Keywords: Germany Flashcards
Mittelstand
Lower-middle class
Social mobility
The ability of individuals to move upwards or downwards in status/class
Real wages
Income received after any price changes are taken into account; indicates a person’s standard of living
Franchise
The right to vote in public elections
Avant-garde
Those who create or support the newest ideas and techniques, especially in art, music, literature, drama, and architecture
Pulp fiction
Popular fiction often not well written
War credits
Financial bills passed by the Reichstag. The German government funded the war with these
Burgfriede
A state of truce
Siegfriede
“The blessed peace of victory”
Revolutionary Shop Stewards
Working class activists who tried to organise mass action in the factories to end the war
Fourteen Points
These were US President Woodrow Wilson’s main war aims; Wilson hoped to prevent future wars by establishing a League of Nations
Treasury Bill
Provincial banks purchased short term treasury bills from the Reich central bank, which could be redeemed at higher value; lent to the government to support the war effort
Black market
Illegal trade in rationed or scarce commodities
Soviets
Councils of workers, peasants and soldiers, similar to councils, made in Russia in 1917 when it became Communist
Mutiny
Refusal by armed forces to obey orders
Junkers
Land owning nobility in Prussia. Most were deeply Conservative
Bundestag
Old name for the Bundesrat between 1815 and 1866
Realpolitik
Ruthless and cynical policies of politicians who are willing to use whatever means are available to achieve their aims
Reichsbank
A national German bank established in 1876
Septennates
The arrangement where by military spending was agreed in the Reichstag for seven years
Indirect Taxation
Taxation placed on the sale of goods rather than collected directly from the taxpayer
Kulturkampf
Struggle for culture. Stood for an attack on Catholics in Germany (1871-1878) and its political influence through the Zentrum party
Jesuits
Members of the society of Jesus, a Catholic religious order pledged to the spread of Catholicism and strong supporters of papal authority
Diocese
A unit of church administration that was part of an ecclesiastical area headed by a bishop or archbishop
Reichsfeinde
Bismarck labelled groups that he saw as a threat to the German Empire or ‘Enemies of the Reich’
Tariffs
Protect a nation’s own industries and/or farming from cheap foreign competition
Free Trade
Allows people to purchase goods cheaply but it can endanger a country’s industrial and agricultural production
Zollvereinwith of
A free trade union established by Prussia in 1834. By 1844 it included most German states except Austria. All member states had a common system of tariffs and abolished all internal customs barriers. 1834: covered 18 states with 23mil people
Press Law
Late 1870s. Allowed prosecution of editors who published materials he didn’t approve of. This undermined the Liberal principle of freedom of press and showed that Bismarck wasn’t working with National Liberals anymore
Tariff Act
July 1879. Imposed duties on imports and introduced protective import duties in Germany. Led to the splintering of the National Liberals. Tariffs protected German jobs, brought the north and south together, and accelerated the growth of a large internal market
Trade Unions
An organised association of workers that protects and furthers their rights and interests
Nationalisation
Government ownership
State Socialism
Providing for worker’s welfare through state-run insurance schemes
Divine Right of Kings
The belief that a monarch rules by the authority of God rather than by the consent of the people
Marxist Programme
A plan that supported the ideas of Karl Marx. Leaders of the proletariat must work to overthrow the capitalist system by violent revolution
Minimum Programme
Plans of moderate socialists who were opposed to violent revolution. They wanted to bring about government ownership of banks, coal mines, and industry, and called for social equality
Lobby Groups
These were people often belonging to organisations who campaigned to persuade politicians to pass legislation favouring particular interests
The Elites
The officer class, Junker landowners, industrial and business leaders, senior civil servants and judges
Weltpolitik
“World policy”. Described Wilhelm’s world power ambitions
Absolute Monarch
A king or emperor who has virtually absolute or total power and his will and decisions alone make the law
Intentionalist Argument
The Kaiser had complete power over Germany and wasn’t influenced by other groups
Structuralist Argument
The Kaiser was not completely powerful; groups such as the army and the elites influenced and controlled his decisions and rule
Sammlungspolitik
‘Bringing together politics’, which aimed to unite political parties and other political groups in support of the state
‘Reactionaries’
Conservatives
‘Progressives’
Liberals
Hottentot
One of the native rebel tribes in South West Africa
National Debt
Money that has been borrowed by a government and will therefore eventually need to be paid back, with interest
Inheritance Tax
A tax on the value of land and possessions received after a person’s death
Parliamentary Democracy
A form of government where voters elect the parliament, which then forms the government. The party with most votes picks the leader of the government who becomes beholden both to the people and parliament
Gross National (Domestic) Product
The total value of all goods and services produced within a country
Cartels
An association of manufacturers who come to a contractual agreement
Monopoly
A situation when a particular firm has total control over something, e.g. a firm has total control over the production of a particular product
Plebiscite
A vote on a single issue on which the whole electorate is asked a yes/no Q; an old fashioned term for a referendum
Diktat
A dedicated settlement allowing for no negotiations
Self-determination
The right of people to decide their own form of government
Volkisch Groups
Roots in the Kaiserreich. Members were nationalist, racist, and anti-Semitic. Demanded strong, authoritarian government
Reichswehr
The name for the German army after 1919
The 25 Point Programme
The NSDAP party programme announced by Hitler on 24 Feb 1920 to an audience of 20,000 in the function room of the Hofbrauhaus. Munich’s most famous and prestigious beer hall
