Germany: People of Germany: The German people appear to have originated on the coastal region of the Baltic Sea and in the Baltic islands in the Bronze and early Iron ages. From about 500 bce they began to move southward, crushing and absorbing the existing Celtic kingdoms; from 58 bce…

German 88, versatile 88-millimetre (3.46-inch) multirole artillery piece, developed from 1917 by Germany. It was tested in the Spanish Civil War and was used extensively by the Germans in World War II as a field-artillery piece and as an antiaircraft and antitank gun. It was in fact the most

Luftwaffe, component of the German armed forces tasked with the air defense of Germany and fulfillment of the country’s airpower commitments abroad. The Luftwaffe was formally created in 1935, but military aviation had existed in the shadows in Germany since the end of World War I. The Treaty of

Antarctica: National rivalries and claims: The German Antarctic Expedition of 1939 aerially photographed an extensive segment of Princess Astrid and Princess Martha coasts of western Queen Maud Land and, dropping metal swastikas over the region, claimed it for Nazi Germany (the area is now claimed by Norway). Other claims were transferred,…

World War II: German strategy, 1939–42: …and the heads of the Oberkommando des Heeres (OKH, or German Army High Command), namely the army commander in chief Walther von Brauchitsch and the army general staff chief Franz Halder, were convinced that the Red Army could be defeated in two or three months, and that, by the end…

Deutscher Werkbund, important organization of artists influential in its attempts to inspire good design and craftsmanship for mass-produced goods and architecture. The Werkbund, which was founded in Munich in 1907, was composed of artists, artisans, and architects who designed industrial,

Georg Wüst: …as chief oceanographer on the German Atlantic (1925–27) expedition. He was also in charge of the International Gulf Stream (1938) expedition. The Atlantic expedition, conducted from the research vessel “Meteor,” was the first study of an entire ocean, and it remains one of the most extensive oceanographic surveys ever undertaken.…

wind instrument: The Romantic period: …between the French and the German bassoon still remains, the former having a reedier, more individual tone and the latter, with its comparative richness, blending better. First the Americans and finally the British accepted the German instrument.

brown trout, prized and wary European game fish favoured for the table. The brown trout, which includes several varieties such as the Loch Leven trout of Great Britain, is of the family Salmonidae. It has been introduced to many other areas of the world and is recognized by the light-ringed black

Friedrich Meinecke: …work, Die deutsche Katastrophe (1946; The German Catastrophe), Meinecke criticized forces and entities such as the Prussian state for preparing the groundwork for Hitler and the Nazis. After World War II he became the first president of the Free University of Berlin. In his later years he wrote a number…

cello, bass musical instrument of the violin group, with four strings, pitched C–G–D–A upward from two octaves below middle C. The cello, about 27.5 inches (70 cm) long (47 inches [119 cm] with the neck), has proportionally deeper ribs and a shorter neck than the violin. The earliest cellos were

The military command structure of German forces in Europe in mid-1944 reflected the growing megalomania of the Führer and supreme commander of the armed forces, Adolf Hitler, as well as the rigidity of the Nazi state. All military operations in the western theater were placed under the direction of

chamomile: …Roman, chamomile (Chamaemelum nobile) or German chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla). Several species are cultivated as garden ornamentals, especially golden marguerite, or yellow chamomile (Cota tinctoria).

German Christian, any of the Protestants who attempted to subordinate church policy to the political initiatives of the Nazi Party. The German Christian Faith Movement, organized in 1932, was nationalistic and so anti-Semitic that extremists wished to repudiate the Old Testament (Hebrew Bible) and

Christian Democratic Union (CDU), German center-right political party that supports a free-market economy and social welfare programs while maintaining conservative stances on social issues. The CDU has been a strong advocate of European integration and has cultivated close relations with the

German Christian: The German Christian Faith Movement, organized in 1932, was nationalistic and so anti-Semitic that extremists wished to repudiate the Old Testament (Hebrew Bible) and the Pauline Letters because of their Jewish authorship. With anti-Semitism as its theological centre, Christianity was reframed as an Aryan religion at…

Lutheranism: European Lutheranism: This controversy, known as the German Church Struggle, led a minority of Lutheran church leaders, such as Martin Niemöller, a decorated World War I submarine captain, to question the legitimacy of the Nazi regime; some, including the theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, even became active in the anti-Nazi opposition.

