1918-24 Flashcards
what where the events of political threat to the weimar republic (in brief)
- the Sparticist uprising (1919)
- the Kapp Putsch (1920)
- the Munich Putsch (1923)
- political terrorism (whole period)
what was the Sparticist uprising
- an uprising of 50,000 communists in Berlin
- the Weimar government did not have the power to crush the revolt themselves, so had to call on the right-wing ex-soldier group, the Freikorps to do so
what were the terms of the Diktat of the treaty of versailles for germany?
- Disarmement - forces limited to 100,000 soldiers, six battleships and no airforce
- reparations - £6.6 billion
- Land lost - lost colonies, alsace-lorraine and polish corridor
how did the ToV start off the Weimar Republic on a bad footing?
- many nationalists believed they had signed the treaty too early and the war could still be won
- this led to the ‘stab in the back myth’ and the ‘november criminals’ being the people who signed the treaty
what was the Kapp putsch?
- the ToV signed after the Freikorps crushed the Sparticists meant that Germany’s army had to be significantly reduced and the Freikorps would have to be disbanded.
- during march 1920, as a reaction, Wolfgang Kapp led the Freikorps to takeover berlin
- it was eventually ended with a general strike called by the Weimar govt
what was the Munich putsch?
- Hitler attempted to overthrow the weak Weimar republic who were in ruins due to the hyperinflation crisis
- Hitler burst into the Munich beerhall with 600 SA members and then went on to march into Munich the next day.
- This was met by the police and army and ended in 16 deaths of the SA.
- Hitler fled and was later imprisoned
what was the political terrorism during this period?
- Nationalist terrorists assassinated 356 government politicians in the early years of the republic
- The judges, many of whom preferred the Kaiser’s government, gave the terrorists light sentences
what was the main economic threat of the weimar republic during this time?
Hyperinflation
how was hyperinflation caused by reparations and the ToV?
- As a result of a missed reparations payment in 1922, French and Belgian troops were sent into the Ruhr, Germany’s main industrial area. they believed Germany could pay them but is choosing not to and seized the industry in the Ruhr
- The German government ordered workers to follow a policy of ‘passive resistance’ meaning refusing to work with the foreign troops and in return, the government would still pay their wages.
- To pay for this, the government decided to print more money contributing to hyperinflation
what were the effects of hyperinflation?
- The price of bread in January cost 250 marks, by November it was 2 trillion marks
- Hyperinflation led to an increase in crime, hunger, poverty and an increase in rebellions
what was 1 USD worth in november 1923?
4.2 trillion marks
how much did cost of living increase from june to november 1922
15 times
what was the grand-coalition?
- Consisted of moderate, pro-democracy parties in the Reichstag
- Meant the government finally had the power to pass laws
- The coalition isolated extremist parties and ensured there are pro-democracy parties in power
how did the coalition help to bring stability?
- Under the government, they called of the strike, persuaded the French to leave the Ruhr and changed the currency to the Rentenmark which helped solve hyperinflation
- This gave political stability to the Weimar republic
how did the dawes plan (1924) help to fix the reparations problem?
- Solved the issue of reparation payments by giving Germany longer to pay them back
- Also agreed to America lending Germany 800 million gold marks which kickstarted Germany’s economy
- However, Germanys economic recovery depended on these loans
