How is GDR and FRG deciphered. Formation of the German Democratic Republic (GDR)

The Second World War (1939-1945), with which the Nazi state associated the achievement of all-European domination and the elimination of confrontation with the USSR, ended for Germany in a complete military and political defeat. After the military surrender (May 8, 1945), the former German state both nominally and practically ceased to exist. Power in the country and all management functions were transferred to the military administration of the powers that occupied Germany.

In continuation transitional period (1945-1949) the restoration of German statehood was complicated, firstly, by the devastating consequences of the war, and secondly, by the growing contradictions between the former allies on the future state and political structure of Europe, including Germany. This eventually led to the split of Germany and the establishment of a special occupation regime for decades, which implied the limited sovereignty of the newly formed German states.

The principles of the post-war structure of Germany were determined by the decisions of the Crimean and, most importantly. Potsdam conferences of the allied states (USSR, USA and Great Britain). They were supported by France and a number of other countries that were at war with Germany. According to these decisions, the totalitarian state in Germany was to be completely destroyed: the NSDAP and all organizations associated with it were banned, most of the punitive institutions of the Reich (including the SA, SS and SD services) were declared criminal, the army was disbanded, racial laws and acts of political significance were abolished . Denazification, demilitarization and democratization were to be carried out consistently in the country. The further solution of the "German question", including the preparation of a peace treaty, was placed in the hands of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Allied States.

June 5, 1945 the Allied states promulgated the Declaration on the defeat of Germany and on the organization of a new order of government. The country was divided into 4 occupation zones, which were given under the administration of Great Britain (the largest zone in terms of territory), the USA, the USSR and France; joint management the capital was Berlin. To resolve common issues, an allied Control Council was formed from the commanders-in-chief of the four occupying armies, decisions in which would be made on the principle of unanimity. Each zone created its own administration similar to a military governorate. All issues of restoration were assigned to the governors civil life, the implementation of the policy of denazification and demilitarization, as well as the prosecution of Nazi criminals, the return of previously forcibly displaced persons and prisoners of war of all nationalities.

After the establishment of military administration in all zones, activities were allowed political parties democratic direction. The new parties were to play a major role in rebuilding state structures and in political organization population (albeit for different purposes from the positions of the USSR and the Western powers). In the eastern zone of occupation (USSR), the resurgent Social Democratic and communist party. Under pressure from the Soviet administration and under the leadership of leaders who were in the USSR during the war years, they merged into Socialist Unity Party of Germany(April 1946), which set the goal of establishing a socialist state in the country in the spirit of revolutionary Marxism and with a complete social reorganization of the country according to the Soviet model. In the occupation zones of the Western powers, the newly formed party - Christian Democratic Union(June 1945); in Bavaria, the association became similar in direction Christian Social Union(January 1946). These parties stood on the platform of democratic republicanism, the creation of a social market economy society based on private property. At the same time, the Social Democratic Party of Germany was revived in the western zones (June 1946).

Differences in the political courses of the parties of the eastern and western zones, obviously led to civil confrontation in the country. In the context of a sharp divergence of the military-political goals of the USSR and the USA in Europe, their positions on the fate of Germany (the USA assumed the political fragmentation of the country into several independent lands, the USSR - the creation united state"people's democracy") such a confrontation would result in a new world war. Therefore, the situation predetermined the state division of Germany, the creation on the territory of the former Reich (within the borders of 1937; according to the fundamental decisions of the allied conferences, all “new acquisitions” were torn away from the country, in addition, Silesia and East Prussia went to Poland and the USSR) of two new states.

Formation of Germany and the GDR

During 1945 - 1948. western zones consolidated. They carried out administrative reforms. In 1945, the division into historical lands was restored, and under the control of the military authorities, local representative bodies were revived - Landtags and land governments. Unification of the British and American zones of occupation ( in so-called. bison) in December 1946 led to the formation of a unified body of power and administration. This has become Economic Council(May 1947), elected by the Landtags and authorized to make general financial and economic decisions. In connection with the extension of the American "Marshall Plan" (providing for financial and economic assistance to devastated Europe) to Germany, these decisions acquired an ever more unifying significance for the western zones. (And at the same time, the implementation of the "Marshall Plan" contributed to the separation of the eastern zone, since the government of the USSR rejected it). The Council of Lands took shape in Bizony - a kind of second government chamber, as well as Supreme Court; in fact, the functions of the central administration were performed by the Administrative Council, controlled by the Economic Council and the Council of the Lands.

