Early Weimar republic

Question 1

Why did the Kaiser abdicate?

Answer 1

sailors mutiny, threat of general strike and the army no longer serving him.

Question 2

When did the Kaiser abdicate?

Answer 2

9th November 1918

Question 3

When was the armistice signed with the Allies?

Answer 3

11th November 1918

Question 4

Who is Fredrich Ebert?

Answer 4

Leader of socialist party (SPD)

Question 5

Ebert-Groener pact

Answer 5

Groener would support the government as long as Chancellor promised to resist radical change to the army

Question 6

When was the Sparticaist uprising?

Answer 6

Janurary 1919

Question 7

Spartacist uprising

Answer 7

Led by Karl Leicnickt and Rose Luxembourg, anti-war, communist, wanted a republic controlled by workers’ and soldiers councils, membership was small

Question 8

SPD

Answer 8

mass socialist party led by Fredrich Ebert and Phillipp Scheildmann, wanted a republic ruled by Reichstag with welfare rights, largest party in 1912

Question 9

Problems with the constitution

Answer 9

• proportional representation led to small parties going unnoticed and one party being unable to govern, coalitions.
• article 48, gave president emergency powers to tilt country by decree, without need for Reichstag majority, used frequently
• the civil service and judiciary were not reformed and remained under control of the old aristocracy, few to none of these institutions supported democracy

Question 10

Strengths of Constitution

Answer 10

• all men and women over 20 had the vote, democratic
• proportional representation, strength & weakness, truley represented public opinion
• no state allowed to dominate Reichstag, all parts of germany would feel fairly represented
• guaranteed important individual rights

Question 11

The spartacist uprising; important vs unimportant

Answer 11

IMPORTANT
- radical and left wing so therefore different to the wiemar republic
- revolt was armed and so war a threat
attracting increasing support from workers through rallies and demos
- the force used against them proved that they did consider it a real threat

UNIMPORTANT
- small membership and many enemies
only in Berlin
- lacked expertise to defeat the Friekorpse
-leaders executed

Question 12

Terms of the treaty of versailles

Answer 12

• lost land
• army limited to 100 000 men
• navy only allowed 6 battleships
• no submarines or air force
• 6.6 billion reparations
• Rhineland demilitarized
  -war guilt clause
• ban on Germany and Austria uniting as one
• Germany not allowed in Leader of Nations

Question 13

Why did Germany oppose the Treaty of Versailles?

Answer 13

• saw it as a DIKTAT, dictated peace that had humiliated them
• war guilt clause was unfair to them because they thought they were fighting just a war
• reparations were too harsh and woukd cause severe economic problems
• denied national self-determination
• lost citizens that lived on land taken

Question 14

Parties opinions on signing the Treaty

Answer 14

left and centre; no alternative as Germany was too weak to resist, policy of fulfillment meant that Germany would outwardly comply with the terms whilst trying to
find ways to modify it and get around it.

right wing; singing was another act of betrayal, “November Criminals”, “stab in the back”, committed to over-throwing the government

Question 15

Foreign response;

Answer 15

France — widespread feeling that Germany had been treated too leniently and wanted the Treaty to be enforced strictly
Britain — general satisfaction that Germany had be weakened, reservations about the fairness and wisdom on the treaty.
USA — believed Germany had been treated unfairly and that the USA should not be involved in Europe’s squabbles

Question 16

Financial problems following WW1:

Answer 16

Wartime government financed war effort by borrowing and printing money so debt grew and value declined, this is because the Kaiser believed that Germany would win the at and recoup its losses by making its defeated enemies pay the debts.

Question 17

impact of the reparations

Answer 17

politically - demand in 1921 that Germany accept the terms provoked another political crisis that led to the the resignation of Schiedmann
economically - payment of reparations exacerbated germany’s debt and inflations

Question 18

The hyperinflation crisis of 1923

Answer 18

• already high at the beginning of 1923
• Franco-Belgian occupation of the Ruhr led to inflation to spiral
• in January 1923, French and Belgian forces occupied Germany’s main industrial area in the Ruhr to extract payments for the reparations in the form of goods
• the government declared the policy of passive resistance so workers went on strike but still got paid by the government.
• French and Belgian workers brought in
• tax revenue for the government was reduced
• prices increased as many goods in Germany were in short supply
• government printed more money to cover debt

Question 19

social impact of hyper inflation

Answer 19

• money became worthless and commerce was dispirited
• winners; those with debts and mortgages, businesses who borrowed and then repaid when currency value weakened further, renters, farmers.
• losers; pensioners, widows, savers, long-term sick, unskilled workers, landlords, small business owners.

Question 20

Challenge from the left

Answer 20

• spartacists staged an armed uprising in Berlin in January 1919 that was brutally put down by the army and Friekorpse.
• march 1919, spartacists attempted another armed rising in Berlin and a communist government was set up in Bavaria, both suppressed.
• many short lived revolts from left
• all failed or ruthlessly put down but showed the fear of communism.

Question 21

challenge from the right

Answer 21

• nationalist ideas strong amongst old conservatives
• support from ex-soldiers
• many ex-soldiers joined paramilitary groups which carried out assassinations on left wing opponents
• only two attempts from right to overthrow the republic

Question 22

political assassinations

Answer 22

• between 1919 and 1923, the right carried out 354 political assassinations
• the left killed 22 opponents
• the law was applied unevenly and left wing assassins were more likely to be jailed
• only one right wing assassin was executed compared to 10 left wing assassins

Question 23

the kapp putsch

Answer 23

Berlin, March 1920
- armed revolt against the government by Friekorpse units
1. the army was ordered to disband the Friekorps units according to the terms of the treaty
3. general Luttwitz refused to disband them and so marched his troops to Berlin
4. he was supported by Wolfgang Kapp
5. government ordered army to crush the putsch but the commanders refused
5. the putsch collapsed after 5 days as it failed to win widespread support

Question 24

The munich putsch

Answer 24

November 1923
- attempted by the small NSDAP party (Nazis) and led by Adolf Hitler
- several factors contributed;
1. the occupation of the Ruhr and the abandonment of passive resistance by the government
2. hyperinflation crisis shattered many lives
- Hitler and his SA took over a Munich Beer Hall where a right-wing meeting was taking place and forced them to join the march on Berlin.
- it failed because Hitler failed to secure the support of the police and the army commander changed sides
- Hitler was arrested and the Nazis were banned (only 9 months)

Question 25

When did Hitler become leader of the Nazi party?

Answer 25

1921

Question 26

problems of the coalition government

Answer 26

• only lasted more than a year
• under proportional representation, small parties gained seats
• no party ever gained enough seats to command the majority
• many parties were dedicated to overthrow the Wiemar republic
• extreme parties gained support in extreme circumstances (hyperinflation —> nazi party support)