Book contents
- Invisible Fatherland
- Invisible Fatherland
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Acknowledgments
- Prologue
- Introduction
- 1From Kaiserreich to Reich
- 2“Onwards over Graves”
- 3Symbolics of Shared Hegemony
- 4Anchoring the Nation in the Democratic Form
- 5Political Violence and the Inversion of Gewalt
- 6In Memoriam of Walther Rathenau
- 7Constitutional Patriotism Avant la Lettre
- 8Memory from Fragments
- Conclusion
- Bibliography
- Index
2 - “Onwards over Graves”
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 18 December 2025
Book contents
- Invisible Fatherland
- Invisible Fatherland
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures
- Acknowledgments
- Prologue
- Introduction
- 1From Kaiserreich to Reich
- 2“Onwards over Graves”
- 3Symbolics of Shared Hegemony
- 4Anchoring the Nation in the Democratic Form
- 5Political Violence and the Inversion of Gewalt
- 6In Memoriam of Walther Rathenau
- 7Constitutional Patriotism Avant la Lettre
- 8Memory from Fragments
- Conclusion
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
The second chapter of Invisible Fatherland examines how the Weimar National Assembly asserted and projected its political legitimacy while addressing broader struggles over gender, class, and heritage. Drawing on a wide range of sources, from key political speeches and figures to the spatial arrangements of furniture and decorative choices, the chapter outlines the republic’s emergent symbolic order and emotional tone. In this context, the mediated presence of female delegates in the national assembly revealed the challenge of creating a more inclusive political order in a society still deeply shaped by tradition. The assembly’s negotiation of competing visions of community reflects the difficulty of establishing an open and inclusive democratic order in the aftermath of war and defeat.
Keywords
Information
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Invisible FatherlandConstitutional Patriotism in Weimar Germany, pp. 61 - 90Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2026
Accessibility standard: WCAG 2.2 AAA
Why this information is here
This section outlines the accessibility features of this content - including support for screen readers, full keyboard navigation and high-contrast display options. This may not be relevant for you.Accessibility Information
The HTML of this chapter complies with version 2.2 of the
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
(WCAG), offering more comprehensive accessibility measures for a broad range
of users and attains the highest
(AAA)
level of WCAG compliance, optimising the user experience by meeting the most extensive
accessibility guidelines.
Content Navigation
Table of contents navigation
Allows you to navigate directly to chapters, sections, or non‐text items through a linked table of contents, reducing the need for extensive scrolling.
Allows you to navigate directly to chapters, sections, or non‐text items through a linked table of contents, reducing the need for extensive scrolling.
Index navigation
Provides an interactive index, letting you go straight to where a term or subject appears in the text without manual searching.
Provides an interactive index, letting you go straight to where a term or subject appears in the text without manual searching.
Reading Order & Textual Equivalents
Single logical reading order
You will encounter all content (including footnotes, captions, etc.) in a clear, sequential flow, making it easier to follow with assistive tools like screen readers.
You will encounter all content (including footnotes, captions, etc.) in a clear, sequential flow, making it easier to follow with assistive tools like screen readers.
Short alternative textual descriptions
You get concise descriptions (for images, charts, or media clips), ensuring you do not miss crucial information when visual or audio elements are not accessible.
You get concise descriptions (for images, charts, or media clips), ensuring you do not miss crucial information when visual or audio elements are not accessible.
Full alternative textual descriptions
You get more than just short alt text: you have comprehensive text equivalents, transcripts, captions, or audio descriptions for substantial non‐text content, which is especially helpful for complex visuals or multimedia.
You get more than just short alt text: you have comprehensive text equivalents, transcripts, captions, or audio descriptions for substantial non‐text content, which is especially helpful for complex visuals or multimedia.
Visualised data also available as non-graphical data
You can access graphs or charts in a text or tabular format, so you are not excluded if you cannot process visual displays.
You can access graphs or charts in a text or tabular format, so you are not excluded if you cannot process visual displays.
Visual Accessibility
Use of colour is not sole means of conveying information
You will still understand key ideas or prompts without relying solely on colour, which is especially helpful if you have colour vision deficiencies.
You will still understand key ideas or prompts without relying solely on colour, which is especially helpful if you have colour vision deficiencies.
Use of high contrast between text and background colour
You benefit from high‐contrast text, which improves legibility if you have low vision or if you are reading in less‐than‐ideal lighting conditions.
You benefit from high‐contrast text, which improves legibility if you have low vision or if you are reading in less‐than‐ideal lighting conditions.