Embracing democracy in modern Germany : political citizenship and participation 1871 2000 Over the course of the modern era the traditional stereotype of authoritarian Germans has given way as they have become (mostly) model democrats. Looking at six German regimes across twelve decades this study shows how and why Germans have chosen to be politically active (even under dictatorships) the enormous range of conceptions of political culture and democracy they have held; and how the interactions between these factors produced instability and stability at different times.