ABSTRACT
In the 1950s, a protest movement, in part supported by the Social Democratic Party (SPD), questioned rearmament and nuclear weapons. The profile of the SPD changed significantly from 1969 to 1982, a period during which it reached the pinnacle of political power. A youth rebellion against the establishment caused a shift in the country's political, social, and cultural infrastructure. It had a spillover effect on the parties, but especially the SPD, which was closest ideologicaly to the left-leaning students spearheading the rebellion. In foreign policy, the record of the SPD was equally mixed. Critics within the SPD were more doubtful about a technocratic approach to political problems; they preferred the party to embark on low-cost reforms which would give it the reputation of being concerned with the citizens' welfare rather than being just another party receiving and sorting out claims on the state.
