January 18, 2021 marked the 150th anniversary of the proclamation of the German Empire. Therefore, the AG Orte der Demokratiegeschichte organized a nationwide series of events and provided resources to help assess the ambivalent role of the Empire in German history and for German democracy, as well as to raise the sense of the complexity of the political system, society, and political culture of the Empire among a broad public.
On the occasion of the founding of the Reich, numerous publications have appeared that focus on the political, military and economic aspects of the Reich's founding period and do not take into account the role of the large social groups of gymnasts, singers and marksmen during this time. Therefore, the Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Gesellschaft together with the Landeszentrale für politische Bildung Sachsen-Anhalt organized a web symposium on 23 January 2021 entitled "Des Reiches Stützen? On the political and social role of gymnasts, singers and marksmen in the era of the founding of the empire and in the empire". The contributions of the symposium are available on the internet: https://www.demokratie-geschichte.de/index.php/3396/des-reiches-stuetzen-23-jan-2021/
All information on the series of events can be found in the thematic portal of the Places of the History of Democracy: https://www.demokratie-geschichte.de/extra/150jahre
