Winston Churchill sitting on a broken chair recovered from Hitler's bunker in Berlin in the last days of WWII.

 Hindenburg appointing Hitler as Chancellor of Germany.  

This picture shows German troops entering Poland in the fall of 1939. During this camping, Hitler introduced a new type of warfare called "Blitzkrieg" or lighting warfare. This revolutionary approach to warfare involved the use of planes, armor and vehicles to quickly overwhelm defenders within a city. Ideally a wave of bombers would damage preliminary defenses, quickly followed by tanks and other various types of armor that were intend to further weaken enemy defenses. This was followed by lightly armored soldiers typically in jeeps, half-tracks or motorcycles that began the initial primary assault. Once a strong hold or base of operations was established, greater amounts of foot soldiers would arrive and prepare for a full out assault of the city. In the initial stages of WWII Blitzkrieg was devastating to ill-equipped countries like Poland, and allowed for Hitler to quickly establish military presence in the region.  

Most historians agree that there was not one single factor that triggered the start of World War I, however in almost every account of history the assassination of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand is viewed as the last major historical event that thrust Europe into World War I.  The picture above is an artist’s rendition of the Archduke's assassination, and after Serbian assassin Gavrilo Princip fired two shots; Europe was less than a month away from the official start of World War I.

World War I officially started on July 28, 1914 and lasted until the fall of 1918. It is estimated that over 1,700,000 German soldiers were killed during WW I, and to add to this, Germany received complete blame for the start of the war.  As a result of this Germany faced astronomical amounts of reparations, similar to punitive damages, and was responsible for repaying the Allied forces billions of dollars. This caused large levels of inflation to German currency (reichsmarks) and ultimately led to the demise of the post World War I German economy. This caused a great deal of unrest and frustration across Germany, and made the political scene in Germany chaotic to say the least.  Despite this by 1924, following some stability through the rise of the Weimar Republic, it appeared as if Germany was slowly shaking the effects of World War I.  “Between 1924 and 1929 German production increased in volume by 50%, and many industries were able to regain their former dominant position in world markets (Schulze 218).”

 From the outside it appeared as if Germany was slowly returning to its pre-WW I economic potential, but vast ideological polarization within the Weimar Republic made its collapse inevitable.  This atmosphere allowed for the rise of not only a new political party, but also the birth of a new leader.  This political party, the Nazi party was led by Adolf Hitler, and his charisma and strategic use of rhetoric grabbed the attention of the German people.  The Nazi party relied on logical political platforms to grab the attention of the German people, and Hitler’s sweeping rhetoric attracted the attention to various Germans across the political spectrum.  By 1933, the Nazi party had turned into the dominant political party in Germany, and on January 30, Hitler was appointed as the Chancellor of Germany.  The Weimar republic was in shambles, and the momentum of the Nazi party would soon rise to hold absolute power over Germany. 

            Hitler’s appointment as Chancellor was only the beginning of the Nazi parties dominance, and by the mid 1930’s the Nazi party held complete control over the German government and its people.  Hitler’s political beliefs were quite radical, and as we know focused on the creation of a “master ethnic race.”  Hitler believed in the preservation and further creation of the Aryan race, and declared that all other ethnic races were inferior.  Jews were specifically targeted by the Nazi party, and by the end of World War II, more than 6 million Jews were murdered in labor or concentration camps. 

            After Hitler’s rise to power, he quickly began re-arming and assembling the German army, an act that was prohibited by the Treaty of Versailles (the treaty that officially ended WW I).  By the late 1930’s Hitler had assembled the largest and best-equipped army on earth, and a large-scale military conflict was destined to happen.  On September 1, 1939 under the leadership of Hitler and the Nazi party, the German Army invaded Poland and WW II officially started.  The scope of World War II is far to enormous to cover in one blog or one paper, however the conclusion of WW II laid the framework of the modern world.  As I previously mentioned in one of my previous blogs, the post WW II years led to the Cold War, which fundamentally altered the makeup of world powers of that time period. 

            For this blog I thought it was important to discuss some of the minor details that led to Hitler’s rise to power and some of the general background leading up to WW II.  In my opinion we typically remember the outcome of WW II, the major battles of the War and some of the effects that the conclusion of the War had on the modern world, but we fail to take a step back and analyze the series of events that made WW II possible.  W/C 722

This picture shows German troops march through the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin on June 16, 1871.

