Part 1 : Germany and the growth of democracy Flashcards
when was germany unified as a nation?
1871
who was the ruler of germany when it was unified?
the leader of the most powerful state, prussia, became its new ruler or the Kaiser
what did the Kaiser do?
ruled over all the states of Germany
what did the Chancellor do in the parliamentary government?
advised the kaiser alongside ministers
what was the Bundesrat made of?
made up of representatives from each state
what was the Reichstag?
parliament elected by men over 25
what did the bundesrat and reichstag both do?
both debated and voted on laws drawn up by the Kaiser and ministers
what can the Kaiser do?
- he could ignore government advice and make his own decisions
- he made all military and foreign policy decisions
what were the Kaiser’s aims?
- keen to maintain a powerful army and build up a large navy
- wanted germany to be a global power and have an empire to rival britains
- idea was called ‘weltpolitik’ - world policy
how did the Kaiser spend his youth?
in the army
what was the Kaiser interested in?
military tactics and took great pride in leading the leading the army
what did the kaiser believe in as a result of being from prussia?
militarism
what is militarism
the belief that a country should have strong armed forces
what did germany begin to do in the late 1800s?
industrialise
industrialisation of germany
- supported by powerful german businessmen
- production of iron and coal doubled
what happened by 1913?
germany was producing as much coal as britain and more iron and steel
what happened by 1914?
- germany produced 2/3 of europe’s steel
- in industries such as electrical goods and chemicals, german companies dominated europe
- some leading factory and business owners had become very rich and influential
describe the growth of socialism in germany under the Kaiser.
- many workers were unhappy with low wages and poor working conditions
- workers joined trade unions and organised strikes hoping to force the government to improve pay and working conditions
- new political party called the SPD became popular amongst the workers
how many workers had joined trade unions by 1914?
over three million
what were the beliefs and aims of the SPD party?
- believed in socialism - power and wealth should be shared equally among the people
- hoped that the Kaiser might allow the Reichstag to make more social reforms or laws to improve workers’ rights and conditions
what did the SPD party disagree with?
with the power and privileged positions held by land and factory owners
how many germans voted for the SPD party in the early 20th century?
around one in three germans
what was an extreme view which some socialists employed?
they wanted to rebel against the kaiser’s rule, start a revolution and allow cities and towns to be governed by councils of workers
what were the navy laws?
- series of navy laws were introduced
- as a result a huge amount of money was spent to rapidly increase the size of the navy
- the army expanded in size too
when were the navy laws introduced?
between 1898 and 1912
why were the navy laws introduced?
the Kaiser wanted a large navy to help him take over more countries and protect those already in the German empire
how were the navy laws introduced?
- taxes were increased and money was borrowed to pay for this
- germany would remain in debt for a long time
when did the first world war begin?
- in august 1914
which countries went to war with which?
- germany and austria went to war against france, britain, russia, belgium and serbia
- more countries joined over the next four years
germany’s reaction to war in 1914
- the war was popular and patriotic germans thought it would end quickly
- soon the british navy stopped ships getting food into germany, leading to food and other shortages
germany’s reaction to war in 1915-16
- in germany, protesters demanded an end to the war
- demonstrations increased from 500 to 10,000 people
- war weariness increased
- on the front line, soldiers were worn down by bombs, gas and machine gun fire
how was germany doing in the war by 1918?
- germany was close to defeat
- a flu epidemic killed many already weak from a poor diet
what did general ludendorff state in october 1918?
- that germany could not win the war
- he advised the kaiser to make the country more democratic so the winning allies would treat germany more fairly
as a result of general ludendorff’s claims in october 1918, what did the Kaiser do?
- the Kaiser allowed the main political parties to form a new government and transferred some of his powers to the Reichstag
- but the german people were not satisfied and more demonstrations followed
mutiny on 28th october 1918
- the german navy in Kiel mutinied
- the mutiny spread
- soldiers sent to deal with the protest also joined the sailors and workers
- Kaiser realised he had lost control
- his army generals refused to support him
what happened on the 9th november 1918?
- the kaiser abdicated and secretly left germany, never to return
who took over after the Kaiser’s abdication?
