Facts On Key Events Flashcards
Describe the Spartacist uprising (5-12th Jan 1919)
- communist revolt lasting from the 5th to the 12th of January 1919.
- the Spartacist attempted to seize control of Berlin
- led by Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht, both assassinated
- the Spartacist’s were inadequately armed, the revolt did not spread throughout Germany
- the military and the Freikorps surpessed them easily, the revolt placed no serious threat to the Republic
Describe the significance of the Spartacist uprising (5-12 Jan 1933)
- whilst the revolt was crushed it inspired a series of strikes over the country for the following 4 months.
- soviets / workers councils were set up in cities such as Munich, whilst these were crushed by Freikorps, it led to polarisation of society
- greatest threat was in March 1920, when the KPD took control of a large section of the Ruhr
Describe the Treaty of Versailles (June 1919)
The German government had no choice but to except any terms on the treaty of Versailles. The terms were incredibly harsh. They lost:
- 10.5% land
- 12.5% of its population
- 16% of its coal
- 48% of its iron industry
The land was lost from every border, union with Austria was banned, and the Rhineland was to be demilitarised.
Army limited to 100,000 men, Navy to 15,000 with 6 battleships.
They were forced to sign War guilt clause 231, accepting they were at fault for starting the War.
The Reparation figure wasn’t announced till 1921, but was £6000 million.
Describe the impact of the treaty of Versailles (28th June 1933)
It had profound effect on the German people, some now lived under foreign control. The destruction of the army and loss of Empire dented national pride.
Describe the Weimar constitution (11th aug 1933)
- used proportional representation to elect members
- all adults over 20 could vote
- a new president was elected every 7 years
- federal system, the country was split into 18 Länder each with their own local government
What was the impact of the Weimar constitution?
The Weimar system caused instability, the proportional representation allowed many small parties to gain representation and causing coalition governments to be formed. Through article 48 of the constitution, the president could also rule by emergency decree. Happened between 1923-24 (Ruhr and hyperinflation) as well as 1930-33 (following Wall Street crash).
Describe the Kapp Putsch (13th March 1920)
There was an opportunity for right-wing groups when the Government began to disband the Freikorps
- a group marched into Berlin and proclaimed Wolfgang Kapp as Chancellor, the Army refused to crush the uprising forcing the Government to flee.
- it was now a serious threat to Government, a general strike was called by trade unions paralysing public services such as water, electricity and gas, defeating the uprising.
What was the impact of the Kapp putsch?
- the elections in June of 1920 saw a rise in support for the right-wing groups.
Describe the Munich putsch (8th November 1920)
The Nazi party planned on marching into Berlin to seize power and establish a military dictatorship. The plan seemed like it would originally work, with Hitler seizing the state governor. Yet the police were able to break up the march, killing 16 Nazis. Hitler was arrested a few days later, but given the shortest sentence with parole.
What was the impact of the Munich putsch?
- Hitler was able to use the trial to generate publicity for his party
- his sentence he was given shows the judges lukewarm opinion on the republic and the tolerance to such revolts.
Describe the invasion of the Ruhr (11th Jan 1923)
- the governments of France and Belgium sent troops to occupy areas of the Ruhr as a response to the fact that Germany had fallen behind ion its reparation payments.
What was the impact on the Ruhr being invaded (11th Jan 1923)?
- the invasion united the German people behind their government.
- reparation payments were stopped and German workers went on strike.
- inflation began to escalate, already high due to the cost of war and reparations.
- the government began to print extra notes to pay the striking workers, by Aug 1923 the notes were virtually worthless. There was starvation in many cities as food supplies dwindled.
Describe hyperinflation (Jan-Nov 1923)
The cost of the war and the reparations had already inflated the value of the mark significantly.
- in Jan 1919 it was 8.9 marks to 1 US dollar
- by Jan 1922 it was 493 marks to 1 US dollar
By October 1923 it was 4.2 billion marks to 1 US dollar.
What was the impact of hyperinflation (Jan-Nov 1923)?
It particularly hit pensioners, civil servants and the middle class that relied upon savings to afford anything. Every day their savings became less and less worth, leaving them stranded.
- the support in the republic dwindled even further
- people turned to the black market and gambling to earn any money
- many many people were impoverished.
However the regime was saved by Stressemann, how?
- he ended passive resistance
- co-operated with allies
- introduced a new stable currency, valued on land and gold reserves
Describe the Dawes plan (Aug 1924) and the Young plan (Aug 1929)
The Dawes plan raised 800 million marks in loans.
The Young plan helped to reduce reparations and to extend the period in which they were paid.
