TaylorFlame
Nuclear Whale
- Joined
- Jan 15, 2008
- Messages
- 435
Germany, once a major regional and significant world power, was hit hard by the crises of the first modern era. Famine and economic collapse had become a fact of life for the German people, and the government had become completely unable to support the people that elected them. As the nation destabilised, individual towns and cities formed militias and banded together for protection from the now sizeable number of roaming refugees in central Europe. Eventually, Germany ceased to exist as an entity, instead becoming a collection of largely democratic city-states with loose ties to each other, none of them able or willing to attempt to reunite the German people, with conditions at home already terrible.
As time went on, the various city-based polities began to stabilise and redevelop their surrounding areas. For the first time in decades, hunger and famine were no longer omnipresent problems but obstacles that could now be effectively tackled and beaten. Militias were formed into small, professional standing armies, and small wars were fought between the various German states. Diplomacy and trade once again became an integral part of German life, and contact with far-flung regions of the world was slowly being restored. Germany was coming out of the darkness, though it was even more broken apart than the German principalities of old.
Most German city-states, having garnered some power for themselves, were opposed to the idea of reuniting Germany, even once the troubles of the past were quickly becoming annoyances at best. However, the rise of Bavaria and the growth of the Technocratic system caused a shift in views that led to the reformation of the German state. Most German states, in order to cope with the instability and chaos around them, had revitalised the ideals of German exceptionalism and militarism that had been subdued since the end of the Second World War in order to galvanise their population and provide them with a new identity and resolve so that they may prosper in the future. This was wildly effective, and caused ideals such as the bettering of the self and the brotherhood of community to come to the fore of the German world view. When the Technocrats rose, many German states took offence to the idea that they and all they had worked for could be considered somehow ‘inferior’ to the artificial whims of a supercomputer, or the idea that a scientist or an engineer was well versed in how to lead a nation of militarists. The Humanistischer Liga (Humanist League, or the League) was formed, headed by Hermann Tenner, President of the Free City of Berlin, and it quickly led to the peaceful integration of many German states into the new Republic of Germany, a nation characterised by liberal democracy, nationalism militarism, and pro-human ideals. As the South German Federation grew, so too did the Republic of Germany, with states giving up much of their powers in order to ensure they were led by men.
As the nation grew and developed, so too did its politics. Eventually, three major parties came to the forefront. The Humanistischer Liga remained the most powerful party in Germany, on the back of a platform of liberalism and pro-humanism. The Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands (Socialist Democratic Party, or SDP) is the second largest party, and is very similar to the League in its views, differing mostly in that the SDP calls for more government control in the economy and a more centralised nation. Finally, the Deutsche Reichspartei (German Reich Party, or DRP) is a smaller, but still influential conservative party which argues that the only way for Germany to avoid the collapses of the past is to increasingly militarise the state until it becomes a European military power with the ability to project force around the Mediterranean and Atlantic. So far, the presidency has belonged mainly to the League, though occasionally the SDP gains enough votes to take control. As of yet, there has never been a DRP president, though as Germany becomes increasingly boxed in by its Technocratic neighbours the DRP has seen a significant shift in public opinion towards itself.
Modern Germany, while weaker than pre-crisis Germany, has emerged as an advanced and viable state. With a functioning democracy, a content and wealthy populace and well developed technological infrastructure such as a rebuilt autobahn network and multiple major solar arrays, Germany is well prepared for the future, and as its government seeks to regain the control and resources that Old Germany once had, its people look to the future to make Germany great once more. The current president, Konrad Haas, is a capable politician and one of the strongest leaders ever to come out of the League, and there are high hopes for him to restore Germany as a player on the international stage.