German History

The Last Fifty Years

The first chancellor after the war was Adenauer, re-elected in 1954. That same year international agreements on ending post-war occupation were signed in the Treaties of Paris. At this point American, French and British troops were taken out of Germany . A permanent agreement was reached with France in 1956 on the Saarland, under which the Federal Republic of Germany (F.R.G.) recovered political sovereignty over the territory and in 1957, after the agreements signed in Rome for the creation of a Common Market, mandatory military service was imposed and a new German army was gathered.

As the Christian Democratic Union lost the parliamentary majority, Adenauer had to hand over the seat to vice chancellor and Economy Minister Ludwig Erhard, who held this position until November 1966, when he was replaced by Dr. Kiesinger, with social democrat Willy Brandt stepping in to form part of the Government as vice chancellor. Brandt was elected Chancellor in 1969, by the Chamber of Deputies in Bonn. In September 1973 F.R.G membership into the United Nations was accepted and a year later Brandt resigned, being replaced by Helmut Schmidt.

Since the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the unification of both Germanys in 1990, the country has confirmed its status as Europe 's main power, as the true engine of the Continent's economy and the consolidation of the European Union. It is also a natural bridge from Europe leading into the East, both on an economic and cultural level.