Further differences between the Western allies and the USSR regarding the post-war structure of Germany, the difference between the first economic reforms in the East and West of Germany predetermined the course of the Western allies towards the state isolation of the western zones. In February-March and April-June 1948, at the London conferences of 6 allied countries (USA, Great Britain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg), it was adopted political decision on the creation of a separate West German state. In 1948, the French zone of occupation was attached to Bizony (the so-called "Trizonia" was formed). In June 1948, the West German states carried out their own monetary reform. July 1, 1948. the military governors of the Western powers proclaimed the conditions for the formation of the West German state (according to special instructions to the group for the preparation of the constitution, which began work in August 1948, the Western state was to become federal). In May 1949, the process of discussing and approving the developed West German constitution was completed. At the next session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the victorious states (May-June 1949), the split became, as it were, officially recognized.

Federalism enshrined in the Constitution meant that individual German lands enjoyed limited sovereignty, had their own constitutions, their own representative and government bodies, their own legislation (within the limits established by the Constitution), but “federal law prevails over the law of the lands” (Article 31). Subject international relations Germany acted as a whole. The constitutional structure of the lands had to comply with the principles of the Bonn Constitution. The exclusive competence of the federation included external relations, defense, citizenship, fundamentals of the financial and economic system, transport and communications, trade and industry. The rest was considered the realm of competing legislation (i.e., the Länder could legislate in other areas in the absence of federal regulations). The lands were assigned the obligation to fulfill federal laws as their own - that is, through the same administration. From the old German orders of the XIX century. the right of execution was transferred - coercion by the federation in relation to any land.

The constitution of the GDR of 1949 established the basic principles of the organization of the state: democracy, political dominance of the SED, a combination of legislative and government powers of democratic representation. According to the Constitution, democratic freedoms (speech, press, assembly, unions) were recognized for citizens of the GDR, equality was stipulated on the basis of gender or nationality, and national minorities retained the right to use their own language. The state took upon itself the protection of marriage and the family. The Constitution also secured the rights to property, however, it was stipulated that the content of property rights is entirely determined by its social purpose: “Property obliges” (Articles 22-24). The expropriation of property in the public interest was allowed.

The constitution recognized formal political pluralism in the form of the existence of several parties. The dominant political force was Socialist Unity Party of Germany(1946), who continued the traditions of the KKE; it was also the largest public and political organization (over 2 million members). Along with it, parties of a democratic direction were formed, but of a somewhat special social composition: the Peasant Democratic Party (1948), which united supporters of socialist cooperation in the countryside, the National Democratic Party (1948), which represented the interests of artisans and "individual farmers", the Liberal Democratic Party ( 1945) and the Christian Democratic Union (1945), which mainly united the democratic intelligentsia. All these parties were relatively small (no more than 100 thousand members) and participated in the political process only under the leadership of the SED as part of the so-called. National Front; according to the election results, seats in state bodies were distributed on the basis of an established party quota (with more than a double advantage of the SEPP.

The supreme organ of state power in the GDR was People's Chamber. She was elected by the population (from the age of 21) consisting of 400 deputies for 4 years on the basis of universal suffrage. Deputy seats were distributed according to a quota between the parties (117 seats for the SED, 52 for others, and the rest for other public organizations on the basis of a 1958 law). The peculiarity was that deputy deputies were also elected, who took their places if they moved to another job. The People's Chamber owned the rights of legislation, control over the activities of the government, voting the budget.

In addition to the People's Chamber, it was originally formed and Chamber of Lands- on the basis of proportional representation of the 5 Länder that formed the GDR. However, in 1952 the land division was abolished, new regions (14) and districts (217) were formed. Therefore, in December 1958, the Chamber of Lands was abolished and the Parliament became unicameral.

The People's Chamber was at the head of the system representatives of the people regions, districts. Formally, being proclaimed by state authorities on the ground, local representative offices were only authorized to ensure public order, cultural and educational activities on their territory, that is, they were ordinary self-government bodies, while higher authorities retained the right to cancel decisions of lower ones.

The head of state was the president. He was elected at a joint meeting of the People's Chamber and the Chamber of Lands (the oldest communist V. Pik was elected the first president of the GDR in 1949). The president had important state powers: the publication of laws, membership in the government, international representation, the right to pardon. With the death of V. Peak in 1960, the post of president was abolished. The role of the collective head of state was transferred to State Council, which was formed by the People's Chamber for 4 years. The State Council was also entrusted with the supervision of local authorities, it formed the National Defense Council - a special military-political institution, the powers of which, under certain conditions, exceeded the powers of any authority other than the Central Committee of the SED.

