第一次世界大戰期間,德意志帝國是最終戰敗的同盟國之一。 在盟國奧匈帝國向塞爾維亞宣戰之後,它開始參與大戰。除了1914年東普魯士入侵的短暫時期之外,德國本土在大部分時間中仍相對免受廣泛入侵。皇家海軍實施的嚴密封鎖導致了德國城市的嚴重食物短缺,尤其是在1916-17年冬季。戰爭結束時,德國的失敗和廣泛的民眾不滿引發了1918-19年的德國革命,這場革命最終推翻了君主制並建立了魏瑪共和國。
1914年,與歐洲其他國家的人民類似,德國人民以復雜的情緒應對戰爭爆發。最近的研究挑戰了人們普遍懷有熱情(1914年精神)的理論[1]。由容克地主統治的德國政府將戰爭視為結束被敵對國家法國,俄羅斯和英國包圍的一種方式。外交大臣伯恩哈德·馮·比洛指出,戰爭是為了使該國獲得「太陽下的一席之地」,公眾普遍的民族主義很容易支持這一點。德國當局希望戰爭能夠使公眾作為君主制國家團結起來,並減輕由德國社會民主黨的迅速發展所帶來的威脅,德國社會民主黨曾是戰前德國帝國議會中最有影響力的政黨。儘管德國社會民主黨加入了第二國際,但它結束了與帝國政府的分歧,放棄了國際主義原則,反而來支持戰爭。
事情很快證明,德國沒有為這場持續數月之久的戰爭做好準備。最初,在德國戰時基礎上沒有採取任何措施來調節經濟。而且在整個戰爭中,德國戰爭經濟的組織狀況仍然很糟糕。德國依賴食品和原材料的進口,但這由於英國對德國的封鎖而被迫終止。首先限制糧食價格,然後實行定量配給。1915年,德國為了生產糧食和保存穀物,豬玀屠殺中屠殺了500萬頭豬。 1916/17年的冬天被稱為「蘿蔔冬天」,因為馬鈴薯收成不好,人們開始吃動物的食物,包括品蘿蔔。在1914年8月至1919年中旬的戰爭中,由於營養不良,疲憊不堪,疾病和絕望率高而導致的平民死亡人數約有474,000人[2][3]。
Jeffrey Verhey, The Spirit of 1914: Militarism, Myth and Mobilization in Germany (Cambridge U.P., 2000).
N.P. Howard, "The Social and Political Consequences of the Allied Food Blockade of Germany, 1918-19," German History (1993), 11#2, pp. 161-88 online (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館) p. 166, with 271,000 excess deaths in 1918 and 71,000 in 1919.
- Watson, Alexander. Ring of Steel: Germany and Austria-Hungary in World War I (2014), excerpt (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
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The militarism mean the countries need to develop military or army levels
From 1880 to 1914,the military expenditure of the six bog powers(viz.Germany,Russia,Austria,Italy,France,and Britain)
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- Ferguson, Niall The Pity of War (1999), cultural and economic themes, worldwide
- Hardach, Gerd. The First World War 1914-1918 (1977), economics
- Herwig, Holger H. The First World War: Germany and Austria-Hungary 1914-1918 (1996), one third on the homefront
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- Richie, Alexandra. Faust's Metropolis: a History of Berlin (1998), pp. 234–83.
- Ryder, A. J. The German Revolution of 1918 (Cambridge University Press, 1967)
- Siney, Marion. The Allied Blockade of Germany, 1914–1916 (1957)
- Steege, Paul. Black Market, Cold War: Everyday Life in Berlin, 1946-1949 (2008) excerpt and text search (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
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- Verhey, Jeffrey. The Spirit of 1914: Militarism, Myth, and Mobilization in Germany (2006) excerpt (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
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- (德語) "Der Erste Weltkrieg" (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館) (in English) "The First World War" (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館) at Living Museum Online (LeMO)
- Articles relating to Germany (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館) at 1914-1918 Online: International Encyclopedia of the First World War
- Hirschfeld, Gerhard: Germany (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
- Fehlemann, Silke: Bereavement and Mourning (Germany) (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
- Bruendel, Steffen: Between Acceptance and Refusal - Soldiers' Attitudes Towards War (Germany) (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
- Davis, Belinda: Food and Nutrition (Germany) (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
- Oppelland, Torsten: Governments, Parliaments and Parties (Germany) (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
- Stibbe, Matthew: Women's Mobilisation for War (Germany) (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
- Ungern-Sternberg, Jürgen von: Making Sense of the War (Germany) (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
- Ullmann, Hans-Peter: Organization of War Economies (Germany) (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
- Gross, Stephen: War Finance (Germany) (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
- Altenhöner, Florian: Press/Journalism (Germany) (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
- Ther, Vanessa: Propaganda at Home (Germany) (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
- Pöhlmann, Markus: Warfare 1914-1918 (Germany) (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
- Löffelbein, Nils: War Aims and War Aims Discussions (Germany) (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
- Whalen, Robert Weldon: War Losses (Germany) (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
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- Posters of the German Military Government in the Generalgouvernement Warshau (German occupied Poland) from World War I, 1915-1916 (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館) From the Collections at the Library of Congress