In the 19th century, German liberalism grew into a powerful political movement vociferous in its demands for the freedom of the individual, for changes to allow the participation of all men in the political system and for a fundamental reform of the German states. As elsewhere in Europe, liberalism was linked not only with a strong social commitment, but also with the formation of a national state. In this study of liberalism in German, the author analyzes the foundations and developments of liberalism from the 19th to the 20th century. He examines the role of individual German states, the local roots of liberalism, the links between liberalism and its social bases of support, especially from bourgeois groups, and the forms of political organization adopted by the liberals.