NOTE: This article is being expanded and reformatted at Germany/Temp. Please make any edits there instead of here.
The Federal Republic of Germany is a major industrialized country in the middle of Europe made up of sixteen Bundesländer. The German name is "Bundesrepublik Deutschland".
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As Western Europe's richests and most populous nation, Germany remains a key member of the continent's economic, political, and defense organizations. European power struggles immersed the country in two devastating World Wars in the first half of the 20th century and left the country occupied by the victorious Allied powers of the United States, United Kingdom, France, and the Soviet Union in 1945. With the advent of the Cold War, two German states were formed in 1949: the western Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the eastern German Democratic Republic (GDR). The democratic FRG embedded itself in key Western economic and security organizations, the EC and NATO, while the Communist GDR was on the front line of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact. The decline of the USSR and the end of the Cold War allowed for German unification in 1990. Since then Germany has expended considerable funds to bring eastern productivity and wages up to western standards. In January 1999, Germany and 12 other EU countries formed a common European currency, the euro.
The capital of Germany is Berlin.
BTW: It's not true that all Germans like "Sauerkraut and Eisbein", and not many people there wear short leather trousers, not even in Bavaria. The Bavarian Capital is Munich (German München) which is famous for its big beer festival, the "Oktoberfest" (which, despite its name, takes place in September).
Country name:
Data code: GM
Country code: DE
Government type: federal republic
Capital: Berlin
Administrative divisions:
16 states (Länder, singular Land; or Bundesländer, singular Bundesland)
Independence:
National holiday: German Unity Day (Day of Unity), 3 October (1990)
Constitution: 23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of the united German people 3 October 1990
Legal system: civil law system with indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in the Federal Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal. For some local votes 16 years is sufficent now.
Executive branch:
elections:
election results:
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Federal Assembly or Bundestag (656 seats usually, but 669 for the 1998 term; elected by popular vote under a system combining direct and proportional representation; a party must win 5% of the national vote or three direct mandates to gain representation; members serve four-year terms) and the Federal Council or Bundesrat (69 votes; state governments are directly represented by votes; each has 3 to 6 votes depending on population and are required to vote as a block)
elections:
election results:
Please note that the Federal Council figures are out of date already
Judicial branch:
Federal Constitutional Court or Bundesverfassungsgericht, half the judges are elected by the Bundestag and half by the Bundesrat
Political parties and leaders:
Political pressure groups and leaders:
employers' organizations; expellee, refugee, trade unions, and veterans groups
International organization participation:
AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BDEAC, BIS, CBSS, CCC, CDB (non-regional), CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 5, G- 7, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNOMIG, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, Zangger Committee
Diplomatic representation in the US:
Diplomatic representation from the US:
Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and gold
Some links:
External links:
