See Also: Germanism(dictionary)
pan-Germanism(dictionary)
Pan-Germanism(encyclopedia)

Pan-Germanism (sh)




Movement to politically unify all German-speaking people.

The desire for German unification began in the early 19th century and was advanced by Ernst Arndt and other early nationalists. The Pan-German League was organized in 1894 by Ernst Hasse (1846-1908) to heighten German nationalist awareness, especially among German-speaking people outside Germany. The movement, which pressed for German expansion in Europe, gained support after World War I under the Weimar Republic and was actively promoted by Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party. After Germany's defeat in 1945 and the expulsion of Germans from formerly German areas of eastern Europe, the movement declined.