Before the Weimar Republic and Treaty of Versailles

Question 1

How unified was Germany under the Kaiser?

Answer 1

Strong economy comparable to Russia and UK
Democracy
New Army was the pride of the country

Question 2

How was Germany not unified under the Kaiser?

Answer 2

Mixture of Protestant and Catholic religion.
Not everyone can vote.
No freedom of speech.
Pay and living conditions were low.
Left-wing parties had growing support who argued that the Kaiser held too much power and the parliament (Reichstag) should have more power.

Question 3

What was the Kaisers vision for Germany?

Answer 3

Nationalism, people to be proud to be German
Show other countries how powerful it is eg with the Army
Build an empire and improve trade

Question 4

What was a limitation of the German Army under the Kaisers rule?

Answer 4

There was people from different states in the same army and Protestants and Catholics, causing tension and conflict

Question 5

What impact did WW1 have on Germany?

Answer 5

Allied Naval Blockade causes food shortages
Food problems made worse when potatoes crops failed in 1916-17 winter so civilians had to rely on turnips “Turnip Winter”
2.4 million German lives lost
German business stopped by the Naval Blockade
Supplies had to be directed towards the army
Due to fact WW1 had been funded on loans, prices of goods soared, so there was widespread starvation in Germany and growth in support for the Socialist Party to take over and the Kaiser to Abdicate (give up his throne).

Question 6

What was the German attitude toward WW1/Why were they shocked to loose

Answer 6

Well organised censorship office that was told not to report any losses
Positive propaganda about German success and Britsih failure
Triple alliance and strong army
Confident about building weapons
Kaiser told Germans that they were powerful and would win the war

Question 7

When was the Treaty of Versailles signed?

Answer 7

1919

Question 8

What is the acronym for the terms of the TOV?

Answer 8

GARGLE

Question 9

What is the G in the TOV?

Answer 9

Guilt for the war

By clause 231 they had to accept all guilt for the war

Question 10

What is the A in TOV?

Answer 10

Armed Forces
Reduced significantly to:
100,000 men. 
No submarines, aeroplanes or Air Force. 
Conscription was banned - soldiers had to be volunteers not forced to be soldiers.
Only six battlefields. 
The Rhineland was demilitarised.

Question 11

What is the R in TOV?

Answer 11

Reparations

Damage was £6.6 billion - in instalments, until 1984.

Question 12

What is the G (2nd) in TOV?

Answer 12

Germany lost territory
Lost 10% of land
Some examples are:
-Alsace-Lorraine was given back to France.
-The Saar coalfields were given to France for 15 years.
-Malmedy was given to Belgium.
-North Schleswig was given to Denmark (after a plebiscite).
-West Prussia (including the ‘Polish Corridor) and Upper Silesia were given to Poland.
-German colonies were made ‘mandates’ of the League of Nations, to be looked after by France (Cameroons), Britain (Tanganyika), Japan (islands in the Pacific), Australia (New Guinea) and New Zealand (Sanoa).

Question 13

What is the L in TOV?

Answer 13

League of Nations

Germany had to join the organisation/international forum that settles disputes by discussions not war

Question 14

How and why was the Kaiser abdicated (forced to give up his throne)?

Answer 14

• When it was clear that Germany was going to be defeated the allies demanded the abdication of the Kaiser before a peace treaty (armistice) would be signed.
• All over Germany there were strikes and demonstrations against the war and soldiers were mutinying.
• The Allied naval blockade was causing near starvation conditions and Germany was in financial ruin. Despite this the Kaiser refused to give more power to the German Reichstag (PARLIAMENT).
• Leader of the Social Democrats - Friedrich Evert sent an ultimatum to the Kaiser that unless he abdicated there could be a communist revolution in Germany.
• On 9th November - general strike in Berlin. Ebert declared a new German Republic with himself as Chancellor.
• The Kaiser abdicated on 10th November.
• The armistice was signed on the 11th November.

Question 15

Why was it called the Weimar Republic?

Answer 15

-Because the new government met in the town of Weimar because Berlin was too dangerous (due to uprisings by the Communists).

Question 16

What is the E in the ToV?

Answer 16

-Extra Points.
-Treaty also:
-Forbade Germany + Austria to join together.
-Made Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania independent states.
In all, Germany lost:
-10% of its land.
-all its colonies.
-12% of its population.
-16% of its coalfields.
-half its iron and steel industry.
-most of its army and navy.
-all its Air Force.

Question 17

How did the Germans react to the Treaty when it was proposed at first?

Answer 17

• Many Germans wanted to refuse to sign the treaty, some even suggested that they start the war again.
• So it was with great difficulty that the President got the Reichstag to agree to sign the treaty, and the imperious way the two German representatives were treated when they were forced to sign, made things worse.

Question 18

What is the acronym for how the Germans responded to the Treaty of Versailles (ToV)?

Answer 18

-UBRAT.

Question 19

What does the U stand for in how the Germans responded to the Treaty of Versailles (ToV)?

Answer 19

• Unfair/German Outrage.
• When Germans heard about ToV, they felt ‘pain and anger’.
• They felt it was unfair. It was a ‘Diktat’ - an IMPOSED settlement.
• They had not been part of talks, just told to sign it.
• Many labelled the politicians who signed the treaty “November Criminals” who had “stabbed in the back” the army, which still controlled most of Europe in 1918.

Question 20

What does the B stand for in how the Germans responded to the Treaty of Versailles (TOV)?

Answer 20

• Blame/the Germans HATED the TOV.
• The Germans hated Clause 231; they said they were not to blame for the war.
• The soldier sent to sign the Treaty refused to sign it - ‘To say such a thing would be a lie,’ he said.
• Clause 231 did not physically harm Germany but it hurt Germany’s pride - and it was this, as much as anything else, that made them want to overturn the treaty.

Question 21

What does the R stand for in how the Germans responded to the Treaty of Versailles (ToV)?

Answer 21

• Reparations of £6,600 million.
• Germans hated the reparations; they said France and Britain were trying to starve their children to death.
• At first they refused to pay, and only started paying after France and Britain invaded Germany (January 1921).

Question 22

What does the A stand for in how the Germans responded to the Treaty of Versailles (ToV)?

Answer 22

• Army.
• The Germans hated their tiny army. They said they were helpless against other countries.
• At first, they refused to reduce the army, and the sailors sank the fleet, rather than hand it over.

Question 23

What does the T stand for in how the Germans responded to the Treaty of Versailles (ToV)?

Answer 23

• Territory.
• The Germans also hated their loss of territory.
• Germans lost a tenth of its land- they claimed that the treaty was simply an attempt to destroy their economy.
• Other nations were given self-determination - but the Treaty forced Germans to live in other countries.
• Germans were also angry that they could not unite with the Austrian Germans.
• Germans living in other countries were frustrated/angry as they were not living in countries with German rulers so had to follow ideas that they may not have supported as they may have gone against the German beliefs or even against the Germans.

Question 24

How did the Germans and the British respond to the reparations?

Answer 24

• The Germans - and many British people - rallied against the reparations sum of £6.6 billion as if it were a death-blow to the German nation.
• But the First World War had cost Britain £6.2 billion, and by the end of the war Britain’s national debt stood at £6 billion, of which £1 billion was owed to the USA and has to be repaid.
• Yet nobody suggested that Britain’s people were going to starve to death.