1. Concept and definition
The use of the term “elite” was long controversial in German historical studies, and even today it is not free from political implications. During the 1970s and 1980s in particular, it had a negative connotation, and there were only a very few studies examining political, social, and economic elites. The concept of elite only began to undergo rehabilitation from the mid-1980s in studies on the modern bourgeoisie and la…