Introduction |
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Federal Republic of Germany is a major industrialized nation of Europe. It is a federal union of 16 states. It is situated in Central Europe. it is surrounded by the North sea, Denmark and Baltic Sea to the north, to the ease it is surrounded by Poland and the Czech Republics, to the south by Austria and Switzerland and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands. Germany is the Seventh largest country in area in Europe. Berlin is the capital and largest city of Germany.
Germany is a democratic parliamentary federal republic, which comprise 16 states. These 16 states act independently they called Lander. Germany was unified as a nation state during the Franco-Prussian war in 1870/1871. The Federal Republic of Germany is a member state of the United Nations, NATO, the G8 and the G4 nations and is a founding member of the European Union. It is the EU's most populous and most economically powerful member state.
| Country Name : | Germany |
| Capital : | Berlin |
| Largest City : | Berlin |
| Official Language : | German |
| Government : | Federal Republic |
| President : | Horst Kohler |
| Prime Minister : | (Chancellor) Angela Merkel (CDU) |
| Area : | 357,050 kmē |
| Area Rank : | 63rd |
| Population : | 82,689,000 |
| Population Rank : | 14th |
| Density : | 230.9/kmē |
| Density Rank : | 34th |
| GDP Total : | $2,521,699 million |
| GDP Total Rank : | 5th |
| GDP per Capita : | $30,579 |
| GDP per Capita Rank : | 17th |
| Currency : | Euro |
| Time Zone : | CET (UTC+1) |
| Internet TLD : | .de |
| Calling Code : | +49 |
| Geographic Coordinates : | 51 00 N, 9 00 E |
| Railways : | 46,166 km |
| Highways : | 231,581 km |
| Waterways : | 7,467 km |
| Internet Users : | 48,722,055 |
| Radio Users : | 77.8 million |
| Mobile Users : | 71.3 million |
| Telephone Users : | 54.574 million |
| Population Growth : | -0.02% |
| Birth Rate : | 8.25 births/1,000 |
| Death Rate : | 10.62 deaths/1,000 |
| Airport : | 552 |
Description :
Three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and gold.
The state, which known as Germany was unified as a modern nation-state in 1871, when the German Empire dominated by the kingdom of Prussia.
Early History of the Germanic tribes: -
Germanic tribes are believed to have come from Scandinavia, mainly the Jut land Peninsula Germanic tribes invaded by the Celts in the 100s BC to the AD 300s. The Colts were pushed from the lands by Roman Empire to Gaul and the Iberian Peninsula. The Celts were than pushed bye the Germanic tribes invaded Western Europe fighting against the Gallic tribes Between 125 to 101 BC but were ejected and destroyed by the Roman general Marius. It was approximately fifty years until they became powerful to pose a threat again to Rome under the Suebic king Ariovistus.
Under Augustus the Roman General Drusus started to invade Germany. At that time, German tribes were greatly aware with Roman tactics of warfare, so German tribes use this technology to destroy the Roman Empire.
During AD 9 to AD 15, German war chief Arminius drove the Romans out of Germany.
Migration Period and Franks: -
The migration included the Goths, Vandals and Franks among other Germanic and Slavic tribes.
The Franks were one of several West Germanic federations. The confederation was formed out of Germanic tribes, such as Salians, Sugambri, Chamavi, Tenderi, Chattuarii, Bructeri, Usipetes, Ampsivarii, and Chatti. They entered the late Roman Empire from present central Germany and settled in northern Gaul.
The Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation: -
The medieval empire since 1448 officially called the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation but it often referred to as the Holy Roman Empire, which was founded by Charlemagne on 25th December, 800 and existed in different forms until 1806, which is spreader to the river Eider in the north to the Mediterranean coast in the south.
Restoration and Revolution: -
After Napoleon's defeat and the end of Confederation of the Rhine, the Congress of Vienna convened in 1814 in order to restructure Europe. In Germany, the German Confederation was founded, a loose league of 39 sovereign states. Disagreement with the restoration politics partly led to the lifestyle called Biedermeier and to intellectual liberal movements, which demanded unity and freedom during the Vormorz epoch.
