‘The Association of German Railway Administrations (Verein Deutscher Eisenbahn-Verwaltungen) 1847-1914 –More Than a Trade Association’

Abstract

This thesis is based on research of primary sources carried out in libraries and archives in England and Germany as well as the review of both English and German language secondary sources. It examines the contribution of the Verein Deutscher Eisenbahn-Verwaltungen (Association of German Railway Administrations) during the period 1847-1914 in the rise of Germany as a unified country; a country that was arguably, by century’s end, the leading industrial nation in nineteenth century Europe.

That the Verein played a significant role in Germany’s ascendance is not at all apparent from most of the historiography where little mention, if any, is made of it. Consequently, what published material is available is sparse, which itself raises many questions. At best the Verein tends to be viewed solely as a trade association, but this thesis will make an original contribution to knowledge by presenting evidence to test the proposition, and where hard evidence is absent to permit reasonable inference, that it was much more than that.

In particular it will examine the claim that the Verein should be considered as a political institution. It will also examine the role the Verein assumed as the nonstatutory railway authority in Germany. This delivered what must be considered the basis of the country’s strategic infrastructure, namely: a national, standardised, all-weather railway network which was the catalyst for realising the potential of industry, trade and commerce. It will consider the Verein’s influence not only on commercial matters where it encouraged good business practice across Germany, but also on political and societal issues which had far reaching beneficial effect. Altogether, the evidence presented would indicate that the Verein was a major facilitator in the transformation and unification of a fragmented Germany of many independent states, not least by promoting the German language. This transformation was from a cultural nation primarily dependent on agriculture, craft work and cottage industries into an industrial nation-state in the vanguard of technology.

As a consequence, the Verein appears to have been an indispensable element in the process of nation building. Therefore, the Verein’s status deserves to be re-assessed to determine whether it should be accorded a place of prominence in the history of Germany. The aim of this thesis is to put forward an original case to test this proposition