Germany and Europe: What Lessons from History?
In: European history quarterly, Band 26, Heft 1, S. 141-148
ISSN: 0014-3111, 0265-6914
A review essay on books by: Michael Sturmer, Die Grenzen der Macht. Begegnungen der Deutschen mit der Geschichte([The Boundaries of Power. German Encounters with History] Berlin: Siedler, 1992); Gregor Schollgen, Die Macht in der Mitte Europas. Stationen deutscher Aussenpolitik von Friedrich dem Grossen bis zur Gegenwart ([The Power in Central Europe. The Stations of International Politics from Frederick the Great to the Present] Munich: C. H. Beck, 1992); & Wolfgang J. Mommsen, Grossmachtstellung und Weltpolitik, 1870-1914 ([Position as a Great Power and World Politics, 1870-1914] Frankfurt: Ullstein [see listings in IRPS No. 87]). Sturmer begins by linking national identity & history, arguing that those who determine what should be remembered, develop concepts, & interpret the past will control the future. He explores the Federal Republic of Germany's historical evolution since the seventeenth century, focusing on foreign relations & integrating internal & external developments. Schollgen presents his perception of two central problems of German foreign policy, ie, Central Europe's need to obtain external security, & Germany's need for an equal position. Mommsen includes little on domestic politics, but presents an account of who was primarily responsible for WWI. C. Whitcraft