Germany : memories of a nation

From Neil MacGregor, the author of A History of the World in 100 Objects, this is a view of Germany like no other For the past 140 years, Germany has been the central power in continental Europe. Twenty-five years ago a new German state came into being. How much do we really understand this new Germany, and how do its people now understand themselves? Neil MacGregor argues that uniquely for any European country, no coherent, over-arching narrative of Germany's history can be constructed, for in Germany both geography and history have always been unstable. Its frontiers have constantly floated. Königsberg, home to the greatest German philosopher, Immanuel Kant, is now Kaliningrad, Russia; Strasbourg, in whose cathedral Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Germany's greatest writer, discovered the distinctiveness of his country's art and history, now lies within the borders of France. For most of the five hundred years covered by this book Germany has been composed of many separate political units, each with a distinct history. And any comfortable national story Germans might have told themselves before 1914 was destroyed by the events of the following thirty years. German history may be inherently fragmented, but it contains a large number of widely shared memories, awarenesses and experiences; examining some of these is the purpose of this book. Beginning with the fifteenth-century invention of modern printing by Gutenberg, MacGregor chooses objects and ideas, people and places which still resonate in the new Germany - porcelain from Dresden and rubble from its ruins, Bauhaus design and the German sausage, the crown of Charlemagne and the gates of Buchenwald - to show us something of its collective imagination. There has never been a book about Germany quite like it. Neil MacGregor has been Director of the British Museum since August 2002. He was Director of the National Gallery in London from 1987 to 2002. His previous books include A History of the World in 100 Objects and Shakespeare's Restless World, now between them translated into more than a dozen languages. Germany Is Unlike Any Other Country In The World. But How Much Do We Really Know About It, And How Do Its People Understand Themselves? In Germany: Memories Of A Nation, Neil Macgregor -- Director Of The British Museum And Author Of A History Of The World In 100 Objects -- Presents The Stories Of A Nation Through A Collection Of Thirty Objects And Touchstones. From Coins And Crowns To Fairy Tales And Philosophers, Macgregor Presents The Inventions, Ideas, And Icons That Comprise The Many Identities Of The German People. Germany: Memories Of A Nation Is A View Of This Complex And Fascinating Country Like No Other-- Where Is Germany?. The View From The Gate ; Divided Heaven ; Lost Capitals ; Floating City ; Fragments Of Power -- Imagining Germany. A Language For All Germans ; Snow White Vs. Napoleon ; One Nation Under Goethe ; Hall Of Heroes ; One People, Many Sausages -- The Persistent Past. The Battle For Charlemagne ; Sculpting The Spirit ; The Baltic Brothers ; Iron Nation ; Two Paths From 1848 -- Made In Germany. In The Beginning Was The Printer ; An Artist For All Germans ; The White Gold Of Saxony ; Masters Of Metal ; Cradle Of The Modern -- The Descent. Bismarck The Blacksmith ; The Suffering Witness ; Money In Crisis ; Purging The Degenerate ; At The Buchenwald Gate -- Living With History. The Germans Expelled ; Beginning Again ; The New German Jews ; Barlach's Angel ; Germany Renewed. Neil Macgregor. By Arrangement With The Bbc And The British Museum--title-page Verso. Originally Published In Great Britain By Allan Lane, An Imprint Of Penguin Books, London, In 2014--title-page Verso. Includes Bibliographical References (pages [567]-572) And Index. For the past 140 years, Germany has been the central power in continental europe. Twenty-five years ago a new German state came into being. How much do we really understand this new Germany, and how do its people understand themselves' Neil MacGregor argues that, uniquely for any European country, no coherent, overarching narrative of Germany's history can be constructed, for in Germany both geography and history have always been unstable. Its frontiers have constantly shifted. KOnigsberg, home to the greatest German philosopher, Immanuel Kant, is now Kaliningrad, Russia; Strasbourg, in whose cathedral Wolfgang von Geothe, Germany's greatest writer, discovered the distinctiveness of his country's art and history, now lies within the borders of France. For most of the five hundred years covered by this book Germany has been composed of many separate political units, each with a distinct history. And any comfortable national story Germans might have told themselves before 1914 was destroyed by the events of the following thirty years. German history may be inherently fragmented, but it contains a large number of widely shared memories, awarenesses, and experiences; examining some of these is the purpose of this book. MacGregor chooses objects and ideas, people and places that still resonate in the new Germany-porcelain from Dresden and rubble from its ruins, Bauhaus design and the German sausage, the crown of Charlemagne and the gates of Buchenwald-to show us something