Early Modern European Nations and Empire

History 167 A
Early Modern Germany, Professor Thomas A Brady, Jr.

credits Office: 3225 Dwinelle
10-11 MWF Office Hours: 11:00-12:30 MW & by appointment
215 Dwinelle 642-4266, 843-2323
email: tabrady@socrates.berkeley.edu
PRELIMINARY SYLLABUS (7/2002)
--But do you know what a nation means? says John Wyse.
--Yes, says Bloom.
--What is it, says John Wyse.
--A nation? says Bloom. A nation is the same people living in the same place.
--By God, then, says Ned, laughing, if that's so, I'm a nation for I'm living in the
same place for the past five years.
--James Joyce, Ulysses

ARGUMENT

Why has there been a "German Problem" in the 20th century? The most popular answers have been:
•aggression is "in the blood" of the Germans since ancient times;
•Martin Luther taught the Germans to be blindly obedient to authority;
•the Germans unfortunately gained nationhood too late to become peaceful democrats like, say, the English and the French.
A study of the middle period of German history, between the Middle Ages and the modern era, supports none of these answers. It does show that some, though not all, of the reasons why the integration of the Germans into modern Europe has proved so difficulty and costly, lie in this early modern era, which is the subject of Hist 167A. Against a background of social development, which the Germans shared with other Europeans, we will study two very distinctive developments in the German lands: the political diversity that made Germany a country of many homelands; and the religious schism that gave the Germans not one but two national religions. We will examine the era, therefore, as it relates both to later German history and to the general history of Europe.
The European context is essential, for while the Germans were creating a religious revolution, the western Europeans were creating vast seaborne empires, the seminal forms of European imperialism. Once we understand how much the modern European nation-state, with its centralized state and national religion, depended this experience of Empire, which the Germans did not have, we can begin to understand why it became so difficulty to integrate the German lands into a modern Europe of imperial nation-states. This contrast between German diversity and Western uniformity is one of the principal assumptions of the course.
Dramatic events and interesting personalities lend this era of German history a special flavor and significance. It was the time of the Protestant Reformation and the Catholic Counterreformation, of the German Peasants' War that was the greatest mass movement of pre-modern Western history, and of the Thirty Years' War that destroyed 150 years of economic growth. It was also the age of Johannes Gutenberg and his printing press, of the shepherd-prophet known as "the Drummer of Niklashausen," of the Emperor Charles V and his empire on which the sun literally never set, of Martin Luther and his religious reformation, of witches and witch-hunters, and of mercenary armies and their peasant prey.

BOOKS
The following books have been ordered for purchase. One or more copies of each will be on reserve in the Moffit Library. The basic readings for the course as a whole are Scott and Hughes, and Brady. The books by Wunderli, Oberman, and Behringer are the bases for the assigned papers.


AUTHOR TITLE PUBLISHER ISBN
Scott, Society and Economy in Germany, 1300-1600 Palgrave 0333585321
Hughes, Early Modern Germany U Pennsylvania Pr 0812214277
Wunderli, Peasant Fires: The Drummer of Niklashausen Indiana Univ Pr 0253207517
Oberman, Luther: Man between God and the Devil Image Books 0385422784
Brady, Politics of the Reformation in Germany Humanity Books 1573922935
Behringer, Shaman of Oberstdorf Univ Pr of Virginia 0813918537

In addition, "Early Modern Germany: A Reader" is accessible on-line on the WebCT server. It contains downloadable texts of original sources, which will form the basis of some discussion sessions. Instructions on access to this Reader will be given in class.

ASSIGNMENTS
Each student enrolled for credit will write three short (6-10 pp.) papers. Early in the semester there will be a map quiz.
PAPER TOPICS:
Paper No. 1: "Based on our other information about rural life (Scott and documents), how credible is the picture of rural life offered by Wunderli?" Due on Monday, September 30.
Paper No. 2: "From the perspective of Oberman, did Martin Luther's Reformation succeed or fail?" Due on Monday, November 4.
Paper No. 3: "Based on Behringer's story, did the great Witch Panic arise mainly from internal causes (indigenous to rural society) or from external ones (imposed by educated elites), and why did it happen when it did?" Due on Monday, December 2.
The papers topics are designed to pose increasingly more complex approaches to historical evidence and reasoning.

GRADES
Grades will be calculated on the following base: Paper no. 1 = 20%; Papers no. 2 and 3 = 30% each; and class participation = 20%. Regular attendance and preparation for the sessions devoted to discussions are expected.