Chapter 2-4 -Impact of the First World War Flashcards
Mastery
What happened in 1914?
1)The war was popular and patriotic Germans thought it would end quickly
2)Soon the British navy stopped ships getting food into Germany, leading to food and other shortages
What happened in 1915-1916
1) In Germany, protesters demanded an end to the war. Demonstrations increased from 500 to 10000 people. War weariness increased
2)On the front line, soldiers were worn down by bombs, gas, and machine gun fire.
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Why did ,Germany became politically unstable ?
1) Germany was close to defeat. A flu epidemic killed many already weak from poor diet
2)In October, Army General Ludendorff stated Germany could not win the war. He advised the Kaiser to make the country more democratic so the winning allies(France, Britain, and the USA) would treat Germany more fairly
3)The Kaiser allowed the main political parties to form a new government and transferred some of his powers to the Reichstag. But the German people were not satisfied and more demonstrations followed
How did the defeat and the end of the monarchy come around?
** 28th October 1918 **: The german navy in Kiel mutinied (refused to obey orders).The mutiny spread , soilders who went deal with the protests also joined the sailors and workers. In just six days , workers’ and soilders’ councils were governing towns and cities all over Germany.The Kaiser realised he had lost control.His army generals refused to support him
9th november 1918: The Kaiser abdicated and secretly left Germany, never to return. Friedrich E bert, the leader of Germany’s largest political party ( The SPD ) , took over germany temporarily.He promised to hold elections and ended the war.
11 November 1918: Germany surrendered.The First World War was over.
What was the impact of war on Germany by 1918
- **Virtually Bankrupt **: Owed vast sums of money that it had borrowed to pay for the war ; lent some of its own money to its allies; factories were exhausted ; war pensions would cost the goverment a fortune.
- Society divided further: Some of the factory owners had made a fortune during the war **however workers had restrictions placed on their wages ** ; Women worked in the factories during the war.Some people thought this damaged traditional family values.
- Political unstability :There was mutiny and revolution all over Germany ; many ex soilders felt that politicians had betrayed Germany by ending the war.
What are the political parties in early Weimar Germany?
1)Communist Party- Vast majority of supporters were working class
2)Social Democratic Party- supporters consisted of Mostly the working class
3)German Democratic Party - Supporters consisted of Lawyers, writers, and the Middle class
4) Centre Party - Supporters were Catholic from all classes
5) People Party - Supporters consisted of Middle class, mainly businessman
6) National People’s Party - Main supporters consisted of the Middle and Upper classes including some ex-soldiers.
7)National Socialist German Workers’ Party ( NSDAP OR NAZIS) - supporters consisted of the unemployed, ex-soldiers, and middle and upper classes who feared communists.
What were the reparations that Germany was forced to give ?
1)In 1921, the figure was set at 132 billion marks (£6.6 billion )to be paid in yearly installments for the next 66 years.
2)Germany paid most of its loan with coal, wood, and iron in 1921.
What was and why did the Occupation of the Ruhr happen in 1922?
In 1922, when the next payment of Ruhr was due, the Germans announced that they could not pay, 60,000 soldiers walked into the Ruhr and took over every factor and shop, and also arrested Germans who stood up to them.
Why did Hyperinflation occur in 1923 ?
The German Government ordered its workers to go on strike in the Ruhr, this was known as PASSIVE RESISTANCE, which also meant that Germany had to pay all of its workers on strike meaning that it had to print more money, however, this decreased the value of money and eventually meant that the value of money had depreciated so much that one loaf of bread ended up costing 201 billion marks
What were some of the impacts of economic problems?
Losers- people who had mortgages or fixed pensions had money that was worthless due to hyperinflation , Many small businesses collapsed as normal trade became in possible due to constant price changes.
What happened in the Kapp putsch?
A right-wing politician called Wolfgang Kapp gathered 400 men and took over Berlin, however, he did not have the support of the workers which caused them to go on strike, resulting in no transportation, gas, water, or electricity eventually causing him to flee Germany and go into hiding, reinstating Ebert and his government.
What was the Red Rising in Ruhr?
In March 1920, after thew, the Kopp Putsch, left-wing workers in the industrial Ruhr stayed on strike. They took several towns which eventually resulted in it being known as the Red Rising, The Government sent soldiers to deal with the rebellion which eventually resulted in over 1000 workers killed.
What was the Munich Putsch?
In November 1923, Hitler and the Nazis tried to secure control of the Bavarian government in Southern Germany, Hitler promised to overturn the Treaty of Versailles, destroy communism and restore Germany’s national Glory - Hitler and his 2000 supporters marched to Munich but were shot at by armed police, this resulted in the Putsch being stopped at 17 Nazis killed.
When, why, and what happened during the assassinations during the murders, riots, and rebellions between 1919-23 ?
Between 1919 and 1922, there were over 350 political murders in Germany, mostly carried out by right-wing extremists. Due to the apparent want to eliminate those who were responsible for the Treaty of Versailles. In August 1921, a man called MATTHIAS ERZBERGER was shot dead by a right-wing group that blamed him for the downfall of Germany’s military, land, and economy.
What was the Stresemann era (1924-29)?
Between (1924 and 1929), Germany began to recover from some of its problems, and most historians put Germany’s recovery down to Gustav Stresemann. Gustav Stresemann was an economist and served as Germany’s foreign minister and Chancellor.