of its collective imagination. There has never been a book about Germany quite like it. From the Hardcover edition For the past 140 years, Germany has been the central power in continental europe. Twenty-five years ago a new German state came into being. How much do we really understand this new Germany, and how do its people understand themselves? Neil MacGregor argues that, uniquely for any European country, no coherent, overarching narrative of Germany's history can be constructed, for in Germany both geography and history have always been unstable. Its frontiers have constantly shifted. Königsberg, home to the greatest German philosopher, Immanuel Kant, is now Kaliningrad, Russia; Strasbourg, in whose cathedral Wolfgang von Geothe, Germany's greatest writer, discovered the distinctiveness of his country's art and history, now lies within the borders of France. For most of the five hundred years covered by this book Germany has been composed of many separate political units, each with a distinct history. And any comfortable national story Germans might have told themselves before 1914 was destroyed by the events of the following thirty years. German history may be inherently fragmented, but it contains a large number of widely shared memories, awarenesses, and experiences; examining some of these is the purpose of this book. MacGregor chooses objects and ideas, people and places that still resonate in the new Germany—porcelain from Dresden and rubble from its ruins, Bauhaus design and the German sausage, the crown of Charlemagne and the gates of Buchenwald—to show us something of its collective imagination. There has never been a book about Germany quite like it. From Neil MacGregor, the author of A History of the World in 100 Objects, this is a view of Germany like no other Today, as the dominant economic force in Europe, Germany looms as large as ever over world affairs. But how much do we really understand about it, and how do its people understand themselves? In this enthralling new book, Neil MacGregor guides us through the complex history, culture and identity of this most mercurial of countries by telling the stories behind 30 objects in his uniquely magical way. Beginning with the fifteenth-century invention of the Gutenberg press, MacGregor ventures beyond the usual sticking point of the Second World War to get to the heart of a nation that has given us Luther and Hitler, the Beetle and Brecht - and remade our world again and again. This is a view of Germany like no other. Neil MacGregor has been Director of the British Museum since August 2002. He was Director of the National Gallery in London from 1987 to 2002. His celebrated books include A History of the World in 100 Objects, now translated into more than a dozen languages and one of the top-selling titles ever published by Penguin Press, and Shakespeare's Restless World . Introduction: Monuments and memories Part 1: Where is Germany? The view from the Gate Divided heaven Lost capitals Floating city Fragments of power Part 2: Imagining Germany A language for all Germans Snow White vs Napoleon One nation under Goethe Hall of heroes One people, many sausages Part 3: The persistent past The battle for Charlemagne Sculpting the spirit The Baltic brothers Iron nation Two paths from 1848 Part 4: Made in Germany In the beginning was the printer An artist for all Germans The white gold of Saxony Masters of metal Cradle of the modern Part 5: The descent Bismarck the blacksmith The suffering witness Money in crisis Purging the degenerate At the Buchenwald gate Part 6: Living with history The Germans expelled Beginning again The new German Jews Barlach's Angel Germany renewed Envoi. "German history may be inherently fragmented, but it contains a large number of widely shared memories, awarenesses and experiences; examining some of these is the purpose of this book. Beginning with the fifteenth-century invention of modern printing by Gutenberg, MacGregor chooses objects and ideas, people and places which still resonate in the new Germany - porcelain from Dresden and rubble from its ruins, Bauhaus design and the German sausage, the crown of Charlemagne and the gates of Buchenwald - to show us something of its collective imagination. There has never been a book about Germany quite like it."-- Publisher's website German history may be inherently fragmented, but it contains a large number of widely shared memories, awarenesses and experiences; examining some of these is the purpose of this book. Beginning with the fifteenth-century invention of modern printing by Gutenberg, MacGregor chooses objects and ideas, people and places which still resonate in the new Germany - porcelain from Dresden and rubble from its ruins, Bauhaus design and the German sausage, the crown of Charlemagne and the gates of Buchenwald - to show us something of its collective imagination. There has never been a book about Germany quite like it.--Résumé de l'éditeur Over the years, a new German state came into being. How much do we really understand this new Germany, and how do its people now understand themselves? The author argues that for any European country, no coherent, over-arching narrative of Germany's history can be constructed, for in Germany both geography and history have always been unstable.