Germany 1918-1939 Flashcards
Define Weimar Republic.
A republic is a country without a hereditary ruler, such as a king or emperor. The new government first met in the town of Weimar.
Define abdication.
To give up the throne.
Define Kaiser.
Emperor.
Define Chancellor.
Chief minister (equivalent of Prime Minister).
Define armistice.
A cease fire.
Define constitution.
An agreed method of governing a country, with the details usually written down and agreed on by those being governed.
What were the origins of the Weimar Republic?
Revolution in Germany in October-Nov 1918 due to effects of WW1.
Began with sailors in Kiev who refused to go to sea and marched on Berlin instead. Triggered other revolts. Kaiser abdicated Nov 9, new republic signed armistice Nov 11.
What were the effects of WW1 on Germany?
British navy had imposed naval blockade of German ports which left Germany short of food and supplies- ‘Turnip Winter’ 1917-1918.
British, French, US had driven German troops out of France and Belgium and were close to German borders.
Flu epidemic, killing thousands weakened by rations.
What were the main problems faced by the Weimar Republic?
The Constitution. The Treaty of Versailles. Bankruptcy (1923) Hyper Inflation (1923) Opposition from left (sparticists) Opposition from right (Kapp Putsch and Munich Putsch) French occupation of the Ruhr (1923)
What were the weaknesses of the new constitution?
Proportional representation meant lots of small parties, coalition governments were unstable and it was hard to get agreements when people wanted different things. This led to difficulties in passing laws so often the only way was to suspend the constitution.
The President had too much power, Article 48 said in an emergency the President could abandon democracy and rule by decree.
Army generals were same men who fought for Kaiser, many who opposed the new republic. The judges in new Germany were the same men who served under Kaiser- had sympathy with those against Republic.
Define proportional representation.
A system in which the number of representatives from a given party is determined by how many votes that party gains nationally.
Define coalition.
The joining together of two or more political parties in a situation where no one political party gets a majority of the votes, in order to have sufficient support to pass laws.
Define nationalists.
Those wanting a strong unified Germany, with a government that was similar to the one under the Kaiser before the war.
Define Putsch.
An attempt to seize control and gain power by force.
What were the effects of the Treaty of Versailles?
New government immediately associated with humiliating treaty.
Opponents of republic, especially the army, blamed government for signing armistice that lead to treaty, ‘November criminals’
Government accused of stabbing German army in the back, would have won the war if armistice had not been signed.
Germany could not afford to pay reparations, had been run down by war and had lost important parts of land which could make money such as coalfields of the Saar.