- friedrich ebert, the leader of germany’s largest political party (the SPD) took over Germany temporarily
- he promised to hold elections and ended the war
what happened on the 11th november 1918?
germany surrendered and the first world war was over
what were the three impacts war had on germany by 1918?
- they were virtually bankrupt
- society divided further
- there was political instability
describe how war left germany virtually bankrupt.
- they owed vast sums of money that it had borrowed to pay for the war
- lent some of its own money to its allies
- factories were exhausted
- war pensions would cost the government a fortune
describe how war left germany with a divided society.
- some factory owners had made a fortune during the war, while workers had restrictions placed on their wages
- women worked in factories during the war
- some people thought this damaged traditional family values
describe how war left germany politically unstable.
- there was mutiny and revolution all over germany
- many ex-soliders and civilians felt that politicians had betrayed germany by ending the war
what did temporary leader, friedrich ebert, declare?
he declared that germany would be a democratic republic and arranged for elections for a new parliament to take place in january
who were the spartacists?
a group of communists in germany
what did the spartacists want?
they wanted germany to be run by small councils of soldiers and workers
how did the spartacist uprising begin?
on the 6th of january 1919, the spartacists seized power in berlin
how did ebert end the spartacist uprising?
- he sent in a group of 2000 tough ex-soldiers, the free corps to attack the spartacists
- after three days of brutal street fighting, the free corps recaptured buildings and arrested and later killed the spartacist leaders
what happened when ebert held elections as promised?
his own party, the SPD won the most votes and ebert became the new german president
how was the weimar constitution formed?
poltiticians were meeting away from the violence in berlin in another german town called weimar and therefore created the weimar constitution
what was the weimar constitution?
- a formal set of rules for how germany would be governed
- from this time until the nazi takeover, germany was known as the weimar republic
what did all germans have in weimar’s new constitution?
equal rights, including the right to vote
weaknesses of the weimar constitution
- proportional representation
- many groups longed for “the good old days” when the Kaiser ruled Germany
- linked to the november criminals
what did proportional representation mean?
- that lots of different political parties were able to win some seats in the reichstag but it was difficult for one party to get a majority
- the leading party had to deal with smaller groups in order to get anything done which made law-making a very slow process
what did many groups think about the weimar constitution?
they didn’t like this new democratic system of governing at all - some older army generals, judges, upper-class families, rich factory owners and university professors longed for the ‘good old days’ when the Kaiser ruled germany
who was this new system of government linked to which made it less desirable?
the new system of government and the politicians who created it were linked to germany’s defeat at the end of the first world war - the november criminals
which article did the weimar constitution contain which was a weakness?
- article 48
- meant that laws could be passed without the reichstag by order of the president
what were the main political parties in early weimar germany?
- communist party
- social democratic party
- german democratic party
- centre party
- people’s party
- national people’s party
- national socialist german workers’ party
supporters of the communist party
vast majority were working class
supporters of the social democratic party
mostly working class
supporters of the german democratic party
middle class for example, lawyers and writers
supporters of the centre party
catholics from all class classes
supporters of the people’s party
middle class, mainly businessmen
supporters of the national people’s party
middle and upper classes and some ex-soldiers
supporters of the national socialist german workers’ party
- unemployed
- many ex-soldiers
- some support from middle and upper classes who feared communists
how did the germans react to the treaty of versailles?
they hated the treaty
what were the three main reasons the germans hated the treaty of versailles?
- they felt it was too harsh and that the treaty had taken away large area of land which meant losing people, factories, farms and mines
- they had to pay a large amount of money to the winners as well and many germans felt humiliated
- they were ordered to sign the treaty of versailles without discussion (‘diktat’)
- many germans felt that they had not really lost the war at all and that germany’s politicans had betrayed germany by asking for a ceasefire at the kaiser’s abdication
which groups of people thought that germany should have kept fighting?
- some germans including soldiers
- field marshall hindeburg said at the time: ‘the german army was stabbed in the back. no blame is to be attached to the army. it is perfectly clear on whom the blame rests’
in 1921, what was the figure for reparations set at?
- 132 billion gold marks or £6.6 billion
- to be payed in yearly installments for the next 66 years
when did germany pay their first set of reparations?
