Germany - key topic 1 Flashcards
which are the four clauses in the treaty of Versailles that affected Germany
loss of territory
military restrictions
war guilt clause
reparations
how did the loss of territory (treaty clause) affect Germany
lots of refugees
loss of materials
population issues
embarrassing for other countries
how did the military restrictions, imposed by the treaty clause affect Germany
it made Germany vulnerable
looked to emasculate Germany
how did the war guilt clause, imposed by the treaty clause, affect Germany
it was seen as an injustice
how did the reparations, set by the treaty affect Germany
it was seen as an injustice
economic disaster
when did Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicate his thrown
9th November 1918
where did Kaiser go after he abducted
netherlands
when was the armistice signed?
11th November 1918
when was the sparticist uprising
5th jan - 12 jan 1919
when was the weimar National Assembly established
feb - June 1919
when did Germany sign the treaty of versailles
28th June 1919
when was the weimar constitution signed
11th august 1919
when did the Kapp Putsch happen
13th march 1920
when did French and Belgium troops begin to occupy the Ruhr
11th jan 1923
when did hyperflation begin
1923
when did stresmann become chancellor and forgein minister
13th august 1923
when did the minuch putsch occur
8th November 1923
when was the Dawes plan introduced
august 1924
when was hitlers book published, called the main kampf
18th July 1925
when did the Locarno pact occur
16 oct 1926
when did the bamberg conference take place
14th feb 1926
when did Germany join the league of nations
8th September 1926
when was the Kellogg-briand pact agreed
27th august 1928
when was the young plan agreed
31st august 1929
when did stresmann die
3rd oct 1929
when was the Wall Street crash
29th oct 1929
when was hitler appointed chancellor
30th jan 1933
when was the reichstag fire
27th feb 1933
when was the enabling pact passed
23rd march 1933
when was the boycott of jewish shops and businesses
1st April 1933
what is the weimar republic
democratic Germany in the period between the abdication of kaiser and hitler.
why is the weimar republic called this
the constitution, signed 11th august 1919, was signed in the German town of weimar
strengths of Weimar Republic
- germany was now a democracy
- a bill of rights, stated that every German citizen had freedom of speech, religion, and equality
- all men and women over 20 were allowed to vote
weakness of the Weimar Republic
- instead of voting for an mp, the germans voted for a party system, known as proportional representation
- article 48
what was proportional representation
each party got the corresponding seats based on the percentage of votes - this led to tons of small parties being created, so no one could get majority seats and then govern properly
what was article 48
stated that the president could issues decrees in an emergency without the consent of the reichstag, this ultimately helped hitler to become a dictator.
what was the reichstag
the political German parliament
problems facing the Weimar Republic government in 1919
- industries were ruined due to the war meaning the economy struggled
- shortage of resources led to families dying of starvation
- widespread mistrust of policitans
- the German soldiers felt like they had been stabbed in the back due to lack of care of veterans retiring from war
weaknesses of the weimar consitution
- proportional representation
- article 48
what was the treaty of versailles
the treaty of versailles was a peace settlement agreed between the Weimar Republic and the allies.
when was the freikorps made
1918
when was the friekorps ended
1921
what was the freikorps role
a private army for the Weimar Republic government, whenever rebels challenged the stability of the government, the Freikrops was paid to put down the uprising, and kill the ringleaders
what was the left-wing threat
the communists felt that they should follow Russia’s example and launch a communist revelation. they called themselves the spartisists
who was the spartisnists led by
Karl liebknecht
rosa luxeborugh
CHALLENGES TO THE REPUBLIC:
what was the sparticist uprising
in jan 1919, the sparticists tried to overthrow the government, they seized control of streets and public buildings in Berlin. the government used the Freikorps to put down the uprising
CHALLENGES TO THE REPUBLIC:
what was the kapp putsch
an extreme right group of people
wanted the return of the kaiser
after the treaty of versailles stated that the Friekorps needed to be disbanded, the leader was angry about this - so led a revolution (kapp putsch) against the government.
on the 13th march, the kapp putsch occurred, and the German army was against them but refused to shoot them as they were once fellow soliders.
how did the government push the kapp putsch out
the government asked the people to go on general strike. gas, electricity, and water were cut off to the city. after 4 days, the kapp putsch ended.
what is hyperinflation
is when the value of currency is devalued, and thus prices continue to increase, as more money is required to buy certain things.
why did hyperflation occur
hyperflation in Germany began as the weimar replublic was hugely in dept as a result of the reparations payments being forced on them. their solution was to print more money, and as a result of this the currency became worthless.
what was the invasion of the Ruhr
in 1923, French and Belgium soldiers invaded the Ruhr, germanys industrial capital - to seize productions and to take raw materials instead of the payments which they weren’t receiving.
how did the government respond to the Ruhr
asked the workers to go on strike, a strategy resistance, the workers refused to work
after 4 days, this ultimately worked
how did the strike effect Germany
the loss of income increased hyperinflation more
who was gustav stresemann
gustav stresmann was a german politician who was appointed chancellor and foreign secretary in august 1923.
what was the economic recovery of the republic
to combat hyperinflation, in nov 1923 - he got rid of the old currency, and replaced it with the rentenmark, who was issued by the rentenbank.
what was the Dawes plan
April 1924
reparations were temporarily reduced to 50mil a year
us banks to give loans to German industry
the French agreed to leave the Ruhr
result of the Dawes plan
as a result, the German industrial output doubled in 1924, this helped german’s economic recovery
what was the Locarno pact
1925
this was agreed on equal terms by Germany, Britain, France, Italy, Belgium on 1st December 1925
Germany accepted the European borders put forward the treaty of versailles
france promised peace
the Rhineland was permanently demilitarised
what was the Kellogg-pact
1929
reparations were permanently reduced from 6.6 billion to 2 billion
germany was given a further 59 years to pay
the French agreed to leave the Rhineland
what is the Rhineland
a strip of German land that borders France, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
what were the golden years
the period of 1924-1929 were known as the golden years in weimar Germany, due to huge improvements to the standard of living.
how did employment improve within the golden years
- the unemployment insurance act of 1927, provided a fall-back for when out of work
- working hours dropped, and wages improved
- employment levels continued to improve
how did the housing issue improve within the golden years
the housing shortage had eased by 1928
Why did the veterans like within the golden age, imposed by the government
veterans and their families began to receive pensions from the government
how did education improve within the golden age
- education and literacy rates began to improve
how did women’s rights change within the golden age
- women gained increased under rights under the Weimar Republic constitution
- female levels began to improve
- women had to be treated at equals
- women were able to work and stand in elections
- by 1932, 10% of MP’s were women
how did leisure improve within the golden age
- due to greater finical independence, many women drank and smoked
- however birth rates began to fall as women were less family-orientated
how did the censorship of art improve with the change in cultural changes
- no censorship rules were enforced, meaning art became more political
- expressionism and modernism was more common
