Christian Democratic Workers and the Forging of German Democracy, 1920-1980

Erscheinungsjahr 2019
ISBN: 978-1-108-42411-0
Verlag: Cambridge University Press

Buch, Englisch, 342 Seiten, Format (B × H): 157 mm x 235 mm, Gewicht: 647 g

Why has democracy flourished in the Federal Republic of Germany despite that country's troubled past? Exhaustive research in German historical archives illuminates the pivotal role played by the veterans of the Christian trade unions of the Weimar Republic, the only group to participate in both of Germany's most successful political experiments after 1945, a 'Christian Democratic' party to unite Catholics and Protestants, and unified labor unions for workers of all political outlooks. They perceived that feuds between the religious confessions and competition among three rival labor federations had greatly facilitated Hitler's rise, and they resolved to bridge both chasms. Playing an influential role on the left wing of the CDU from the 1950s to the 1970s, Christian laborites alleviated class conflict through new welfare programs and laws to grant workers a powerful voice in management decisions. They took the lead in forging the distinctive 'German Model' for labor relations.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Patch, William L.

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Weltgeschichte & Geschichte einzelner Länder und Gebietsräume Europäische Geschichte
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtswissenschaft Allgemein
• Geisteswissenschaften Christentum, Christliche Theologie Christentum/Christliche Theologie Allgemein
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Weltgeschichte & Geschichte einzelner Länder und Gebietsräume Geschichte einzelner Länder Europäische Länder
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtliche Themen Postkoloniale Geschichte, Nationale Befreiung und Unabhängigkeit

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Introduction: democratization and the 'German model' for labor relations; 1. Christian trade unionists and the dissolution of the Weimar republic; 2. Christian laborites and the founding of the federal republic; 3. The debate over co-determination (mitbestimmung), 1949–1953; 4. The influence of Christian democratic workers on welfare legislation, 1953–1957; 5. Seeking a new path in the twilight of the Adenauer era; 6. The political success and organizational decline of Christian democratic workers, 1966–1980; Conclusion: the legacy of the Christian labor movement.

Über Autor(innen)

Patch, William L.
William L. Patch is the William R. Kenan Professor of History at Washington and Lee University, Virginia. He is the author of many monographs and articles, including Heinrich Brüning and the Dissolution of the Weimar Republic (Cambridge, 1998).