This picture depicts the 1848 German National Assembly that attempted to draft a constitution that would allow Germany to elect a national government.

A famous portrait of Napoleon that is seen in numerous history books.

The Iron-Chancellor

Following the Thirty Year’s war the dozens of provinces that make up modern day Germany were very similar to our own colonies during the early years of our country.  The provinces were divided religiously, economically and lacked a central authoritative power to unify them.  Further there was a complete lack of infrastructure among the provinces that made trading between them completely incredibly inefficient.  The separation among provinces hurt the provinces economically, but this economic downfall was only a small issue compared to the defense issues that their separation caused.  The lack of unity between the provinces made the German provinces incredibly vulnerable to foreign attackers, and it was only a matter of time before an outside attacker took an advantage of the opportunity. 

            France finally capitalized on this opportunity, and as we will discuss in more detail this later, this attack may have been a bitter blessing in disguise.  France’s attack was led primarily through Napoleon, however the effects of his rule would have a long lasting impact on not only Germany but also the other major nations of Europe.  Similar to our own revolution, war forced the provinces of Germany to realize that there current system of government was inadequate in a variety of ways.  The path to unification didn’t happen overnight and was by no means “smooth”, however it is important to remember the surrounding events that let to the formation of what we recognize to be as Germany. 

            While we have already briefly discussed several events that led to the creation and unification of Germany, I have decided to focus on one individual who I believe was critical to Germany’s emergence as a national superpower towards the end of the 19^th century.  Otto von Bismarck referred to by some historians, as the “Iron-Chancellor” was appointed as the prime minister of Prussia on September 24, 1862.  The Iron-Chancellor was the spark that the German people needed to take the advancement of their nation to the next level.  As I stated earlier a previous major flaw to the unification of the German provinces was military unity, and the provinces often sat back on their heels as they were attacked from stronger European countries.  Bismarck changed this tactic, and believed that if Germany wanted to strengthen it needed to go on the offensive.  This came through a war with France that lasted till approximately 1871, and proved to be the final necessary major historic event that led to German Unification.

            Word Count: 412

This is one of my best friends Dan, and while he doesn't have much to do with Marin Luther, I can't wait to go to Germany with him. I hope all you guys enjoy getting to know him, because at the end of the day he's a great guy. 

Berlin at night? Can it really look this pretty?

I love this document, and its impact on history cannot be described in words...

It can be argued that we live under the most democratic government in the world.  The First Amendment of our Constitution guarantees us the freedom to several rights: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to the petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”  We find this clause, in particular the “freedom of religion” clause in the First Amendment of our Constitution, but how much are we willing to invest to secure the freedom of these ideals?  Are we willing to send our loved ones across the world to die in the name of religious freedom?  Are we willing to sacrifice everything to promote what we hold most dear?

            I believe that most American citizens are willing to accept that we are culturally diverse and have a variety of religions across our nation; however how dedicated are we to securing the protection of religious freedom?  In my mind, the previous question I listed above leaves me at a crossroads…Am I willing to die for my religion?  For multiple reasons, I will not elaborate on the previous question, however let me tell you how much I respect someone who is willing to risk everything in order to secure their own religious freedom.  Regardless of your personal religious views, you cannot help but admire Martin Luther’s ability to sacrifice everything in the pursuit of his own religious freedom.  In an era dominated both secularly and religiously by the Catholic Church, Martin Luther risked everything to defend the things he believed in.  He stood up against the strongest governmental organizations of his times to defend what he believed in, and for that reason I cannot help but admire Martin Luther.  You always should stand up for what you believe in, but what are you willing to stand up against? Are you willing to face adversity in the best interest of your beliefs? To Martin Luther the answer to these questions was yes, and I cannot help but respect him for defying adversity in the best interest of his beliefs.  

This picture depicts Martin Luther posting his 95 Theses.

Anyone wondering what the author of our book looks like ha?

This is him, Hagen Schulze.

I thought this might be helpful to show where nations were that we discussed in the text.

Some people typically refer to the United States as a “melting pot” to describe the culturally diverse makeup of our nation.  While we are proud to be culturally diverse, most Americans also take a great deal of pride in the notion that we are “free.”  “Free” of tyranny and oppressive regimes through our ability to actively partake in the election process through voting, our constitutional rights and a multitude of other safeguards enacted to protect democracy.  It can be argued that we are the founders of modern democracy, however similar to Germany we are a relatively young nation (less than 300 years) and major themes of our political and judicial systems can be traced back through history for thousands of years. 

