economic challenges Weimar

Question 1

what was the economy like straight after WW1?

Answer 1

suffering from inflation, mark virtually worthless, people starving-rations,substantial war debt, low standard of living

Question 2

why was there inflation after WW1?

Answer 2

gov spent all gold reserves on war, printing more money

Question 3

how many marks were in circulation in 1914 compared to 1918?

Answer 3

6,300 million -1914
33,000 million -1918

Question 4

what did the printing of more money cause?

Answer 4

wages + savings lost value, prices up, people less willing to spend money, effects on trade

Question 5

what had happened to industrial output during the war?

Answer 5

almost halved

Question 6

how did the loss of agricultural and farm land from TOV affect economy?

Answer 6

reduced productivity, raw materials, places to produce goods,slowed economy + trade

Question 7

what drove up the number of unemployed after the war?

Answer 7

economic downturn, ending of war production and soldiers leaving army

Question 8

why was social welfare a problem after the war?

Answer 8

loans given to help those leaving army, pension payments for widows, wounded + orphans, made gov go into debt

Question 9

how much did the gov owe by 1918?

Answer 9

about 150 billion marks

Question 10

what policy put the gov even deeper into debt?

Answer 10

reparations

Question 11

how did Germany try to meet payments?

Answer 11

using borrowing and printing money

Question 12

what were reparations payed in until 1924?

Answer 12

in kind/materials

Question 13

what was the result of the French occupation of the Ruhr in 1923?

Answer 13

gov didnt pay reparations to France, workers told to use passive resistance, gov still had to pay workers, no productivity, had to print more money, hyperinflation

Question 14

how did the price of newspapers change during hyperinflation?

Answer 14

may 1922 - 1 mark
sept 1923 - 100,000 marks
nov 1923- 700 billion marks

Question 15

what increased in popularity because of hyperinflation?

Answer 15

bartering and the black market

Question 16

what did the Emergency Decree allow Stresemann to do?

Answer 16

make policies and decisions without impute of Reichstag, quickly react and curb economic issues

Question 17

when was the Rentenmark introduced?

Answer 17

Oct 1923

Question 18

what were the effects of the Rentenmark?

Answer 18

restored faith in Germany currency at home and abroad, prices settled

Question 19

what else did the gov oversee to stabilise the currency?

Answer 19

controlling of rents, waged + prices

Question 20

when was the Reichsmark introduced?

Answer 20

August 1924

Question 21

how were cartels used?

Answer 21

fixed prices so stabilised economy

Question 22

what were worker empolyer relationships like throughout the Weimar period?

Answer 22

significant levels of disputes, workers pressed for better conditions, owners tried to cut wages + extended hours, strikes common

Question 23

how did the League of Nations help German trade?

Answer 23

increased trust and investment in economy, Germany had steel and chemicals other countries needed,

Question 24

what were German exports like in 1926 and 1929?

Answer 24

1926 back to 1913 levels of 10 billion marks
1929 34% higher than 1913 levels

Question 25

why was gov support a bad basis for the economy?

Answer 25

gov relied on foreign loans, borrowed + spent heavily
subsidised industries and spent on welfare, economy in precarious position

Question 26

what was the spiralling effect of the Wall Street Crash?

Answer 26

businesses sell fewer goods, lay off staff, unemployment rises, less money to spend, less money in economy, bankruptcies etc etc

Question 27

how many major banks had to close during the Great Depression?

Answer 27

5

Question 28

what happened to industrial production, unemployment and wages during the GD?

Answer 28

production - 1932 half 1928 levels
unemployment- rose, 6.1 million by end
wages fell 20-30%

Question 29

why did the government fail to deal with the Depression?

Answer 29

parties arguing and not cooperating, could not make decisions or act quickly

Question 30

what policies did Bruning put in place by gov by decree as a response to the GD?

Answer 30

cuts in gov spending, wage cuts, higher taxes

Question 31

what did Brunings policies bring?

Answer 31

deflation without devaluing the currency

Question 32

what did the GD make clear to other countries?

Answer 32

Germany couldn’t pay reparations

Question 33

what did Von Papen introduce?

Answer 33

tax concessions, subsidies for businesses that created jobs + produced some economic improvement

Question 34

what did the Hoover Moratorium do?

Answer 34

suspended need for Germany to pay back loans or interest on them for a year

Question 35

how much did prices rise on average between 1914 and 1918?

Answer 35

200%

Question 36

how much did Germany have to pay in reparations?

Answer 36

6.6 billion

Question 37

what territories did Germany lose under Versailles that were rich in raw materials?

Answer 37

Saar and Alsace-Lorraine

Question 38

approx how many soldiers left the army in 1919?

Answer 38

6 million

Question 39

how many people were unemployed Feb 1919?

Answer 39

1.1 million people, 7% workforce

Question 40

what was Notgeld?

Answer 40

emergency money independent of the mark, issued by local govs

Question 41

what was the good thing about hyperinflation and debt for the gov?

Answer 41

could pay all its wartime debt off as it became worthless

Question 42

what did trade fall by between 1928 and 32?

Answer 42

55%

Question 43

what was the RM500 million emergency fund under Schleicher?

Answer 43

used to employ people to carry out repair work, road and canal maintenance and land improvement schemes