- later that year (1921) the german government scraped together their first instalment of two billion gold marks and handed it over to france and belgium
- most of it was in goods like coal, iron and wood
what happened when the next instalment of reparations was due?
- 1922
- the germans announced that they could not afford to pay
- the french and belgians didn’t believe them and decided to take what they were owed by force
what happened in jan 1923?
- 60,000 french and belgian soldiers marched into the ruhr
- they took control of every factory, mine and railway in the region
- they also took food and goods from shops and arrested any germans who stood up to them
what was the ruhr?
a rich, industrial area of germany
what did the german government order its workers in the ruhr to do when the french and belgian troops invaded?
- they ordered its workers in the ruhr to go on strike and not help the french and belgian soldiers remove goods from the country
- known as passive resistance
- the german government continued paying the workers on strike
how did the german government manage to pay the striking workers?
- they printed large amounts of money to pay the striking workers and to pay the money they owed france and belgium
- caused lots of problems
- as workers spent money in shops, shopkeepers began to put up their prices
what did the german government do to help workers buy products?
they printed even more money, therefore shops raised their prices again
what is hyperinflation?
soon prices were inflating so fast it became known as hyperinflation
what was the price of a loaf of bread in september of 1923
1.5 million marks
what was the price of a loaf of bread in november of 1923?
201 billion marks
who did many germans blame for the hyperinflation crisis?
their government because it was their decision to call a strike int he ruhr and then to print so much money
how bad was the hyperinflation situation for most germans?
- for most germans, 1923 was their worst year since the end of the first world war
who lost money due to the hyperinflation crisis
- people with bank savings as some people had saved their who life to get them 1000 marks in the bank, which by 1923, wouldn’t even buy them a loaf of bread
- elderly people who lived on fixed pensions found that their income would no longer buy them what they needed
- small businesses
what happened to many small businesses?
they collapsed as normal trade became impossible because of the daily price changes
who became winners due to the hyperinflation crisis?
people who borrowed money as they found it very easy to pay off their debts
what were four murder, riots and rebellions between 1919 and 1923?
- the kapp putsch
- red rising in the ruhr
- the munich putsch
- assassinations
when was the kapp putsch and what happened?
- in march 1920, right-wing politician and journalist wolfgang kapp gathered around 5000 men (free corps), mainly police and ex-soldiers and took over the capital berlin
why dd the kapp putsch happen?
he wanted to take over the whole country and recover the land lost in the treaty of versailles
what happened during the kapp putsch?
- president ebert and the government fled berlin
- however, kapp didn’t have the workers’ support and they went on strike, resulting in no gas, water, electricity or trains
what was the result of the kapp putsch?
after only 100 hours as germany’s leader, kapp fled abroad and government returned to berlin
when did assassinations occur?
between 1919 and 1922, there were over 350 political murders in germany, mostly carried out by right-wing extremists
why did assassinations occur?
they wanted to eliminate those who were responsible for the treaty of versailles
name and describe some assassinations which occured?
- in august 1921 matthias erzberger, the man who signed the armistice in 1918 was shot dead by a right-wing group
- in 1922 they also killed foreign minister walter rathenau and threw acid on philipp scheidemann, an important weimar politician
what and when was the red rising in the ruhr?
- march 1920
- after the kapp putsch, left wing workers in the industrial ruhr stayed on strike
what happened during the red rising in the ruhr?
they took over several towns in what is known as the red rising
what was the result of the red rising of the ruhr?
the government sent soldiers and some free corps units to deal with the rebellion and over 1000 workers were killed
what and when was the munich putsch?
- nov 1923
- hitler and the nazis tried to seize control of the bavarian government in southern germany
why did the munich putsch happen?
hitler promised to overturn the treaty of versailles, destroy communism and restore germany’s national glory
how did the munich putsch happen?
- he planned to capture munich and march on berlin
- key bavarian politicians at a munich beer hall refused to support his plan to march on berlin
- hitler pressed on with his plans nevertheless
what happened during the munich putsch?
as hitler and 2000 supporters marched through munich, they were met by armed police and three policemen and 16 nazis died in a short gun battle
what was the result of the munich putsch?
hitler and ludendorff (a former WW1 general who was now a Nazi supporter) was arrested
what were the reasons for all this mutiny and revolt between 1919 and 1923?
