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Summary: The effectiveness and the sustainability of the Holy Roman Empire remained a subject of debate over the past two centuries. While nationalist historians derided the lack of centralized institutions, revisionist historians after the Second World War largely stressed the positive aspects of the Empire. The Reichskammergericht and the Reichshofrat were two of the institutions that experienced this positive reassessment. While most historians focused on the effectiveness of the Reich courts during the existence of the Empire, few have examined the perception of the courts immediately after the demise of the Empire in 1806. This thesis analyzes the perception of the courts through the eyes of leading politicians (including Humboldt, Hardenberg, and Stein) to reinforce the argument that these institutions were valued. Since the courts played a pivotal role in the Holy Roman Empire, it is more than likely that these individuals had a generally favorable view of the Holy Roman Empire as well., 2021, Includes bibliography., Degree granted: Thesis (MA)--Florida Atlantic University, 2021., Collection: FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

This research analyzes how American soldiers reacted to the Dachau concentration camp, and offers statistics that counter the arguments made by Holocaust deniers and revisionists. It compares how the Soviets, British, and Americans conducted themselves as they freed other prisoners, and discusses why every camp liberation was dissimilar. Evidence gathered from the liberators who executed the SS disproves the argument that they were premediated killers and emphasizes how unique Dachau’s conditions were on the day of liberation, when compared to other concentration camps. It also directly refutes many arguments made by Holocaust deniers, and addresses their erroneous narratives, statistics, and conclusions regarding the Dachau liberation, and the Holocaust in general., 2019, Includes bibliography., Degree granted: Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2019., Collection: FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Summary: This thesis proves Adolf Hitler went to much greater lengths in the early 1930s to wm England's friendship than historians previously realized. It argues Hitler commissioned a custom-made English abridgement of his bestselling book Mein Kampf in 1931 hoping to appeal directly to the British people for an Anglo-German military alliance. This thesis does what no other scholarly examination of the Nazi era has yet done: directly compare Hitler's original Mein Kampfto the official British and American translations to show how Hitler changed his own book to make himself and his Nazi movement less objectionable to the British people. Hitler was so eager to win over the British that he ordered another revision to that 1931 abridgement over the summer of 1933 to ensure the text made the maximum appeal to its intended audience. The resulting popularity of this twice-censored English Mein Kampf, finally published during the autumn of 1933, shows the British people's receptiveness to Hitler's early diplomatic efforts and begins to explain why three different Prime Ministers pursued the policy of appeasement throughout the 1930s., 2007, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, Degree granted: Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2007., Collection: FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Summary: Czechoslovakia, and later the Czech Republic, has made its desire to join the European Union (EU) clear since the establishment of its constitution in 1990. Experts agree the country's success at creating a working democratic government and free market economy will make it eligible for EU membership by 2002. However, the European Union will not be capable of successfully expanding at that time. The EU must restructure its political and voting systems, as well as the Common Agricultural Policy, to allow for more participating members. While officials of the European Union agree these changes are necessary, very little has been done to accomplish them. Historically, changes within the EU have been slow. As these necessary changes are postponed it is apparent the Czech Republic will not be able to join the European Union in 2002., Collection: FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 1998.

Summary: After World War II, Germany lay in ruins, both physically and morally. The Allies attempted denazification, but were unable to completely reform the educational system. Cold War exigencies dictated that lessons on the Nazi era, particularly the cruelties of the Holocaust, be soft-pedaled. While some German politicians urged greater openness, collective amnesia reigned for over a decade. Early texts showed Germans as mesmerized by Hitler, who, together with a few henchmen, was responsible for the mass murders. Gradually, as democracy took root in West Germany, educators responded to the changing political culture by teaching more of the true nature of Nazism. Each decade brought significant improvements in textual coverage as an ethos developed about the need to transmit Germany's recent ugly history. Teaching methods expanded to include field trips to a growing number of memorial centers and special projects which involved students on a personal and emotional level. Today, Germany's commitment to teaching youth about antisemitism and the Holocaust is to be commended for its thoroughness., Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, Collection: FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection, Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 1998.

Summary: Since its end, scholars and historians have viewed World War I primarily in terms of its impact upon the military and diplomatic spheres of European life and have also made attempts to determine responsibility for starting the war. What has been largely ignored is the plight of those who did the fighting--especially German volunteer soldiers. These young men enlisted in the war effort because of a concrete set of assumptions that were later radicalized during the war experience, which was characterized by seemingly endless labor and episodic periods of extreme violence. This transformation of beliefs had a profound impact upon the shaping of the modern world., Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, Collection: FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection, Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 1997.

The long-held view that German liberalism's failures in the nineteenth century presaged Hitler's triumphs has been recently challenged by historians who argue that the setbacks suffered by the liberal movement should not diminish its otherwise positive impact on the course of German history., This debate on the liberal movement's legacy invites historians to re-assess previously held assumptions about individuals and events that affected the course of Germany's liberal development. This dissertation proposes to re-assess Emperor Frederick III's contribution to the liberal movement. As crown prince, Frederick maintained ties with prominent liberals and rejected the conservative domestic and foreign policies of Germany's chancellor, Otto von Bismarck. Frederick's marriage to Princess Victoria, the eldest daughter of the Queen of England, strengthened his liberal impulses. But when Frederick came to the throne in 1888, he was mortally ill with cancer, and reigned for only three months. A majority of historians of nineteenth century Germany regard Frederick's untimely death as the swan song of German liberalism., Documents recently made available from the Kurhessische Stiftung make it possible to answer the question as to whether Frederick was part of liberal movement's tragic history, or whether he abetted its successes. The documents show that Frederick was a constitutional liberal who fought to preserve the basis of liberal political power--the constitution--from subversion by the conservatives. At the same time, however, he only condoned liberal reform on the basis of the constitutional status quo, and rejected his wife's wish to see the adoption of British political institutions in Germany. Therefore, while Frederick contributed to the survival of liberalism as a political force, it is also true that many historians have exaggerated the extent of his liberal views., Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 53-11, Section: A, page: 4050., Thesis (Ph.D.)--Brown University, 1992.