Bloomsbury West German Industrialists and the Making of the Economic Miracle: A History of Mentality and Recovery

Product Description West German Industrialists and the Making of the Economic Miracle investigates the mentality of post-war German (heavy) industrialists through an analysis of their attitudes, thinking and views on social, political and, of course, economic matters at the time, including the 'social market economy' and how they saw their own role in society, with this investigation taking place against the backdrop of the 'economic miracle' and the Cold War of the 1950s and 60s. The book also includes an assessment of whether the self-declared, new 'aristocracy of merit' justified its place in society and carried out its actions in a new spirit of political responsibility. This is an important text for all students interested in the history of Germany and the modern economic history of Europe. Review This is a deeply researched study that skillfully combines economic, social, and political history. By revealing how business leaders after Nazism cast themselves as a new elite - one that embodied honor, loyalty, and the entrepreneurial spirit - Grünbacher offers a useful synthesis of current research trends, as well as an original focus on the mentalities of those who took credit for West Germany's ""economic miracle. --Jonathan Wiesen, Professor of History, Southern Illinois, USAWho was responsible for the West German 'Economic Miracle' after the Second World War? German managers and industrialists at the time have take credit, and many scholars have agreed. But, as Armin Grünbacher demonstrates in this impressively researched book, their role in the 'Economic Miracle' was more complex, involving a mixture of opportunism; adaption to new realities in the international political economy; and stubborn resistance to them by adhering to long established traditions, practices and mentalities. --Ray Stokes, Chair of Business History, University of Glasgow, UKThis is a thorough, comprehensive and intelligent study of how West German industrialists re-positioned themselves after the disaster of 1945. A significant contribution to our understanding of West German society in the 1950s and 1960s. --Moritz Föllmer, Associate Professor of Modern History, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands About the Author Armin Grünbacher is Senior Lecturer in Modern History at the University of Birmingham, UK.