, Dublin, Ireland on the 19th-February-2009.

Discography

What We Leave Behind EP (2005)_{Recorded At Balls Of Iron Studios, Limerick} :#Nothing Left To Lose :#The Fear :#The Riff :#Do You Believe :#I Know, You Don't :#The Last One :#Hooked on sorrow

Right On Time EP (2006)_{Recorded At Breakline Productions, Limerick} :#The Vengeance :#Right On Time :#Gone Without A Trace

Self-Titled First Full Length Album (2008)_{In Production At Breakline Productions And Grouse Lodge}

Social Suicide - Single (2008)_{Released for download in April 2008.}'''

Other releases

Coca-Cola Blastbeat Vol. 4 (2006)_{Recorded At The Factory, Dublin :"Right On Time" is featured on disc 2, track 3.}

References

Category:Irish punk rock groups

The National People’s Army (NPA) (de: ''Nationale Volksarmee - NVA)'' were the armed forces of the German Democratic Republic (GDR).

The NVA was established in 1956 and disestablished in 1990. There were frequent reports of East German advisors with Communist African countries during the Cold War. It did not see any significant combat, though its participation with the Soviet Armed Forces against the Czech interim government during the Prague Spring of 1968 was cancelled at the last minute.

History

The National People’s Army was created on March 1, 1956, six months after the formation of the West German Bundeswehr, from the Kasernierte Volkspolizei (Barracked People's Police). It was preceded by years of preparation during which former Wehrmacht officers and Communist veterans of the Spanish Civil War helped organize and train paramilitary units of the People's Police. With its German appearance—including uniforms and ceremonies patterned after older German military traditions—the doctrine and structure of the NVA were strongly influenced by the Soviet Armed Forces, thus mixing elements of the 20th century's most innovative and successful schools of military in a force which, for its size, was considered one of the most professional and prepared of the world.

During its first year, about 27 percent of the NVA's officer corps had formerly served in the Wehrmacht. Of the 82 highest command positions, 61 were held by ex-Wehrmacht officers. The military knowledge and combat experience of these veterans were indispensable in the NVA's early years, although by the 1960s most of these World War II veterans had been retired. The West German Bundeswehr similarly relied on Wehrmacht veterans who initially comprised the majority of its commissioned ranks.

In its first six years, the NVA was an all-volunteer force. West Germany, in contrast, re-introduced universal military service in 1956. Conscription was finally introduced in 1962, and the NVA's strength was increased to approximately 170,000 troops.

Like the Communist parties of other socialist states, the Socialist Unity Party of Germany, or SED, assured control by appointing loyal party members to top positions and organizing intensive political education for all ranks. The proportion of SED members in the officer corps rose steadily after the early 1960s, eventually reaching almost 95 percent of the officer corps.

The NVA described itself as the ''instrument of power of the working class.'' According to its doctrine, the NVA protected peace and secured the achievements of socialism by maintaining a convincing deterrent to imperalist aggression. The NVA's motto, inscribed on its flag, was "For the Protection of the Workers' and Farmers' Power."

The NVA never took part in full-scale combat, although it participated in a support role in the suppression of the Prague Spring of 1968 and NVA officers often served as combat advisers in Africa. When the Soviet Union prepared to occupy Czechoslovakia, the GDR government originally planned to use the 7th Panzer Division and the 11th Motorized Infantry Division to support the intervention, but fear of international reaction to the deployment of German troops outside Germany for the first time since the Second World War caused second thoughts. Instead, the NVA provided logistical help when Soviet troops advanced into Czechoslovakia and stood at the border ready to intervene in the event that the Soviet Army could not quell the uprising.

In the early 1970s the NVA was assigned the wartime mission of capturing Berlin by the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany high command. The NVA plan for the operation was designated 'Operation Centre' and called for some 32,000 troops in two divisions, accompanied by the GSFG's 6th Guards Separate Motor Rifle Brigade. The plan was regularly updated until 1988, when a less ambitious plan that simply aimed at containing Berlin was substituted.

In the autumn of 1981, the NVA stood ready to intervene in Poland in support of a possible Soviet invasion, but the declaration of martial law in Poland averted the crisis.

