"Are Germans proud of their history?" Topic

"At the Haus der Geschichte museum in Bonn, a young Iraqi learns about German history, in particular the years of the Nazi dictatorship. Hayder al-Maliki found that Germans can be ambivalent about their country's past.

The horror hits you right at the start. I've only just entered the Haus der Geschichte in Bonn, Germany's museum of national history, when I am confronted with grim scenes from the Second World War – as well as its historical ramifications, the traces it has left in the collective memory of German society. One thing above all quickly becomes clear to me: Why Germans are not nearly as proud of their country as I'd thought. On the contrary – they don't want to be proud, especially not of the 1930s and '40s: the Hitler years.

As soon as I enter the first room, I see the red swastika flags of the Nazi regime. I sense the power these flags must have possessed, and imagine the soldiers stumbling into the catastrophe of World War Two. Some war scenes are playing on video, while other pictures display the centers of political and military power in the Third Reich…"
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Amicalement
Armand

Find the parts to be proud of.

The parts to be proud of?
Beethoven, Brahms, Handel, Pachelbel,…?
Leibniz, Kant, Schopenhauer,…?
The Wirtschaftswunder and the welfare state?
A very long list of German inventors? German writers? Germain painters? Architecture?
The ability to get up after the knock out of 1945, and establish good relations with your neighbours?
The horrors should not be forgotten, but there is a German history before 1933 and after 1945.

To be honest many countries have episodes or events in their history that they are not proud of, or that are now regarded as regrettable.

It is a bit dangerous to base a sense of national identity and pride on historical events, especially wars or battles or conquest. That said there are also countries or people whose national identity seems to be based around a sense of historical injustice, of having being wronged.

I won't judge anyone in the present on the basis of things that they weren't responsible for or for things that happened in the past. There were fascists all the place in the 1930s and 40s, most European countries had them, it was a range of factors including populism and the deprivations of the reparations following the First World War that allowed Hitler to rise to power.

So no I don't mind if Germans take pride in their laudable achievements and (as they have done) learn from past mistakes.

For me having a large Prussian army can't say it's even a below batting average.

ereimover and newarch+1 German culture has been a bright star for several centuries until the dark episode of the "Third Reich" obscured its achievements. If we take a look around today, we can see ominous signs as well. If we are wise, we should take the lessons of history to heart. Humans have the capacity to be very good, or very evil…

And yet no enough people condemn the millions more that Stalin killed and even more that Chairman Mao of China. Quite the opposite, they're celebrated.

If that can be done I see no reason why the Germans should not be proud of their history.

For a shorter answer: some are and some are not.

yes.I am ,,or at least most of it..

Is the young man who wrote this proud of the Saddam years ?? Especially the part where Saddam gased the Kurds?
Or better yet, perhaps Saddams sons ??

When I was in the Army, I was stationed in Germany and made several inspection visits. I found it enlightening on the variety in culture, when I went to a number of different castles, they all tended to have a museum to a specific area. Think of an area of interest and some castle would have displays to it.

I have a lot of very close relatives in Eastern and Southern Germany, lot of contact. Of course, the vast majority of the German people are not proud of their history relating to Hitler and the Nazis, what would make this airhead think they would be?

As a German I have to say that you can't be positive in any way about the timespan 1933-45. It is a dark spot on German History. But what is even more important is that the years from 1870 up to 1918 ( Kaiserreich) is also looked upon as a dark spot in out history ( first world war etc). So there is a gap of almost 60 years between parts of German history you could be proud of. That makes you more then a bit disconected with your own countries history, at least as far as the history is positive in our case. Hope that makes sense ….