The People's Chamber also formed government- The Council of Ministers (consisting of the chairman, deputies, ministers, etc.). The government was also considered a coalition (by party), but important posts were awarded only to representatives of the SED.

In 1968, a new constitution was adopted in the GDR. It was developed by decision of the VII Congress of the SED (1967). The concept of “democracy of victorious socialism”, put forward at the VI Congress of the SED (1963), was put at the basis of the new, in fact, edition of the basic law. A nationwide plebiscite on April 6, 1968 approved the Constitution (with an overwhelming majority of 92% of those eligible to vote). Later, in 1974, additional ideological amendments were made to the Constitution.

1968 constitution generally reproduced the established system of state authorities and administration. The People's Chamber, the only legislative body, was proclaimed to be the “supreme state authority of the GDR” (Article 48). It consisted of 500 deputies elected for 5 years by universal, equal and secret ballot. No restrictions (similar to those that were in 1949, based on the principles of "class democracy" were not supposed). The powers of the head of state were left to the State Council, in which the role of the Chairman of the Council, which performed foreign policy and organizational functions independently, increased. The former status was retained by the government. The rights of local people's representatives were somewhat expanded.

The most detailed were the constitutional sections on the rights of citizens: here the right to participate in political, social and cultural life, to engage in culture, sports, etc. The Constitution established the centralized management and planned management of the socialist economy as the defining principle of the economy. A significant part of the new ideological and political legal provisions of the Constitution was due to the need to harmonize state and legal norms with international documents, UN conventions, and had no real legal significance in domestic life.

In mid-1989, due to internal reasons that were not entirely clear, the GDR found itself in a deep socio-political crisis. The stagnation in the economy, due to the socialist economic system, the growth of dictatorial aspirations in state practice The SED, the refusal of the leadership of the SED even to formally liberalize the system (like "perestroika" in the USSR) and, in this regard, the cooling of relations with the USSR and the leadership of the CPSU caused public discontent. A mass exodus of citizens of the GDR abroad began, mainly to West Germany. The leadership of the Central Committee of the SED took the path of police dictatorship, which predetermined both the further growth of discontent and the foreign policy isolation of the GDR. Under these conditions, the plan (of "10 points") for the state-political unification of Germany, put forward by German Chancellor Kohl, became decisive for the fate of Germany. The development of events, however, somewhat modified the prospects outlined by the plan. The government of the GDR and the leadership of the SED practically lost control of the state, popular demonstrations swept the country. Proceeding from its own foreign policy interests, the USSR refused to support an independent German eastern state, agreed with the proposals of the FRG and former allies on the withdrawal of Soviet troops and the corresponding material compensation. With the consent of the four powers (USA, Great Britain, France and the USSR), the GDR and the FRG merged into a single state.

Creation of a new united Germany based on special treaties between the GDR and the FRG. In May 1990, a currency and social economic union, in August 1990 - state-political. Attempts by a part of the SED that remained active (transformed into Party of Democratic Socialism) to defend the independence of the eastern part ended in failure, because the majority of the population did not support the party in the elections to local authorities. October 3, 1990 GDR ceased to exist as a separate state. On its territory, the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany of 1949 came into force, which became all-German. East Germany was re-divided into historical 5 lands, which received all the rights according to the Bonn constitution. The people's army of the GDR, the security services, the police were liquidated, partially merging into the relevant institutions of the FRG. All-German elections (December 1990) brought victory to the united Christian Democratic Union, which until the end of the 20th century. retained the status of the ruling party in Germany.

The unification made the FRG the most powerful Western European state, which began to play a decisive role in the structures of a united Europe.

Omelchenko O.A. General History of State and Law. 1999

The German Democratic Republic, or GDR for short, is a country located in the Center of Europe and marked on maps for exactly 41 years. This is the most western country the socialist camp that existed at that time, formed in 1949 and became part of the Federal Republic of Germany in 1990.

German Democratic Republic

In the north, the border of the GDR ran along the Baltic Sea, on land it bordered on the FRG, Czechoslovakia and Poland. Its area was 108 thousand square kilometers. The population was 17 million people. The capital of the country was East Berlin. The entire territory of the GDR was divided into 15 districts. In the center of the country was the territory of West Berlin.

