Between 1871 and 1910, the
German Empire
The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...
experienced a period of both large-scale
industrialization
Industrialisation ( alternatively spelled industrialization) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial society. This involves an extensive re-organisation of an econo ...
and large-scale
urbanization
Urbanization (or urbanisation) refers to the population shift from rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change. It is predominantly t ...
. As a result of this movement of people from rural areas to cities, living and working conditions were often poor, setting the scene for the social conflict within Germany that was to follow.
Summary
Between 1871 and 1910, the number of Germans who lived in urban areas significantly increased.
While the percentage of Germans who lived in communities (localities) with less than 2,000 people decreased from 64% to 40% between 1871 and 1910, the percentage of Germans who lived in communities with 20,000 to 99,999 people increased from 8% to 13% and the percentage of Germans who lived in communities with 100,000 or more people increased from 5% to 21% during the same time period.
However, this urbanization occurred unevenly throughout Germany.
Specifically, Germany's urbanization and industrialization was focused on the north and west while Germany's south and east retained their predominantly rural character.
For instance, two-thirds of the population of both
East Prussia
East Prussia ; german: Ostpreißen, label=Low Prussian; pl, Prusy Wschodnie; lt, Rytų Prūsija was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1773 to 1829 and again from 1878 (with the Kingdom itself being part of the German Empire from 187 ...
and
Posen Province (in the eastern part of Germany) lived in communities of less than 2,000 people in 1910 while only two-fifths of all Germans did and while only one-fifth of the population in both the
Rhineland
The Rhineland (german: Rheinland; french: Rhénanie; nl, Rijnland; ksh, Rhingland; Latinised name: ''Rhenania'') is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly its middle section.
Term
Historically, the Rhinelands ...
and
Westphalia
Westphalia (; german: Westfalen ; nds, Westfalen ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants.
The territory of the regio ...
(in the western part of Germany) did.
Overall, the most robust urbanization in Germany during this time period occurred in the Rhineland, Westphalia,
Saxony
Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...
, and
Brandenburg
Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a states of Germany, state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an ar ...
.
Similarly, industrial development in Germany during this time focused on the
Ruhr
The Ruhr ( ; german: Ruhrgebiet , also ''Ruhrpott'' ), also referred to as the Ruhr area, sometimes Ruhr district, Ruhr region, or Ruhr valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 2,800/km ...
, Saxony, and
Silesia
Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...
.
Out of the total population in these provinces, 47% of Brandenburg's population, 40% of Westphalia's population, and 50% of the Rhineland's population lived in communities of 20,000 people or more in 1910.
Between 1875 and 1910, German cities experienced a huge increase in their population.
During this time, the number of German cities with more than 10,000 residents increased from 271 to 576.
Similarly, during this time, the number of German cities with a population of more than 200,000 people increased from 3 to 23 during the same time period.
In addition, the German cities of
Duisburg
Duisburg () is a city in the Ruhr metropolitan area of the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Lying on the confluence of the Rhine and the Ruhr rivers in the center of the Rhine-Ruhr Region, Duisburg is the 5th largest city in Nor ...
,
Essen
Essen (; Latin: ''Assindia'') is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and D ...
, and
Kiel
Kiel () is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 246,243 (2021).
Kiel lies approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the southeast of the J ...
all had their populations increase by five times or more during this time period.
Specifically, Duisburg's population increased from 37,380 to 229,438, Essen's population increased from 54,790 to 294,653, and Kiel's population increased from 37,246 to 211,627 during this time period.
Consequences
As a result of Germany's urbanization, Germany's
working-class
The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...
often had to deal with miserable working and living conditions.
In turn, this set the stage for intense social conflict within Germany as well as led to the rise of the
German Social Democratic Party
The Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, ; SPD, ) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany.
Saskia Esken has been the ...
--the largest socialist party in the world during this time—thanks to large-scale worker support for it.
See also
*
:Timelines of cities in Germany
References
{{Reflist, 30em
German Empire
Economic history of Germany
Economy of the German Empire
Industrialisation
German Empire
The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...
19th century in Germany