In the years immediately preceding World War I, central processes of a societal breakthrough into modernity clearly emerged: The German Youth Movement organizes its empire-wide meeting on the Hoher Meissner in October 1913; modern architecture manifests in novel buildings. The Feminist Movement challenges male dominance in politics and society; contemporaries start perceiving their own era as »Modernity«. This volume highlights the cultural and societal awakening on the eve of World War I in a number of central fields, and looks for breaks and continuities exceeding the war.
