The Modern Chancellor: Taking Stock of Gerhard Schröder

[Kellanved]

Gerhard Schröder was Germany's third chancellor to come from the ranks of the SPD Social Democratic Party. He was also the most contradictory of the whole bunch. But without his personal charm there would have been no SPD-Green coalition. What will his legacy be?

Konrad Adenauer led Germany westward. Willy Brandt opened the doors to the east. Helmut Schmidt defended the country against domestic terrorism. And Helmut Kohl oversaw reunification. Each leader of postwar Germany, except for short-lived chancellors Kurt-Georg Kiesinger and Ludwig Erhard, has left his mark on an era.

What about Schröder? He ruled for seven years, not even half as long as his predecessor, Helmut Kohl, but longer than Social-Democrat demigod Willy Brandt. Maybe Schröder will go down in history as Germany's transition chancellor. In many ways, he was caught between a rock and a hard place -- and it's difficult to take stock of his achievements.

He was responsible for the first deployment of the German military outside German borders since World War II -- to Kosovo and Afghanistan -- and yet he touted himself during the last election as a "peace chancellor."
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