1. Political Background

The political history of Germany in the 20th century has seen a series of revolutionary, traumatic changes that have profoundly affected the lives of its citizens and their social institutions. In 1918, on Germany’s defeat in the First World War, the Hohenzollern Empire was overthrown and a new parliamentary democracy established, commonly called the Weimar Republic. Because of strong opposition from many leading circles in the nation, however, this u…