This carefully researched history draws on archival sources as well as a wealth of new interviews with on-the-ground activists, political actors, international figures, and others to move beyond the narratives both the German and American varieties that have dominated the historical memory of German reunification.

Autorentext

Alexander von Plato was founder and director of the Institute for History and Biography of the University of Hagen, guest professor in Vienna and Winnipeg, recipient of the Diefenbaker Award 2012)

Inhalt

1. The Beginnings 2. Summer 1989: Gorbachev in Bonn 3. Gorbachev and the "Soviet Fatherhood" of the GDR 4. Coincidence as helper - Driving the Activists 5. 2+4, 4+2, or 33+2?: The Centers of Power Take Over the Handling of the International Aspects of Unity 6. The Elections in the GDR and Their Consequences 7. What Was National, and What Was International, in the 2+4 Negotiations? 8. Signing of the Contracts 9. Summary and Prospects for the Future