Location of the GDR

On a small territory of the GDR there was a sea, mountains and plains. The north was washed by the Baltic Sea, which forms several bays and shallow lagoons. They are connected to the sea by straits. She owned the islands, the largest of them - Rügen, Usedom and Pel. There are many rivers in the country. The largest are the Oder, Elbe, their tributaries Havel, Spree, Saale, as well as the Main - a tributary of the Rhine. Of the many lakes, the largest are Müritz, Schweriner See, Plauer See.

In the south, the country was framed by low mountains, significantly cut by rivers: from the west, the Harz, from the south-west, the Thuringian Forest, from the south, the Ore Mountains with the highest peak Fichtelberg (1212 meters). The north of the territory of the GDR was located on the Central European Plain, to the south lay the plain of the Macklenburg Lake District. South of Berlin stretches a strip of sandy plains.

East Berlin

It has been restored almost completely. The city was divided into occupation zones. After the creation of the FRG, its eastern part became part of the GDR, and the western part was an enclave surrounded on all sides by the territory of East Germany. According to the constitution of Berlin (Western), the land on which it was located belonged to the Federal Republic of Germany. The capital of the GDR was major center science and culture of the country.

The Academies of Sciences and Arts, many higher educational institutions were located here. Concert halls and theaters hosted outstanding musicians and artists from all over the world. Many parks and alleys served as decoration for the capital of the GDR. Sports facilities were erected in the city: stadiums, swimming pools, courts, competition grounds. The most famous park for the inhabitants of the USSR was Treptow Park, in which a monument to the liberator soldier was erected.

Big cities

The majority of the country's population was urban dwellers. In a small country, there were several cities with a population of more than half a million people. Large cities of the former German Democratic Republic, as a rule, had quite ancient history. These are the cultural and economic centers of the country. The largest cities include Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig. The cities of East Germany were badly damaged. But Berlin suffered the most, where the fighting went literally for every house.

The largest cities were located in the south of the country: Karl-Marx-Stadt (Meissen), Dresden and Leipzig. Every city in the GDR was famous for something. Rostock, located in northern Germany, is a modern port city. The world-famous porcelain was produced in Karl-Marx-Stadt (Meissen). In Jena, there was the famous Carl Zeiss factory, which produced lenses, including for telescopes, famous binoculars and microscopes were produced here. This city was also famous for its universities and scientific institutions. This is a city of students. Schiller and Goethe once lived in Weimar.

Karl-Marx-Stadt (1953-1990)

This city, founded in the 12th century in the land of Saxony, now bears its original name - Chemnitz. It is the center of textile engineering and textile industry, machine tool building and mechanical engineering. The city was completely destroyed by British and American bombers and rebuilt after the war. There are small islands of old buildings left.

Leipzig

The city of Leipzig, located in Saxony, before the unification of the GDR and the FRG was one of largest cities German Democratic Republic. 32 kilometers away is another major German city - Halle, which is located in Saxony-Anhalt. Together, the two cities form an urban agglomeration with a population of 1,100,000 people.

The city has long been a cultural and scientific center Middle Germany. It is known for its universities as well as fairs. Leipzig is one of the most developed industrial regions in East Germany. Since the late Middle Ages, Leipzig has been a recognized center of printing and bookselling in Germany.

The greatest composer Johann Sebastian Bach lived and worked in this city, as well as the famous Felix Mendelssohn. The city is still famous for its musical traditions. Since ancient times, Leipzig has been a major trading center, until last war the famous fur trades took place here.

Dresden

The pearl among German cities is Dresden. The Germans themselves call it Florence on the Elbe, as there are many baroque architectural monuments here. The first mention of it was recorded in 1206. Dresden has always been the capital: since 1485 - the Margraviate of Meissen, since 1547 - the Electorate of Saxony.

It is located on the Elbe River. The border with the Czech Republic passes 40 kilometers from it. It is the administrative center of Saxony. Its population is about 600,000 inhabitants.

The city suffered greatly from the bombing of US and British aircraft. Up to 30,000 residents and refugees perished, most of them elderly, women and children. During the bombardment, the castle-residence, the Zwinger complex, and the Semperoper were badly destroyed. Almost the entire historical center lay in ruins.

In order to restore architectural monuments, after the war, all the surviving parts of the buildings were dismantled, rewritten, numbered and taken out of the city. Everything that could not be restored was cleared away.

The old city was a flat area on which most of the monuments were gradually restored. The government of the GDR came up with a proposal to revive the old city, which lasted almost forty years. For residents, new quarters and avenues were built around the old city.