The German people had been stirred by the ideals of the French revolution. On 18th October 1817 Students held a gathering to exchange ideas, the high point of which was the burning of works by authors like Otto of Kotzebue, who were against a united German state. A second such meeting attracted 30,000 people from all social classes and from all regions to the Hambacher celebration. So for the first time, the colors of black, red and gold were chosen to represent the movement, which later became the national colors.
The states were also shaped by the Industrial Revolution, which was the initial step of the growing industrialization in Europe and contributed to wove of a poverty, causing social uprisings. In 1848, Revolutions held by intellectuals and common people in German states. The monarchs yielded to the revolutionaries' liberal demands and an intellectual National Assembly was elected to draw up a constitution for the new Germany, completed in 1849.
In 1862, conflict between the Prussian King Wilhelm I and the increasingly liberal parliament erupted over military reforms. The king appointed Otto Von Bismarck as the new Prime Minister of Prussia.
German Empire: -
After the French defeat in the France Prussian War, the German Empire was established in Versailles in 18th January 1871. The new empire was a unification of all the scattered ports of Germany but without Austria. Bismarck was forced to quit in 1890 by the new emperor, Wilhelm II, because off political as well as personal differences. Under the rule of Wilhelm II, Germany took an imperialistic course, not unlike other powers, but it let to friction with neighboring countries. In 1884, Germany formed some colonies. During 1904-1907 German troops killed mostly the Herero Genocide after a rebellion. In November 1918, the second German Revolution broke out. An armistice was signed on November 11, putting an end to the war. In 1919, Germany forcefully singed the Treaty of Versailles.
Weimar Republic: -
On 11th August 1919, the Weimar constitution was formed. During the Weimar Republic Berlin was a vibrant city, which was a home of great artists, intellectuals and scientists. During this time, ceremony became tired due to unstable governments and economic hardships. Due to all these, German Revolution was occurred.
During the years following the Revolution, German voters increasingly supported anti-democratic parties. In the first election of 1932, the Nazis got 37.2% and the communists got 17%, while in the second election of 1932, the Nazis got 33%. As a result, democratic moderate parties like the Social Democratic Party of Germany were left with a minority.
On 29th January 1933, President von Hinesburg pushed by advisors and they appointed Adolf Hitler as Chancellor of Germany.
Third Reich: -
The Reichstag was set on fire on fire on 27th February 1933. Basic rights were abrogated under an emergency decree. At that time Hitler's government got fall legislative power. A centralized totalitarian state was established.
The new regime enacted governmental policies directly many parts of society such as Jews, homosexuals, Roma and the disabled amongst others, labeling them as sub-human and unworthy of participation in German life. After the beginning of Second World War, German troops occupied neighboring countries, the persecution was extended to these territories as well and Slavs and other ethnic groups were included into the list of "Undesirables".
During the rule of Hitler, Germany quickly gained direct or indirect control of the majority of Europe. In 1941, Hitler broke the pact with the Soviet Union by opening the Eastern Front and invading the Soviet Union Germany and Japan declared war on the United States, which caused the USA to enter the war against Germany. Germany quickly gained ground into the surprised Soviet Union. Germany invaded Stalin grad in 1942. In January 1943, the remnants of the surrounded army surrendered after weeks of hard fighting without receiving any tangible reinforcement of supply. On 8th May 1945, Germany surrendered after the Red Army occupied Berlin, where Hitler had committed suicide a week earlier and much of his cabinet had fled.
Division and Reunification: -
The war resulted in the death of some million Germans with a disputed estimate of as many of 12 million people in all, large territorial losses and the ethnic cleansing of approximately 12 to 18 million Germans from Eastern Germany and other ports of Eastern Europe. Two million Germans died as a result of these post-war expulsions. German territory was occupied and annexed by Poland and the Soviet Union and this reduced Germany's land territory drastically.
On 23 May 1949, the Federal Republic of Germany was formed on the territory of the Western occupied zones, with Bonn as its provisional capital. On 7th October 1949 the Soviet Zone was established as the German Democratic Republic, with East Berlin as its capital. In English the two states were known as "West Germany" and "East Germany" respectively. The Western occupying powers recognized West Germany as "fully sovereign" on May 5, 1955. In 1961 East Germany Built the Berlin Wall. In 1989 Germans from the East and West breached the Berlin Wall, an event that symbolized the collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe and the beginning of German reunification. Amid Joyful celebration, the two Germanys were reunited on October 3, 1990, as the Federal Republic of Germany.
