Abstract
There is a longstanding federal tradition in Germany. Despite Germany’s many political ruptures, only the National Socialist (Nazi) dictatorship (1933–45) abolished an institutional structure of dividing and sharing political powers. The historical roots of German federalism stretch back to feudal times. Added to this were the democratic ideals of ‘unity, justice and freedom’ (Einigkeit und Recht und Freiheit) captured by the poet Heinrich von Fallersleben in what later became the words to the German national anthem. German federalism remains characterized by integrated decision-making.
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Detterbeck, K. (2020). Germany (Federal Republic of Germany). In: Griffiths, A., Chattopadhyay, R., Light, J., Stieren, C. (eds) The Forum of Federations Handbook of Federal Countries 2020. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-42088-8_13
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-42088-8_13
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