ABSTRACT
The economic changes that had taken place between 1834 and 1848 had a dramatic effect on the social and political climate in Germany. The ‘social question’ became a pressing problem as demanding of the attention of the liberal bourgeoisie as constitutional reform or the unification of Germany. The liberation of the German peasantry coupled with a continuing rise in population placed an intolerable strain on the rural economy. As a result of these changes, there was a steady growth of unemployment on the land, starting in the 1820s and beginning to tail off by mid-century, when rapid industrial growth absorbed the larger population to an increasing extent. Generalisations about the origins of the German working class are extremely difficult to make as there are so many regional disparities and differences between branches of industry. The attitude of the bourgeoisie towards the state was also highly ambiguous.