Germany has rich and varied culture.
Literature: - In the 9th century German literature was written in Latin languages. But in 12th and 13th centuries, some poets formed a vernacular literature. The Nibelungenlied and the Gudrunlied, which based on pagan Germanic traditions, are two most important epics of that time. During the 14th and 15th centuries, two important events greatly affected the western culture. These events were the construction of a printing press using movable type around 1450 by German printer Johannes Gutenberg and the translation of the Bible into German in 1521 by religious reformer Marin Luther. They also funded a High German language, which everyone could read and understand.
Gothhold Ephraim Lessing was the first writer and dramatis, Nathan the wise was his famous play. The other very important writer was Johann Gottfried von Herder who was also a great philosopher and literacy critic of the 18th century Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe and Friedrich Schiller were the great poets of that time. The great inspiration for this golden age of German literature was classical antiquity, which was considered admirable for its balance and perfection Grimm brothers fairs tales and stories and materials based on Middle Ages history were also very famous and popular. Moreover, Friedrich Holderlin's romantic poems were also very famous at that time.
In the mid- 1800s the new literary schools of naturalism and symbolism developed Naturalism regarded human behavior as controlled by instinct, social and economic conditions, it rejected free will Naturalist Playwright Gerhart Hauptmann explored hereditary factors that shaped the individuals while the work of symbolist poet Rainer Maria Rilke was marked by mystic lyricism and imagery. Austrian Playwright and poet Hugo Von Hofmannsthal created aesthetic moods. Thomas Mann and Alfred Doblin were the great German novelists of the 1900s. Arthur Schnitzler and Frank Wedekind were the playwrights of 1900s, which greatly reflected social criticism.
In 1929, Erich Maria Remorque's antiwar novel Im Westen nichts Neues was published writers like Hermann Hesse, author of Siddhartha, drew on Indian philosophy and religion. In 1993, the Nazi party took control over Germany; so German arts had greatly suffered during that time. Novelists, Heinrich Boll, Gunter Grass, Vwe Johnson, Playwrights Peter Weiss, Peter Handke and poets Ingeborg Bachmann and Paul Celan play very tremendous role in German literature during the 20th century.
Art and Architecture: -
German art and architecture reflected the European are. Carolingian Cathedral at Aachen was one of the most important buildings in Europe. The cathedrals of Hildesheim and Magdeburg the illuminated manuscripts the sculpture, and the church paintings of the 10th century reflect the spirituality of Byzantine are and architecture. The cathedrals of Speyer, Gaslar, Mainz, and Worms are great examples of the Romanesque style during 11th and 12th century. The cathedrals of Strasbourg, Trailer and Cologne are outstanding examples of Gothic style.
In the 14th century a family of architects and artists, the Parlors, spreader Gothic designs and sculpture throughout southern Germany. During 15th and 16th century, German artist Albrecht Durer created woodcuts and copper engravings and pioneered ways of reproducing art Matthias Grunewald, Lacas Cranch the Elder and Hans Holbein the Younger are the great painters of that time. The baroque style was also seen in the Catholic Churches, monasteries, and palaces of southern Germany and Austria during the 17th and 18th centuries. In 1706, Andreas Schluter designed Berline's Royal Palace. At that time great architect Bathasar Neumann built the Bishops Residence in Wurzburg with a great stair hall and a reception room, which decorated with ceiling paintings.
The Wies Church, the Benedictine Abbey of Melk on the Danube and the Royal Zwinger Palace were great examples of rococo style. Rococo is distinguished by its fanciful use of cures and light, its flowing asymmetric lines and its pierced shell work. In the 19th century, the painter and architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel designed many buildings in Berlin, while Golttfried Semper pioneered the revival of Renaissaance styles in Dresden and Vienna. Moreover, Caspar David Frienrich and Arl Spitzweg are the great artists of the German romantic period.
