Germany, 1914-1933 : Politics, Society and Culture

Germany, 1914-1933 takes a fresh and critical look at this crucial period in German history. The book suggests that previous scholars have been wrong to focus on 1918 rather than 1914 as the starting point of Germany’s descent into chaos and dictatorship and in particular will show that 1914 was a significant turning point in terms of German attitudes towards nationalism and gender and the role of violence in political life.

Also included is a critical discussion of the failure of the Weimar Republic to capture the hearts and minds of German people in the 1920s, and the causes of its final demise in the early 1930s.

Germany, 1914-1933: Politics, Society and Culture takes a fresh and critical look at a crucial period in German history. Rather than starting with the traditional date of 1918, the book begins with the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, and argues that this was a pivotal turning point in shaping the future successes and failures of the Weimar Republic.

Combining traditional political narrative with new insights provided by social and cultural history, the book reconsiders such key questions as:

• How widespread was support for the war in Germany between 1914 and 1918?

• How was the war viewed both ‘from above’, by leading generals, admirals and statesmen, and ‘from below’, by ordinary soldiers and civilians?

• What were the chief political, social, economic and cultural consequences of the war? In particular, did it result in a brutalisation of German society after 1918?

• How modern were German attitudes towards work, family, sex and leisure during the 1920s? What accounts for the extraordinary richness and experimentalism of this period?

The book also provides a thorough and comprehensive discussion of the difficulties faced by the Weimar Republic in capturing the hearts and minds of the German people in the 1920s, and of the causes of its final demise in the early 1930s.