This article assesses the degree of continuity presumed to exist between West German opposition movements of the 1950s and 1960s, and peace protests of the 1970s and 1980s. It explores the concept of protest ‘cycles’ and outlines the ways in which multiple protest issues have begun to converge over three decades, producing an anti‐nuclear groundswell that has been institutionalised through the Green and Alternative parties. The cumulative impact of three cycles of protest is seen in the significant attitudinal changes in respect of citizen involvement in environmental and national security policy debates in the Federal Republic and in new demands for an improvement in German‐German relations.