German Civil Code, the body of codified private law that went into effect in the German empire in 1900. Though it has been modified, it remains in effect. The code grew out of a desire for a truly national law that would override the often conflicting customs and codes of the various German

Germany: Rupert of Germany: …the drooping power of the German monarchy. His title was not beyond dispute while Wenceslas lived, and the territorial princes and cities were therefore slow to acknowledge him. Pope Boniface IX, maintaining that only a pope might legally depose a German monarch, withheld his approbation of Rupert. An expedition against…

Germany: Constitutional conflicts in the 14th century: …a disputed election and a civil war in Germany. The electors’ impulse to choose another lesser count as king was checked by the houses of Habsburg and Luxembourg, which pressured the prince-electors to choose between their candidates. The pro-Habsburg majority elected Frederick the Handsome, duke of Austria. The minority withdrew…

Germany: Hohenstaufen cooperation and conflict with the papacy, 1152–1215: During the war for the crown, much hard-won demesne and useful rights over the church had to be sacrificed by the rivals to bribe their supporters.

Germany: The civil war against Henry IV: Although he intended to cooperate with Henry IV at the outset of his papacy, Gregory VII was drawn into a terrible conflict with the king because of Henry’s refusal to obey papal commands. Emboldened by his success in 1075 against…

cockroach: Family Ectobiidae: The German cockroach (Blattella germanica), a common household pest, is light brown with two dark stripes on the prothoracic region. The female produces an ootheca 3 days after mating and carries it for about 20 days. Three or more generations may occur yearly. Because it is…

procedural law: Pretrial conference: …the 1976 reforms to the German Code of Civil Procedure, the parties may be directed, through a preliminary written or oral procedure, to prepare the main hearing in such a manner that it can lead to an immediate decision of the case.

Friedrich Ebert: …the SPD to form the Communist Party of Germany (KPD). The leftists who had withdrawn from the SPD sought a social revolution, while Ebert and his party wanted to establish a German parliamentary democracy. Even in the midst of the war, the Catholic Centre Party, the Democratic Party (previously the…

German Confederation, organization of 39 German states, established by the Congress of Vienna in 1815 to replace the destroyed Holy Roman Empire. It was a loose political association, formed for mutual defense, with no central executive or judiciary. Delegates met in a federal assembly dominated by

Junker: The German Conservative Party in the Reichstag, or Imperial Assembly, and the extraparliamentary Agrarian League (q.v.) represented Junker interests throughout the imperial era. Because the Junkers staffed the Prussian army, which had brought about Germany’s unification, they were accorded great influence, particularly in Prussia, where a…

Eisstockschiessen, a game played on ice in the winter and on asphalt or other surfaces during the rest of the year, similar to curling and shuffleboard. The game became popular in Bavaria and Austria by the late 19th century. Teams consist of four players and one substitute. The rink is 28 metres

Weimar Republic: The Weimar constitution: …the Centre Party and the German Democratic Party (DDP).

East Germany, former country (1949–90) that constitutes the northeastern section of present-day

Deutsches Wörterbuch, the first German dictionary conceived on scientific lines; initiated by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. The dictionary was designed to give the etymology and history, illustrated by quotations, of all the words in the (New) High German literary language from the time of Martin Luther

German E. coli outbreak of 2011, bacterial disease outbreak that began in Germany in late April 2011 and that was caused by a previously rare strain of E. coli (Escherichia coli) known as O104:H4. The 2011 E. coli outbreak was the deadliest and the second largest on record—the largest was the Japan

German E. coli outbreak of 2011, bacterial disease outbreak that began in Germany in late April 2011 and that was caused by a previously rare strain of E. coli (Escherichia coli) known as O104:H4. The 2011 E. coli outbreak was the deadliest and the second largest on record—the largest was the Japan

German East Africa, former dependency of imperial Germany, corresponding to present-day Rwanda and Burundi, the continental portion of Tanzania, and a small section of Mozambique. Penetration of the area was begun in 1884 by German commercial agents, and German claims were recognized by the other

Bagamoyo: …the first capital of the German East Africa Company (1887–91). Pop. (2002) 28,368.

