Germany Flashcards
what is a kaiser?
- the emperor of germany (up until 1918)
- was Wilhelm II
What is demobilized?
-soldiers returning home from war
What is anarchy?
-complete lack of order and law
What is Abdication?
-giving up the job of a monarch
What is Mutinied?
- rebellion (in the armed forces)
What was Germany like pre 1918?
- collection of states
- 1871 becomes know as Germany or the Reich
- Driving force is Prussia
- 1914 its industries were most successful in Europe
- Kaiser Wilhelm II, takes them to war but abdicates and moves away to Holland
How was WWI effecting Germany economically?
- trade was stopped due to blockades which stopped imports into the country
- had no money left due to the war
- inflation high
How did the Blockades affect Germany?
- blockades were set up in naval ports of Germany
- prevents trade and imports to the country meaning less food and medicine for the people and soldiers
- starvation and disease thrived
What was the physical situation in Germany in 1918?
- losing men at war
- demobbed soldiers came home and couldnt get a job
What was the political situation in Germany in 1918?
- had political problems pre-war
- decisions made by reichstag, no input from working and middle class
- hierarchy
- kaiser was beginning to be blamed –> lose of faith in the monarchy
- led to mutinies
What was the psychological situation in Germany in 1918?
- before war –> ambitious and prepared for success
- thought they were winning
- experience of war made German people bitter and angry
What was the political revolution that sparked in 1918?
- sailor mutinied in Kiel and set up a communist-style soviets
- kaiser abdicated to Holland as he was forced to leave the country
- a country that had been run by a military styled dictatorship for 50 years now had to learn a different kind of government
How were people divided in 1918 in Germany?
- once a proud and ambitious nation known for unity and obedience
- now famous for squabbling
- war increased the gap between poor and rich
- ‘fat cat’ big factory owners made lots while workers were paid little
- german women worked in factories which people disliked
What is article 48?
in an emergency the president could make laws without consulting the Reichstag first?
Advantages to the Weimar Constitution?
- democratic
- the people were all allowed to vote
- everyone was equal, the poor and middle class and women too
- the lower and working class wanted the chance to vote
Disadvantages of the Weimar Constitution?
- Economic state
- artile 48 could be abused
- proportional representation allowed many different parties in Parliament –> decision would take forever
- upper class preferred the old system with the kaiser as it kept them rich
- having the upper class against the new democratic system was dangerous as they had a massive influence economically and politically in Germany
Who was Georges Clemenceau?
- leader of france
- wanted revenge and to punish the Germans for what they have done
- he wanted to make Germany pay for the damages of war
- he wanted to weaken Germany, so they cant fight and invade France again
Who was David Lloyd George?
- ‘make Germany pay’ –> what the people want to hear
- he wanted justice not revenge
- wants a halfway point between Clemenceau and Wilson
- he also wanted to expand the British empire and maintain British control
Who was Woodrow Wilson?
- wanted peace and to make the world safe
- he wanted disarmament
- wanted a League of Nations where countries could talk about problems
What were the main aspects of the Treaty of Versailles?
-GUILT –>Germans had to accept ALL blame for starting the war under article 231
ARMED FORCES –> had to reduce their army to, 100,000 men, 15000 navy, 6 battleships no submarines or air force
-REPARATIONS –> £6.6 billion
-GERMAN LAND —> Alsace-Lorraine, given back to France, Rhineland demilitarized, 10% of their industry and 15% of their farming and land was taken, West Prussia and Posen was taken by Poland
-LEAGUE OF NATIONS –> germans not allowed to join until they proved they were peace loving nations and wouldnt start another war
What was the German peoples reaction to the Treaty of Versailles?
- UNFAIR –> it was a Diktat - imposed settlement, they felt pain and anger as the had not be allowed to take part in the talks
- BLAME –> hated clause 231, hurt their pride, they wanted to over turn the treaty as others were to blame for the war
- REPARATIONS –> said France and britain were trying to stave their children to death, refused to pay but they started after the two countries invaded
- ARMY –> helpless against attack from other countries, refused to lowered it first even sailors sinking their own ships than handing them over
- TERRITORY –> claim the treaty only wanted to destroy their economy, they had to aline with other countries and couldnt unite with Austrian Germans
What would a communist government be like?