During the 20th century, German art and architecture achieved high pick and developed new styles such as Jugendstil. Jugendstil's rich and colourful ornamentation and graceful curves left and indelible imprint on the rest of the century. The Bauhaus school of design is an outstanding example of German art and architecture. The great painter Paul Klee the Russian Wassialy Kandinsky and the Americon Lyonel Feininger were also attracted by the Bauhaus. George Grosz, Kathe Kollwits, Die Brucke and Der Blaue Reiter were the great artist of the 1900.
Music: -
The German music's roots spreader mainly in monastic chants and religious music.
During the 12th century, Hildegard of Bingen wrote stirring compositions, which helped to free musical expression from narrow conventions. 12th century to 14th century, wondering noble's knights called minnesingers, which are secular folk music traditions. From the 14th to the 16th century the German middle class favored the rigid musical style composed by the poets and musicians who belonged to the Meistersinger guild.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, polyphonic music arrived in Germany in the form of the Protestant chorale. "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God" was the most popular chorales of Martin Luther, who was the Protestant leader. Heinrich Schutz, Dietrich Buxtehude and Johann Pachelbel are great music composers. Moreover Johann Sebastian Bach was the greatest music composer of the 17th century, whose towering work was admired for its artistic use of counterpoint. Georg Philip Telemann and George Frideric Handel were great composers as well as contemporaries of Bach. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was the great musical artist of 1700s; he developed his own graceful and lyrical style.
Ludwig van Beethoven was a great musician of 1800s. he used unorthodox harmonies in classical sonatas and symphonies. Another musical innovator of the 1800s, Franz Schubert created the German art song, "The Miller's Beautiful Daughter" was his great romantic composer. Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven and Schubert had found Vienna a musical center of the highest creativity and the most refined musical tastes. But there was also a brust of more popular music with the Viennese waltzes of Johann Strauss the younger and his immortal operettas Die Fledermaus and Der Zigeunerbaron Albert Lortcing and Franz Lehar were the famous operetta masters of 20th century. Anton Bruckner and Gustav Mahler were genius romantic musicians; their songs were famous during 20th century.
German opera of the 19th century enjoyed a dramatic evolution at the hands of Corl Maria Von Weber and Richard Wagner. Wagner was a creater of a style, which linked the music to the action on stage. Both weber and wagner preferred themes from German history during the middle ages. Wagner's famous operas are The Maltersingers of Nunnberg, The Flying Dutchman and the four part epic cycle of the Ring of the Nibelungs. Then after Richard Strauss and Engel-bert Humperdinok were the producers of operas. At the same time, Austian Arnold Schoenberg and his pupils At Anton Webern and Alban Berg devised a revolutionary twelve-tone music. But in the 1930s, due to the rise of Nazi Party, German musical development interrupted. Most of German artists left Germany during the years of the Third Reich After the war; only a few new modern composers appeared. Karlheinz Stockhausen and his electronic music, and Hans Werner Henze and his lyrical modern operas are famous.
Location: - Germany Federal Republic of Germany is located in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark and the Baltic Sea, to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic, to the south by Austria and Switzerland and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands. It is a major center between Scandinavia in the north and the Mediterranean region in the south, as well as between the Atlantic west and the countries of Central and Eastern Europe.
Mountains: - The territory of Germany stretches from the high mountains of the Alps. The Zugspitze is the highest point which is about 2962 meters high, while Neuendorfer, Wilstermarsch is the lowest point, which is about 3.54 meters high.
Rivers: - The Rhine, the Danube and the Elbe are the major rivers of Germany.
Sea: - Two seas like the North Sea and the Baltic Sea, in the northwest, surround Germany.
Area: - Germany is the seventh largest country in area in Europe. The total area of Germany is 3,57,050 km2.
Population: - The population of Germany is about 8,24,22,299 according to the 2006 estimate. Its population density is about 231.1 persons per sq km.
Capital: - Berlin is the capital as well as the largest city of Germany.
Climate: - The large part of Germany enjoys cool climate where also humid westerly winds blow. The climate is affected among other things by the Gulf Stream. Which promotes an unusually mild climate.
In the north and Northwest Territory has oceanic climate and there rain falls during whole year. It has very mild winters as well as it has mild summers also. In the east, the climate is continental; it has very long and cold winter, while it has warm summers. The lowest temperature of Berlin is -0.9.c and its highest temperature are about 18.6.c.
