zero - At Home on the Rhine and in America

Colonial America (1714-1781)

Part 1 takes place around 1700 in the Rhineland, and then in colonial America. Anton from Bonn and his Mennonite foster son Andy fell in disgrace and had to flee. They found a new home in Pennsylvania.

Independence celebrations in Philadelphia, 1819

Revolutions (1781-1852)

Part 2 takes place at the time of Napoleon and the following years of bitter oppression. Back home on the Rhine, the Bergmann brothers had been subjects of their sovereign, now they were citizens of the USA.

Years of War (1852-1871)

Part 3 takes place at the time of the Civil War in the USA, which separated the emigrant family. Their friends on the Rhine helped with the reconstruction. Then the unification wars begin in Germany.

Empires (1871-1914)

Part 4 takes place in Gilded Age America and the aspiring German Empire. It is the time of imperialism, of “world policemen” and world empires Tensions rise between the nations, but none wants to back down.

The Great War (1914-1918)

Part 5 takes place at the time of the Great War. In 1917, the United States entered the war, and a hard time for German Americans began. Chiara’s husband John also went overseas with the troops.

Occupation (1919-1922)

After the defeat of Germany, the Allied occupation of the Rhineland began. Based on their “bridgeheads” in Cologne, Koblenz and Mainz, the Allies formed three occupation zones. The Americans took over the Koblenz area.