Originally published in 1978, this book goes beyond conventional studies of economic history to discuss wider political and social questions pertinent to the development of the German political economy of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

1. Germany in 1815 2. Towards Economic Unification 3. The Social Impact of Economic Development 1815-1850 4. The 1850s: Growth and Crisis 5. Economics and Unification 6. From Boom to Depression 7. The Impact of the Great Depression 1873-1895 8. Imperialism 9. Rye and Iron 10. World Politics and Mitteleuropa 11. The Economic Founds of pre-War Policy 1900-1914