ABSTRACT
Around 1850, agrarian conditions of life were still predominant in Germany, except in a few industrial districts. Two generations later, at the start of the twentieth century, Germany had risen to become the leading industrial power on the European continent. Now the large and medium-sized cities placed their stamp on the countryside and on the thinking of the rural population. The concentrated social relations in the cities changed the character of organized religion, and especially the relationship between church members and clergy. It is especially from the point of view of the latter that the process of change, as illustrated by Hanover, will be portrayed. This city is a good choice for such an analysis because in Hanover the transition from town to city, proceeding first gradually and then rapidly, was complete within a mere sixty years between 1850 and 1914. By the beginning of the First World War, Hanover was counted among Germany’s greatest cities. Starting in 1850 with 53,800 inhabitants, Hanover reached 100,000 by 1874 and in 1914 it had a population of 324,700.