- classless system
- all are equal
- property owned by everyone
- seen as a threat to center and right wing leaders as middle ad upper class will be removed
What is the Weimar government like?
- under the leadership of the Social Democratic party
- Ebert (first president) promised better working conditions, freedom of speech
- opposed by right and left
- Communist believe Germany needed to be more radical –> lead to the Spartakist revolt
- First democratic election in jan 1919
- all men and women over 20 could vote
What would Fascist government be like?
- a system in which one person has complete control over the people
- control the army and media and even religion
- doesnt have to be elected
- rules as a dictator
What is the Spartakist Revolt?
- Spartakist league –> group of communist that wanted a revolution did not trust the new government to improve workers lives
- workers strike of 50,000
- happened in 1919
- tried to turn a workers protest into a revolution but didnt have enough support
- led by Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht –> both jewish
- Weimar squashed the rebellion using the Freikorps killing 100 workers the leaders were killed
What was the Kapp Putsch?
- 1920
- led by Wolfgang Kapp
- was an attempt by the right wing government and freikorps to over throw the government
- wanted a strong army
- marched to berlin and declared a new government
- Ebert and government had to flee as they didnt have any backing from the army
- Ebert asked the people to strike to stop the freikorps taking power
- the German people agreed stopping all public transport around Berlin
- stopped within days
- major weakness to the Weimar government as it showed that even the army didnt support the government
What is the Red rising in the Ruhr of 1920?
a communist red army of 50,000 workers occupied the Ruhr and took control of raw materials. the German army and the Freikorps stopped the uprising and 1000 workers were killed
What were the extreme left wing opposition to the Weimar Republic?
- Spartakist Revolt
- Red Rising of the Ruhr
What are the extreme right wing opposition to the Weimar Republic?
- Kapp Putsch
- Munich Putsch
What is hyperinflation?
- inflation is where the costs of goods goes up
- in germany the value of money drops as the costs of goods go up
- this happened very quickly in 1923 that is why its caled hyperinflation
What happened during the French invasion of the Ruhr in 1923?
- large industrial zone
- in 1922 germany didnt pay their reparations
- Ebert tried to negotiate a reduction in Reparations
- French marched into the Ruhr in January of 1923 to take what they were owed in the form of raw materials and goods
- they seized mines factories and railways this was legal under the treaty
- Weimar told the people to be passively resistant and stop working so the french couldnt get and good, but still agree to pay the workers
- this cost them a huge amount of money that they didnt have which lead to hyperinflation
What were the causes to hyperinflation?
- Versailles –> still owed the allies reparations due to he damages caused by wars
- Reparations –> 1923 cant afford to pay the reparations
- Ruhr –> French invade the Ruhr to get the equivalent reparation payment
- Passive resistance –> the workers went on strike not making any goods to be sold
- Dilution –> the more money printed and put into the economy the weaker the currency gets
- Print Cash –> more money printed, becomes worthless, businesses put prices up and wages increase, the government have to keep printing more money
What were the negative impact of hyperinflation in 1923?
- workers suffered
- people lined up for food
- people starved and died
- those on fixed salaries couldnt afford to live
- savings became worthless
- Big businessmen took over small business
- normal workers preferred to be paid in goods which they could trade
- farmers didnt want to sell their food for worthless money so there were major food shortages
- people blamed the Weimar government for signing the Treaty of Versailles
what the positive impacts of hyperinflation in 1923?
-people could pay off debt easily because their loans were worthless compared to money around at the time
How did Stresemann face the problem of the french occupying the Ruhr?
- called off passive resistance so workers started work again production of goods started again and promised to repay the reparations
- some people believe that stresemann had given into the french and thought this was weak
How did Stresemann face the problem of Hyperinflation?
- changed currency to Rentenmark was accepted by the german people and brought inflation under control
- other countries become more confident in he german economy and trade with them more
- People who had savings did not them back and blamed the Weimar Republic
How did Stresemann face the problem that germany was not trusted by other?
