Munich Putsch and the lean years, 1923-29

Question 1

What year was the Munich Putsch?

Answer 1

1923

Question 2

What were the long term reasons for the Munich Putsch?

Answer 2

“stab in the back”, reparations and the loss of Germany’s colonies caused deep resentment of the Weimar Republic particularly by the Barvarian government, creating support for nationalist parties like the NSDAP

Question 3

What were the medium-term reasons for the Munich Putsch?

Answer 3

Hitler was heavily influenced by Mussolini’s right-wing party in Italy - the Fascists.

Mussolini, led his paramilitary forces, in a “march on Rome” in 1922 forcing the democratic government to accept him as leader

Question 4

What were the short term reasons for the Munich Putsch?

Answer 4

• During 1923, hyperinflation in Germany reached its peak.
  
  • Things that cost 100 marks in 1922 cost 200,000 billion marks by 1923 - Buying everyday items became almost impossible
  • People savings were useless
• French troops entered Ruhr and took over German business - when german workers resisted they were arrested, imprisoned, even deported

Question 5

What were the effects of the short term reasons for the Munich Putsch?

Answer 5

• German people were bitterly aggrieved by these events
• Weimar republic seemed weak and unable to solve people’s problems
• Hitler saw the opportunity to exploit those grievances and thought he had support

Question 6

What happened on the 8th November 1923?

Answer 6

Hitler with 600 SA soldiers entered a beer hall where the Bavarian government were meeting .

At gunpoint, Hitler forced government leaders to support him

Ernst Rohm took over local police and army headquarters

Ludendorff, behind Hitler’s back, let the government leaders go.

Question 7

What happened on the 9th November 1923?

Answer 7

Hitler gathered with 1000 SA and 2000 volunteer supporters and marched on Munich town centre to declare himself President of Germany

The group was met by state police

Someone opened fire and there was chaos. Lundendorff, Rohm and Streicher were arrested.

Question 8

What happened on the 11th November 1923

Answer 8

Hitler was found hiding at a friend’s house and was arrested

Question 9

What were the short term consequences of the Munich Putsch

Answer 9

Failure:

• Hitler and several other leaders were put on trial and Hitler was sentenced to 5 years in Landsberg Prison
• The NSDAP was banned

Question 10

What were the long term consequences of the Munich Putsch

Answer 10

Success:
- Hitler used his trial to gain national publicity for his views

• He was released after only 9 months
• Hitler realised that he needed to use democracy, which he hated, to win power
• The ban on the NSDAP was lifted in Feb 1925
• Hitler wrote Mein Kamf whilst in prison which became a bestseller when published - this outlined his political ideas and in particular his views on Jews

Question 11

What was the significance of Mein Kampf?

Answer 11

• it was the key source of information about the political beliefs of Hitler’s party
• made his extreme racist views clear

Question 12

What views were expressed in Mein Kampf?

Answer 12

• German race (Aryan race) was destined to rule the world
• there was a Jewish conspiracy to undermine Aryan rule
• Jews planned to weaken Aryan race by intermarriage and by taking over German industry and the moderate political groups like the SPD
• also expressed Nationalism, Socialism, totalitarianism and traditional German values

Question 13

How did Munich Putch change the Nazi party?

Answer 13

it made the Nazi party a much better organised political party

Question 14

How did the Nazi Party become more organised?

Answer 14

• Phillip Bouhler was appointed party secretary and Franz Schwarz was appointed party treasurer. They made sure that the Nazi party was well organised and well-financed
• The party was organised like a mini-state, with Hitler as the leader and departments for all aspects of government, such as finance, foreign affairs, industry, agriculture and education

Question 15

Who was appointed party secretary for the Nazi party?

who was appointed party treasurer?

Answer 15

Phillip Bouhler

Franz Schwarz

Question 16

In 1925, what two steps did Hitler take to tighten his control of his paramilitary forces?

Answer 16

• He replaced Rohm as leader of the SA (because the SA became loyal to Rohm)
• he set up a new party security group called the ss

Question 17

What was the SS

Answer 17

a smaller group than the SA with specially selected members so that they could be trusted to act as Hitler;’s bodyguards

Question 18

who was the SS led by?

Answer 18

firstly Julius Schreck

then Heinrich Himmer

Question 19

Describe the growth of the SS?

Answer 19

by 1930 had 3,000 members and were famous and feared for their menacing black uniforms which were introduced in 1932

Question 20

When and what was the Bamberg conference?

Answer 20

• 1926

- an organised conference to address splits between the socialist and nationalist wings of the Nazi movement

Question 21

What is the deal with the Nazi party activists based in Northern urban and industrial areas? (Bamburg conference)

Answer 21

• they emphasised the socialist views of the Nazi party

- they stressed benefits for workers and attacks on businessmen and landowners

Question 22

What is the deal with the Nazi party activists based in southern, more rural areas? (Bamburg conference)

Answer 22

• they emphasised nationalist part of the Nazi beliefs
• stressed a strong German state and action against Jews

Hitler supported this

Question 23

How did Hitler make his views clear in the Bamberg conference?

Answer 23

He spoke for 5 hours and made the socialist wing of the party more like communists - the enemy of the party

Question 24

What was the impact of the Bamberg conference?

Answer 24

• Hitler’s control of the party was clear
• Goebbels was promoted to Gauleiter of Berlin as a reward for switching to Hitler’s side during the Bamberg conference
• Even though Strasser pledged his loyalty to Hitler, Hitler never trusted him and Strasser was murdered in 1934 during a clear- our of Nazi leaders
• socialist principles of the Nazi party were weakened and Hitler had more freedom to adopt only policies he liked

Question 25

What were the reasons for limited support for the Nazi party?

Answer 25

1) Stresemann plans restored economic stability
2) Locarno pact, membership of League of nations and Kellog-Briand pact gave Germany more status in the world
3) 1925 - Paul von Hindenburg became President. He was an ex-field marshal of the German army, he was seen as a hero which increase support for the Weimar republic and decreased support for anyone who was against it - including the NSDAP.

Question 26

Why was their less public support for the Nazis 1923-29

• What percentage of the votes did the SPD win in May 1928 as a result of this?

Answer 26

• inflation eased (stresemann), employment increased; the public was better off without the Nazi party

As a result support for extremist parties were cut

SPD won 30% of the general election in May 1928

Question 27

How much of the general election did the SPD win in May 1928?

Answer 27

30%

Question 28

Due to Stresemann economic and foreign plans and Hindenburg becoming president the Nazi had little support.

Elaborate on this.

*mention the statics

Answer 28

• NSDAP won no support from German working classes in big cities
• 1928 General elections :
  *only won 12 seats
  * they were only the 7th biggest party in the
  Reichstag
  *only had 2.6% of the total votes