‘The most important reason why Adenauer was able to remain in power for so long was the economic miracle.’ How far do you agree?

Konrad Adenauer was chancellor from September 1949 to October 1963 a rule of 14 years longer than the whole of the Weimar republic or Adolf Hitler. Compared to Weimar’s 13 chancellors and Hitler’s use of force and coercion Adenauer’s long and stable chancellorship in a democracy is even more impressive and was supported at the ballot box consistently. One reason for this success was that Adenauer was politically and culturally the chancellor that Post-Nazi Germany needed to retain it to normality. Another reason was that the geopolitical climate meant that West Germans wanted a leader that could strengthen relations with the west and bolster their national security and Adenauer was that man. However, the most significant reason was the economic miracle as this alleviated the economic pain experienced by most West Germans in 1945 and led to the electoral success that was the bedrock of his longevity. It was economic not cultural or foreign policy concerns that were the biggest determinant of votes in this period and so it is primarily the good economic situation throughout the late 1940s and ‘50s that enabled Adenauer to retain a dominant position in West German politics.Adenauer run in the 1957 federal election on a slogan of “no experiments” and won 50.2% of the vote. This slogan and result showed that Adenauer was in tune with the Germany of the time that after years of upheaval wanted stable conservative government and Adenauer came to embody this leading many voters to vote for him. Also as the Mayor of Cologne in 1933 and an Anti-Nazi figure after he went into hiding during the Nazi dictatorship of 1933-45 he was perfectly placed to help distance Germany from its Nazi past. This was also aided by the fact that he had a long and industrious prior political and governmental career which was unassociated with Nazism. This made Adenauer perfectly and almost uniquely suited to the task of being Germany’s first post Nazi chancellor in a nation that was desperate to severe its Nazi ties which helped give him the personal credibility and mandate that was essential for this long rule. However, although he may have been a perfect cultural fit this would have been useless if in fact Adenauer had not delivered on his election promises and governed well. It was the results of his policies and the overall global economic situation that voters ultimately supported and this was personified more with the economic miracle than by election slogans or anti-Nazi sentiments pre-election 1945. Therefore, although Adenauer cultural suitability was important gaining support but it was not enough to sustain his 14 years of rule so would not have been the most significant factor behind it.