DESY, the largest centre for high-energy particle-physics research in Germany. DESY, founded in 1959, is located in Hamburg and is funded jointly by the German federal government and the city of Hamburg. Its particle-accelerator facilities are an international resource, serving thousands of

German Empire, historical empire founded on January 18, 1871, in the wake of three short, successful wars by the North German state of Prussia. Within a seven-year span, Denmark, the Habsburg monarchy, and France had been vanquished. The empire had its origin not in an upwelling of nationalist

German E. coli outbreak of 2011, bacterial disease outbreak that began in Germany in late April 2011 and that was caused by a previously rare strain of E. coli (Escherichia coli) known as O104:H4. The 2011 E. coli outbreak was the deadliest and the second largest on record—the largest was the Japan

German Christian: …states merged to form the German Evangelical Church, and in September the German Christian candidate, Ludwig Müller, assumed leadership of the church as Reichsbischof (“Reich bishop”). The movement acceded to the Nazi definition of a Jew based on the religion of his or her grandparents and to the racist principles…

Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod, conservative Lutheran church in the United States, organized in Chicago in 1847 by German immigrants from Saxony (settled in Missouri) and Bavaria (settled in Michigan and Indiana) as the German Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Missouri, Ohio, and Other States. C.F.W.

Evangelical and Reformed Church: …the United States and the Evangelical Synod of North America. The church brought together churches of Reformed and Lutheran background. It accepted the Heidelberg Catechism (Reformed), Luther’s Catechism, and the Augsburg Confession (Lutheran) as its doctrinal standards, but, when these differed, the Bible was the final rule of faith. In…

Max Beckmann: ) was a German Expressionist painter and printmaker whose works are notable for the boldness and power of their symbolic commentary on the tragic events of the 20th century.

Heinrich Lübke: …German farmers’ organizations into the German Farmers Federation, serving as the federation’s director from 1926 to 1933. Politically inactive throughout the National Socialist era (1933–45), Lübke helped to organize the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) in Westphalia after World War II and was a member of the North Rhine–Westphalia Landtag (provincial…

Deutsche Bahn AG: …by the merger of the Deutsche Bundesbahn (German Federal Railway), the state rail system in the former West Germany, with the Deutsche Reichsbahn (German State Railway), the state system in the former East Germany. At the time of German reunification, the system route length totaled about 25,800 miles (41,500 km),…

German Trade Union Federation, dominant union organization in Germany. The DGB was founded in Munich in 1949 and soon became the largest labour organization in West Germany, with 16 constituent unions. With the reunification of Germany in 1990, workers of the former East Germany were incorporated

Herkimer, village, seat (1791) of Herkimer county, central New York, U.S., on the north bank of the Mohawk River, 14 miles (23 km) southeast of Utica. The site, settled about 1725 by Palatinate Germans, was known as German Flats. Fort Dayton was built in 1776 during the American Revolution, and

deutsche Blumen, in pottery, floral decoration consisting of naturalistically painted “German” (i.e., European) flowers appearing individually or in bouquets. Although Viennese potters had produced a type of naturalistic floral decoration about 1730, deutsche Blumen became popular only after they

flute: In transverse, or cross, flutes (i.e., horizontally held and side blown), the stream of breath strikes the opposite rim of a lateral mouth hole. Vertical flutes such as the recorder, in which an internal flue or duct directs the air against a hole cut in the side of…

Hitler Youth: The League of German Girls (Bund Deutscher Mädel) trained girls ages 14 to 18 for comradeship, domestic duties, and motherhood. Jungmädel (“Young Girls”) was an organization for girls ages 10 to 14.

gymnastics: Developments in Europe: …of Die Deutsche Turnkunst (1816; The German Gymnastic Art), carefully noted and explained the various exercises developed on the playground. The pommel horse was used for leg-swinging exercises and for vaulting. Jahn invented the parallel bars to increase the upper-body strength of his students, and immense towers were erected to…