The NVA was in a state of heightened combat readiness on several occasions, including the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961, the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, the 1968 Warsaw Pact intervention in Czechoslovakia, and, for the last time, in the autumn of 1989 as protests swept through the country.

Ideology

The NVA was a professional volunteer army until 1962, when conscription was introduced. In 1987, at the peak of its power, the NVA numbered 175,300 troops. Approximately 50% of this number were career soldiers, while the others were short-term conscripts. The armed forces were controlled by the National Defense Council, but the mobile forces were under the Warsaw Pact Unified Command. Political control of the armed forces was through close integration with the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED), which vetted all the officers. Popular support for the military establishment was bolstered by military training provided by the school system and through the growing militarization of society. From a Leninist perspective, the NVA stood as a symbol of Soviet-East German solidarity and became the model Communist institution--ideological, hierarchical, and disciplined. The NVA synthesized Communist and Germanic symbolism, naming its officers' academy after Karl Marx's coauthor Friedrich Engels, and its highest medal after Prussian General Gerhard von Scharnhorst.

At the critical moment in its history in November 1989, the NVA rallied to its Germanic heritage and rejected the SED, refusing to battle the demonstrators protesting the regime. Mikhail Gorbachev refused to let Soviet troops become engaged, and so, not just the leadership but the entire single party system in East Germany collapsed, and the country was soon absorbed into West Germany.

Post-Unification

The NVA was disbanded in 1990. Its facilities and equipment were handed over to the Bundeswehr. Most facilities were closed, and equipment was either sold or given to other countries. Most of the NVA's 36,000 officers and NCOs were let go, including all officers above the rank of lieutenant colonel. Only 3,200 were retained by the Bundeswehr after a demotion of one rank. In addition, all female soldiers and all soldiers over the age of 55 were also discharged.

Until March 1, 2005, time served in the NVA was listed as time “served in a foreign military”. Service in the NVA did not count for points towards federal pensions in the unified Germany. Retired NVA soldiers and officers received only minimal pensions after unification: a thirty-year veteran would receive a pension smaller than a graduate student stipend. After the reform, service in the NVA is known as “served outside of the Bundeswehr”.

Many former NVA officers feel bitter about their treatment after unification. While receiving only minimal pensions, few have been able to find jobs except as laborers or security guards. Former NVA officers are not permitted to append their NVA rank to their name as a professional title; no such prohibition applies to rank attained in the Wehrmacht or Waffen-SS during the Nazi era.

Former Wehrmacht soldiers in the NVA

The following list includes the NVA generals and admirals who were awarded the German Cross in the Wehrmacht during the Second World War with the date of the awards as well as the rank held at the time listed after the name.

Generalmajor Rudolf Bamler (12 Mar 1942 as Oberst)

Generalmajor Bernhard Bechler (28 Jan 1943 as Major)

Generalmajor Dr. rer. pol. Otto Korfes (11 Jan 1942 as Oberst)

Generalmajor Arno von Lenski (21 Jan 1943 as Generalmajor)

Generalleutnant Vincenz Müller (26 Jan 1942 as Oberst i.G.)

Generalmajor Hans Wulz (25 Jan 1943 as Generalmajor)

The following list includes the NVA generals and admirals who were awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross in the Wehrmacht during the Second World War with the date of the awards as well as the rank held at the time listed after the name.

Generalmajor Wilhelm Adam (17 Dec 1942 as Oberst)

Generalmajor Dr. rer. pol. Otto Korfes (22 Jan 1943 as Generalmajor)

Generalleutnant Vincenz Müller (7 Apr 1944 as Generalleutnant)

Utilization of former NVA materiel after 1991

The NVA was, in relation to its equipment and training, one of the strongest armies in the Warsaw Pact. It was outfitted with a large number of modern weapons systems, most of Soviet origin, from which a small portion were given back to the Soviet Union in 1990.

The remaining equipment and materials was very substantial. Large quantites of replacement parts, medical supplies, atomic, biological and chemical warfare equipment, training devices and simulators, etc. had to be disposed of.

