Germany, 1890–1945: Democracy and dictatorship Flashcards
(102 cards)
Who was Kaiser Wilhelm II?
-Became King (total control) in 1888 at 29
-Wanted to build Germany’s industry
-Unstable with a chip on shoulder about Britain
-Wants WELTPOLITIK (Germany should have a say in the world)
Explain the Use and Growth of Parliamentary government (beginning of Kaiser’s reign)
-Germany unified as a single country in 1871
-25 previously independent states joined together to create the new German Empire
-The Empire’s constitution was federal
-Meant each state kept its own individual princes, constitutions and governments
Who/What had power in ruling Germany?
-Kaiser (ultimate power, inherited position, control over army and foreign policy)
-Chancellor (runs gov, proposes new legislation, doesn’t need others)
-Bundesrat (made up of representatives from each state in the German empire)
-Reichstag (members elected by the public every 3 yrs, pass/reject legislation passed down by the Bundesrat)
Explain the Influence of Prussian Nationalism
-German unification was led by Prussia (most powerful of the 25 unified countries)
-Army was led by Prussian officers
-Prussia provided 17 out of 58 representatives in the Bundesrat
3 main difficulties the Kaiser had when ruling Germany
-Industrialisation
-Navy Laws
-Growth of socialism
Industrialisation
-Germany became more industrial
-Production in factories got bigger
-Workers had low wages and poor working conditions
-1910, 60% of Germans live in towns and cities
Navy Laws
-Army massively expanded after 1898
-Building navy cost lots of money
-Annoyed socialists thinking money could be spent on working class
-Taxes rose
-Began naval race between Britain increasing tension
Growth of socialism and social reform
-The Social Democratic Party (SPD) party became the largest party in the Reichstag in 1912
-Social Democrats hoped Kaiser might share some of his power to allow Reichstag to make social reforms/ laws to improve workers’ rights
-Worked to ban Sunday work and children under 13 working
What was Germany like during and after World War Two?
-British used their large navy to blockade German ports
-Up to 800,000 died of starvation
-Germany lost WW1
What were the impacts on Germany after World War Two?
-Low morale after 1.8 mil German soldiers died
-Nationalistic feeling in 1914 had gone
-Desire to stop working got stronger
-Mass starvation made people extremely weak
-Deadly flu epidemic killed almost 800k
-Growth in extreme parties like communists
-Kaiser lost support
What was the stab in the back myth?
-Claimed Germany’s military didn’t lose WW1 on the battlefield but was betrayed by civilians on the homefront
-This was particularly republican, socialists, communists and Jews
-They were accused of undermining the war effort and forcing the govt to surrender
-This policy was used by Hitler to undermine the Weimar Republic
Quote from Hitler on the ‘Stab in the back myth’
-Hitler said “In the days of November 1918, the front was held. A disgraceful armistice was signed. German Marxists and Jews were responsible.” in Mien Kampf
What events caused the Kaiser to abdicate the throne?
-28th Oct 1918= German navy ordered to sea from Kiel to attack British ships
-Sailors refused as they didn’t want to fight
-News of mutiny spread in ports nearby and other sailors/ workers followed them
-Soldiers sent to deal with it also joined in
-Protests took over towns+set up special councils
-In 6 days, workers and soldier councils governing cities all over Germany
-Kaiser couldn’t control chaos, decided to abdicate
Who took control after the Kaiser abdicated the throne?
-Friedrich Ebert, leader of largest party SPD, temporarily took over Germany as leader
-He promised to hold elections soon where people could vote for him if they wanted
-He ended WW1 which Germans wanted
-He ordered improvements to working conditions and guaranteed freedom of speech
-He declared Germany would be a democratic republic
What was the Weimar Constitution?
-The SPD won Jan 1919 elections and set up their new gov in Weimar, becoming known as the Weimar Gov
-There first job was to write a constitution (set of rules) for Germany
What were the 4 terms of the Weimar Constitution?
1) Over 20s could vote for MPs to sit in the Reichstag who would suggest new laws
2) Chancellor= head of Reichstag, voted for every 4 yrs
3) President= Chooses Chancellor, keeps control
of the army, voted for every 7 yrs
4) Germany would use Proportional Representation system meaning each party would get a fair share of the seats in the Reichstag (10% of votes= 10% of seats)
What were the problems with Proportional Representation?
-Seemed fair but had lots of problems
-So many parties in Reichstag meant no party ever had a majority
-They couldn’t pass laws by themselves
-Parties had to make deals which slowed the whole process down
Strengths of the Weimar Constitution
-Voting was fair
-Lots of people had their say
-State govs ensured local issues were adressed
-Not 1 person could take over (President and Chancellor)
-A poor Chancellor or President would only be around for a limited time
Weaknesses of the Weimar Constitution
-PR meant lots of parties in Reichstag= difficult to make agreements
-Article 48 could be abused to stop President listening to Reichstag
-State govs could pass laws going against what the Reichstag wanted
What was the Spartacists Uprising?
-Jan 1919, Spartacus League (Communist party) started a revolution in Berlin to take over Germany
-Revolt failed as Ebert brought in Friekorps (ex soldiers) to stop it and kill communists
Impact of the Spartacists Uprising
-Leaders of revolt Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg brutally murdered by the Friekorps
-Helpful for Ebert that they were no longer a threat but he had to rely on the Friekorps
-Made Weimar Gov look weak and unprotected
What was the Treaty of Versailles?
-Document signed 28th June 1919 by France, UK and US
-A number of terms to punish Germany for the role they played in WW1
-France were very angry and so were the UK but the US wanted a strong Germany for trade
What were the 4 main terms of the Treaty of Versailles?
-LAND= Germany lost 13% of its land (Alsace- Lorraine) along with 48% of its iron production and 6 million citizens
-ARMY= Army was limited to 100,000 men and they weren’t allowed to build tanks, planes, submarines etc
-MONEY= Germany had to pay £6.6 billion in reparations to the other countries
-BLAME= Article 231 meant Germany had to take full responsibility for starting the war
What was the Kapp Putsch?
-March 1920, right wing Fascist group led by Wolfgang Kapp gathered 5000 men (Friekorps) and took over Berlin
-Ebert and his gov were forced to flee and Kapp took over the country
-Kapp didn’t have support from workers of Berlin who went on strike meaning there was no water, gas, electricity etc
-After 100 hours, Kapp fled and Ebert returned to power
