Law enforcement in Germany is conducted by federal, state and municipal law enforcement agencies. The Federal Police is a specialized force responsible for border protection, railway policing and aviation security. The federal structure of the Federal Republic of Germany gives the 16 states (Länder) the authority to maintain their own police … [Read more...]

The German legal system is the product of many centuries of development, starting with the tribal laws of the first Germans. Those indigenous customs were influenced and changed under Roman law and later by the laws that prevailed in the Holy Roman Empire. Feudal law also had a strong influence. When more formal law and legal institutions appeared … [Read more...]

Since the end of World War II, the military forces of six NATO Allies have been deployed in West Germany--first as occupation troops. Soviet troops were stationed in East Germany as part of the Warsaw Pact forces. Although the United States maintained the largest of the foreign NATO contingents, Britain and France also deployed substantial forces. … [Read more...]

The service uniform is the most common type of Bundeswehr uniform for general duty and most off-post activity. The army's service uniform consists of a light gray, single-breasted coat and darker gray trousers, worn with a light blue or white shirt, black tie, and black shoes. The peaked, visored cap has been replaced by the beret as the most … [Read more...]

Members of the German armed forces are subject to the civil criminal code and are tried for common criminal offenses in the civil court system. There are no military correction facilities; incarcerated military offenders serve their sentences in ordinary civilian prisons. Soldiers enjoy the same civil rights and liberties possessed by other … [Read more...]

The German Air Force (Luftwaffe) has faced dramatic changes in structure and strategic concepts as a result of the diminished threat in Central Europe and shrinking budgetary resources for modernized weapons systems. Prior to the demise of the Warsaw Pact, the German air force had as its primary mission the air defense of Central Europe in … [Read more...]

The primary areas of operation of the German navy (Bundesmarine) in the event of war are the Baltic Sea and the North Sea. Until 1990 the navy's mission had been to block the Baltic approaches on behalf of NATO to prevent the deployment of the Soviet Baltic Fleet in the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The German navy also contributed to … [Read more...]

In early 1995, the German army (Deutsches Heer), headquartered in Koblenz, had a personnel strength of appropriately 255,000, including 123,000 conscripts. German army was composed of two principal elements, the field army and the much smaller territorial army. Territorial army units were slated to be merged with the field army by the end of 1995. … [Read more...]

In the summer of 1955, ten years after the Nazi surrender and the end of World War II, the West German Bundestag (lower house of parliament) voted to authorize the recruitment of volunteers for the initial formation of the Bundeswehr (Federal Armed Forces). Later in the year, a cadre of about 100 officers and NCOs were sworn in at a ceremony in … [Read more...]

Prussian-German excellence in military matters was an accepted fact of life, but in the twentieth century the excessive accent on militarism led to two disastrous world wars. Germany's insistence on building a fleet that could challenge Britain's naval domination underscored German bellicosity and pushed Britain toward alignment with France and … [Read more...]