One of the first measures taken after reunification was a survey and securing of weapons and devices by former members of the NVA. The federally operated ''Material Depot Service Gesellschaft'' (MDSG) was charged with taking custody of and warehousing this equipment. The MDSG employed 1,820 people who were primarily taken from the Bundeswehr. The MDSG was privatised in 1994. Unless the defense material was given free of charge to beneficiaries in the new federal states or other departments, to museums, or to friendly nations in the context of aid supplies in third world nations, it was destroyed.

Left behind were:

767 aircraft (helicopters, fixed wing aircraft), 24 of which were MiG-29s

208 ships

2,761 tanks

133,900 wheeled vehicles

2,199 artillery pieces

1,376,650 firearms

303,690 tons of ammunition

14,335 tons of fuel and cleaning materials

Recruitment and conscientious objection

Before the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961, military service in the GDR was voluntary, though the Free German Youth and public schools mounted intensive recruitment drives and service in the NVA was often a prerequisite for career advancement. Compulsory service had been introduced earlier in West Germany (1956)—one year after the Federal Armed Forces were established—but the GDR held back from this step until 1962. The reason was partly that the authorities feared that conscription would swell the ranks of GDR citizens fleeing to the West. The situation changed when the border was sealed in August 1961, and five months later the government announced a mandatory service term of 18 months for men.

There was, at first, no alternative service for conscientious objectors. This changed in 1964 when, under pressure from the national Protestant church, the GDR's National Defense Council authorized the formation of ''Baueinheiten'' (construction units) for men of draft age who "refuse military service with weapons on the grounds of religious viewpoints or for similar reasons".

The construction soldiers wore uniforms and lived in barracks under military discipline, but were not required to bear arms and received no combat training. In theory, they were to be used only for civilian construction projects. The GDR therefore became the only Warsaw Pact country to provide a non-combat alternative for conscientious objectors. However, fearing that other soldiers would be contaminated by pacifist ideas, the government took care to segregate the construction units from regular conscripts. Moreover, conscripts who chose the alternative service option often faced discrimination later in life, including denial of opportunities for higher education.

Organization

The NVA had four main branches:

The ''Landstreitkräfte'' (Ground Forces) with a strength of 180,000.

The ''Volksmarine'' (People's Navy) with a strength of 18,300.

The ''Luftstreitkräfte''/''Luftverteidigung'' (Air Forces/Air Defence) with a strength of 58,000.

The ''Grenztruppen der DDR'' (Border troops of the GDR), consisting of 50,000 border guards.

In wartime, mobilization of the NVA's reserves would have nearly doubled its strength. GDR authorities also had at their disposal the internal security troops of the Ministry of the Interior (the ''Kasernierte Volkspolizei'' or ''garrisoned People's Police'') and the Ministry for State Security (the Felix Dzerzhinsky Watch Regiment) along with the 210,000 strong party auxiliary "Combat Groups of the Working Class" (''Kampfgruppen der Arbeiterklasse''), who were available in times of war.

The highest level of leadership for the NVA was the Ministry for National Defense (''Ministerium für Nationale Verteidigung'') headquartered in Strausberg near East Berlin. NVA administration was divided into the following commands:

the ''Kommando Landstreitkräfte (KdoLaSK)'' based in Geltow near Potsdam.

the ''Kommando Luftstreitkräfte und Luftverteidigungskräfte (KdoLSK/LV)'' based in Strausberg.

the ''Kommando Volksmarine (KdoVM)'' based in Rostock.

the ''Kommando der Grenztruppen (KdoGT)'' based in Pätz near Berlin.

Equipment

During its existence, the bulk of all the weaponry originated in the Soviet Union with a small amount from other East European/Warsaw Pact countries. East Germany did make modified copies of several weapons and designed and built small ships and trucks.

Small Arms:

Mauser Kar98k. In use by the Combat Groups of the Working Class and remained standard use until the 1960s and continued its service in limited circumstances

Mosin-Nagant. In use by the Combat Groups of the Working Class and remained standard use until the 1960s and continued its service in limited circumstances

SKS semi-automatic carbine

Makarov PM semi-automatic pistol

AKM Assault Rifle. Manufactured by the state arsenal as the MPi-KM (fixed stock, later variants were distinctive stippled plastic) and MPi-KMS-72 (AKMS) with a single strut "coathanger" side-folding stock.

