How can citizens shape the self-administration of their municipalities? How can bottom-up democracy be realized, where citizens actively participate in community life at the local level? After the end of the war, the British military administration established an organization for self-administration in North Rhine-Westphalia in 1945, which did not include direct democratic elements of citizen participation and led to power struggles between the council and administration in the municipality until the 1990s. This hindered active participation from all residents of the community. It was only after long and tumultuous discussions in political bodies that elements of direct democracy were incorporated into the municipal code of North Rhine-Westphalia in 1994. This study traces the historical development of municipal self-administration between 1945 and 2007 through exemplary cases. Extensive source material from city archives as well as official publications were analyzed and supplemented with press materials and interviews. The book represents an important contribution to the history of North Rhine-Westphalia and offers an interesting insight into the development and forms of municipal self-administration.