GERMANY SINCE 1945 Pól O’Dochartaigh Germany since 1945 STUDIES IN CONTEMPORARY HISTORY Series Editors: T. G. Fraser and J. O. Springhall Published THE ARAB–ISRAELI CONFLICT T. G. Fraser AMERICA AND THE WORLD SINCE 1945 T. G. Fraser and Donette Murray THE ULSTER QUESTION SINCE 1945, Second edition James Loughlin GERMANY SINCE 1945 Po´l O’Dochartaigh THE RISE AND FALL OF THE SOVIET EMPIRE, Second edition Raymond Pearson THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT: Struggle and Resistance William T. Martin Riches THE UNITED NATIONS AND INTERNATIONAL POLITICS Stephen Ryan JAPAN SINCE 1945 Dennis B. Smith DECOLONIZATION SINCE 1945 John Springhall Studies in Contemporary History Series Standing Order ISBN 0–333–71706–6 hardcover ISBN 0–333–69351–5 paperback (outside North America only) You can receive future titles in this series as they are published by placing a standing order. Please contact your bookseller or in the case of difficulty, write to us at the address below with your name and address, the title of the series and the ISBN quoted above. Customer Services Department, Macmillan Distribution Ltd Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS, England GERMANY SINCE 1945 PO´ L O’DOCHARTAIGH Q Po´l O’Dochartaigh 2004 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4LP. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. The author has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. First published 2004 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS and 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010 Companies and representatives throughout the world PALGRAVE MACMILLAN is the global academic imprint of the Palgrave Macmillan division of St. Martin’s Press, LLC and of Palgrave Macmillan Ltd. MacmillanW is a registered trademark in the United States, United Kingdom and other countries. Palgrave is a registered trademark in the European Union and other countries. ISBN 0–333–96471–3 hardback ISBN 0–333–96472–1 paperback This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and sustained forest sources. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data O’Dochartaigh, Po´l. Germany since 1945 / Po´l O’Dochartaigh. p. cm. – (Studies in contemporary history) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0–333–96471–3—ISBN 0–333–96472–1 (pbk.) 1. Germany—History—1945–1990. 2. Germany—History— Unification, 1990. 3. Germany (East)—History. 4. Cold war. 5. German reunification question (1949–1990) 6. Germany—History—1990– I. Title. II. Studies in contemporary history (Palgrave (Firm)) DD258.3.O36 2003 943.087—dc21 2003046955 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 13 12 11 10 09 08 07 06 05 04 Printed in China For two mentors who have become friends, Dr Colin Walker of Belfast and Professor Ian Wallace of Carlisle and Bath This page intentionally left blank CONTENTS Series Editors’ Preface xii Acknowledgements xiv List of Abbreviations xv Maps 1 Germany under occupation after 1945 xviii 2 Berlin: the four sectors xix 3 Reunified Germany after 1990 xx Introduction: Germany before 1945 1 1 Defeat, Occupation and Division, 1945–9 4 Whither Germany? 4 Democratisation 7 Denazification 11 Stalinisation in the East 15 Capitalism in the West 18 The Cold War 23 Steps in Opposite Directions 27 The Berlin Blockade 30 1949: Two States 33 Conclusion 34 vii Contents 2 Economic Success while Cementing Division, 1949–61 37 Introduction 37 Expellees and Refugees 38 A New Economy in the West 40 A New Economy in the East 43 17 June 1953 45 Consolidating Power in the East 47 Federalism versus Centralism 50 Defending Democracy 51 Israel and Reparations 54 The Cold War and Military Alliances 56 West European Economic Integration 58 The Saar 60 Questions of Unification 61 The Berlin Wall 64 Adenauer and CDU Success 67 Conclusion 71 3 Separate Paths, 1961–9 73 Introduction 73 The 1961 Election 73 The Der Spiegel Affair and the End of Adenauer 74 Erhard as Chancellor 77 Foreign Policy 79 Israel and the Arab Countries 80 German–German Relations 82 The GDR in the 1960s 85 Economic Recession in the West 89 The Grand Coalition 91 Neo-Nazism in West Germany 92 Student Protests, Emergency Laws and Opposition outside Parliament 94 Brandt’s Success 101 viii Contents 4 New Beginnings, 1969–77 104 Introduction 104 Ostpolitik 1: Moscow 105 Ostpolitik 2: Warsaw 106 Berlin 107 The End of Ulbricht 108 Honecker’s First Years: Liberalisation and Demarcation 109 Ostpolitik 3: Brandt and the GDR 112 Opposition, Defections and an Early Election 114 Consequences of the Basic Treaty 117 Ostpolitik 4: Prague 119 International Relations 120 Israelis, Arabs and Oil 122 Economic Recession and Guest Workers 123 Terrorism and the ‘German Autumn’ 126 Liberalisation and ‘Radicals’ in West Germany 130 The End of Brandt 132 The End of Liberalisation 133 Conclusion 135 5 Two Nations? 