AK-74 Assault Rifle MPi-AK-74N, MPi-AKS-74N, MPi-AKS-74NK variants made by the state arsenal for a short period of time starting in 1983 (withdrawn from service after German reunification)

RPD Light Machine Gun

RPK Light Machine Gun

PPSh 41 Submachine gun

PKM Medium Machine Gun

Dragunov SVD Semi-automatic sniper rifle

RPG-7D light AT-weapon

RPG-18 light AT-weapon

Armored Vehicles:

BMP-1

BMP-2 (tracked IFVs in first-line Panzergrenadier units)

BRDM-1

BRDM-2

BTR-40

BTR-50

BTR-60

BTR-70 (wheeled APCs in mechanized and motorized units)

BTR-152

PT-76

T-34 (only in modified recovery/engineering versions)

T-54 (reserve)

T-55 (upgraded to T-55AM standard)

T-72 (in first-line Panzer units)

Appearance

Uniforms

The first military units of the Central Training Administration (''Hauptverwaltung Ausbildung — HVA'') were dressed in police blue. With the restructuring of the Barracked Police (CIP) in 1952, khaki uniforms similar in shape and color to those of the Soviet Army were introduced. The desire for a separate "German" and "socialist" military tradition, and the consequent founding of the NVA in 1956, introduced new uniforms which strongly resembled those of the Wehrmacht. They were of a similar cut and made of stone gray cloth. The dark high-necked collar were later deleted, except on the coats from 1974-79. The peculiar "gumdrop" army helmet was based on a prototype "B / II" helmet, developed for the Wehrmacht by Prof. Dr.-Ing. Fry and his collaborator Dr. Hansel from the Institute for Defense Technical Materials Science in Berlin, which was in trials since 1943 but was not adopted at the time.

With the exceptions of the People's Navy, whose dark-blue uniforms were consistent with the styles of most navies around the world, and the Combat Groups of the Working Class (''Kampfgruppen der Arbeiterklasse''), who wore their own olive-green fatigue uniforms, all NVA armed services, the Felix Dzerzhinsky Guards Regiment, the Border Troops of the German Democratic Republic, and the Barracked People's Police (''Kasernierte Volkspolizei'') wore the same basic uniform. Several later modifications were introduced, but the style and cut remain fundamentally the same. There were variety of uniforms worn according to setting (work or social) and season (summer or winter). Most uniforms (service, semidress, and parade) were stone gray, a brownish-gray color that was conspicuously different from the gray-green of the People's Police. Officers' uniforms differed from those of enlisted personnel by better quality and texture cloth. The field and service uniforms were normal attire for most day-to-day functions.

Uniform Categories

Basic categories of uniforms were worn:

Field Service Uniform (''Felddienstuniform'') - The summer field uniform for both officers and enlisted consisted of a jacket and trousers in a dark-brown (later a forest green) raindrop camouflage pattern on a stone-gray background; a field cap, service cap, or steel helmet; high black boots; and a leather belt with vertical web shoulder suspenders. In winter, a quilted stone gray padded suit without a camouflage pattern was worn over the service uniform. Later winter uniforms were also of the same camouflage pattern as the summer variant. The winter uniform also included a fur pile cap or a steel helmet, boots, knitted gray gloves, belt, and suspenders.

Service Uniform (''Dienstuniform'') - The summer service uniform for officers was a bloused jacket worn without a shirt, trousers, and a visored service cap. The winter service uniform featured a jacket with four large buttoned-down patch pockets, a black waist belt, the service cap, breeches, shirt, tie, and pants belt; high boots were reserved for officers and NCOs. A long, heavy, belted greatcoat was also part of the winter uniform.

