When looking at the history of Germany, there are a few key
words that truly stand out; Nazi, Hitler, Weimar Republic, Berlin Wall,
etc. Hearing those words almost
instantly makes an impression on you as if you are having those words stamped
into your mind. It is true that after
hearing those words, they will never leave.
But an interesting aspect of this German word association is that that
perspective voids out the possibilities of seeing beyond that narrow and deeply
rooted evil time period in Germany’s long history.
The concept of modern German history centers all different
components, which make the stories rich; however, it is important to develop a
true understanding of Germany in the 20th century. Personally, I have grown up immersing myself
in history and learning the politics of different governments and policies, the
battlefronts in the European theater and how the home fronts rallied to support
their troops. But never, have I ever
examined history from this viewpoint; singly focused on one particular
country. It is interesting in Fulbrook’s
A History of Germany 1918-2008, she
mentions terms like Gotterdammerung and Sonderweg, as means of trying to
explain the twists of turns to this German “roller coaster” ride (3). However, as I continued to pour through
accounts of German history, it seemed that Fulbrook had “hit the nail on the
head” so to speak. According to Fulbrook,
“to narrate the course of German history in terms of failures and distortions
presupposes a ‘normal’ or ‘healthy’ pattern of development” (4). This seemed interesting to me: it was almost
if historians and others only saw failure for Germany and truly reaching beyond
that might indeed be near impossible.
While recognizing that this pattern exists in this somewhat
cyclic pattern of 20th century German history, it is important to
examine their history and recognize that current thinking of broad debates of
long term patterns of continuity and discontinuity as well as “issues with the
collapse of the Weimar democracy, the rise of the Nazis, and of course, the
explanation of the ultimately explicable- the mass murder of over 6 million
people in the death camps” (Fulbrook 5).
So, while aware of these events that seem to be what people think of in
those games of German history word association, let’s take a look at the past
and truly start at the beginning of the 20th century.
This week, it was an opportunity to start fresh at the
beginning. With the writings of Erich
Maria Remarque’s classic German war story All
Quiet on the Western Front and Sean McMeekin’s The Berlin- Baghdad Express, it provides the beginning to the
framework for 20th century German history. Beginning in the late 1800s and early 1900s,
McMeekin’s account of the Baghdad railway credits “imagination to voyage back
in time to the bitter fin de siècle {as it} struggles over the Baghdad railway,
when the Orient was still full of mystery, a romantic dream world to the West,
still partly unmapped, the last and potentially greatest frontier of European
exploration” and how this mystical expression provides the inspiration to
various modern culture references (33).
The use of Baghdad was thought to be “a sleepy backwater of the Ottoman
Empire” (34). In order to have this
proposed railway set-up, it was necessary to “internationalize the financing”
and Germany wanted to play a large role in the construction of this route
(39). However, Germany was unable to
raise the finances on their own and continued to arouse the suspicions of the
French, British and the Russians (39). According
to McMeekin, “the essential thing was camouflage: Germany must appear not to be
building the railway alone, while somehow securing the strategic benefit”
(39). The only advantage that the
Germans truly had over France, Britain and Russian bids was that the Sultan
“backed” their efforts to secure the construction of this railway; more
specifically, he had wanted the Germans to only build the Berlin- Basra line
(39-40). Beyond this initial trust that
was formed among parties, Germany had to “pay many prices in order for the
rights to build this railway” (43).
In the wake of 1914 and the assassination of Franz Ferdinand,
this event had many implications for this railway. The beginning of the “holy war” allowed for a
platform of German jihad propaganda in British India (McMeekin, 91). The tensions and constraints of the beginning
of the Holy War surged within the Muslim community and it was rumored that the
Sultan- Caliph “would proclaim a holy-war against the British” (91). Not only in the European theater, but also in
Muslim countries, the holy war seemed to increase and mount tensions between
these countries and further fuel the German jihad (96).
On the heels of the construction of the railway as well as
the surging tensions of war, allegiances were not only tested between countries
but also with comrades, as detailed in All
Quiet on the Western Front. In this account, Remarque details perspectives
of young recruits to the German warforce and truly is a testament to human
character in war times. From initial
words of the first pages, I found myself needing to refocus my attention that
this was an account from the German perspective and remembering that fact
throughout reading this novel. It seemed
that almost in an instant, you are transported to the No. 9 platoon with the
likes of Kropp, Tjaden, Kemmerich under Corporal Himmelstoss (23). The picture that Remarque paints is one of
raw contrast, where his accounts of fellow comrades are united under the common
cause of fighting for Germany. Details
of the battlefront to the barracks to the hospitals and wards all show the common
traits that even the Germans have with our commonly held perspectives of
war.
The beginning to the 20th century of Germany
presents many elements. It is the themes
of rebuilding, struggling, war, comradeship and others that provide this
framework and perspective for what lies ahead.
This portion of Germany history is foreign terroritory and a bit of
uncharted waters for myself so I look forward to exploring these themes and
ideas together and building upon that foundation as time goes on.
Discussion
Questions
1) Review the timeline of the Berlin-
Baghdad express and see the interworking of its significance in German’s early
20th century.
2) Discuss what the implications of
Reamarque’s novel on German perspective entirely. What was his motivation in writing this
novel? How does it contribute to the understanding of Germany in the context it
was written?
3) Discuss the term cyclic failure and
how it serves as the basis for how Germany is viewed by other countries and
historians today.
4) Begin a rough timeline of this early
period of 20th century German history. Examine how knowledge of early German history
might have a causal relationship with later events for Germany.
Resources:
Fulbrook,
Mary. A History of Germany: 1918-2008 The
Divided Nation. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing Ltd., 2009. Print.
McMeekin,
Sean. The Berlin- Baghdad Express: The
Ottoman Empire and Germany’s Bid for World Power. Cambridge: Harvard
University Press, 2010. Print.
Remarque,
Erich Maria. All Quiet on the Western
Front. New York: Ballantine Books, 1956. Print.
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