Ḥasidism, (from Hebrew ḥasid, “pious one”), a 12th- and 13th-century Jewish religious movement in Germany that combined austerity with overtones of mysticism. It sought favour with the common people, who had grown dissatisfied with formalistic ritualism and had turned their attention to developing

historical school of economics, branch of economic thought, developed chiefly in Germany in the last half of the 19th century, that sought to understand the economic situation of a nation in the context of its total historical experience. Objecting to the deductively reasoned economic “laws” of

historical school of economics, branch of economic thought, developed chiefly in Germany in the last half of the 19th century, that sought to understand the economic situation of a nation in the context of its total historical experience. Objecting to the deductively reasoned economic “laws” of

Western philosophy: The idealism of Fichte, Schelling, and Hegel: The Enlightenment, inspired by the example of natural science, had accepted certain boundaries to human knowledge; that is, it had recognized certain limits to reason’s ability to penetrate ultimate reality because that would require methods that surpass the capabilities…

Marxism: Historical materialism: …Die deutsche Ideologie (written 1845–46; The German Ideology) and the Ökonomisch-philosophische Manuskripte aus dem Jahre 1844 (Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844).

Iridaceae: Major genera and species: …known are the bearded, or German, group—the common garden irises, many of which are hybrids. The water-loving Japanese iris (Iris ensata), frequently featured in Japanese watercolours. The yellow, or water, flag (I. pseudacorus) is a swamp plant native to Eurasia and North Africa; the blue flag (I. versicolor) occupies similar…

groundsel: Major species: German ivy (S. mikanoides) and florist’s cineraria (S. cruentus) are popular houseplants.

Deutscher Werkbund, important organization of artists influential in its attempts to inspire good design and craftsmanship for mass-produced goods and architecture. The Werkbund, which was founded in Munich in 1907, was composed of artists, artisans, and architects who designed industrial,

German language, official language of both Germany and Austria and one of the official languages of Switzerland. German belongs to the West Germanic group of the Indo-European language family, along with English, Frisian, and Dutch (Netherlandic, Flemish). The recorded history of Germanic languages

civil law: The German system: Roman law, as embodied in the Corpus Juris Civilis, was “received” in Germany from the 15th century onward, and with this reception came a legal profession and a system of law developed by professionals (Juristenrecht). Roman law provided the theoretical basis for legal…

Die Deutsche Bibliothek, the national library of Germany. It was created by the merger (1990) of the Deutsche Bibliothek (founded 1947) in Frankfurt am Main and the Deutsche Bücherei (1912) in Leipzig, which until the reunification of Germany had functioned as the national libraries of West and

German literature, German literature comprises the written works of the German-speaking peoples of central Europe. It has shared the fate of German politics and history: fragmentation and discontinuity. Germany did not become a modern nation-state until 1871, and the prior history of the various

benediction: …incorporated by Luther into his German Mass and is preserved by modern Lutherans because of its impressive dignity; it is also used in the Mozarabic liturgy of Spain before the reception of the Host. The Swedish liturgy appends a trinitarian formula to this same benediction. Some Christian churches, however, prefer…

rubella, contagious viral disease that runs a mild and benign course in most people. Although rubella is not usually a serious illness in children or adults, it can cause birth defects or the loss of a fetus if a woman in the early stages of pregnancy becomes infected. German physician Daniel

virus: Annotated classification: …2 recognized genera: Alphavirus and Rubivirus. Alphavirus consists of viruses transmitted by arthropods (exclusively mosquitoes); prototypes include Sindbis virus and eastern and western equine encephalitis viruses. Rubivirus contains non-arthropod-borne viruses, including the causative agent of German measles. Family Flaviviridae

Dresden: The contemporary city: …for Nuclear Physics; and the German Museum of Hygiene, internationally known for its manufacture of transparent plastic anatomical models. There are several historic parks, notably the Grosse Garten (1676), which lies southeast of the old city and has botanical and zoological gardens.