            An entire library could be dedicated to books entailing the influence Rome had on the formation of the Western world, but Schulze says it quite perfectly: “The foundations of national statehood and low the customs of urban life, our languages and ways of thinking, our alphabet and books, our architecture—in short, the whole basis of the modern world in the West is unimaginable without the contributions of Roman civilization and the two older civilizations interwoven with it, those of Greece and the Hellenistic Orient (Schulze 2).”  Most college students would agree that Rome and Greece have had a significant impact on the Western world, however I believe that we often overlook the impact that more modern nations have left on Germany and us.  Neither nation started off as a “thoroughbred” and to put it bluntly, we were both “mutts” from a collection of different European “states.”  Our culturally diverse makeup contributed to our ability to use European states as an example on how to or how not to mold our nation. 

            The first two chapters of Schulze’s book have given me more information on the formation of Germany that I could have ever known, but what I have appreciated most about the book is Schulze’s ability to clearly define the historical context leading up to the creation of Germany, and the role that certain individuals played in that event.  Further, the first two chapters have started to indirectly point out multiple similarities between the formation of the United States and Germany, and I look forward to finding out more! (W/C 381)

This picture captures the early construction of the Berlin Wall.

This is a picture of Winston Churchill, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Joseph Stalin at the Yalta Conference following the conclusion of World War II. 

This is what I was referring to in my post...

Hi everyone,

While the concept of studying abroad is appealing to almost everyone, crossing the threshold of wanting to study abroad and actually committing to study abroad can be a rather stressful process for several reasons.  Where do I want to go? How much does the trip cost? Who is going on the trip? Can I find a study abroad trip that can accommodate all of these factors?  

            Luckily for me I was fortunate enough to find a D-Term trip that fit into the three questions listed above.  Through the Office of International Affairs, you can more or less go anywhere in the world, and no matter where you go you will be required to make a substantial financial investment to cover the costs of the study abroad program fee.  Once I accepted that I was going to be broke, the choice to study abroad in Germany was a rather obvious one.  As a political science major and true lover of history, how could I pass up the opportunity to visit a place that has had such a profound impact on history? 

There are thousands of different theories as to why the world is the way it is today.  Why are some countries wealthier than other countries? Why do some governments align with one another?  Why do some countries use military intervention in an attempt to restore democracy?  The molding of the modern world did not happen overnight and has taken thousands of years, however most historians would argue that World War I and World War II have been instrumental in shaping the modern world (post 1950).  World War I was caused for a variety of reasons: militarism, nationalism, arms races, etc., and because this is only a 400 word entry I will not expand upon these concepts in great detail, however the ramifications following World War I would ultimately set the stage for World War II.  The allied powers (winners of WWI) placed complete blame for the war on the central powers (losers of WWI) and imposed high reparations, or punitive damages on the central powers.  Counties tasked with financing these reparations faced high levels of inflation, and at one point in post WWI Germany a wheel-barrel filled with Reich marks (German currency) was equivalent to a load of bread.  The feeble post WWI government in Germany, and the astronomical level of reparation repayment that the Central powers faced made the result of WWII inevitable.  Again I’m not to go into extreme detail…but the allied powers once again won WWII, and the allied powers or the Big Five (United States, Great Britain, France, China and the Soviet Union) were arguably the most powerful nations in the world.  However, among these 5 nations, the United States and the Soviet Union would emerge as the worlds new world leaders transferring the political stage on the international level from a multi-polar power system to a bi-polar power system (two world powers instead of several).  Although the U.S. and Soviet Union were allies in WWI and WWII, their vastly different political ideologies would ultimately result in the construction of the Berlin Wall and the start of the Cold War.  What I’ve just described does not adequately highlight the impact that World Wars I and II had on the modern world, however as you can see, we are and will continue to feel the effects of World War I and World War II.  Germany was at the center of these events, and for that reason primarily I could not pass up the opportunity to visit Germany.  Further, what I’ve described only covers from approximately 1918-1989, and Germany had a bright history for thousands of years before the start of WWI.  Also, I think that it will be incredible to get a personal feel for the culture of Germany.  Would a German citizen in 1946 believe that their culture would have the resiliency to bounce back from the devastation of World War II to once more become a significant world power and leader of the European Union? (W/C 669).

These are the flags of the nations in the EU.

An overview of Germany

Hey everybody! This is my blog, and good luck on your finals.