Germany chapter 2 Flashcards
only chap 2 and chap 3 so far - add chapter 1 later
what caused the german people to suffer during world war one?
- the British used navy ships to stop supply ships reaching German ports
- this caused shortages of food, medicine, and clothing
what were two examples of opposition to the first world war in germany?
- in 1915, 500 women gathered outside of the german parliament building and said they wanted their men back from the trenches
- a year later, 10,000 workers assembled in Berlin to shout ‘down with war, down with the government’ - police assembled quickly and made arrests to calm the situation
how were living condition in germany by 1918?
very poor, germany was close to collapse, people were surviving off of turnips and bread, and there was a deadly flu epidemic that was spreading across the country
what was the opinion of General Ludendorff on their position in the war?
he told the german politicians there was no way they could win the war - he believed the other countries would treat germany more fairly if it became more democratic (so the kaiser would have to share his power with the gov)
who was general ludendorff?
a german army general and war hero
did the kaiser share his power?
yes (reluctantly),he allowed the main political parties to form a new gov and transferred some of his power to the reichstag
were the german people happy with how the kaiser shared his power?
not really, the changes came too late to satisfy the german people and more demonstrations happened, and some said he should give up his throne, others wanted to overthrow him in a revolution
what happened on 28th October, 1918?
a german navy ship was ordered out to sea from Keil in Northern Germay to attack british ships, but the sailors refused to do it (mutiny)
what did the mutiny from 28th oct 1918 do?
the news of the mutiny spread and in ports nearby other sailors began to refuse to follow orders, and workers in the town supported them. the soldiers who were sent to stop the protests joined their mutiny, and in just six days, workers’ and soldiers’ councils were governing cities all over the country. the kaiser’s army generals refused to support him
when did the Kaiser abdicate?
9th November 1918
what happened on the 9th of November 1918?
the kaiser abdicated and secretly left the country
who was the leader of the SPD? (in 1918)
Freidrich Ebert
who took the place of the Kaiser?
Freidrich Ebert (temporarily - he promised to hold elections soon)
what were the three main impacts of the war on germany?
- germany was virtually bankrupt
- the war had divided german society further
- Germany had become politically unstable
why was germany virtually bankrupt by the end of the war?
- german factories were exhausted by the war, they had been producing guns, bullets, and shells, not goods to sell abroad to make money
- germany had lent money to some of it’s allies
- germany had borrowed money, and would have to pay it bak eventually
- the war left 600,000 war widows and 2,000,000 children without fathers, war pensions would cost the gov a lot of money
how did the war divide german society further?
- some factory owners made a fortune during the war, while other german workers had restrictions placed on their wages
- women worked in the factories during the war, and some germans believed this damaged trad family values
how did the war make Germany more politically unstable?
- before the war, Germany had been a stable, rich nation but now there was mutiny and revolution
- many ex-soldiers and civilians felt Germany could have won the war, they felt betrayed that their politicians (the nov criminals) who ended it and refused to support them
what were Ebert’s first actions as leader of Germany?
signing the armistice, then he ordered improvements to working conditions, help for the unemployed, improved housing, ad more food supplies. he guaranteed free speech, freedom of religion, and arranged elections for a new german gov
what did Germany become after the kaiser abdicated?
a democratic republic
what political ideology did the Spartacus league believe in?
communism
what was the Spartacus league named after?
a roman gladiator who led a rebellion of slaves against the slave masters of ancient Rome
who did the spartacists want to lead Germany?
a small council of soldiers and workers (not a large parliament)
when did the spartacists try to take over the capital?
6th January 1919
which city did the Spartacists try to take over?
Berlin
how did the spartacists try to take over Berlin?
thousands of them roared the streets, firing guns, and trying to take over important buildings
how did Ebert respond to the spartacist’s uprising?
he sent in 2000 Freidkorps soldiers to attack them, after 3 days of brutal fighting, the freidkorps recaptured buildings and arrested the spartacist leaders
who were the spartacist leaders?
Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht
what did the freidkorps do to Luxemburg and Liebknecht?
beat them savagely then murder them
which party won the january 1919 election?
the SPD (Ebert’s party)
when did Ebert and other elected politicians meet up in Weimar?
11th February 1919
who could vote?
all men and women over 20
what kind of representation did the weimar gov have?
proportional representation
how often was the president elected?
every 7 years
what was article 48?
if the president decided the country was in a state of emergency they could run the country with no input from other politicians
what did the chancellor need to introduce new laws?
the support of at least half the MPs/politicians
how often were members of the reichstag elected?
every 4 years
which parties supported the republic?
Social democrats, German democratic , centre party, People’s party (though would want the kaiser back in the future)
which parties did not like the republic?
the commies, the national people’s party, the nationalist socialist german worker’s party (the nazis)
what were the terms of the ToV?
- blame clause
- reparations
- germany can only have a small army (100,000 soldiers)
- max 6 battleships
- no submarines
- no tanks
- no airforce
- no colonies abroad
- lost land
- demilitarisation of rhineland
when did the gov sign the treaty?
28th June 1919
why did the germans hate the tov?
- it was too harsh
- it was forced on them (diktat)
- they didn’t think they had lost
how much did germany have to pay in reparations?
£6.6 billion
how much was the first instalment of reparations?
2 billion gold marks (in gold, coal, iron, and wood)
when was the first instalment of reparations paid?
in 1921
when was the second instalment of reparations supposed to be paid?
1922
how many French and Belgian soldiers marched into the Ruhr and when?
January 1923, 60,000 men
why did the French and Belgians invade the Ruhr?
because Germany had not paid the second instalment of reparations
what did the invasion of the Ruhr cause?
hyperinflation
how many marks did a loaf of bread cost in December 1921, September 1923, and November 1923?
1921: 4 marks
Sept 1923: 1.5 million marks
Nov 1923: 201 billion marks
what did the German government do after the invasion of the Ruhr?
they ordered it’s workers not to fight back but to go on strike (passive resistance)
how many strikers were killed by the French and Belgian soldiers?
100
how many strikers were thrown out of their homes by the French and Belgian soldiers?
15,000
what did the gov do in order to keep paying their workers?
they printed large amounts of money
why did the gov need to print out money?
to pay the strikers and because Germany was running short of money because the Ruhr wasn’t producing materials to trade with + because of shops raising prices
what did the shopkeepers do in response to the strikers after they started spending their money quickly?
they raised their prices
what did the gov do in response to rising prices?
print more money
who did the germans blame for the hyperinflation?
the Weimar gov, so they lost a lot of support
how much did one egg cost in 1921, sept 1923, nov 1923?
1921: 0.6 marks
sept 1923: 4,000,000 marks
nov 1923: 320 billion marks
who suffered because of hyperinflation?
- people with savings
- elderly people who lived off pensions
- small businesses
who benefited from hyperinflation?
- those with debts
- farmers