- germany had suffered during the war and millions of ordinary germans were poor and hungry
- many germans believed they could have won the war and the weimar politicians (‘november criminals’) were criticised for agreeing to the armistice and accepting harsh punishments in the treaty of versailles
- the weimar government was seen as ineffective and unable to deal with germany’s problems
what were the years 1924-29 called in germany?
the stresemann era
what was the stresemann era?
germany began to recover from some of its problems and most historians put germany’s recovery down to the hard work of one man - gustav stresemann
who was gustav stresemann?
he is best known as Germany’s foreign minister from 1924 until his death in 1929
what were the 4 main problems that gustav stresemann faced?
- the hyperinflation crisis
- french and belgian troops in the ruhr
- economic recovery
- foreign policy
how did stresemann solve the problem of the hyperinflation crisis of 1923?
- he stopped the printing of bank notes and replaced the worthless notes with a temporary new currency called the rentenmark
- in 1924 - replaced by the reichsmark a stable currency which remained for the next 25 years
- hyperinflation ended
although hyperinflation ended under stresemann….
people who lost their savings never got their money back and blamed stresemann
how did stresemann solve the problem of the french and belgian troops in the ruhr?
- he arranged for the USA to lend money to Germany
- Germany then restarted its reparation payments - called the Dawes plan and so the french and belgian troops left the ruhr
- in 1929, through the young plan, stresemann negotiated a reduction in the total payment
although stresemann found ways to ease the impact of reparations on germany…
some germans felt that stresemann should have demanded a complete end to reparations
how much money did the dawes plan lend germany?
800 million gold marks
how did stresemann induce economic recovery?
- as well as using some of the borrowed money to pay reparations, stresemann also used it to build new factories, houses, schools and roads
- meant more jobs and germans earning more money
- urged germany to become more prosperous
despite economic recovery…
some, even stresemann himself, feared that germany relied too much on american loans
how did stresemann improve g’s relationships with other nations?
- 1925 - germany signed the locarno pact with britain, france, belgium and italy
- 1926 - germany joined the league of nations which was an international peacekeeping organisation which germany had been banned from when it was set up in 1919
- 1928 - signing of the kellogg-briand pact
locarno pact
- 1925
- with belgium, france and italy
- they promised never to invade each other
kellogg-briand pact
- 1928
- participating countries agreed to never go to war unless in defence
despite the improvement of international relations…
some germans criticised stresemann for not demanding back some of the land taken by the treaty of versailles
underlying problems despite the recovery under stresemann
- many political parties - they disagreed and wasted time arguing over decisions
- extreme political parties like the nazis and the communists did not support the weimar system
- large groups of germans were still poor like farmers and middle classes who lost their savings due to 1923’s hyperinflation crisis
- german prosperity was built on american loans - what if they wanted their money back
what were the 1920’s called in weimar germany?
the golden age
what were the 1920’s a golden age for?
for german artists, writers, poets and performers who became known for their creatvity and innovation
cinema in the 1920’s
- became v popular
- ‘metropolis’ directed by fritz lang was the most technologically advanced film of the decade
- marlene dietrich became a global star playing glamorous, strong-willed women
nightlife in the 1920’s
- germany became a centre for new plays, operas and shows
- musicians played vulgar songs about politicians that would have been banned under the Kaiser
- berlin was famous for its nightclubs with live bands which played american jazz
literature in the 1920’s
- people had 120 newspapers and magazines to choose from
- german anti-war - ‘all quiet on the western front’ by erich remarque became a bestseller
art and design in the 1920s
- avant-garde artists such as otto dix and george grosz believed art should show the reality of everyday life and in particular the differences between social classes
- in design and architecture a new group of desginers known as the Bauhaus believed in modern, practical designs
did everyone like the changes of weimar germany?
- while some embraced the changes, others hated them
- they wanted culture to celebrate traditional german values
- they thought new nightclubs shows and painting were leading germany into a moral decline
