Military influence on politicsMilitary involvement in the country's politics has become a common feature of modern states. This history of military-government relations dates back hundreds of years to the Wars of Freedom and Independence. In some countries, the military is heavily involved in political affairs while in others, politics remains outside the military. Differences in these relationships between states arise from historical factors underlying modern states. This article examines two states, Germany and Nigeria, where the military is heavily involved in politics due to a long history of political warfare fueled by ethnic pressures and economic challenges. These states serve as a reference point for military involvement in politics and the conditions under which it occurs. These examples show that historical and recent conditions make government-military relations very different in the African and European context. In the first case, weak governments are unable to control military power, while in the second case, even in countries with strong militaries, political leaders impose limits on military power.1. RationaleI selected these two countries for my research based on their history of military involvement in state affairs. The history of Germany's military involvement in political affairs dates back to the early periods when it entered into a war with the Roman Empire. Before the formation of the German state, between 1618 and 1648, the small states of the region that would become Germany fought against France, against the Catholics and faced an attack from the Lutheran king of Sweden (Finer and Jay, 2004: 9). . The conflict also led to the unity of the German state... middle of paper ...... friendship between the rulers and the military. In European countries like Germany, military forces have grown for the purpose of political expansion and security of the nation, but unlike Nigeria, the government controls the military and limits its power. Reference list Finer, Samuel E and Jay, Stanley. 2004. The Man on Horseback: The Role of the Army in Politics. New Brunswick: Transaction Pub. Huntington, Samuel P. 1964. The Soldier and the State: Theory and Politics of Civil-Military Relations. Cambridge: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.Inamete, Ufot B. 2001. Foreign Policy Decision Making in Nigeria. Selinsgrove: Susquehanna Univ. Press. Macgregor, Douglas A. 1989. The Soviet-East German Military Alliance. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. Peters, Jimi. 1997. The Nigerian Army and the State. London: Tauris university studies.