Deutsches Museum, museum of science and industry established in Munich in 1903 and opened on Museumsinsel (Museum Island) in 1925. Its pattern of organization and administration became the model for such later institutions as the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. The Deutsches Museum owes

Frankfurt National Assembly, German national parliament (May 1848–June 1849) that tried and failed to create a united German state during the liberal Revolutions of 1848. A preliminary parliament (Vorparlament) met in Frankfurt am Main in March 1848 at the instigation of liberal leaders from all

Gustav Stresemann: Conversion into a realistic republican: Stresemann, a member of the German National Constituent Assembly in Weimar in 1919–20, was an opponent of the new German constitution. He also opposed the Treaty of Versailles and was to devote his political life to its revision. From 1920 until his death Stresemann was a Reichstag deputy and chairman…

Germanisches Nationalmuseum (GNM), museum in Nürnberg, Germany, housing the largest collection of cultural history in German-speaking countries. The vast permanent collection contains more than one million unique pieces, which date from prehistoric times to the present day. One of the largest

Berlin: Cultural life: …the long-established Deutsche Staatsoper (German National Opera). East Berlin’s Comic Opera also gained fame. Classical music in general finds a distinguished home in Berlin. Foremost among many notable musical ensembles is the world-famous Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, founded in 1882; it reached new heights in the second half of the…

German National People’s Party, right-wing political party active in the Reichstag (assembly) of the Weimar Republic of Germany from 1919 to 1933. Representing chauvinistic opinion hostile to the republic and to the Allies’ reparation demands following World War I, it supported the restoration of

Germany: Literature and theatre: The old German National Theatre (Deutsches Nationaltheater) in Weimar was the first to be rebuilt after 1945. Understandably, Berlin dominated theatrical developments, especially because of the work of Brecht at the Theater am Schiffbauerdamm. Given a haven in East Germany—a theatre and a company, along with the…

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe: Work after World War I: …period in Europe was the German Pavilion (also known as the Barcelona Pavilion), which was commissioned by the German government for the 1929 International Exposition at Barcelona (demolished 1930; reconstructed 1986). It exhibited a sequence of marvelous spaces on a 175- by 56-foot (53.6- by 17-metre) travertine platform, partly under…

Ludwig Quidde: …served as chairman of the German Peace Society. During World War I he opposed German sentiments for the annexation of foreign territories as a condition for a peace settlement.

German People’s Party (Deutsche Volkspartei; DVP), right-liberal political party founded by Gustav Stresemann in 1918, made up largely of the educated and propertied. Since Stresemann was essentially a monarchist, when he decided to cooperate with the Weimar Republic the DVP was at first excluded

Germany: Fringe parties: …rightist Republican Party and the DVU were the most visible of Germany’s fringe parties. With their tiny memberships, neither of these parties has been able to surmount the 5 percent barrier in national elections. The National Democratic Party of Germany (Nationaldemokratische Partei Deutschlands; NPD), the oldest of the country’s right-wing…

German Empire: The breach with the National Liberals: …Eugen Richter to form the German Radical Party (Deutsche Freisinnige Partei). In response, Bismarck struck a bargain with the Centre. He agreed that the conflict with the Roman Catholic Church should be called off and that any increase in the customs yield beyond 130 million marks a year should be…

Deutsche Bahn AG, the railway system of Germany created in 1994 by the merger of the Deutsche Bundesbahn (German Federal Railway), the state rail system in the former West Germany, with the Deutsche Reichsbahn (German State Railway), the state system in the former East Germany. At the time of

Weimar Republic, the government of Germany from 1919 to 1933, so called because the assembly that adopted its constitution met at Weimar from February 6 to August 11, 1919. The abdication of Emperor William II on November 9, 1918, marked the end of the German Empire. That day Maximilian, prince of

Thomas Mann: World War I and political crisis: … and “Von deutscher Republik” (“The German Republic”) show his somewhat hesitant espousal of democratic principles. His new position was clarified in the novel The Magic Mountain. Its theme grows out of an earlier motif: a young engineer, Hans Castorp, visiting a cousin in a sanatorium in Davos, abandons practical…

A German Requiem, Op. 45, requiem by Johannes Brahms, premiered in an initial form December 1, 1867, in Vienna. Revisions led to an expanded work first heard in Leipzig, Germany on February 18, 1869. It represents Brahms’s most ambitious vocal music. By 1861 Brahms is believed to have completed two

German reunification, the reuniting of East Germany and West Germany into the country of Germany in 1990. The process put a formal end to World War II, guaranteed the western borders of Poland, inspired a drive to greater European integration, and ensured the election of Helmut Kohl as the first