Semi-Dress/Walking-Out Uniform (Ausgangsuniform) - With a few details, the semi-dress uniform was the same for all ranks and was worn for walking-out purposes (i.e. off-duty and off-post). It consisted of a single-breasted tunic without belt, a silver-gray shirt with dark-gray tie, the service cap, long trousers, and black low-quarter shoes. Officers also wore the tunic with a white shirt. During periods of warm weather, there was the option of omitting the tunic, and furthermore omitting the tie. For a time, a double-breasted jacket was optional for officers and warrant officers.

Parade Uniform (''Paradeuniform'') - The parade uniform for officers was the semi-dress/walking-out tunic with all authorized orders, awards and decorations attached, breeches and riding boots, steel helmet, white shirt, dark-gray necktie, and a ceremonial dagger worn on the left side and fastened to a silver-gray parade belt. Officers in guards of honor carried sabers. In winter, a greatcoat, scarf, and gloves were worn.

Work Uniform (''Arbeitsuniform'') - Seasonal considerations and weather governed the kind of work uniforms worn. Generally, reconditioned articles of service uniforms (field, semi-dress, and padded winter uniforms) were dyed black and issued for all types of fatigue and maintenance details. Coveralls are also used by the lower ranks, especially armor and air force personnel. Officers in technical branches supervising fatigue details wore a laboratory-style smock.

Other Uniforms — High-ranking officers occasionally wore white uniforms (or white jackets), and staff officers were issued distinctive staff service uniforms. Women wore uniforms consisting of jackets, skirts or slacks, blouses, caps, boots or pumps, and other appropriate items according to season and occasion. Personnel such as paratroopers, motorcyclists, and tank troops wore additional items with their uniforms identifying them as such.

Waffenfarben

NVA uniforms initially wore the waffenfarben as worn by the Wehrmacht, but later reverted to white except for generals who wore red.

The uniform of the Border Troops is distinguished from that of the NVA ground force and Air Force/Air Defense Force by a green armband with large silver letters identifying the wearer's affiliation.

Felix Dzerzhinsky Guards Regiment uniforms were nearly identical to those of the those of (NVA) and were distinguished primarily by the dark red MfS service color of its insignia and by an honorary cuffband on the left sleeve bearing the regiment's name. Other Stasi officers wore a similar uniform, but without the cuffband.

Rank Insignia

East German armed forces personnel display rank insignia on shoulder boards or shoulder loops on service, semidress, and parade uniforms, and subdued sleeve insignia midway between the shoulder and elbow on the left sleeve of the field uniform, coveralls, or other special uniforms. General officer rank is denoted by five-pointed silver stars mounted on a gold and silver braided shoulder cord set on a bright red base. All other officers and NCOs wear a four-pointed star. Like many of the other Warsaw Pact countries, NVA rank insignia followed the Soviet pattern in the arrangement of stars.

The Volksmarine followed similar insignia for the naval officers and NCOs' except that these were blue colored.

Insignia of the NVA Ground Forces and Air Force

General Officers of the NVA Ground Forces/Air Force
!Marschall der DDR (Marshal of the DDR)	!Armeegeneral (General of the Army)	!Generaloberst (Colonel General)	!Generalleutnant (Lieutenant General)	!Generalmajor (Major General)

Field and Company Grade Officers of the NVA Ground Forces/Air Force
!Oberst (Colonel)	!Oberstleutnant (Lieutenant Colonel)	!Major	Hauptmann (Captain (OF-2)>Captain)	!Oberleutnant (First Lieutenant/Senior Lieutenant)	!Leutnant (Lieutenant)	!Unterleutnant (Sub-Lieutenant/Second Lieutenant)

Officer Candidates/Warrant Officers of the NVA Ground Forces/Air Force
!Stabsoberfähnrich (Chief Staff Ensign)	!Stabsfähnrich (Staff Ensign)	!Oberfähnrich (Senior Ensign)	!Fähnrich (Ensign)

Non Commissioned Officers of the NVA Ground Forces/Air Force
!Stabsfeldwebel (Sergeant Major/Staff Senior Sergeant)	!Oberfeldwebel (Senior Sergeant)	!Feldwebel (Sergeant 1st Class/Sergeant)	!Unterfeldwebel (Sergeant/Junior Sergeant)	!Unteroffizier (Corporal/Under Officer)