Coat of arms of the GDR

Like any country, the GDR had its own coat of arms, described in Chapter 1 of the constitution. The coat of arms of the German Democratic Republic consisted of a golden hammer superimposed on each other, embodying the working class, and a compass, personifying the intelligentsia. They were surrounded by a golden wreath of wheat, representing the peasantry, intertwined with ribbons of the national flag.

Flag of the GDR

The flag of the German Democratic Republic was an elongated panel consisting of four equal width stripes painted in the national colors of Germany: black, red and gold. In the middle of the flag was the coat of arms of the GDR, which distinguished it from the flag of the FRG.

Prerequisites for the formation of the GDR

The history of the GDR covers a very short period of time, but it is still being studied with great attention by German scientists. The country was in strict isolation from the FRG and the entire Western world. After the surrender of Germany in May 1945, there were occupation zones, there were four of them, since the former state ceased to exist. All power in the country, with all management functions, formally passed to the military administrations.

The transition period was complicated by the fact that Germany, especially its East End, where German resistance was desperate, lay in ruins. The barbaric bombardments of the British and American aircraft aimed to intimidate the civilian population of the cities that were liberated by the Soviet army, to turn them into a heap of ruins.

In addition, there was no agreement between the former allies regarding the vision of the future of the country, which subsequently led to the creation of two countries - the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic.

Basic Principles for the Reconstruction of Germany

Even at the Yalta Conference, the main principles for the restoration of Germany were considered, which were later fully agreed upon and approved at the conference in Potsdam by the victorious countries: the USSR, Great Britain and the USA. They were also approved by the countries that participated in the war against Germany, in particular France, and contained the following provisions:

• Complete destruction of the totalitarian state.
• Complete ban on the NSDAP and all organizations associated with it.
• Complete liquidation punitive organizations of the Reich, such as the SA, SS, SD services, as they were recognized as criminal.
• The army was completely liquidated.
• Racial and political laws were abolished.
• Gradual and consistent implementation of denazification, demilitarization and democratization.

The decision of the German question, which included a peace treaty, was entrusted to the Council of Ministers of the victorious countries. On June 5, 1945, the victorious states promulgated the Declaration of the Defeat of Germany, according to which the country was divided into four occupation zones controlled by the administrations of Great Britain (the most large area), USSR, USA and France. The capital of Germany, Berlin, was also divided into zones. The decision of all issues was entrusted to the Control Council, it included representatives of the victorious countries.

Party of Germany

In Germany, for the restoration of statehood, the formation of new political parties that would be democratic. In the eastern sector, emphasis was placed on the revival of the Communist and Social Democratic Party of Germany, which soon merged into the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (1946). Its goal was to build a socialist state. It was the ruling party in the German Democratic Republic.

In the western sectors, the CDU (Christian Democratic Union) party formed in June 1945 became the main political force. In 1946, the CSU (Christian-Social Union) was formed in Bavaria according to this principle. Their basic principle is a democratic republic based on market economy based on the rights of private property.

Political confrontations on the issue of the post-war structure of Germany between the USSR and the rest of the coalition countries were so serious that their further aggravation would lead either to a split of the state or to a new war.

Formation of the German Democratic Republic

In December 1946, Great Britain and the United States, ignoring numerous proposals from the USSR, announced the merger of their two zones. She was abbreviated as "Bizonia". This was preceded by the refusal of the Soviet administration to supply agricultural products to the western zones. In response to this, transit shipments of equipment exported from factories and plants in East Germany and located in the Ruhr region to the USSR zone were stopped.

At the beginning of April 1949, France also joined the Bizonia, as a result of which Trizonia was formed, from which the Federal Republic of Germany was subsequently formed. Thus, the Western powers, having entered into an agreement with the big German bourgeoisie, created a new state. In response to this, at the end of 1949, the German Democratic Republic was created. Berlin, or rather its Soviet zone, became its center and capital.

The People's Council was temporarily reorganized into the People's Chamber, which adopted the Constitution of the GDR, which passed a nationwide discussion. 09/11/1949 the first president of the GDR was elected. It was the legendary Wilhelm Pick. At the same time, the government of the GDR was temporarily created, headed by O. Grotewohl. The military administration of the USSR transferred all functions of governing the country to the government of the GDR.