German Salaried Employees’ Union, white-collar labour organization in Germany. The DAG was organized in 1945, shortly after the end of World War II, and became established throughout West Germany; after 1990, workers joined from the former East Germany. The original belief was that white-collar

German Shepherd, breed of working dog developed in Germany from traditional herding and farm dogs. It is a strongly built and relatively long-bodied dog. Its dense coat consists of coarse, medium-long, straight or slightly wavy outer hair and soft short inner hair; its color ranges from white or

German Shepherd, breed of working dog developed in Germany from traditional herding and farm dogs. It is a strongly built and relatively long-bodied dog. Its dense coat consists of coarse, medium-long, straight or slightly wavy outer hair and soft short inner hair; its color ranges from white or

museum: History museums: …in the case of the German Shipping Museum at Bremerhaven; or in a restored waterfront environment, as at South Street, New York City.

pointer: The German shorthaired pointer is another sporting breed. Developed in Germany, it is an all-purpose dog that can track game as well as point and retrieve game in water. It is about the size of a pointer and has a short coat of solid liver colour…

nickel silver, a range of alloys of copper, nickel, and zinc which are silvery in appearance but contain no silver. Its composition varies from 7 to 30 percent nickel, the alloy most widely used being 18 percent nickel silver (18 percent nickel, 62 percent copper, 20 percent zinc). In general the

Bertrand Russell: …published his first political work, German Social Democracy. Though sympathetic to the reformist aims of the German socialist movement, it included some trenchant and farsighted criticisms of Marxist dogmas. The book was written partly as the outcome of a visit to Berlin in 1895 with his first wife, Alys Pearsall…

German South West Africa, a former German colony (1884–1919) that is now the nation of Namibia, in southwestern Africa. In 1883 Franz Adolf Lüderitz, a merchant from Bremen, Germany, established a trading post in southwest Africa at Angra Pequena, which he renamed Lüderitzbucht. He also acquired

library: Other national collections: …1990, after the reunification of Germany, the Deutsche Bibliothek in Frankfurt am Main was merged with the Deutsche Bücherei in Leipzig and the Deutsche Musikarchiv to form the national library of Germany. The Austrian National Library, founded by the emperor Maximilian I in 1493, has rich collections—notably of manuscripts from…

Deutsche Bahn AG: …former West Germany, with the Deutsche Reichsbahn (German State Railway), the state system in the former East Germany. At the time of German reunification, the system route length totaled about 25,800 miles (41,500 km), of which two-thirds was in western Germany; about one-third of the track was electrified.

international trade: The most-favoured-nation clause: …can be found in the German Tariff of 1902, which admitted at a special rate

Deutsches Theater, private dramatic society founded in Berlin in 1883 by the dramatist Adolf L’Arronge in reaction to outmoded theatrical traditions. It presented plays in the ensemble style of the influential Meiningen Company. In 1894 it was affiliated with the Freie Bühne (“Free Theatre”) under

history of Europe: Christian mystics: …these circles came the anonymous German Theology, from which, Luther was to say, he had learned more about man and God than from any book except the Bible and the writings of St. Augustine.

German Trade Union Federation, dominant union organization in Germany. The DGB was founded in Munich in 1949 and soon became the largest labour organization in West Germany, with 16 constituent unions. With the reunification of Germany in 1990, workers of the former East Germany were incorporated

cello, bass musical instrument of the violin group, with four strings, pitched C–G–D–A upward from two octaves below middle C. The cello, about 27.5 inches (70 cm) long (47 inches [119 cm] with the neck), has proportionally deeper ribs and a shorter neck than the violin. The earliest cellos were

German wirehaired pointer, breed of sporting dog developed in mid-19th-century Germany as an all-purpose, all-weather hunting dog. It generally has a keen “nose” and a rugged constitution. It stands 22 to 26 inches (56 to 66 cm), weighs 50 to 70 pounds (23 to 32 kg), and has a deep chest and a

Hitler Youth: …if qualified, inducted into the Deutsches Jungvolk (“German Young People”). At age 13 the youth became eligible for the Hitler Youth, from which he was graduated at age 18. Throughout these years he lived a spartan life of dedication, fellowship, and Nazi conformity, generally with minimum parental guidance. From age…