History Of Germany Books: Detailed Guides for Visitors
The history of Germany begins with the Germanic tribes and ends with the modern-day Federal Republic of Germany. The tribes lived in what is now Northern Germany, which included Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and Lower Saxony. As they moved southwards, they came into contact with people from other cultures who had settled in their territory. These included Celts, Romans, Slavs, and Byzantines. By AD 500 some of these tribes had settled in areas that became a part of modern-day Germany.
The earliest known use of the word "German" to describe a group of people dates back to the late 10th century. It was first used to describe the people living in what is now northern Germany. The word comes from the Old High German "diutisc" meaning "of or pertaining to the people". The earliest use of the word in English was in 1520 when it appeared in William Tyndale's translation of the New Testament as "native of any place." Diot was used as an adjective until it began appearing as both a noun and an adjective in the late 16th century.
The German Empire, The Weimar Republic, And Nazi Germany.
In 1871, Germany became a nation-state with the establishment of the German Empire. The new country included the former kingdoms of Prussia, Bavaria, and Saxony; however, it excluded Austria, Luxembourg, and Liechtenstein. This unification process was marked by two important events: the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–1871, which ended with a victory for Prussia over France; and the formation of the German Empire in 1871 under Bismarck's leadership.
After World War I, Imperial Germany gave way to the Weimar Republic, which had a profound effect on all subsequent German history. The Nazi regime ended with the Allied victory over Nazi Germany led to the partition of Germany into West Germany and East Germany in 1949. The former was established as a federal parliamentary republic while the latter was ruled as a Communist satellite state by the Soviet Union until 1990.
A Timeline Of The History Of West Germany And East Germany
The split into West and East is a particularly interesting point in the new history from its establishment in 1949. The Soviet forces occupied the eastern half of Germany. After the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, for the first time, the elections were held in which people achieved the freedom to choose between candidates with different political views. This period in between these years was full of controversial, even mystical stories, which you can read in the East German history books.
Books in this section were created to give busy readers a concise introduction to important people, places, events, ideas, and more from all eras of history. These books are designed to be read in about an hour or two and cover topics such as ancient civilizations, royalty, wars and battles, economic strategies, religion, science and exploration, literature and arts, inventions and discoveries, popular culture, and more!
show more