German Society
A brief synopsis of the social structures and societies that have led to modern Germany.
Society in the Holy Roman Empire
Medieval Germany developed under the Holy Roman Empire, a union of feudal city-states and kingdoms that all owed allegiance to the Holy Roman Emperor. While the dynasties of early rulers like Otto I and Frederick Barbarossa maintained strong central authority, later monarchs kept only loose control over their lands. Members of the empire could wage war against each other, and they did not unify into a single national identity. Each emperor was elected by a council of elite princes and then traditionally crowned by the Pope.
The relationship between a vassal and lord defined the feudal system. In exchange for military protection, vassals offered their lords income and service. This hierarchy of obligations and loyalties extended from the emperor down to kings, nobles, landowners, peasants, and serfs. By the late Middle Ages, however, the older agricultural system began to lose prominence in favor of bustling cities. Social classes of this time included the nobility, landed knights, wealthy patricians, clergymen, burgher officials, tradesmen, free farmers, and serfs. Cities were typically governed by princes, bishops, or a council of patricians and burghers. Beyond the city walls, landless serfs continued to grow the foods and trade materials needed to supply them.
The Protestant Reformation to the German Empire
The status quo of German society saw dramatic changes in the Renaissance and early modern periods. Increasing mercantile wealth improved the status of burghers and tradesmen at the expense of the nobility and their knights. Anti-Catholic sentiments, particularly in the northern states, during the Reformation also weakened the position of the clergy. The Knights’ Revolt of 1523 and the Peasants’ War of 1524 marked the rising tensions between Germany’s social classes. True disunity came with the Thirty Years War of 1618-1648. The conflict not only took its toll among millions of common people but also broke any remaining pretense of the empire's authority.
The Holy Roman Empire formally dissolved in 1806 after the conquests of Napoleon Bonaparte. In 1815, at the Congress of Vienna, the former states of the empire reorganized as the German Confederation. Although held together by a shared language and history, the confederation proved an uneasy alliance. Prussia and Austria in particular grew to be powerful rivals. Widespread societal reforms came with industrialization in the mid-19th century. A failed revolution in 1848 attempted to form a united Germany and improve the conditions of the working classes. Reprisals against the revolutionaries pushed many citizens to emigrate, the basis of the German diaspora in the United States.
In 1871, much of the German Confederation united under Prussia’s King Wilhelm I to form the German Empire. They were not joined by Austria, which had fought a losing war against Prussia in 1866. Imperial Germany retained its nobility and, like other European powers, began to form a colonial empire. Its rural population flocked to growing cities, bolstered by a cultural renaissance in the arts and education.
German Society in the 20th and 21st Centuries
German society underwent further upheaval in the 20th century. Germany, allied with Italy and the Ottoman Empire, entered World War I in opposition to France and the United Kingdom. Four years later, it was forced to concede defeat. Following the loss, the German Empire collapsed. It was replaced by the Weimar Republic, which abolished the nobility but struggled to cope with the fallout of the war.
The next few decades saw the nation struggle through a period of inflation and unemployment. Citizens looked back to their former prosperity and began searching for a cause to blame. The nation’s Jewish population, long sheltered by relative religious tolerance, faced growing discrimination and resentment. Totalitarianism emphasizing a strong German identity followed under the genocidal Nazi regime. The leader of the National Socialist Party, Adolf Hitler, oversaw the annexation Austria in 1938 and the invasion of Poland in 1939. His actions would launch World War II and the Holocaust, which claimed the lives of about 6 million Jewish people and 17 million overall.
After World War II, the capitalist members of the Allies and the Soviet Union divided Germany into two states. The famous division of Berlin and the nation as a whole saw families separated for decades. East and West Germany reunified in 1990 to form a single parliamentary republic. Since World War II and the Cold War, German leaders have worked to create a more tolerant and progressive society. The nation is known for its strong social welfare programs and strong environmental protections. Germany is now governed by an elected parliament, chancellor, and president. It is a member of NATO, the European Union, and the United Nations, among other major organizations.
References
Bernstein, Eckhard. Culture and Customs of Germany. Greenwood Press. 2004.
Fullbrook, Mary. A Concise History of Germany. Cambridge University Press. 2004.
Music and German National Identity. Celia Applegate and Pamela Potter, eds. University of Chicago Press. 2002.
O'Connor, Liz, et al. “The Largest Ancestry Groups In The United States.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 13 Aug. 2013, www.businessinsider.com/largest-ethnic-groups-in-america-2013-8.
Sidgwick, Cecily Ullman. Home Life in Germany. MacMillan Company. 1912.
Simons, Gary F., and Charles D. Fennig. “Summary by Language Size.” Ethnologue, SIL International, www.ethnologue.com/statistics/size.
The Cambridge Companion to Modern German Culture. Eva Kolinsky and Wilfried van der Will, eds. Cambridge University Press. 2004.
“The World Factbook: Germany.” Central Intelligence Agency, Central Intelligence Agency, 15 May 2018, www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/gm.html.
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