The Soviet Union did not want the division of Germany. They were repeatedly made proposals for the unification and development of the country in accordance with the Potsdam decisions, but they were regularly rejected by Great Britain and the United States. Even after the division of Germany into two countries, Stalin made proposals for the unification of the GDR and the FRG, provided that the decisions of the Potsdam Conference were observed and that Germany was not drawn into any political and military blocs. But the Western states refused to do so, ignoring Potsdam's decisions.

The political system of the GDR

The form of government of the country was based on the principle of people's democracy, in which a bicameral parliament operated. The state system of the country was considered to be bourgeois-democratic, in which socialist transformations took place. The German Democratic Republic included the lands of the former Germany of Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

The lower (people's) chamber was elected by universal secret ballot. The upper chamber was called the Land Chamber, the executive body was the government, which consisted of the prime minister and ministers. It was formed by appointment, which was carried out by the largest faction of the People's Chamber.

The administrative-territorial division consisted of lands, consisting of districts, divided into communities. The functions of the legislature were carried out by the Landtags, the executive bodies were the governments of the lands.

The People's Chamber - the highest body of the state - consisted of 500 deputies, who were elected by the people by secret ballot for a period of 4 years. It was represented by all parties and public organizations. The People's Chamber, acting on the basis of laws, made the most important decisions on the development of the country, dealt with relations between organizations, observing the rules for cooperation between citizens, state organizations and associations; adopted the main law - the Constitution and other laws of the country.

Economy of the GDR

After the partition of Germany, the economic situation of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) was very difficult. This part of Germany was very badly destroyed. The equipment of plants and factories was taken to the western sectors of Germany. The GDR was simply cut off from historical raw material bases, most of which were in Germany. There was a shortage of such natural resources as ore and coal. There were few specialists: engineers, executives who left for Germany, frightened by propaganda about massacre Russians.

With the help of the Union and other countries of the commonwealth, the economy of the GDR gradually began to gain momentum. Businesses were restored. It was believed that centralized leadership and a planned economy served as a deterrent to the development of the economy. It should be taken into account that the restoration of the country took place in isolation from the western part of Germany, in an atmosphere of tough confrontation between the two countries, open provocations.

Historically, the eastern regions of Germany were mostly agricultural, and in the western part of it, rich coal and deposits of metal ores, heavy industry, metallurgy and engineering were concentrated.

Without the financial and material assistance of the Soviet Union, it would have been impossible to achieve an early restoration of industry. For the losses suffered by the USSR during the war years, the GDR paid him reparation payments. Since 1950, their volume has been halved, and in 1954 the USSR refused to receive them.

Foreign policy situation

The construction of the Berlin Wall by the German Democratic Republic became a symbol of the intransigence of the two blocs. The eastern and western blocs of Germany were building up their military forces, provocations from the western bloc became more frequent. It came to open sabotage and arson. The propaganda machine worked at full power, using economic and political difficulties. Germany, like many Western European countries, did not recognize the GDR. The peak of the aggravation of relations occurred in the early 1960s.

The so-called "German crisis" also arose thanks to West Berlin, which, legally being the territory of the Federal Republic of Germany, was located in the very center of the GDR. The border between the two zones was conditional. As a result of the confrontation between the NATO blocs and the Warsaw bloc countries, the SED Politburo decides to build a border around West Berlin, which was a reinforced concrete wall 106 km long and 3.6 m high and a metal mesh fence 66 km long. She stood from August 1961 until November 1989.

After the merger of the GDR and the FRG, the wall was demolished, only a small section remained, which became the Berlin Wall memorial. In October 1990, the GDR became part of the FRG. The history of the German Democratic Republic, which existed for 41 years, is intensively studied and researched by scientists modern Germany.

Despite the propaganda discrediting of this country, scientists are well aware that it gave Western Germany a lot. In a number of parameters, she surpassed her Western brother. Yes, the joy of reunification was genuine for the Germans, but it is not worth belittling the importance of the GDR, one of the most developed countries in Europe, and many in modern Germany understand this very well.

On May 23, 1949, the Federal Republic of Germany was founded in the western occupation zone. On this day, the Parliamentary Council in Bonn solemnly proclaimed the entry into force of the country's Basic Law.

Initially, the document was of a temporary nature, which was justified by the fact that there was hope for the creation of a unified German state. Therefore, instead of the "Constitution" it was called the "Basic Law". Instead of the Constitutional Assembly, only the Parliamentary Council was convened from representatives of the Landtags.

