Deck 4: Germany

Question 1

Germany's lack of natural borders in the North and South has led to a history of conflict and border changes.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

The idea of nationalism spread to Germany from France, and eventually led to three German invasions of France.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Germany was unified into the Second Reich through a bottom-up revolution.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Reparations from World War I created insane hyperinflation in Germany, thus leaving many Germans receptive to the Nazis.

Question 5

Germany now has a centralized, unitary system.

Question 6

Germany's strong chancellorship is partly a product of the precedent set by Konrad Adenauer, the Federal Republic's first chancellor.

Question 7

As is the case in the U.S., German cabinet ministers are not members of the legislature and are specialists in their portfolio areas.

Question 8

The German Free Democratic Party is slowly becoming more popular and more powerful; it captured more than 10% of the seats in the 2013 election.

Question 9

Liberal democracy was successfully implemented in East Germany until the collapse of the Berlin Wall.

Question 10

Due to its Nazi past, Germany is a fragile democracy today.

Question 11

Following reunification, West Germans felt alienated from East Germans, and East Germans resented the costly efforts to bring West Germany up to the same level of development as the West.

Question 12

The Treaty of Westphalia was signed in __________ and ended __________.

A) 1648; the Thirty Years War
B) 1865; the Boer War
C) 1931; World War I
D) 1945; World War II

Question 13

To justify territorial expansion based on national superiority, a leader might appeal to the German concept of Lebensraum, which meant that __________.

A) the German military was superior
B) Germans were racially superior
C) Germany was entitled to some living space
D) Germany should become an authoritarian country

Question 14

__________ kept a strong Prussian army that frightened larger states and helped expand territory; he also was a model for later German nationalists such as Hitler.

A) Frederick the Great
B) Kaiser Wilhelm II
C) Karl der Grosse
D) Napoleon

Question 15

The __________ of 1919 ended World War I; it also __________ the likelihood of World War II.

A) Treaty of Paris; decreased
B) Rome Treaty; decreased
C) Treaty of Westphalia; increased
D) Treaty of Versailles; increased

Question 16

__________ led the formation of the Second Reich.

A) Prussia
B) Hitler
C) Bavaria
D) The Rhine

Question 17

Otto von Bismarck was a __________, a member of the Prussian nobility that controlled the civil service and military.

A) chancellor
B) conservative
C) monarch
D) Junker

Question 18

The __________ came to an end in 1933 when the Nazis came to power.

A) Holy Roman Empire
B) Second Reich
C) Weimar Republic
D) Federal Republic

Question 19

The __________ was characterized by the brutal dictatorship of Hitler, war, and genocide.

A) Second Reich
B) Third Reich
C) Weimar Republic
D) German Democratic Republic

Question 20

Which of the following was a provision of the Versailles Treaty that further destabilized Germany and contributed to World War II?

A) Hitler was blamed for the war; Germany was held blameless.
B) Germany was required to pay painful reparations.
C) Germany was forbidden to repair its damaged infrastructure.
D) Germany was required to demilitarize.

Question 21

Political scientist Giovanni Sartori described the process of voters fleeing from centrist to extremist parties, which happened in Germany in the 1930s, as__________.

A) the politics of extremism
B) polarized pluralism
C) the democratic deficit
D) Machtpolitik

Question 22

The German president serves primarily as __________.

A) chancellor
B) head of state
C) chief party leader
D) chief of government

Question 23

What is "constructive no-confidence" as found in Germany?

A) the public's systemic lack of confidence in hierarchical institutions
B) a procedure for ousting the president with a majority vote in the Bundesrat
C) a rule that only members of the Bundestag can be dismissed through a vote of no-confidence
D) a rule that a new chancellor must be simultaneously voted in when the current chancellor is voted out

Question 24

From 1949 to 2005, Germany had a __________ system. Since 2005, Germany has had a __________ system.

A) two-plus party; multiparty
B) dominant party; three-party
C) two-party; seven-party
D) multiparty; two-party

Question 25

Germany uses a __________ electoral system.

A) single-member district
B) first past the post
C) mixed-member proportional
D) single-transferable vote

Question 26

Similar to __________, the German judiciary has the rare quality of being equal in power to both the legislative and executive branches.

A) France
B) Britain
C) the United States
D) Russia

Question 27

The __________ has generally been the largest German party and supports a "social market" economy.

A) CDU/CSU
B) SPD
C) FDP
D) PDS

Question 28

In order to __________, a German party must win at least __________ of the votes nationwide to be awarded their PR-won seats in the Bundestag.

A) allow small factions to express their will; 0.5%
B) incorporate as many parties as possible into the system; 1%
C) prevent the rise of extremist parties; 5%
D) limit the number of competitive parties to no more than two; 25%

Question 29

The __________ is the mother of European democratic socialism and is the only German party that predates the Federal Republic.

A) SDU
B) CDU
C) CSU
D) FDP

Question 30

The German Federal Republic's lower house is the __________ and the upper house is the __________.

A) Reichstag; Kabinett
B) House of Representatives; Senate
C) Knesset; National Assembly
D) Bundestag; Bundesrat

Question 31

The German political generation of 1945 focused on __________.

A) marriage
B) religion
C) social welfare
D) materialism

Question 32

The theory of __________ argues that modern culture has moved beyond acquisition of possessions and typically applies to people who were __________.

A) postmodernism; raised in poverty
B) postmaterialism; raised in a time of affluence
C) modernization; raised in times of war
D) liberalism; raised in democratic countries

Question 33

__________ is a member of the __________ Party and was first elected chancellor in 2005.

A) Ludwig Erhard; CDU
B) Angela Merkel; CDU
C) Willy Brandt; SPD
D) Konrad Adenauer; CDU

Question 34

Political scientist Sidney Verba described __________ as a situation in which citizens like the political system because of what it can provide for them, which Verba says is a __________ basis for long-term democratic stability.

A) legitimacy; weak
B) sovereignty; strong
C) output affect; weak
D) system input; strong

Question 35

Which of the following is an indication of German dealignment?

A) German political parties moving toward the center
B) increased voter turnout
C) voters increasingly casting ballots for candidates from a variety of small parties
D) increased reliability in vote choice

Question 36

Which of the following is the least likely in the German Bundestag?

A) Christian-Liberal Coalition
B) SPD-Left Coalition
C) Social-Liberal Coalition
D) Grand Coalition

Question 37

German public support for the European Union __________ due to the global recession and the need to bail out Portugal, Greece, Ireland, and __________.

A) increased; France
B) decreased; Spain
C) increased; Britain
D) decreased; Poland

Question 38

Describe the provisions of the Treaty of Versailles. To what extent did these provisions contribute to World War II? Explain.

Question 39

Did the Weimer Republic ever have a chance to become a stable democracy? Why or why not? Discuss at least three factors and provide examples.

Question 40

How does the German electoral system treat small parties? Evaluate whether treating small parties this way is beneficial for democracy.

Question 41

Describe three features of the German Federal Republic that have contributed to a stable, successful political system. Evaluate any features that you view as potentially problematic for a stable, successful democracy.

Question 42

What type of electoral system does Germany have? What effect has this electoral system had on the party system in Germany? If you were designing a country's electoral system, would you adopt this system? Why or why not?