Kaiser Wilhelm II and the difficulties of ruling Germany

Question 1

who was kaiser wilhelm II?

Answer 1

a militaristic man who wanted germany to have its ‘place in the sun’

Question 2

what year does kaiser wilhelm take over the rule of germany?

Answer 2

1888

Question 3

define ‘weltpolitik’

Answer 3

‘world policy’

Question 4

what does the kaiser do to put ‘weltpolitik’ into play for germany?

Answer 4

he introduces a series of naval laws between 1898 and 1912 that sees a significant increase in the german navy

Question 5

why did the naval laws cause problems?

Answer 5

• even though the navy increased, so did the amount of money germany had to spend on maintaining its size
• to pay for this, taxes increased and money was borrowed, inevitable leaving germany in debt for a long time

Question 6

how did the kaiser contribute to industrialisation within germany?

Answer 6

1880: germany produce 12% of the world’s goods; britain produce 23%

1913: germany produce 18% of the world’s goods, britain only produce 15%

Question 7

why were workers unhappy under kaiser wilhelm?

Answer 7

• industrialisation increasing the production of goods in germany had given them more work
• their wages remained low despite the additional workload they had been given

Question 8

how did workers pose problems for kaiser wilhelm and his reign?

Answer 8

they turned to joining trade unions, organising strikes in the hope that it might force the kaiser and his government in the reichstag to improve the poor working conditions.

Question 9

what happened in 1915?

Answer 9

500 women gathered in front of the reichstag and said they wanted their men back from the trenches

Question 10

what happened in 1916?

Answer 10

10,000 workers assembled in berlin to shout down with war, down with the government

Question 11

after which event did the kaiser make the decision to abdicate?

Answer 11

the kiel uprising of 1918

Question 12

explain what the kiel uprising was (5)

Answer 12

• 28th october 1918, the german army was ordered out to sea from kiel to attack britain/british ships
• sailors on the ship refused to follow orders because they didn’t want to fight and in ports nearby, other soldiers refused
• soldiers joined the sailors and workers, taking over towns there and setting up special councils
• in six days, workers and soldiers councils were governing cities all over germany
• kaiser wilhelm lost control and his army generals refused to support him

Question 13

what date does the kaiser abdicate on?

Answer 13

9th November 1918