Parole dervies from the 18th century English progressive system of pardon enabling early release upon meeting certain conditions. Similar practices were legislated first in Saxony (1862) and later in other German States. Theoretical ambiguity plagued the parole concept -- was it a practice to legal override, i.e., pardon, individual sentences, or was it a correctional procedure equally applicable to all incarcerated offenders? Northern States favored the former approach, while the latter developed in southern Germany. Parole figured in the various legislative drafts formulated between 1909 and 1927. A Prussian ruling on juvenile probation (1825) and a more general proposal (1880's) predate the earliest probation laws in Belgium (1888) and Massachusetts (1900). By a 1903 agreement, all German States adopted uniform parole arrangements which were continued until 1934. German law regarding juvenile probation dates from 1923; it was updated to include parole in 1943. While the earlier initiatives delegated responsibility for supervision and assistance to private citizen groups, it was the 1953 legislation which established an official probation/parole service as part of the criminal justice and social service systems. Tabular data and 88 footnotes are given.