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HI136 The History of Germany Lecture 18 / Week 20

Explore the reasons behind the collapse of communism in Germany in 1989, including international and domestic factors, economic stagnation, political dissent, and the role of Mikhail Gorbachev. Learn about Erich Honecker's leadership, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the subsequent reunification of Germany. Source: Bushnell & Leonard, "Germany Divided and Reunited 1945-91" (2009).

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HI136 The History of Germany Lecture 18 / Week 20

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  1. HI136 The History of GermanyLecture 18 / Week 20 1989

  2. Reasons for Collapse International Factors • Reform within the Soviet Union • Liberalisation elsewhere in Eastern Bloc • Pressure from West Germany Domestic Factors • Economic problems • Growing dissatisfaction with regime • Pressure for reform

  3. Reform in the USSR • 1985: Mikhail Gorbachev become General Secretary of the Russian Communist Party. • Perestroika (‘restructuring’): relaxed production quotas and introduced some free enterprise. • Glasnost (‘openness’): greater freedom of the press & transparency in government agencies. • 1988: Withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan & 50% reduction of military presence in Eastern Europe. • July 1989: End to the ‘Brezhnev Doctrine’. Mikhail Gorbachev

  4. Reform in Eastern Europe • Poland: • 1980: Solidarity formed in Lenin shipyard in Gdansk. • 1988: Nation-wide strikes force regime into negotiations with the opposition. • March 1989: Sweeping constitutional reforms agreed. • June 1989: Communists rejected in first free election since 1939. • Hungary: • 1980s: Reformers within the Communist Party introduce limited economic liberalisation. • 1988: Elderly Janos Kadar removed from office & reformers seize the upper hand in the Politburo. • January 1989: Extensive political reforms agreed, including opening borders with the West.

  5. Political Dissent • Growing dissatisfaction throughout the 1980s. • While other Communist states (eg. Poland & Hungary) embraced Gorbachev’s reforms, the Honecker regime resisted any liberalisation. • May 1989: Local election results expose the fraudulent nature of the system & the extent of popular dissatisfaction. • Estimated that at least 20% of people voted against the SED’s Party List. • Opening of Hungarian border a catalyst for eruption of existing discontent. • Existing opposition groups organise & come out in the open in the summer of 1989. • Indecision at the top of the SED & the lack of support from abroad (USSR) prevent a crack down.

  6. Economic Stagnation GDR heavily dependent on loans from West Germany: by 1981 it owed 10,000 million dollars. Growth fell from 5.5% in 1984 to 2.1% in 1989. The East German economy one of the strongest in the Soviet Bloc, but still unable to provide the standard of living enjoyed in the West. In terms of consumer goods, choice was poor, quality low and prices high. Pollution from the East German industry also having a destructive effect on the environment.

  7. Source: Bushnell & Leonard, Germany Divided and Reunited 1945-91 (2009)

  8. Erich Honecker (1912-94) 1912: Born in the Saarland, the son of a miner 1922: Joined the Communist Party’s youth organization 1930-1: Studied in Moscow 1935: Arrested by the Nazis and sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for his involvement in the Communist underground. 1945: Became head of the Communist youth movement 1958: Elected full member of the Politburo 1971: Ousted Ulbricht to become chairman of the National Defence Council 1976: Became general secretary of the SED and chairman of the Council of State 1989: Resigned as leader of the GDR and fled to Moscow. Extradited back to Germany by Boris Yeltsin. 1992: Tried for ordering killings of East Germans attempting to cross into the West. 1993: Dying of cancer and allowed to go into exile in Chile, where he died a year later.

  9. The Collapse of Communism May 1989: Hungary opens its border with Austria – hundreds of Germans on holiday in Hungary took the opportunity to flee to the West. Mass exodus of East Germans began, with frustrated escapees taking refuge in West German embassies in Prague & Warsaw. Opposition groups began to organise – new East German Social Democratic Party founded in July, calls for an end to the single party state in August, New Forum formed in September, Democratic Beginning in October.

  10. The Collapse of Communism October 1989: Gorbachev visited East Berlin – scuffles between police & protesters. 9 October 1989: 70,000 protesters demonstrated in Leipzig. 19 October: Honecker removed for ‘health reasons’ and replaced by Egon Krenz. Planned staged opening of border crossings mishandled 9-10 November 1989: thousands of Berliners flocked to the Wall & border guards let them through.

