Brian E. Vick. Defning Germany: The 1848 Parliamentarians and National Identity. Cambridge and London: Harvard University Press, 2002. x + 283 pp. 95, cloth, ISBN 978-0-674-00911-0.

Reviewed by Abigail Green

Published on H-German (February, 2003)

This very useful analysis of pre-unifcation Vick's approach is avowedly that of the intel‐ focuses on the Frankfurt lectual historian, although he draws on more re‐ of 1848/9. Basing his arguments on the cent sociological and cultural approaches to the debates of the parliament itself, on the publica‐ problem of nineteenth-century German nation‐ tions of its members, and on the works of fgures hood. As such, his book provides a welcome up- such as Kant, Fichte and Hegel who shaped the in‐ date of the traditional history-of-ideas approaches tellectual climate of the time, Brian Vick dissects to the issue. It is, however, very much a book for attitudes to nationhood in general and German the specialist, which assumes a high degree of nationhood in particular. This approach proves knowledge in the reader and leaps straight into extremely fruitful. The was the nitty-gritty of nineteenth-century intellectual notoriously unrepresentative of the population at debate with little contextual explanation. More‐ large but, as Vick argues, it was very representa‐ over in terms of focus, Vick pays far more atten‐ tive of educated political opinion. Most deputies tion to the new categories of analysis he puts for‐ desired German unifcation of some kind, but ward himself than to "old chestnuts" like the within this consensus the political spectrum kleindeutsch/grossdeutsch debate. This clearly re‐ ranged from unitarists through federalists to re‐ fects the relative importance Vick attaches to dif‐ formist particularists. In terms of age, confession ferent facets of German nationhood, but, equally, and geographical distribution, the range of it is unrepresentative both of the debates in the deputies was even more comprehensive. From Frankfurt Parliament itself and of the wider histo‐ this perspective, the Frankfurt Parliamentarians riographical literature. For the specialist, howev‐ provide an excellent starting point for an analysis er, it will prove an invaluable addition to existing of the culture of nationhood amongst Germany's work on German nationalism. mid-century political elite. The book falls into two sections: an account of pre-1848 ideas about nationhood and an account H-Net Reviews of how these ideas developed during the revolu‐ of the political spectrum constructed the German tion. Although shorter, the former is, in many national past. Here, his analysis undercuts the tra‐ ways, the more novel since the Vormaerz has in‐ ditional assumption that pro-Prussian and Protes‐ evitably attracted less attention in the historical tant nationalists idealized the ancient literature than the revolution itself. From this per‐ and denigrated the Catholic and imperial High spective, Vick's contribution is particularly wel‐ Middle Ages, whilst pro- Austrian and Catholic na‐ come. It provides us with a context in which to tionalists idealized the medieval Empire and lo‐ place the developments of 1848 and it enables us cated German decline in a later period. In reality, to assess how far the events of 1848 did indeed the range of historical narratives was more com‐ radicalize existing conceptions of nationhood. plex than this simplistic dichotomy might suggest. In the frst section of the book, Vick makes On the other hand, Vick places great emphasis on two main arguments. First, he seeks to undermine organicist conceptions of both state and nation as the traditional distinction drawn by historians historical actors. Conceiving of the state/nation in and theorists of nationalism between the "politi‐ this way enabled members of the nationalist op‐ cal" understanding of nationhood prevailing in position to adapt liberal ideas about the individu‐ Western Europe and the "cultural" understanding al to the world of history and international rela‐ of nationhood that predominated in Central and tions. Within the context of a view of history as Eastern Europe. According to this distinction, progress through confict, this parallelism led lib‐ whereas the former focused on notions of citizen‐ erals to privilege above all the autonomy of the ship in defning nationality, the latter focused on state/nation and the idea of national honor. ethnic identity and particularly language as quali‐ In the second half of the book, Vick explores fcations for nationhood. According to Vick, how‐ the implications of these ideas for the Frankfurt ever, this distinction misrepresents the complex Parliament itself, showing us how they helped to way in which Frankfurt parliamentarians com‐ shape the outcome of its debates. He starts out by bined cultural and political ideas in their concep‐ exploring attitudes towards religious and national tion of nationhood. He demonstrates that whilst minorities, in the frst place the Jews and in the Germans undoubtedly did see language and cul‐ second place non-German speakers. He shows ture as facets of nationality, they also saw political that whilst Frankfurt parliamentarians undoubt‐ institutions as an equally important expression of edly shared many of the anti-Jewish prejudices of this national culture. Similarly, the emphasis their era, the 1830s and marked a transition placed on free will and the role of self-determina‐ away from a support for gradual emancipation as tion in nationhood undercut racial and biological a stepping stone to assimilation towards accep‐ determinist ideas. From this perspective, the tance of the arguments for immediate and uncon‐ boundaries of the German nation in Central Eu‐ ditional emancipation. Most did indeed believe rope remained very fuid in the minds of the na‐ that emancipation would lead to acculturation, tionalist opposition before 1848. Equally, Vick but only religious conservatives and extreme anti- demonstrates the fundamental interconnection Semites insisted on conversion as the only way in between and nationalism in this peri‐ which Jews could really become Germans. This od. acceptance of the place of minority groups within Second, Vick explores the role of the past and the German nation was also apparent in attitudes conceptions of history in the nationalist imagina‐ towards citizenship rights for non-German speak‐ tion. On the one hand, he demonstrates the wide ers: there was a general consensus that such variety of ways in which men from diferent ends groups were unquestionably entitled to civil and political equality within the German nation. In