Enlisted Ranks of the NVA Ground Forces/Air Force
!Stabsgefreiter (Lance Corporal)	!Gefreiter (Private 1st Class)	!Soldat (Private)

Ranks of the People's Navy Enlisted rates

Matrose - Seaman Recruit

Obermatrose - Seaman Apprentice

Stabsmatrose- Seaman

Maat auf Zeit- Petty Officer 3rd Class

Obermaat aut Zeit- Petty Officer 2nd Class

Maat - Petty Officer 1st Class

Obermaat - Chief Petty Officer

Meister - Senior Petty Officer

Obermeiser - Master Chief Petty Officer

Stabsobermeiser - Staff Master Chief Petty Officer

Officer candidates/Warrant officers

Fähnrich- Midshipman

Oberfahnrich - Senior Midshipman

Stabsfahnrich - Staff Midshipman

Stabsoberfahrich - Senior Staff Midshipman

Officers

Unterleutnant zur See - Sea Under Lieutenant/Ensign

Leutnant zur See - Sea Lieutenant/Lieutenant Junior Grade

Oberleutnant zur See - Sea Senior Lieutenant

Kapitanleutnant - Captain Lieutenant

Korvettekapitan - Lieutenant Commander/Corvette Captain

Fregattenkapitan - Commander/Frigate Captain

Kapitan zur See - Captain/Ship-Of-The-Line Captain

Konteradmiral - Counter Admiral/Rear Admiral

Vizeadmiral - Vice Admiral

Admiral

Flottenadmiral - Admiral of the Fleet

Awards and Decorations

The DDR had some seventy decorations for persons or groups it wishes to recognize, and it bestowed them liberally. Some, such as battle decorations, were specifically set aside for armed forces personnel, many awarded to soldiers and civilians alike, and others, although ordinarily civilian awards, can on occasion be earned by those on military duty. The latter group included decorations for achievement in the arts, literature, production, and work methods. They were awarded to service personnel or specific units that participated in civil production projects or assisted during harvesting.

The Order of Karl Marx, Order of Merit, Star of People's Friendship, Banner of Labor, Order of Scharnhorst, Order of Merit for the Fatherland, and the National Prize were among the more important awards. Some, including the Order of Merit and the Star of People's Friendship, were awarded in three classes. A few were accompanied by substantial monetary premiums. The NVA did not permit military personnel to wear Wehrmacht awards and decorations.

Periodicals

The two main periodicals of the NVA were the weekly newspaper ''Volksarmee'' and the monthly soldier's magazine ''Armeerundschau''.

Relics

The former Nazi holiday complex at Prora, on the island of Rügen, contains a number of museum displays. One of these is devoted to the NVA, which had used part of the complex as a barracks.

See also

Conscientious objection in East Germany

Combat Groups of the Working Class

Felix Dzerzhinsky Guards Regiment

Medal of Merit of the National People's Army

Military history of Germany‎

References

Further reading

Bickford Andrew. ''Fallen Elites: The Military Other in Post-Unification Germany'' (Stanford University Press; 2011); 288 pages; An ethnographic study of former East German officers.*Jörg Schönbohm, Two armies and one fatherland: the end of the Nationale Volksarmee, Berghahn Books, 1996, ISBN 1571810692, 9781571810694

Zilian, Jr., Frederick. 'From Confrontation to Cooperation: The Takeover of the National People's (East German) Army by the Bundeswehr,' Praeger, Westport, Conn., 1999, ISBN 0-275-96546-5. Reviewed by Dale R. Herspring in ''The Journal of Military History,'' July 2000, p.912-914

External links

NVA Forum (in German)

Nationale Volksarmee & the GDR Forum

AHF - Nationale Volksarmee (NVA)

kamouflage.net > Europe > Germany, Democratic Republic of

RFE/RL East German Subject Files: Armed Forces Open Society Archives, Budapest

Category:Military of East Germany National People's Army (East Germany) National People's Army (East Germany) Category:Disbanded armies Category:1956 establishments in East Germany

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