The German Idea of Militarism: Radical and Socialist Critics 1866 1914 - Paperback

by Nicholas Stargardt (Author)

This book examines the development of the modern idea of militarism from its inception in the 1860s until the outbreak of World War I. Often regarded as the archetypical militarist state, Imperial Germany in fact witnessed a major controversy over the issue, as the arms race and the military-industrial complex displaced more traditional concerns about authoritarian rule, and militarism gradually acquired its modern meaning. Older radical traditions and the impact of Marxism are reassessed as Nicholas Stargardt examines the political history of German Social Democracy, the principal anti-militarist protagonist.

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This book is part of a wider discovery by historians of the way political identities and ideas intermeshed, contributing to the rise of civil society and new types of politics in modern Europe. The political history of the main protagonist of anti-militarism, German Social Democracy, is cast in a new light, as Stargadt reveals the lasting influence of older radical traditions and reappraises the role played by its espousal of Marxism.