The German Colonial Empire, Seen from Its End

Matthias Leanza, University of Basel

How do empires end? What influence do the ties and divides that shape imperial formations have after their downfall? And in what sense is the nation-state a legacy of empire rather than its negation? My presentation ponders these questions using the example of German colonialism. More specifically, I will look at the evolution of the German colonial empire from the 1880s in light of its sudden demise following World War I, arguing that the nation-state—in Germany and overseas—was among its most important legacies. However, the nation-state could only become a legacy of German colonialism because anticolonial activists failed to convert the overseas empire into a federated entity. The attempt at federal reform may have been futile, but it would have significantly altered the historical trajectories of all countries involved. Therefore, despite being an unlikely outcome, this counterfactual provides a meaningful contrast to assess what nation-states ultimately are—a product of decaying empires.

No extended abstract or paper available

 Presented in Session 158. Power and Normativity in Society and History III: Counterfactuals, Counterconcepts, and Moral Representation in Social Research