- Locarno Pact –> agressed that Britain, France and Belguim in 1925, promised not to invade each other
- allowed into the League of Nations to make larger decisions
- negotiations and trade
- germany accepted it could not win back the Lebensraum –> stresemann won the noble peace prize
- some Germans thought it was weak to agree not to try to invade each other seen as giving into the french
How did Stresemann face the problem of Reparations and the rebuilding of the economy?
- negotiations
- the Dawes and Young Plan
- US loans
- set up labor exchanges and unemployment pay
- built 3 million new homes which helped both tthe poor and unemployed
- many people believed that they shouldnt have to pay the reparations
- the economy as dependent on the loan from the US
- wages didnt rise for all workers and farmers lost out
- unemployment was high
- rich people had to pay more taxes
What was the Dawes Plan of 1924?
- gave Germany longer to pay reparations
- US loan
What was the Young Plan of 1929?
-cut the reparations down to £31 million
Why was the Stresemann era the Golden Era for the Weimar?
- Political Stability –> more support for the Weimar, less for extreme groups
- Improved international relations –> Locarno treaties of 1925 (co-operation and keeping of borders) Kellogg-Briad Pact of 1928 (armies allowed for self defense)
- Economic Recovery –> Rentenmark 1923, Dawes plan of 1924, Young Plan of 1929
What was Weimar culture like?
- artists could use painting to express their views
- women were seen as equals and seen more in films and in plays
- music became more jazzy
- design became abstract and contreversal
What was different about Art in the Golden Age?
- tried to show daily life
- corrupt rich people were painted in an angry and distorted way
- censorship was gone –> artist could paint what they wanted this was called the new objectivity
- Bauhaus college in Dessau became a centre for European artists like kandinsky to go to teach
- George Grosz –> painted distorted images of corrupt men
- Otto Dix –> a famous weimar artist that attacked many things in germany through art
What was different about Cinema in the Golden age?
- golden age for cinema
- science fiction and horror films were produced using techniques still used today
- metopolis –> one of the most advanced film of the time starring the world famous Marlene Dietrich
- Nosferatu –> first vampire horror film directed by Fritz Lang
- Marlene Dietrich –> famous film star
What was different about Architecture in the Weimar Golden Years?
- The Bauhaus group of artist and designers produced work that used new technology, basic shapes and colours and was economical using new materials e.g concrete with glass and steel
- Walter Gropius–> famous architect
What was different about theater in the Golden Age?
- theatre and opera portrays the times
- Plays were set in the 1920’s
- Arias were sung in bath tubs
- The aim was to bring theatre to working people
- Bertolt Brecht –> director and producer
What was different about the Cabaret in the Golden Age?
- Berlin was know for its liberated nightlife with naked dancers
- Sex was openly discussed and sung about
- Homosexuality was no longer frowned on
What was wrong with the Golden Ages in Germany?
- centred around Berlin
- other parts of germany were not affect, were not interested or didnt approve.
- some thought these developments represented a moral decline
- some disapproved more because these cultural changes were led by American immigrants or Jews
- The Wandervogel movement was a reaction to the new development. it wanted a return to simple country values
What was the Munich Putsch?
- In 1923 Hitler assembled a group of unemployed, young men and former soldiers (SA)
- plotted with two nationalist politicians - von Kahr and Lossow to take over Munich
- on 4th October Hitler gathered 3000 of his troops but Kahr and Lossow called off the rebellion
- 8th November –> 600 Stormtroopers burst into a political meeting in a local Beer hall where Kahr and Lossow was present
- demanded that they agree to rebel –> then lets them go
- the SA took over the army headquarters and the offices of the local newspaper
- 9th of November marched to Munich to seize power, Kahr had called army reinforcements and the police
- Hitler fled but was arrested 2 days later
- became famous from as his trial was posted in national newspaper
- in prison he wrote a book ‘Mein Kampf’ and used it in his trial
- saw that he needed to win an election to get power
Why did Hitler choose September 1923 to launch his attempt to take over Germany?
