Dietrich Orlow is Professor (emeritus) of History at Boston University, USA. His primary research and teaching interests are the history of modern Germany and the comparative political history of Western Europe since 1945. He is the author of numerous books and articles, including a two-volume history of the Nazi Party. His latest scholarly book is The PHS Under Ulbricht and Honecker: The Perseverance of a Stalinist Institution (2020).

• LIST OF FIGURESLIST OF MAPS PREFACE1 THE FOUNDERS' GENERATION, 1871-18902 WILHELMENIAN GERMANY, 1890-19143 WORLD WAR I, 1914-19184 REVOLUTION, INFLATION, AND PUTSCHES, 1918-19235 FOOLS' GOLD: THE WEIMAR REPUBLIC, 1924-19306 FROM AUTHORITARIANISM TO TOTALITARIANISM, 1930-19387 CONQUEST, DEATH, AND DEFEAT, 1938-19458 "CONDOMINIUM OF THE ALLIED POWERS," 1945-19499 THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY, 1949-199010 THE GERMAN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC, 1949-199011 EUPHORIA AND DISILLUSIONMENT, 1990-200512 THE MERKEL ERA, 2005-201713 GLOBAL DRAMA AND NATIONAL MALAISE, 2017-202414 CONCLUSIONSUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER READINGINDEX

Dietrich Orlow is Professor (emeritus) of History at Boston University, USA. His primary research and teaching interests are the history of modern Germany and the comparative political history of Western Europe since 1945. He is the author of numerous books and articles, including a two-volume history of the Nazi Party. His latest scholarly book is The PHS Under Ulbricht and Honecker: The Perseverance of a Stalinist Institution (2020).

• LIST OF FIGURESLIST OF MAPS PREFACE1 THE FOUNDERS' GENERATION, 1871-18902 WILHELMENIAN GERMANY, 1890-19143 WORLD WAR I, 1914-19184 REVOLUTION, INFLATION, AND PUTSCHES, 1918-19235 FOOLS' GOLD: THE WEIMAR REPUBLIC, 1924-19306 FROM AUTHORITARIANISM TO TOTALITARIANISM, 1930-19387 CONQUEST, DEATH, AND DEFEAT, 1938-19458 "CONDOMINIUM OF THE ALLIED POWERS," 1945-19499 THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY, 1949-199010 THE GERMAN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC, 1949-199011 EUPHORIA AND DISILLUSIONMENT, 1990-200512 THE MERKEL ERA, 2005-201713 GLOBAL DRAMA AND NATIONAL MALAISE, 2017-202414 CONCLUSIONSUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER READINGINDEX