By the 1930s over two-thirds of Germans lived in towns and cities, and those who did not found themselves inexorably affected by the ever-growing urban vortex. surveys the social and cultural history of Germany in this crucial period through written, visual and oral sources. Focusing on urbanism as one of the major forces of change, this book presents a wide range of archive sources, many available for the first time, as well as film scenes, literature and art. Exploring the German experience of 'urbanism as a way of life' in cities from Berlin and Dresden to Hamburg and Leipzig, this book discusses: the concept of the urban experience the development of urban infrastructure and transport the social conditions of the urban poor health and the effects of the city on the body production and commerce in German cities the city as a challenge to traditional gender hierarchies