Essay/Term paper: Germany

Essay, term paper, research paper:  Humanities

Germany is the fourth largest country in area in

Europe, with a total area of 356,970 square

kilometers (137,827 square miles). The country has

a varied terrain that ranges from low-lying coastal

flats along the North and Baltic seas, to a central

area of rolling hills and river valleys, to heavily

forested mountains and snow-covered Alps in the

south. Germany has a long, complex history and rich

culture, but it did not become a unified nation until

1871. Before that time, Germany had been a

confederacy (1815-1867).



The country has a total of 82,071,765 people (1997

estimate). Germany is overwhelmingly urban, and

most people lead a prosperous, comfortable lifestyle,

with adequate leisure time and comprehensive

social welfare benefits. Berlin is the capital and

largest city, although Bonn, which was the provisional

capital of West Germany, is still home to some

government offices. The principal language is

German, and about 70 percent of the people are

either Roman Catholic or Protestant.



Germany has a very large and modern industrial

economy and is a leading producer of such products

as iron and steel, machinery and machine tools, and

automobiles. Germany is an economic powerhouse

in the European Union (EU), and its currency, the

deutsche mark (DM), is among the strongest in the

world.



Germany ranks as the fourth largest country in

Europe, after European Russia (the part of Russia

west of the Ural Mountains), France, and Spain.

Germany is bounded on the north by the North Sea,

Denmark, Baltic Sea, on the east by Poland and the

Czech Republic, on the south by Austria and

Switzerland, and on the west by France,

Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands.

Stretching from the Baltic and North seas to the Alps,

Germany measures about 800 kilometers (about 500

miles) from north to south; the country extends about

600 km (about 400 miles) from west to east. In

addition to coastline and mountains, the varied

terrain includes forests, hills, plains, and river valleys.

Several navigable rivers traverse the uplands, and

canals connect the river systems of the Elbe, Rhine,

and Danube rivers and link the North Sea with the

Baltic.



Germany has a mostly moderate climate,

characterized by cool winters and warm summers.

River valleys, such the Rhine, tend to be humid and

somewhat warmer in both winter and summer,

whereas mountain areas can be much colder.

Precipitation on the average is much heavier in the

south, especially along the Alpine slopes, which force

incoming weather fronts to rise and let off moisture in

the form of rain and snow.



Germany does not have large pockets of poverty or

great economic disparity. Crime levels are

substantially lower than those in the United States,

and the possession of guns is controlled. However,

there are substantial numbers of homeless people

and problems of violence, alcoholism, and drug

abuse. Nonviolent crimes, such as theft and burglary

in urban areas, have increased since the 1970s.

They occur often enough to make law and order a

recurrent political campaign issue.