Grand coalition in the FRG 1966-1969 as a new stage in the relationship between Conservatives and Social Democrats

The article examines the government work of the grand coalition of the Federal Republic of Germany from 1966 to 1969. The coalition arose on the wave of an acute coalition confrontation between conservatives and liberals caused by the recession in the economy. In less than a year before the next parliamentary elections, the conservatives and social democrats had to implement measures to improve the economy and reduce the national debt. The grand coalition was perceived by many contemporaries as an experiment, since the total number of seats it occupied in the Bundestag exceeded 90%. The union of the two largest parties in the Bundestag forced the coalition partners to seek compromise solutions, which resulted in breakthrough decisions in many areas of economics and politics. In order to avoid confrontations, the most important issues were considered by Kressbronn Circle, which was the coalition’s coordinating council, including an equal number of representatives of the two parties. If the solution to the issues did not imply a quick solution, its consideration was postponed or transferred to specially created commissions. In a short time, the tax system in Germany was changed, a new VAT was introduced, two programmes to stimulate the economy were adopted, and a profit tax and a corporate tax were introduced. A clear delineation of powers was made between the government, federal states, and municipalities. A number of bills limited the actions of trade unions in crisis situations. In less than three years, the grand coalition fulfilled the tasks set before it, overcoming the economic crisis, and laying the foundation for the work of the next governments.