歷史是現代與過去的永恆對話，對話者的角度不同、想法不同，對歷史的認識與敘述自然有別，所以史家必須不斷面對「歷史敘述」與「歷史解釋」的改變。歷史的改變雖屬人類活動的常態，但在某些特定的時空，歷史改變往往會引起較大的注意，例如德國因為必須負起「挑起兩次世界大戰」的責任，所以德國有關兩次大戰歷史解釋的改變，必然引起有關政府及史家的關注。過去幾十年來，德意志現代史學者先要釐清第三帝國的相關史實，並進一步建立獨立的史觀及歷史解釋，在這樣的發展過程中，曾經引起幾次重大的爭議，一番辯證之後，各界的看法才漸趨一致。

History is often said to be a dialogue between the past and the present. The changing of time and space often caused the change of historical narration and explanation. The German history of the second half of the 20th century serves as one of the best examples. On the one hand, many mishaps were added to the Hitler's regime. Any revision would be considered in favor of the Nazi's, if not a sympathizer. The case of the fire of Reichstag was a very good example. To another extreme, scholars would confess all the 'crime' and felt responsible for all 'wrong doings', Fischer's 'sole responsibility' of the Germans in the First World War indicated such tendencies. Both extremes were modified during the last three decades. After gaining self-confidence from the defeat during the World Wars, German scholars furthered their discussion over issues that would have deserved more attention. In this article, the author wishes to review the development of German historiography before 1990. In following one, the debate over the “Third Reich” would be treated.