Refugees and expellees in post-war Germany / Ian Connor.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Connor, Ian, Dr.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Refugees--Germany--History--20th century.

Refugees.

Refugees--Germany--Social conditions--20th century.

Social conditions.

History.

Germany--Politics and government--1945-1990.

Germany.

Politics and government.

Physical Description:

xv, 266 pages : illustrations ; 22 cm

Place of Publication:

Manchester ; New York : Manchester University Press, 2007.

Summary:

At the end of the Second World War, some 12 million German refugees and expellees fled or were expelled from their homelands in Eastern and Central Europe into what remained of the former Reich. This book examines their economic, social and political integration in Germany from 1945 up to the present day, focusing in particular on the early post-war period.

The task of integrating these dispossessed refugees and expellees in post-war Germany was one of the most daunting challenges facing the Allied occupying authorities after 1945. How could the refugees be found food, housing and employment? How would the native inhabitants, many of whom deeply resented having to share their homes with complete strangers, react? Politicians feared that the refugees would become a source of political radicalism and might be attracted to communism or nationalism. In the event, widespread radicalisation did not occur and the book discusses the reasons for the absence of extensive unrest. It also examines the relationship between the refugees and political parties, an issue which has so far received little attention.

The first study in English of the economic, social and political integration of the German refugees and expellees in post-war Germany, this book is based on extensive research in German archives and also incorporates the findings of numerous local and regional studies undertaken by German scholars. While its main focus is on the German Federal Republic, the book also provides coverage of the refugee problem in the German Democratic Republic. This accessible book on a key aspect of post-war German history will be of particular interest to undergraduates of history, politics and German.

Contents:

1 The origins of the refugee problem 8

2 The influx of refugees into Germany and its problems, 1945-50 18

3 Relations between the refugee and native populations, 1945-50 58

4 Refugees and political parties, 1945-50 99

5 The integration of the refugees into (West) Germany after 1950 139

6 The issue of political radicalisation 177

7 Refugees in the Soviet Occupation Zone/German Democratic Republic 197.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780719068867

071906886X

OCLC:

154789082