1977–89 137 Introduction 137 Global Politics 138 Nuclear Weapons 139 Nuclear Energy, the Environment and the Greens 142 ‘The German Autumn’ 147 West German Economics and Social Policy 148 West German Political Parties and Elections 151 The Nazi Past and Contemporary Neo-Nazism 157 Control of GDR Society 161 The Niche Society 164 Opposition in the GDR 166 Economic and Political Weaknesses 171 Conclusion: German States East and West 173 ix Contents 6 Unification, 1989–90 178 Introduction 178 International Context 179 Forebodings of Change 181 The long, hot summer of 1989 182 9 October 1989 185 9 November 1989 188 Reactions in Germany 189 Reactions Abroad 191 The Path to Democracy 194 Economic Union 197 Obstacles to Unification 199 Unification 202 7 United Germany, 1990–2003 205 Introduction 205 Politics and Political Parties 206 Foreign Policy and European Integration 212 Industry and Finance – West 217 Industry and Finance – East 220 Social Integration of the East 223 The GDR Past 226 Foreigners, Refugees, Asylum Seekers and Ethnic Germans 233 The Nazi Past and Neo-Nazis 235 Conclusion 240 Conclusion: A Nation Once Again? 244 Appendices 1 Federal election results, 1949–2002 250 2 Leading political office-holders, 1949–2002 252 3 Federal elections, 1990–2002: East–West comparison 254 x Contents 4 Neo-Nazi electoral successes since 1945 255 5 Party success at state level 256 Bibliography 258 Index 265 xi SERIES EDITORS’ PREFACE There are those, politicians among them, who feel that historians should not teach or write about contemporary events and people – many of whom are still living – because of the difficulty of treating such matters with historical per- spective, and that it is right to draw some distinction be- tween the study of history and the study of current affairs. Proponents of this view seem to be unaware of the concept of contemporary history to which this series is devoted, that the history of the recent past can and should be written with a degree of objectivity. As memories of the Second World War recede, it is surely time to place in perspective the postwar history that has shaped all our lives, whether we were born in the 1940s or the 1970s. Many countries – Britain, the United States and Germany among them – allow access to their public records under a thirty-year rule, opening up much of the postwar period to archival research. For more recent events, diaries, memoirs, and the investigations of newspapers and television, confirm the view of the famous historian Sir Lewis Namier that all secrets are in print provided you know where to look for them. Contemporary historians also have the opportunity, denied to historians of earlier periods, of interviewing par- ticipants in the events they are analysing. The problem facing the contemporary historian is, if anything, the embar- rassment of riches. In any case, the nature and extent of world changes since the late 1980s have clearly signalled the need for concise discussion of major themes in post-1945 history. For many of xii Series Editors’ Preface us the difficult thing to grasp is how dramatically the world has changed over recent years: the end of the Cold War and of Soviet hegemony over eastern Europe; the collapse of the Soviet Union and Russian communism; the unification of Germany; the pace of integration in the European Union; the disintegration of Yugoslavia; political and economic tur- bulence in South-East Asia; communist China’s reconcili- ation with consumer capitalism; the faltering economic progress of Japan. Writing in a structured and cogent way about these seismic changes is what makes contemporary history so challenging, and we hope that the end result will convey some of this excitement and interest to our readers. The general objective of this series is to offer concise and up-to-date treatments of postwar themes considered of his- torical and political significance, and to stimulate critical thought about the theoretical assumptions and conceptual apparatus underlying interpretation of the topics under dis- cussion. The series should bring some of the central themes and problems confronting students and teachers of recent history, politics and international affairs into sharper focus than the textbook writer alone could provide. The blend required to write contemporary history that is both readable and easily understood but also accurate and scholarly is not easy to achieve, but we hope that this series will prove worth- while for both students and teachers interested in world affairs since 1945.