The history of the Federal Ministry of Finance (1945-1990)

The Federal Ministry of Finance (BMF) is an important player in the political landscape of the Federal Republic of Germany. This project examines for the first time in detail the central role played by the BMF in the history of German finance and administration.  The BMF is one of the central ministries and has numerous responsibilities, including the supervision of various federal authorities, the tax and budgetary policy, as well as the European financial policy.

After the Second World War, financial administration was constituted at the level of the federal states before the BMF was re-established with the founding of the Federal Republic of Germany in 1949. In the initial phase of West Germany, under the leadership of Fritz Schäffer, the ministry was primarily concerned with the consequences of the war, economic reconstruction and stabilization of the currency. In this context, the project analyzes the institutional and personnel continuities in the financial administration from National Socialism to West Germany and the decisions in fiscal policy during the first postwar years.

During the subsequent economic boom, the BMF strengthened the German economy through its active tax and budget policy. At the same time, the transition from the classic cover principle to an anti-cyclical fiscal policy changed the function of fiscal policy. The ministry took on new tasks and seized opportunities to shape policy, however, this change also placed new social demands on the BMF. As a result, both the budget deficit and the volume of debt grew steadily.

In response to this, a “consolidation coalition” emerged with the aim of reducing government activities and restructuring public budgets. It remains to be seen what successes were achieved with the restrictive budgetary policy in the run-up to German reunification. Concurrently, the BMF became increasingly involved in international contexts due to the global economic upheavals of the 1970s and the internationalization of the German economy. For this reason, the international activities and spectrum of action on the part of the BMF are also examined in more detail for the first time.

The whole project covers the period from the founding phase of the Ministry to German reunification and examines the origins, organization and personnel of the BMF as well as its financial policy in the context of German and European history. It also examines the development of financial administration and financial policy in the GDR, where the financial system was an integral part of the planned economy and thus differed fundamentally from that in West Germany.

Scientific Commission: Prof. Dr. Stefanie Middendorf (Jena), Prof. Dr. Alexander Nützenadel (Berlin), Prof. Dr. Werner Plumpe (Frankfurt/Main), Prof. Dr. Laura Rischbieter (Basel), Prof. Dr. Hans-Peter Ullmann (Köln), Prof. Dr. Andreas Wirsching (Munich), Prof. Dr. Reimut Zohlnhöfer (Heidelberg)



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