GOLDEN YEARS 1924-29 Flashcards
Arguments for political stability during GY’s
No uprisings
Arguments against political stability during GY’s
Decline in liberals
6 coalition governments
Most did not have a majority
Why was the electoral decline in liberals significant?
Because it undermined the foundations of the republic
Positive for production?
1928 levels back to that of 1913
Negative for economic growth?
1926 production actually declined
Negative for saving and investments?
Hyperinflation discouraged saving and investments so income relied on foreign capital
Negative for Dawes Plan
Very dependent on American loans
Economic growth compared to France, Britain and USA?
Germany was behind
How much of GDP did reparations make up?
2%
Unemployment levels
1.3 million at highest- good
Did unemployment increase or decrease during GY’s?
Increase
Welfare
Improvements- sickness and pension benefits
Negatives of welfare during GY’s
Industrialists resented welfare state
Which groups were hostile to the regime?
Junkers and peasant farmers
Negatives to employment and work
Industrialists and workers both refused to co-operate
Successes of foreign policy during GY’s
Fulfilment proved the Treaty was unrealistic
Improved relations with USSR
Sympathy from West
Failures of foreign policy during GY’s
War guilt clause still a sore spot- Hindenburg 1927 speech showed this
Successes in womens rights
11 women elected to the Reichstag
Failures in women’s rights
Did work, but had unequal pay
1932 law allowed women to be dismissed from work if they were a second earner
1928 elections-presence of extremism
KPD gained over 10% and Nazis made gains in northern rural areas
How many farms were running at a loss in 1928?
1/3
By 19__, production levels were that of 19__
By 1928, production levels were that of 1919
Wages
Hourly wages rose
Maximum working week
48 hours
Over _ million houses built between 19__ and 19__
Over 2 million houses built between 1924 and 1931
Homelessness reduced by __%
60%
Evidence that there was political stability
Support for liberal parties rising- SPD won 29.8%
SPD election figures 1928
29.8%
Grand Coalition 1928 had __ of Reichstag support
60%
Limitations of political stability
Proportional representation, difficulties in co-operation between coalitions
How long did the longest coalition survive?
21 months
Evidence against political stability
Hindenburg
Short lived, unworkable coalitions
Election turnouts declined in the 1920s
Stresemann’s main aims (2)
Free Germany from the limitations of the Treaty of Versailles
Restore Germany to its full status of power
The Dawes Plan
Stresemann called off passive resistance and agreed to resume paying reparations- encouraged sympathy and consequently meant that America gave Germany loans
The Locarno Pact
Peace pact between Britain, France and Italy- renounced the use of force
No longer isolated from allies!!
When was Germany invited to join the League of Nations?
1926
1928 Kellogg-Briand Pact
Showed that Germany was co-operating with other nations
The Young Plan
Revised reparations- 1/4 of 1921 sum
1926 Treaty of Berlin
Between the USSR and Germany
Reduced pressure on Germany’s Eastern front
Art during the Golden Years
Often held political and social messages
Architecture and design
Bauhaus movement- modern and somewhat resented by conservative circles
Literature
Avant garde style, explored a range of social issues
Cabaret
Mocked old German conventions
Interest in experimentation, transvestism and homosexuality
Conflict in cultures
Many writers during the 1920s opposed pacifism
Horrified by the decline in moral and cultural standards
1925-29 export rate
Increased by 40%
Working week during the Golden Years
48 hrs
When was the Rentenmark introduced?
1923
How did the Dawes Plan help reparations payments?
Paid back over a longer period of time- rise after 5 years
When did world food prices collapse?
1922
Impact of the 1922 world food price collapse
Rural poverty (1/3 of the population were farmers)
How many workers did the unemployment insurance scheme cover?
17 million
Women in society
‘new women’
Areas where women gained equal rights
Public employment, sports clubs, sexual independence
Limitations of female liberation
The amount of women who worked outside the home during the 1920’s remained largely the same
Limitations in education
Majority of schools remained denominal
Most secondary teacher and lecturers remained conservative
10% of students in higher education were working class
% of working class students in higher education
10%
1928 coalition
Headed by SPD
Which coalition did the SPD head?
1928
During what period were there no attempts to overthrow the republic?
1924 to 1928
When does Ebert die ?
1925
Who takes over from Ebert as president?
Hindenburg
1928 what % of the electorate voted pro-Weimar democracy?
76%
Which election did 76% of the electorate vote pro-Weimar?
1928
Limitations of political stability during the Golden Years
25% of the electorate voted against Weimar democracy
KPD 12.6% in 1924., 10.6% in 1928
NSDAP rose after the 1929 crash
Which countries in the Locarno Treaties agreed to respect existing borders?
Germany, France and Belgium
Which countries in the Locarno Treaties agreed to be peaceful?
Germany, Poland and Czechoslovakia
When were the Locarno Treaties?
1925