2 H-Net Reviews both cases, the relative toleration of minorities re‐ nally, Vick demonstrates how conceptions of na‐ fected a political rather than a strictly cultural tional honor, national autonomy and Germany's understanding of nationhood. That said, Frank‐ historic mission shaped the belligerent foreign furt parliamentarians were more ambivalent in policy of the Frankfurt Parliament. His discussion their attitude towards minority languages and of the parliamentarians' belief in the inevitability cultures. They tended to endorse the rights of mi‐ of confict in history and the probability of con‐ nority groups to use their own languages within fict between supra-national racial blocks in a Eu‐ the areas where they predominated, but they did ropean context is particularly interesting. not accept notions of linguistic parity and were Throughout, Vick is admirably careful in absolutely hostile to the idea of a language other identifying the political, confessional and geo‐ than German being spoken in the future national graphical bias of individual parliamentarians, al‐ assembly. Ultimately, this refected an agenda of though this reader did emerge with a sense that peaceful germanization. The parliamentarians ac‐ he repeatedly cited a smaller group of relatively cepted the rights of these groups to exist but also prominent fgures--Dahlmann, Waitz, Stenzel, Be‐ assumed the superiority of German culture would seler, Struve to name but a few. He also ofers eventually prevail. genuinely new insights on a variety of issues, Similar attitudes determined their approach ranging from the cultural/political defnitions of to border disputes in Schleswig, Poznania and nationhood, through the links between liberalism greater . To some extent, parliamentarians and nationalism, to the place of minorities in the took a legal and historical view of these issues. German national imagination and the role of con‐ Nevertheless, they also showed a willingness to ceptions of history in dictating nationalist ideas. incorporate predominantly German Poznania Surprisingly, however, Vick fails to connect with into the new , despite the lack of such recent debates about federal nationalism and the legal- historical ties. Conversely, they did not en‐ role of the in shaping Ger‐ visage separation from historically "German" man ideas of nationhood. Perhaps this is because lands such as and , despite the Vick takes both federal nationalism and the legacy Czech majority here. Vick argues persuasively of the Holy Roman Empire for granted. If so then that attitudes to these issues were determined by it is a telling example of his failure to contextual‐ the tendency to privilege urban, industrial, edu‐ ize properly. He is admittedly concerned to place cated and middle- class culture, which was seen the views of parliamentarians in their wider intel‐ as predominantly German even in ethnically lectual context, but does not go further than this. mixed areas, over rural folk cultures, which were In particular, it would have been interesting to more often non-German. The relatively expansive see him exploring continuities and connections defnition of German boundaries refected the between Early Modern and Modern attitudes to parliamentarians' belief in historical progress and German nationhood. Overall, however, Vick pro‐ Germany's civilizing mission in Central and East‐ vides a thought-provoking analysis of the German ern Europe. Such territories might not yet be cul‐ culture of nationhood in this period. As such, his turally German through and through, but as book meets a real historiographical need. modernity spread so would German culture with‐ Copyright (c) 2003 by H-Net, all rights re‐ in them. Although supporters of grossdeutsch and served. H-Net permits the redistribution and kleindeutsch solutions to the reprinting of this work for nonproft, educational difered in their tactical approach to these ques‐ purposes, with full and accurate attribution to the tions, Vick maintains that these diferences mask author, web location, date of publication, originat‐ a wider consensus about German nationhood. Fi‐

3 H-Net Reviews ing list, and H-Net: Humanities & Social Sciences Online. For other uses contact the Reviews editori‐ al staf: [email protected].

If there is additional discussion of this review, you may access it through the network, at https://networks.h-net.org/h-german

Citation: Abigail Green. Review of Vick, Brian E. Defning Germany: The 1848 Frankfurt Parliamentarians and National Identity. H-German, H-Net Reviews. February, 2003.

URL: https://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=7175

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

4