  11. The Fall of the Wall • An easing of travel restrictions between the GDR and West Germany announced on 9 Nov. 1989. • Intention that this would appease demands for greater liberalisation. • In a press conference the Berlin SED chief Gunther Schabowski mistakenly announced that border crossings would be opened with immediate effect. • Thousands of Berliners flocked to the wall and border guards had no choice but to let them through. • Ecstatic scenes around the wall and East Berliners welcomed to the West, but potential problems quickly became apparent.

  12. Protests in Leipzig, 9 October 1989 East Germans scale the Berlin Wall, 9-10 November 1989

  13. Explanations for 1989 • Economic stagnation in the Eastern Bloc. • Growing gap between East and West becoming more and apparent in the 1970s and 80s. • By 1989 Marxism-Leninism seemed increasingly bankrupt – regimes had run out of ‘socialist’ solutions to economic and social ills. • Marxism predicted its own demise: revolutions occur when • Division & loss of confidence amongst the ruling elite • Means of production reached the limits of their potential for growth • Educated cease to support the regime • Growing demoralisation and discontent amongst the working classes • Propitious international situation: Gorbachev’s reforms, end of Brezhnev Doctrine etc. • A combination of factors led to the fall of the Berlin Wall and the eventual collapse of the GDR – only when domestic grievances coincided with favourable international circumstances could dissenters successfully challenge the regime.

  14. Reform in the GDR • The opening to the border between East and West Germany meant there was now no turning back for the GDR. • An upsurge of German nationalism and calls for reunification – the protesters’ slogan changes from ‘We are the people’ to ‘We are one people’. • The pressure for reform in the GDR could not be ignored, and the Communist state apparatus quickly dismantled: • Egon Krenz too closely associated with the old regime and resigned after only 44 days. Replaced by Hans Modrow as Prime Minister. • In Dec. 1989 the Volkskammer voteed to alter the constitution, ending the SED’s monopoly on power. • The Politburo and Central Committee resigned, censorship ended and local party officials removed. • Free elections announced for May 1990. • In Feb. the SED renamed itself the Party of Democratic Socialism. • This constitutional revolution achieved by rank-and-file SED members and Volkskammer Deputies.

  15. The International Situation • The West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl rushed to Berlin in November and promised economic aid in return for political reform. • On 28 Nov. Kohl proposed a 10 point plan for reunification without consulting either the Western Allied or his coalition partners. This rejected by the GDR, but put reunification officially on the agenda. • But there were many who had misgivings about reunification in both the Federal Republic and elsewhere. • However, in general the international situation was favourable towards reunification: • An end to Cold War tensions made this possible for the first time since 1945. • The Americans had always backed Kohl’s drive for reunification. • Negotiations over the summer of 1990 solved problems over Germany’s membership of NATO and reassured both the Russians and other European leaders. • In July Gorbachev agreed to abandon objections to reunification in exchange for DM12 million and guarantees that no NATO troops be stationed in Eastern Germany.

  16. March Elections

  17. Reunification • March 1990: Elections in the GDR – the CDU dominated Alliance for Germany won the most seats & formed a Grand Coalition with the Social Democrats & Liberals. • Economic & political collapse meant that a separate East German state was no longer viable. • July 1990: Currency reform saw the Deutschmark being adopted in the East. • ‘Two plus Four’ negotiations between the former wartime allies & the German states led to the USA, USSR, Britain & France renouncing their rights over Germany at midnight on 1-2 October 1990. • At midnight on 2-3 October the black-red-gold flag raised in front of the Reichstag building in Berlin and the GDR was formally abolished.

  18. Source: Mary Fulbrook (ed.), Germany since 1800

  19. December 1990 Bundestag Elections Key: CDU – Black SPD – Red FDP – Yellow PDS – Purple Greens – Green

  20. Germany After 1990 • The speed of reunification brought problems of its own. • Economic disparities between East and West led to resentment and dissatisfaction. • ‘Ossies’ and ‘Wessies’. • The rise of Ostalgie. • ‘Destasification’: opening of Stasi files led to controversy: • Criminal charges against former border guards in ealy 90s led to accusations of ‘Victors Justice’. • Scandals as the extent of surveillance became common knowledge. Stall selling GDR memorabilia, Berlin, 2006

  21. History & Memory in Reunified Germany To the Victims of War and Tyranny

  22. Post-reunification Politics • Fears of a resurgence of the extreme right proved unfounded in the 1990s. • Despite the fears of other European nations the German political system continued in the same mold. • 1991: Bundestag voted for Berlin to become the capital once more. • 1999: Restored Reichstag building becomes the home of the German parliament. • Renewed sense of national confidence and involvement in international politics. • Germany a confident, stable democratic nation at the heart of Europe. Gerhard Schröder, Chancellor 1998-2005 Angela Merkel, Chancellor 2005 -

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