Bavaria: so big and yet so small

Photo by Mario Dobelmann on Unsplash

Dear Reader,

The irony of Bavaria lies in the fact that it is Germany’s wealthiest and most powerful state, yet it has largely consigned itself to political impotence on the national stage.

The last region of Germany to submit to Prussian dominance in the 19th century, Bavaria only became part of the German state because its last sovereign king’s extravagant taste for castles left his realm bankrupt. Der Freistaat has always seen itself as a country within a country.

Calling someone a Prussian—or Saupreiß in the local dialect—remains the ultimate insult to throw at a snooty northerner.

This fierce sense of independence explains why Bavaria is the only one of Germany’s sixteen states where the centre-right CDU doesn't field candidates.

Instead, the state has been ruled for the entire post-war era by the Christian Social Union (CSU), a fully independent party with its own leader, delegates, and policies.

Only at the national level does the CSU take a back…