GermansInfobox ethnic group | group = Germans | native_name = Deutsche | native_name_lang = de | region1 = Germany | pop1 = 72,569,978 | region2 = United States | pop2 = 534,000 | region3 = Brazil | pop3 = 21,000 5,000,000 | region4 = Canada | pop4 = 157,000 3,322,405 | region5 = Australia | pop5 = 125,000 1,026,140 | region6 = Kazakhstan | pop6 = 900,000 | region7 = Russia | pop7 = 142,000 840,000 | region8 = Argentina | pop8 = 9,000 500,000 | region9 = Switzerland | pop9 = 357,000 | region10 = United Kingdom | p
HesseHesse (Hessen ˈhɛsn̩), officially the State of Hesse (Land Hessen), is a state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt, which is also the country's principal financial centre. Two other major historic cities are Darmstadt and Kassel. With an area of 21,114.73 square kilometers and a population of over six million, it ranks seventh and fifth, respectively, among the sixteen German states. Frankfurt Rhine-Main, Germany's second-largest metropolitan area (after Rhine-Ruhr), is mainly located in Hesse.
Former eastern territories of GermanyThe "former eastern territories of Germany" (Ehemalige deutsche Ostgebiete) refer in present-day Germany to those territories east of the current eastern border of Germany i.e. the Oder–Neisse line which historically had been considered German and which were annexed by Poland and the Soviet Union after World War II in Europe. In many of these territories, Germans used to be the dominant or sole ethnicity.
Parliamentary systemA parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democratic governance of a state (or subordinate entity) where the executive derives its democratic legitimacy from its ability to command the support ("confidence") of the legislature, typically a parliament, to which it is accountable. In a parliamentary system, the head of state is usually a person distinct from the head of government.
Constructive vote of no confidenceThe constructive vote of no confidence (konstruktives Misstrauensvotum, moción de censura constructiva) is a variation on the motion of no confidence that allows a parliament to withdraw confidence from a head of government only if there is a positive majority for a prospective successor. The principle is intended to ensure governments' stability by making sure that a replacement has enough parliamentary support to govern.
Enabling Act of 1933The Enabling Act of 1933 (German: Ermächtigungsgesetz), officially titled Gesetz zur Behebung der Not von Volk und Reich (Law to Remedy the Distress of People and Reich), was a law that gave the German Cabinet – most importantly, the Chancellor – the powers to make and enforce laws without the involvement of the Reichstag or Weimar President Paul von Hindenburg, leading to the rise of Nazi Germany. Critically, the Enabling Act allowed the Chancellor to bypass the system of checks and balances in the government.
BundestagThe Bundestag (ˈbʊndəstaːk, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people, comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. The Bundestag was established by Title III of the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany (Grundgesetz, ˈɡʁʊntɡəˌzɛt͡s) in 1949 as one of the legislative bodies of Germany and thus it is the historical successor to the earlier Reichstag.
DeutschlandliedThe "Deutschlandlied" (ˈdɔʏtʃlantˌliːt; "Song of Germany"), officially titled "Das Lied der Deutschen" (das ˌliːt dɛːʁ ˈdɔʏtʃn̩; "The Song of the Germans"), has been the national anthem of Germany either wholly or in part since 1922, except for a seven-year gap following World War II in West Germany. In East Germany, the national anthem was "Auferstanden aus Ruinen" ("Risen from Ruins") between 1949 and 1990. Since World War II and the fall of Nazi Germany, only the third stanza has been used as the national anthem.
Frankfurt ParliamentThe Frankfurt Parliament (Frankfurter Nationalversammlung, literally Frankfurt National Assembly) was the first freely elected parliament for all German states, including the German-populated areas of the Austrian Empire, elected on 1 May 1848 (see German federal election, 1848). The session was held from 18 May 1848 to 30 May 1849 in the Paulskirche at Frankfurt am Main. Its existence was both part of and the result of the "March Revolution" within the states of the German Confederation.
Cabinet of GermanyThe Federal Cabinet or Federal Government (Bundeskabinett or Bundesregierung) is the chief executive body of the Federal Republic of Germany. It consists of the Federal Chancellor and cabinet ministers. The fundamentals of the cabinet's organisation as well as the method of its election and appointment as well as the procedure for its dismissal are set down in articles 62 through 69 of the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany (Grundgesetz).