The central part and the southern part have a transitional climate. Munich, which is located in that territory, its lowest temperature is about -2.2.c and its highest temperature is about 17.6.c. while Freeburg's lowest temperature is 1.2.c and its highest temperature is about 19.4.c.
| 1.00 - (Germany ) | = | USD - (United States Dollars) |
| 1.00 USD - (United States Dollars) | = | - (Germany ) |
| Unit | Currency Name | EUR/Unit | Unit/EUR |
Germany is the largest European economy and the third largest economy in the world in real terms. Germany is also the top exporter. Germany does export trade with many countries like France, the United States, the United Kingdom, Italy and the Netherlands. But Germany's economic growth decreased due to high unemployment rate and weak domestic demand. Moreover, eastern Germany has not small and medium sized companies. Moreover the weak domestic demand occurred many economic problems like high unemployment, high social security costs high state debt.
Exports: - Exports plays very important role in Germany's economy. Like many other export oriented countries, Germany has neither good climate nor natural resource, which support it to improve its export trade. Though the lack of natural resources and climate Germany is the world's largest exporting country, with exports for 2005 totaling $1.016 trillion. Mainly Germany exports machinery Vehicles, Chemicals, metals, manufactures, foodstuffs, consumer electronics, textiles and electricity.
Imports: - Germany is the world's second largest importer of good s with a total of $801 billion in imports. Germany mainly imports machinery, vehicles, chemicals, foodstuffs, textiles, metals etc.
Agriculture: - The main crops of Germany are potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets and rapeseed Germany is also the largest producer of milk, dairy products, and meat. Agricultural support is managed under the EU Common Agricultural Policy.
Industrial Sector: - Germany is the world's largest and most technologically advanced producers of iron, steel, cement, chemicals, machinery, motor vehicles, machine tools and electronics as well as it is a leader in the shipping business. BMW, Daimler Chrysler, Opel, Porsche and Volkswagen AG are leading car manufacturers of German. Moreover, it has many giant multinational corporations like BASE, Bosch, E ON, Deutsche Telecom and Seines AG.
Service Sector: - The service sector has been grown in lat few years. It also plays very important role in GDP.
Natural Resources: - Germany has a lack of natural resources like minerals, natural raw materials etc. Only hard coal is available in some rural area like Aachen district and Sawarland. Moreover brown cool is available in the Leipziger Bucht. Niedrlausitz is the major energy source in the eastern states, while petroleum is mostly available in he western "Lander."
GDP: - According to the 2006 estimate, the total GDP is about $2,609 trillion while its per-capita GDP is about $31,472.
Populations: - According to the 2006 estimate, the total population of Germany is about 8,24,22,299, while its population density is about 598.5 persons per sq meter, which is highest in the northwest, mainly in North Rhine Westphalia, while population density is lower in the former East Germany and in the more rural states of Scallywag-Holstein, Lower Saxony and Bavaria. In 204, about 7.5 million foreign citizens were living in Germany. Most of people of Italy, Greece, Croatia, Bosnia, Netherlands, Herzegovina, Albania, Serbia, Montenegro Spain, Austria, Portugal, Vietnam, Morocco, Poland, Macedonia, Lebanon, France and Turkey came at Germany. Mostly Turkey's and Southern or Southeastern Europe's refuges also live Germany. There are also ethnic German immigrants from the former Soviet Union area Poland and Romania came Germany.
Religion: - Roman Catholicism was the dominant religion of Germany during the middle ages. After that Protestant churches came to power. Due to, the publication of the Ninety-five Theses, which were written by Martin Luther, reformation began in 1517 Roman Catholics, mostly followed by about 35 percent of the German population, who lived in the southern part. About 37 percent of the German people followed Protestant religion, the followers of protestant religion mainly live in the north. About 4% of the German population is Muslim; moreover very less percentage of German population followed Jewish religion.
The principal and official language of Germany is German, an Indo-European language. People of Germany used High German language for official, educational and literary purposes. High German and Spoken German languages are different. Some other languages such as Platt Dutch, Dutch, Swabian and Bavarian are also spoken in Germany. The different immigrant populations also speak their own languages like Turkish, Greek Italian, Spanish and Serbo-Croatian.
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