Impact of the first WW Flashcards
Impact of the war on Germany by 1918
B…:
-… vast sums of … that it … for the war
-… some of its … to its …
-… were …
-war … cost the … a …
S… divided:
-factory … made a … during the war, while … wages were …
-some thought that … working during the war … traditional family …
P… unstable:
-there was m… and r… all over Germany
-many ex-… and civilians felt … had … them by ..
the war
Bankrupt:
-owed vast sums of money that it borrowed for the war
-lent some of its money to its allies
-factories were exhausted
-war pensions cost the Gov a fortune
Society divided:
-factory owners made a fortune during the war, while workers wages were restricted
-some thought that women working during the war damaged traditional family values
Politically unstable:
-there was mutiny and revolution all over Germany
-many ex-soldiers and civilians felt politicians had betrayed them by ending the war
The Weimar Republic
-ebert held an … where is party the … won and he became the new … president
-… met in anther … called … for their …
-this is where they created the … constitution which … how … would be …
-Germany was then know as the … Republic
-ebert held an election where is party the SPD won and he became the new German president
-politicians met in anther town called Weimar for their safety
-this is where they created the Weimar constitution which established how Germany would be governed
-Germany was then know as the Weimar Republic
The spartacist uprising
- … declared … would be a … republic
- a group of … know as the … wanted Germany to be run by … councils of …
-6th jan 19…. the spartacists … power of …
- ebert declared Germany would be a democratic republic
- a group of communists know as the spartacists wanted Germany to be run by small councils of workers
-6th jan 1919 the spartacists seized power of Berlin
How did ebert respond to the spartacists uprising
-in response ebert sent … Freikorps to … them
-after … days the … recaptured … and arrested and … the …
-in response ebert sent 2000 Freikorps to attack them
-after 3 days the Freikorps recaptured buildings and arrested and killed the leaders
What is proportional representation
Where lots of different … parties were able to … some … in the …, but it was … for one party to get the …
Where lots of different political parties were able to win some seats in the reichstag, but it was difficult for one party to get the majority
What democratic reforms did ebert bring in
-better w… c…
-h… for the u…
-improved h…
-more f… s…
-f… of s…
-f… of r…
-better working conditions
-help for the unemployed
-improved housing
-more food supplies
-freedom of speech
-freedom of religion
What did parties do to overcome the issues faced with proportional representation
They formed coalitions where they worked together to get the majority
Problems with party coalitions
Parties would disagree
Who were called the “November criminals”
The politicians in the Weimar government
Why were politicians called “November criminals”
Because some belived it was their fault that Germany lost WW1
What was article 48
It allowed laws to be passed without the reichstag by the president
Main political parties in the Weimar gov
-c… party (KPD)
-s… d… party (SPD)
-g… d… party (DDP)
-c… party (zentrum)
-p… party (DVP)
-n… p… party (DNVP)
-n… s… g… w… party (NSDAP/ Nazis)
-communist party (KPD)
-social Democratic Party (SPD)
-German Democratic Party (DDP)
-centre party (zentrum)
-peoples party (DVP)
National people’s party (DNVP)
-national socialist German workers party (NSDAP/ Nazis)
When was the treaty of Versailles
1919
What was the treaty of Versailles
List of punishment, instructions and order that Germany had to follow because they lost the war
What did the treaty of Versailles state
-pay £… billion to pay for the … of the …
-could only have a … army, …, no s…, t… or a…
-had to … over … colonies
-no German … could enter the …
-Germany can’t … with … again
-large … of … were used to make new … like … and Czechoslovakia
- had to accept … for the …
-pay £6.6 billion to pay for the cost of the war
-could only have a small army, navy, no submarines, tanks or airforce
-had to hand over abroad colonies
-no German soldiers could enter the Rhineland
-Germany can’t unite with Austria again
-large areas of Germany were used to make new countries like Poland and Czechoslovakia
- had to accept blame for the war
Why did the Germans hate the treaty of Versailles
- they felt it was too harsh
- were humiliated
- they were forced to sign it without discussion
- they had to pay a lot of money
- they lost valuable working land
- some Germans thought they could have kept fighting
How did Germany pay the reparations
Some gold, but mainly goods like coal and iron
When was the occupation of the ruhr
1922
What happened during the occupation of the ruhr
-in 1922 the next payment was due but Germany could not afford to pay it
-the French and Belgians didn’t believe them so took what they were owed by force
-in 1923 60k French and Belgian soldiers marched into the Ruhr an took control of the factories, mines and railways
What was the Ruhr
A very rich, industrial area of Germany
When was the hyperinflation
1923
What caused the hyperinflation
-Germany was in a bad … position after the …
-the … gave out war … which accounted for …% of Gov …
-the German Gov ordered its … in the … to go on strike and … resist
—>these … were still …
-the Gov … large … of … to pay these workers and to pay money …
-this caused … as more people had more … income so … put up …
-the Gov … even more … to help workers buy these …, so … raised their … again
-prices began to … so … it became known as …
-Germany was in a bad economic position after the war
-the Gov gave out war pensions which accounted for 40% of Gov costs
-the German Gov ordered its workers in the Ruhr to go on strike and passively resist
—>these workers were still payed
-the Gov printed large amounts of money to pay these workers and to pay money owed
-this caused inflation as more people had more disposable income so shopkeepers put up prices
-the Gov printed even more money to help workers buy these products, so shops raised their prices again
-prices began to inflate so fast it became known as hyperinflation
Examples of hyperinflation in germany
-in 1918 a load of bread cost 0.6 marks
-by nov 1923 it cost 203 billion marks
Who were negatively affected by the hyperinflation
-people with savings, the money they saved would become worthless
-elderly people on fixed pensions could no longer afford necessities
-small businesses collapsed
