This study of Albert Ballin, a powerful member of the banking and commercial elite in Imperial Germany and manager of the Hamburg-American Line from 1899-1918, illuminates the political and social structure of the aristocracy and the upper middle class in the German Empire. Originally published in 1967. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.