The draft Basic Law of Germany was prepared by a committee of German specialists constitutional law, acting on the basis of instructions from the prime ministers of the lands, in turn authorized by the governors of the western occupation zones. The draft was considered by the Parliamentary Council of the deputies elected by the Landtags of the Lands. The final draft was adopted on May 8, 1949 and entered into force on May 23.

The Basic Law proclaimed the Federal Republic of Germany as a legal, federal, democratic, republican and social state.

The name "Federal Republic of Germany" was coined by Theodor Hayes, the country's future first president.

Deciding on the issue of the national flag, the Parliamentary Council settled on the black-red-yellow tricolor, which was the banner of the revolution of 1848, the banner of the struggle for the unification of Germany.

As for the coat of arms, the members of the Parliamentary Council did not break the tradition: from the 12th century on the golden shield of the Staufen dynasty there was a black eagle with red paws and a beak, which originated from the coat of arms of Charlemagne. The fathers of the 1949 constitution only removed the swastika from the eagle's claws, which he held for 12 years under the Nazi regime.

They decided not to mention the anthem in the constitution at all, since the famous "German Song" began with the words "Germany, Germany, above all", which all mankind perceived as a chauvinistic cry. The anthem appeared only in 1952: it was the third stanza of the German Song.

According to the Basic Law, the head of state is the Federal President. The President performs, first of all, representative functions, is elected by a specially convened Federal Assembly (it includes deputies of the Bundestag and the same number of delegates elected by the land parliaments) for a period of 5 years.

The supreme elected legislative body of the Federal Republic of Germany is the Bundestag - the German parliament, elected for 4 years by universal direct and secret elections (active and passive suffrage provided upon reaching the age of 18). Half of the deputies are elected in districts by the majority system, the other half - by party lists.

The Bundestag may be represented by parties that have collected at least 5% of the votes in the elections according to party lists. If the party did not overcome this barrier, but received three or more direct mandates, the votes cast for it are taken into account in the distribution of seats in the Bundestag (in this case, the party does not have the right to form a faction).

When passing laws, the Bundestag interacts with the representative body of the lands of Germany - the Bundesrat, which is not an elected body. Its members (prime ministers and ministers of the states of Germany) are appointed by the state governments. The composition of the Bundesrat changes as elections to the Landtags (parliaments) of the states are held. Each state has from 3 to 6 votes in the Bundesrat, depending on the population. There are currently 69 seats in the Bundesrat.

The President and 3 Vice-Presidents of the Bundesrat are elected for a period of 1 year on the principle of rotation from among the heads of state governments. From November 1, 2008 to October 31, 2009, the President of the Bundesrat is Saarland Prime Minister Peter Müller (CDU).

Executive power on federal level represented by the federal government, headed by the federal chancellor. The head of the executive authorities at the level of the subjects of the federation is the prime minister (or mayor of the city-land).

The federal and state administrations are led by ministers who are at the head of the administrative bodies.

The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany, developed in 1948-1949 only for West Germany, in 1990 became the Basic Law for the whole of Germany. The integration of the German Democratic Republic into the FRG, carried out on October 3, 1990, was carried out by accession. The GDR disappeared as a legal entity, including as an international legal entity. Accession took place on the basis of Art. 23 of the Basic Law of the Federal Republic of Germany in the version in force at that time. This article, listing the lands of the FRG, established that "in the remaining parts of Germany, it (the Basic Law) must enter into force upon their accession."

On May 22-24, 2009, the celebration of the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Federal Republic will take place in Berlin. The events began with an ecumenical service in the Berlin Cathedral. German Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel and her husband Joachim Sauer, Foreign Minister and SPD Chancellor candidate Frank-Walter Steinmeier, ministers and representatives of various departments and organizations came to the service. Then festive performances began in the Concert Hall on the Gendarmenmarkt in the center of the capital, and before the concert, the President of the Federal Republic of Germany, Horst Köhler, delivered a speech.

In the period from 1949 to 1990, two separate states existed on the territory of modern Germany - the communist GDR and the capitalist West Germany. The formation of these states was associated with one of the first serious crises of the times cold war, and the unification of Germany - with the final fall of the communist regime in Europe.

Reasons for separation

The main and probably the only reason The division of Germany was the lack of consensus among the victorious countries regarding the post-war structure of the state. Already in the second half of 1945, the former allies became rivals, and the territory of Germany became a point of collision between two conflicting political systems.

