Germany Divided: From the Wall to Reunification

by A. James McAdams

Overview

Germany Divided remains one of the most thought-provoking and comprehensive interpretations of the forty-year relationship between East and West Germany and of the problems of contemporary German unity. In this politically controversial and analytically sophisticated account, A. James McAdams dissects the complex process by which East and West German leaders moved over the years from first pursuing the ideal of German unity, to accepting what they believed to be the inescapable reality of division, and then, finally, to meeting the challenges of an unanticipated reunification. This new edition contains an epilogue in which McAdams considers some of the political and economic problems faced by eastern and western Germans as they entered their fourth year of living together.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780691221977
Publisher:	Princeton University Press
Publication date:	12/08/2020
Series:	Princeton Studies in International History and Politics , #50
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	270
File size:	28 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

A. James McAdams is a Departmental Fellow at the Kellogg Institute for International Studies and Associate Professor of Government and International Relations at the University of Notre Dame.

Table of Contents

Preface
Acknowledgments
Abbreviations
I	A Wall between the Germanys	3
Accepting Germany's Division	5
A German-German Consensus	13
II	One Germany, Two Alliances	16
The Soviet Ultimatum	17
East German Uncertainties	23
The Persistence of West German Policy	30
The Evolution of East German Policy	36
Divergent Priorities	44
The Construction of the Wall	49
III	Two Germanys: Confrontation or Accommodation?	56
Changing Surroundings	57
West Germany's Awkward Adaptation	64
The Rigidity of East German Policy	71
Bonn's Breakthrough: The Ostpolitik	79
The End of the Ulbricht Era	87
Two States in Germany?	93
IV	Two German States: New Relations, Bad Relations	96
The Inter-German Dilemma	97
The Benefits of Cooperation	102
Handling Questions of Principle	106
Whither Inter-German Ties: The View from Bonn	113
Whither Inter-German Ties: Retrenchment in the GDR	121
Toward a German-German Deadlock?	126
Inter-German Ties in Question	133
V	Accepting a Divided Germany	134
A Threat from the West	135
An East German Opportunity?	141
The Meeting at Werbellin	147
The "Wende"	152
A German "Coalition of Reason"	158
A New Era between the Germanys	164
A Working Visit to Bonn	173
VI	The Fall of East Germany	175
The Illusion of Success	177
A Path of Least Resistance	185
A New Political Force	193
The West German Response	199
Unity Despite the Germanys	204
VII	Germany without a Wall	207
Inter-German Tensions of a New Type	209
A Liberal Democratic Germany	216
The New Germany and the New Europe	222
App. A. Interview Locations, 1985-1990	229
App. B. GDR Oral History Project Interviews	231
Select Bibliography	233
Index	245

What People are Saying About This

Norman Naimark

There are very few scholars in the German field who move as comfortably between the different worlds of Bonn and East Berlin as does A. James McAdams.
— Norman Naimark, Stanford University

From the Publisher

"There are very few scholars in the German field who move as comfortably between the different worlds of Bonn and East Berlin as does A. James McAdams."—Norman Naimark, Stanford University

Editorial Reviews

In this penetrating study, based partly on his personal contacts with politicians and political advisers of the former East and West Germanys, McAdams discusses how the leaders of both countries pursued the ideal of unification, then accepted the reality of division, and how they are currently dealing with the challenges presented by the unexpected reunification. These challenges, the author contends, are twofold: to convince the citizens of the former German Democratic Republic of their inclusion in the institutions of the new Germany, while at the same time persuading the citizens of the old Federal Republic that they are not being victimized by the sudden burdens arising from unification. McAdams also addresses regional fears that the new Germany may withdraw from active participation in European affairs as it turns inward to cope with escalating problems, such as the influx of refugees. McAdams, an associate professor of government and international relations at Notre Dame, has written a notable analysis of the two Germanys and how they became one. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

This thorough analysis of the dynamics of East and West German policymaking processes that eventually led to the dismantling of the Berlin Wall deemphasizes the idea of reunification as a ``natural'' consequence of the Soviet Union's economic reforms. After nearly a decade of research, including formal interviews with hundreds of German policymakers on both sides, McAdams (government and international relations, Notre Dame) posits that both Ulbricht in the 1950s and Honecker in the 1980s effectively negotiated with the West while remaining out of touch with the mood of the populace. McAdams describes West Germany's ideological problems with reunification in the development of Ostpolitik, in particular the debate centering on whether, by recognizing the legitimacy of a socialist German state, Bonn was sacrificing its identity in the Atlantic alliance and the ideals of Western democracy. Because no other book has focused on the topic, this makes a significant and timely contribution to the field, although it requires a fairly sophisticated reader already knowledgeable about the West German political system in particular. --Peggy Spitzer Christoff, Oak Park, Ill.

Library Journal

That the Wall was bridged so effortlessly in 1989 and 1990 obviates reflection on its 29-year-long endurance: it was an inhuman abomination whose collapse was inevitable, case closed. So runs conventional wisdom. Yet the barrier's dual character as both tangible evidence of the East German state's distrust of its citizens and an object of permanence with which the West German state had to contend propelled the politics of the situation; the rules of politics obviate the inevitable. McAdams modestly promises to "think mundane" about the 29 years following 1961, and pauses to examine in detail the options available to all parties. He can now do this, of course, since East Germany's archives are open and its leaders (in addition to the Federal Republic's) are available for interviews on the events of the period: Bonn's Ostpolitik; the two states' mutual de facto recognition in 1971; their reaction to the tense relations between the superpowers in the early 1980s; and finally reactions to Gorby-philia in Bonn (Gorby-phobia in East Berlin). Though this fine scholarly work won't jump off the public library's shelves, those that purchased, say, the late Willy Brandt's memoir ("My Life in Politics" ), can bet on interest.

Gilbert Taylor

"Well documented and consistently rigorous, McAdams' study points out the immense challenges that remain before a liberal democratic Germany can be created."

Orbis

"A. James McAdams' excellent book is above all the story of the two Germanies' forty-year history with each other. . . . Using a plethora of interviews and other primary sources, McAdams presents a story unavailable elsewhere."

The Historian

"An outstanding analysis of the changing relations between East and West Germany."

Osteuropa

". . . comprehensive coverage and first-rate analysis of the intricate East-West German relationship in the 1970's and 80's."

Choice

"A masterly and elegantly written account of the interweaving of domestic politics and inter-German relations."

International Affairs

"There are very few scholars in the German field who move as comfortably between the different worlds of Bonn and East Berlin as does A. James McAdams."—Norman Naimark, Stanford University

From the Publisher