germany Flashcards
1
Q
What was the Weimar Republic? (1919-33)
A
- Replaced The Kaiser at end of WW1
- Signed the Armistice to end the war
- Formed in town of Weimar as Berlin was unsafe
- Was a democracy
2
Q
What were the strengths of the Weimar Republic? (1919-33)
A
- Bill of Rights
- Elected Chancellor, President and Reichstag
- Largest party became the government and made laws
- Men and women can vote
- Used checks and balances
3
Q
What were the weaknesses of the Weimar Republic? (1919-33)
A
- Proportional representation (parties gain seats in reflection of votes cast for them)
- Article 48 (laws passed in crisis)
- Linked to the ‘Stab in the back’ theory for signing the Armistice
- Dubbed the November Criminals
4
Q
What were the main terms of the treaty of Versailles? (1919-33)
A
- Land taken
- Armed forces reduced
- Money to pay reparations
- Blame for starting the war
5
Q
What was the Spartacist Uprising?
A
- Communist group tried to take over in Berlin
- Led by Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg with 100,000 men
- Uprising ended by Freikorp (dislike gov but hate commies more)
6
Q
What was the Kapp Putsch?
A
- Uprising led by Dr Wolfgang Kapp in Berlin
- Kapp led the Freikorp against the Weimar Republic
- Army refused to fire on Freikorp
- Ended by a general strike as Kapp had no public support
7
Q
What were the Nazis doing between 1919-22?
A
- Also known as NSDAP
- Hated Treaty of Versailles, Weimar Republic & Jews
- Hitler became leader in 1921
- SA/Brownshirts (personal bodyguards)
- Small party to begin with
8
Q
Why was there a crisis in 1923?
A
- Germany does not pay reparations
- French occupation of the Ruhr to take raw goods due to not having been paid
- Weimar orders passive resistance in Ruhr so no goods can be made but they make no money
- They print more money but that leads to Hyperinflation
- Hitler desperately tries to seize power in Munich Putsch
9
Q
What happened in the Munich Putsch?
A
- People desperate due to lost savings in hyperinflation
- Hitler took over a beer hall that had politicians inside
- Hitler used his SA and ex WW1 general Ludendorf to try and seize control
- The people did not support Hitler
- The army crushed the Putsch
10
Q
What happened with the Nazis from 1923-28?
A
- Hitler initially imprisoned for Munich putsch
- Writes Mein Kampf
- Nazi newspaper formed
- Goebbels joins Hitler
- Changes party into one that will now try to win votes
- Creates Hitler Youth
- SS formed
- Hitler cements his leadership in the Bamberg Conference
11
Q
What were Stresemann’s solutions to the crisis of 1923?
A
- Dawes Plan (loans from USA)
- Young Plan (Spread out reparation payments)
- Ends hyperinflation
- Joins the League of Nations
- Restarts production in the Ruhr
- Signs the Locarno Pact (Germany would never go to war with other countries)
- Signs the Kellog-Briand Pact (a promise not to use war to resolve issues)
12
Q
What was the impact of Stresemann’s solutions?
A
- Businesses prospered
- Extreme politics were marginalised
- Germany accepted in Europe again
- Some disapproved of making deals with Germany’s WW1 enemies
13
Q
How did the culture change in the Weimar Republic?
A
- More nightlife
- Women had freedom to wear makeup and more revealing clothes
- New art, architecture and music
- More houses built
- Unemployment reduced
- More pensions
- More youths go to university
- Freedom of expression
14
Q
What were the drawbacks in the Golden Years? (1924-28)
A
- Trade Unions opposed women being paid as much as men
- Women still not equal to men
- Many working class still struggled
- Radical groups resented changing culture (moral decline)
- Birth rates decreased and divorces rose
15
Q
Who were the main leaders of the Nazi Party? (1929-34)
A
- Adolf Hitler (leader)
- Herman Goering (4 year plan to get Germany ready for war)
- Heinrich Himmler (SS leader)
- Ernst Rohm (SA leader)
- Joseph Goebbels (propaganda)