The plans of the victorious countries and the separation process

The first projects concerning the post-war structure of Germany appeared as early as 1943. This issue was raised at the Tehran Conference, where Joseph Stalin, Winston Churchill and Franklin Roosevelt met. Since the conference was held after the Battle of Stalingrad and the battle on Kursk Bulge, the leaders of the "Big Three" were well aware that the fall of the Nazi regime would occur within the next few years.

The most daring project was proposed by the American president. He believed that five separate states should be created on German territory. Churchill also believed that after the war, Germany should not exist within its former borders. Stalin, who was more worried about the opening of a second front in Europe, considered the question of the division of Germany premature and not the most important. He believed that nothing could further prevent Germany from becoming a single state again.

The question of the dismemberment of Germany was also raised at subsequent meetings of the leaders of the Big Three. During the Potsdam Conference (summer 1945), a system of four-sided occupation was established:

• England
• USSR,
• France.

It was decided that the Allies would consider Germany as a whole and encourage the emergence of democratic institutions on the territory of the state. The solution of most issues related to denazification, demilitarization, the restoration of the economy destroyed by the war, the revival of the pre-war political system, etc., required the cooperation of all the winners. However, immediately after the end of the war, it became increasingly difficult for the Soviet Union and its Western allies to find a common language.

The main reason for the split among the former allies was the reluctance of the Western powers to liquidate German military enterprises, which was contrary to the demilitarization plan. In 1946, the British, French and Americans united their zones of occupation, forming Trizonia. On this territory, they created a separate system of economic management, and in September 1949 it was announced the emergence of a new state - the Federal Republic of Germany. The leadership of the USSR immediately took retaliatory measures by creating the German Democratic Republic in its zone of occupation.

Germany

The German Democratic Republic (GDR, East Germany) is a socialist state founded on October 7, 1949 in the Soviet occupation zone of Germany and the eastern (Soviet) sector of Berlin. The republic officially ceased to exist and was merged with the FRG at 00:00 CET on October 3, 1990.

June 9, 1945 in the territory where they were Soviet troops, the Soviet military administration in Germany was formed (SVAG, ceased to exist in October 1949 after the proclamation of the GDR and the Soviet Control Commission was formed instead), G.K. Zhukov became its first commander in chief.

The proclamation of the GDR took place five months later in response to the creation on the territory of the three western occupation zones of the FRG; on October 7, 1949, the Constitution of the GDR was proclaimed.

The most important milestones in the history of the GDR:

July 1952 - at the II conference of the SED, a course was proclaimed for building socialism in the GDR

The conditions for economic recovery in the GDR were noticeably more difficult than in the FRG: Eastern Front During the Second World War, there were more fierce battles that caused huge destruction, a significant proportion of mineral deposits and heavy industry enterprises ended up in the Federal Republic of Germany, and the reparations of the USSR were also a heavier burden.

At the beginning of 1952, the question of German unification was raised. By decision of the UN, a commission was established to conduct general elections. However, by Stalin's decision, representatives of the commission were not allowed into the territory of the GDR. Stalin's death the following year did not change the situation.

The events of June 17, 1953 led to the fact that, instead of collecting reparations, the USSR began to provide economic assistance to the GDR. In the context of the aggravation of the foreign policy situation around the German question and the mass exodus of qualified personnel from the GDR to West Berlin, on August 13, 1961, the construction of a system of barrier structures between the GDR and West Berlin began - the "Berlin Wall".

In the early 1970s began a gradual normalization of relations between the two German states. In June 1973, the Treaty on the Fundamentals of Relations between the GDR and the FRG came into force. In September 1973 the GDR became a full member of the UN and other international organizations. On November 8, 1973, the GDR officially recognized the FRG and established diplomatic relations with it.

In the second half of the 1980s, economic difficulties began to increase in the country, in the fall of 1989 a socio-political crisis arose, as a result, the leadership of the SED resigned (October 24 - Erich Honecker, November 7 - Willy Shtof). The new Politburo of the Central Committee of the SED on November 9 decided to allow citizens of the GDR to travel abroad privately without good reason, resulting in the spontaneous fall of the "Berlin Wall". After the victory of the CDU in the elections on March 18, 1990, the new government of Lothar de Maizière began intensive negotiations with the government of the Federal Republic of Germany on issues of German unification. In May and August 1990, two Treaties were signed containing the conditions for the accession of the GDR to the FRG. On September 12, 1990, the Treaty on the Final Settlement with regard to Germany was signed in Moscow, which contained decisions on the entire range of issues of German unification. In accordance with the decision of the People's Chamber, the GDR joined the FRG on October 3, 1990.