Abstract

The article focuses on determining the characteristics of the policy of the Christian Democratic Union of Germany in opposition (1969­1982). A definition of the notion «political opposition» is made. The author characterized the content of the main program documents of the CDU during the researched period, particularly Mannheim statement, adopted at the party congress in Mannheim in 1975 and the Program of the party’s bases, which was adopted at the Congress of Christian Democrats in Ludwigshafen in 1978. According to the last section of the program of the party’s bases, the author draws attention to the priorities of German foreign policy. The paper also examines the course of tough confrontation of the Christian Democratic Union in relation to social­liberal coalition. It analyzes the circumstances that undermined the position of Chancellor Willy Brandt in the first half of 1970s. A special attention is drawn to the fact that it was Helmut Schmidt, who headed the government of Germany May 16, 1974, and prepared favorable conditions for changing the international role of the Federal Republic of Germany. The study found out that during the selected period Christian Democrats were able to significantly modernize the party and starting with 1980s they once again became the leading political force in Germany.