Anatomy of a Dictatorship: Inside the GDR 1949-1989

by Mary Fulbrook

Founded on the ruins of Hitler's defeated Third Reich, and lacking any intrinsic legitimacy, the German Democratic Republic nevertheless became the most stable and successful state in the Soviet bloc. Yet in the "gentle revolution" of 1989 it collapsed with startling speed. How can this extraordinary story of political stability followed by sudden implosion be explained?

With the opening of the East German archives, it is at last possible to look inside the apparently impregnable dictatorship. Mary Fulbrook provides a compelling interpretation of structures of power and patterns of popular opinion within the GDR. This absorbing study explores the ways in which the tentacles of the all-pervading state captured East German society in the grip of Stasi, party, and mass organizations, and analyzes the emergence in the 1980s of oppositional cultures under the ambivalent shelter of a Protestant Church which had come to terms with the communist state.

In combining careful archival research with broader theoretical and historical interpretation, Anatomy of a Dictatorship makes a major contribution to debates on recent German history and the character of contemporary Germany.

Genres: History, Germany, Nonfiction, Politics, World History

324 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

Mary Jean Alexandra Fulbrook (née Wilson) is a British academic, historian and author. Since 1995, she has been Professor of German History at University College London. She is a noted researcher in a wide range of fields, including religion and society in early modern Europe, the German dictatorships of the twentieth century, Europe after the Holocaust, and historiography and social theory.

Reviews

[Will · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fulbrook adopts a tripartite analytical structure, examining the East German dictatorship through the lens of dictatorial power, popular compliance and oppositional tactics. She disagrees with studies which talk of a constant conflict between the SED and the populace, arguing that the employment opportunities following the construction of the Berlin Wall, as well as the reformist promised of the GDR leadership, gave the regime legitimacy and stability in the 1960s and 1970s.

However, the promises of the GDR elites could not be fulfilled, and in the late 1970s opposition was once again brewing. Fulbrook writes that the regime made a crucial error in sanctioning the growth of a legal opposition movement in the Christian churches following the 1978 church-state agreement. Following this, Gorbachev and the young members of the East German leadership lacked the bloody-mindedness to crack down on dissent when it began to pick up pace.

Fulbrook's two most important contributions were showing the "contours of domimation" which ran down from the state executive and in highlighting generational struggles within the SED leadership. I would have liked to have seen more emphasis on economic factors, and the compromise reached between the regime and the people regarding supply of goods.

[martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

At last, a balanced, informative and very intelligent account of the history of the GDR, neither glossing over its sins nor overstressing them.
It is fascinating to read of the way the country's citizens reacted and interacted with their regime, often supporting some aspects of it while pushing hard for other less acceptable things to change.
The first history that is more than just a black and white account of theose 40 years.

My one complaint? Add a who's who list to the book. It's irritating to have to go and check Google to find out more about the roles and functions of some of the people mentioned

[Avesta · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are a newbie to East German history and politics, please do not start by reading this - you should have a decent understanding before reading this, as some topics Professor Fulbrook discusses are subject to debate, and can be argued as not factual.

Incredibly detailed account of the structure of the German Democratic Republic.

It seemed to be quite a balanced discussion at first. However, I felt there were some errors - the GDR was not a 'one-party state' but had multiple parties in the Volkskammer; the usage of Gleichshaltung made no sense to describe a non-Nazi regime; and she also seemed to make the assumption that the members of the Democratic Farmer's Party of Germany were peasants, not to mention the fact that she had correctly stated that for many East Germans, life was enjoyable and prosperous under the regime, but went on to contradict that later on.

HOWEVER - I emailed her about the book, and she elaborated on my concerns. Her usage of Gleichshaltung was to show how similar the two regimes were in terms of totalitarian structure, and that "multiple parties with a previously fixed number of seats and under control of SED does not equal democracy" - which is a valid argument.

Nevertheless, Professor Fulbrook still didn't attempt to highlight how life truly was under the supposed dictatorship, and I feel she reinforced the negative and unfair portrayal the GDR gets from the press... and so hope it isn't read by those seeking an understanding of the GDR for the first time.

8/10 - whilst I initially thought negatively of her since the title of the book itself seemed a little far-fetched (given that the GDR and the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic were perhaps the most well-off and prosperous regimes in the Soviet Bloc), the fact that she has written such a detailed and fascinating book on the GDR, and her helpful response to my questions, changed my viewpoint completely.

Please note that I am a socialist with a bad case of Ostalgie, so my criticisms are slightly biased in favour of the GDR.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book discusses the inside of the GDR and its demise. Fulbrook attributes much of the crumbling of the GDR to religious groups.

[Cold War Conversations Podcast · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent, objective and rare english language view of the East German state without rose tinted left wing nostalgia .

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

But the books is by Mary Fullbrook not Penry Williams!! Silly Goodreads...