1.7 Flashcards
Elections: Which parties were most popular at the 1924 elections?
-Pro-republican parties, like the SPD, DDP, DVP, & Z. Over 61% voted for pro-republican parties in May & over 67% in December.
-By December, the SPD had 131 deputies.
Elections: How were the 1924 elections more extremist than previous ones? Was this sustained?
-May 1924 was the first election contested by the Nazis, where they won 6.5% of the vote. By December, theyas had halved to only 3%.
-Communist Party went from 62 seats in May to 45 seats in December.
Elections: Was the 1928 election more or less extreme than 1924? What does this suggest about voters?
-Anti-republic parties’ support further diminished, as the Nazis gained on 2.6% of the vote, and only 12 seats, similar to small parties like the Christian National Peasants’.
-1928 was the strongest year for pro-republic parties with the SPD getting 153, and Z 78.
-This implies that voters were being more moderate & centrist, meaning extremist parties were losing their influence.
Parties: Name some Left Wing parties? What were their aims?
-KPD, USPD, SPD.
-The KPD wanted a completely communist government, by overthrowing the Weimar government. Their policies were dictated by the USSR (like when they were instructed to launch a revolution during the occupation of the Ruhr.)
-The SPD were concerned with the survival of the democratic government. However, they were inflexible on issues due to their traditional Marxist rhetoric.
Parties: Why might people vote for the Left Wing parties? What were some problems with them?
-They represented the beliefs of workers, and had SPD had close links with unions, making them appealing to the working class. They would also be appealing to women/young people.
-The KPD refused to work with the SPD, making it virtually impossible to form a left-wing coalition.
-In later years, the SPD became too inflexible, and were not part of any coalition from 1924-28.
Parties: Name some Centrist parties? What were their aims?
-DDP, Centre (Z), BVP (an offshoot of Z).
-Z stood for Catholic traits, mainly, but had appeal across the board.
-DDP were committed to the success of Parliamentary democracy, to such an extent that they were members of virtually all the coalitions.
Parties: Why might people vote for the Centrist parties? What were some problems with them?
-They were flexible and pragmatic. This made them better leaders than the popular but unwavering left-wing parties.
-However, when Bruning became the leader of Z in 1928, the party became more right-wing.
-The DDP’s internal disputes made it difficult to see what they actually stood for (making them less popular).
Parties: Name some Right-Wing parties? What were their aims?
-DVP, DNVP, NSDAP.
-DVP were also committed to parliamentary democracy, and were also in most coalitions.
-DNVP & NSDAP were conservative nationalists, who wanted to restore the monarchy and destroy the ToV.
Parties: Why might people vote for the Right-Wing parties? What were some problems with them?
-Nationalists, the Friekcorps, and aristocrats all felt that the ToV had been a betrayal, and opposed it completely. They were predominantly anti-republic as they Weimar government had signed the treaty. They hoped that the right-wing parties would mean a return of the Kaiser.
-DNVP, too, refused to join coalitions so had no chance of being in power.
Government: What evidence is there that the democracy was strengthened in the Golden Age?
-Between 1924-9, no major political fgures were assassinated (unlike early Weimar).
-As the Hyperinflation crisis passed over, people began to vote more moderately, and for the democratic parties.
Government: What evidence is there that the democracy was destabilised in the Golden Age?
-Political violence was still prevalent, despite the lack of assassinations, as there were frequent fights between the Nazi’s SA & the KPD’s Red Fighting League. Over 50 people were killed & more injured.
-Centrist parties were on the decline/becoming more radical.
-7 coalitions between Nov 1923 & March 1930 (still unstable)
-Large division within political parties.
- There were 78 deputies from narrow sectional groups in 1930, which reduced chances for compromises and unity in the Reichstag.
Government: Give an example of an issue in cabinet that led to collapse?
-In 1926, Luther’s government had a dispute over flags that resulted in its collapse. Hindenburg ordered that the old imperial flag should be flown alongside the flag of the Weimar Republic at all foreign German Consulates. The ensuing disagreement resulted in the collapse of his government.
Government: Why was it so difficult to form a stable government?
-There was a limited number of parties who could form a workable government.
-The SPD and DNVP refused to serve in the same cabinet, which meant that the moderate parties would not have enough seats to form a majority government.
Hindenburg: What happened at the 1925 Presidential election?
-Friedrich Ebert died on the 28th February 1925
-Hindenburg was the only right wing candidate in the second round of voting, while the left wing vote was split between Marx (Z) and Thaelmann (KPD).
-As a result, Hindenburg won the election with 48% of the vote, and became the next president.
Hindenburg: Why was Hindenburg a ‘symbol of the past’?
-He had been a war hero in WWI, who had helped promote the stab-in-the-back myth.
-He was junker (as he is VON Hindenburg), implying that he stood for the aristocracy.
-Hindenburg had asked the Kaiser for permission to stand in the election, suggests he was anti-republic.
-He was nicknamed Ersatzkaiser, so people thought he was basically a supplementary kaiser.
