Reception of the Theme of the German Empire in the Anniversary Historical Narratives of the XX Century

Abstract

The article examines the reception of the subject of the German Empire by Russian/Soviet and German historians in the twentieth century as part of its anniversary celebrations. In 1921 both Russian and German historical journals discussed the resignation of Bismarck as a critical step for the fortunes of the empire and openly criticised Wilhelm IIIn the Russian narrative, the revolution that led the empire to its collapse was harshly critiqued. After the defeat of Germany in the Second World War, the subject of the creation and fortunes of the empire was radically reconsidered by historians in the FRG. In the year of its centenary, 1971, Germany was debating the “second foundation of the empire”, imperial ceremonies and rituals were being studied, the Second Empire was being called the “Bismarck State”, and the chancellor was being accused of absolutism. The historical narratives in the GDR were represented by the Marxist conception of nineteenth-century German history, above all by the ideas of F. Engels. The creation of the empire was assessed in a mixed manner, it was noted that 'the German people found their unity in the Prussian barracks', and Bismarck's rule was described as a “Bonapartist monarchy”. A similar attitude can be traced in the historical narrative in the USSR: the empire was declared a “Prussian-German militarist state”. The problem of ethnicity and the long-awaited German unity was significant for German narratives of 1921. In the twenty-first century, historians of a united Germany warn against idealising the Second Reich and debate the synthesis of the collective and the individual in the phenomenon of memory-identity.