- Support of the SA and support of Army Leaders like Ludendorff
- Hyperinflation had affected alot of people and caused unemployment
- President Ebert had to call off the strike in Ruhr and started paying back reparations
- the Italian Fasist leader, Mussolini had lead a rebellion by marching in on a city
What was Hitler’s 25 point programme that was made up of Nazi ideas and from his book Mein Kampf?
- Challenge terror and violence with terror and violence
- educate the gifted and talented
- remove jews from all positions of leadership in Germany
- Nationalise industry
- Abolish the Treaty of Versailles
- Conquer Lebensraum
- Re-arm Germany
- Destroy the Weimar republic
- provide pensions and help for small businesses
- no other income than from work
- in school pupils should learn to love to their country and physical fitness is vital
- aryans are the master race
Why were the Nazis unsuccessful before 1929?
- PEACE AND PROSPERITY –> stresemann’s policies had overcome problems in the early 1920’s , Germany was at peace and the economy was doing well again, many factory workers were better off
- LACK OF SUPPORT FROM WORKERS –> if factory workers wanted change in the government they tended to support communist party’s rather than the Nazis
- THE NAZIS FRIGHTENED PEOPLE –> the SA was seen as very violent and the nazi ideas were anti-semitic
What was the Wall Street Crash of 1929?
- 20 million shareholders in USA by Summer of 1929
- Prices for shares reach an all time high
- experts get worried
- car and steel production drops
- profits drop
- people start to sell off their shares before they lose money
Why did the Wall street Crash happen in 1929?
-ECONOMIC WEAKNESSES –> 60% of the country was poor and people had started taxes goods from US
-LAISSEZ FAIRE –> the policy of the republican party wsa to give the economy freedom to repair
-OVERPRODUCTION –> everyone who wanted new goods already had bought them
-SPECULATION –> many people who had bought shares on credit, people lost their money as the value of fell
-LOSS OF CONFIDENCE –> experts were the first to sell their shares, confidence was lost and others followed suit
24TH AND 29 OCT 1929 –> -panic started as people sold their shares, 13 million on 24th and 16 million on 29th
What was the impact of the Wall Street Crash in 1929?
- US couldnt cope with the crash so recalled all its loans
- as germany was dependent on the loans it went into a depression
- unemployment rises dramatically –> 2 million in 1929 to 5.75 million in 1932
- young people had no work when they left school
- people started to lose homes and businesses because they cant afford the repayments
- 15% of people received no help at all
- shops closed down –> therefore people couldnt buy goods
- more unemployment = less demand for food = less people buying goods = lower in economic activity increases depression
What was the German Governments response to the Wall Street Crash of 1929?
- Weimar seemed to have no idea about what to do about poverty and unemployment but no other country was bettter
- the Weimar government did try measures but had limited options
- chancellor Bruning persuaded President Hindenburg to use article 48 to pass his measure to limit inflation
- raise taxes, cut wages and reduce unemployment benefits
- Hindenburg was 84 are influenced by his friends, business and army leaders
Who were Hitler’s Henchmen?
- Joseph Goebbels
- Hermann Goering
- Rudolf Hess
- Ernst Rohm
- Heinrich Himmler
- Richard Heydrich
Who was Joseph Goebbels?
- middle class background, son of an office worker
- didnt fight in WWI due to a crippled foot
- Highly intelligent and educated, gained a phD in language studies
- Brilliant public speaker
- Join party in 1922 Chief of Propaganda, was a close ally to Hitler and edited the Nazi newspaper (Volkische Feiheit)
Who was Hermann Goering?
- middle class background
- Fought in WWI a pilot ace
- Womaniser, Socialiser, greedy and arrogant
- collected art, gambled and drank long into the night
- joined the party in 1922 in charge of the SA, eventually changing to the Luftwaffe and economic organisation ‘Four Year Plan’
Who was Rudolf Hess?
- Piliot and solider during WWI
- Unambitious and didnt crave power in the same way other Nazis did
- Joined the NSDAP in 1920
- Deputy of the Nazi Party and dealt with matters of administration
- Plane crashed over Scotland and was arrested and spent the remainder of war in prison
