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Option 1G: Germany and West Germany, 1918-89 > Political and Governmental Change, 1918-89 > Flashcards

Political and Governmental Change, 1918-89 Flashcards

1
Q

What were politics and the government like prior to 1918?

WEIMAR

A
  • 1871: Prussia defeats France and unifies Germany
  • parties had made a truce to support Kaiser Wilhelm II and his military high command but Kaiser was not capable war strategist
    •Hindenburg and Ludendorff began to run Germany as a military dictatorship
    •Reichstag still met but the high command ignored it
    •Prince Max of Baden led new government
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2
Q

German Empire pre 1918

WEIMAR

A
  • Believed in divine right of Kings
  • Territories cut by rivers
  • Bavaria strongly Catholic and kept its own Monarch
  • Austria used to rule over G., was expelled
  • Anti-Semitism started to rise
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3
Q

German Economy pre 1918

WEIMAR

A
  • Unification grew economy
  • Junkers were rich, influential (nobility and aristocracy)
  • Right wing, monarchal
  • Strong banking and agriculture
  • Industrialisation increases
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4
Q

German Society pre 1918

WEIMAR

A
  • Different class divisions

- Unification brought cultural tension

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5
Q

What was Germany like pre-1918?

WEIMAR

A
  • German Empire formed from unification of 25 states
  • 2/3 of population were Prussian, Prussian King became Kaiser Wilhelm I of Germany
  • Kaiser controlled foreign policy and armed forces
  • Kaiser Wilhelm II wanted to be in total control of country, dismissive of Reichstag
  • All men over age of 25 were able to vote for the Reichstag
  • Reichstag had limited power as Kaiser able to appoint/dismiss ministers
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6
Q

German Empire to Weimar Republic

WEIMAR

A
  • Not truly unified as Prussia was dominant in German nation
  • Became problem for Weimar politicians as Prussian Elites didn’t want to give up power
  • Weimar more republic, tried to bring Germany together
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7
Q

Revolution from Above

WEIMAR

A
  • 29 September- 3 October 1918
  • USA launch war against Germany in 1917
  • Causes General Ludendorff to propose change in gov.
  • Suggests constitutional monarchy which keeps a monarchy while having gov.
  • government that kaiser and military high command introduced in Germany in 1917 to stop a revolution
  • Soothes political atmosphere, wants to pass blame for war
  • New Government led by Prince Max
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8
Q

Revolution from Below

WEIMAR

A
  • 31 October- 8 November 1918
  • Anxieties amongst sailors that there would be a suicide attack on British fleet to restore German honour
  • Caused worker’s councils and soldiers to set off strikes and mutinies
  • More revolutionary action needed
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9
Q

Declaration of a Republic

WEIMAR

A
  • 9th November 1918
  • Kaiser abdicates and flees to Holland
  • Prince Max resigns lasting > a month
  • Ebert (SPD) becomes Chancellor
  • Coalition between SPD and USPD
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10
Q

Revolution limited

WEIMAR

A
  • 10 November- January 1919
  • Ebert was anti Communist
  • Determined to prevent German revolution becoming Civil War
  • Ebert Groener Pact 1918: gain armys support in early elections
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11
Q

What was the Treaty of Versailles? When was it signed?

WEIMAR

A

Officially ended the war between Germany and allies who had fought against Germany.

28th June 1919

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12
Q

What were the main terms of the Treaty of Versailles?

WEIMAR

A
  • Germany lost land in Europe and all of its colonies .
  • Land in Europe lost was all the land gained in the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, Upper Silesia, Alsace and Lorraine and Eupen and Malmedy
    •forbidden to unite with Austria
    •Rhineland demilitarised as a ‘buffer zone’ for France
    •army limited to 100,000 troops
    •no heavy tanks or artillery
    •no warships over 10,000 tonnnes
    •no submarines
    •no air force
    •reparations- 1921 it was fixed at 132,000 million gold marks
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13
Q

Treaty of Versailles Analysis

WEIMAR

A
  • NEGATIVE
  • Loss of land and army angered and humiliated Germans, lost source of national pride
  • Article 231 angered Germans as they felt they hadnt caused the war, called a DIKTAT
  • Reparations worsened economy that was alr broken after WW1, many homeless and hungry
  • LoN, called it a winners club, angry they couldnt join
  • Led to votes for more extremist parties, rise of Hitler, distrust in Weimar
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14
Q

What was armistice called for? Who by?

WEIMAR

A
  • 3rd October 1918

- Prince Max asked the allies for armistice

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15
Q

What constitutional reforms did Prince Max’s government make?

WEIMAR

A
  • extended vote to all men
  • Led to more democratic Weimar
  • Both ministers and army were responsible to government, not Kaiser
  • Reduced authority of Kaiser
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16
Q

What did the Spartacists want after the first world war?

WEIMAR

A

A revolution like that in Russia.

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17
Q

What led to the Kaisers abdication?

WEIMAR

A
  • Prince Max told Kaiser to abdicate but he refused
  • 8th November 1918: Bavaria broke from Germany, declaring itself a republic.
  • Kaiser saw breaking empire, abdicated and fled to Holland.
  • Prince Max’s government resigned
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18
Q

When was the Council of People’s Representatives set up? Who by?

WEIMAR

A
  • 10th November 1918
  • Led by the socialist groups in Reichstag eg. SPD led by Ebert and USPD led by Haase.
  • Ebert became chancellor with a cabinet of SPD and USPD members.
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19
Q

What was the Ebert-Groener pact?

WEIMAR

A
  • army would support government if government opposed more left-wing ideas of parties in the Reichstag.
  • Led to increase in right wing, tolerance of right revolution and stamp out of left
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20
Q

Who signed the Armistice and when?

WEIMAR

A
  • 11th November 1918

- Matthias Erzberger of the German delegation signed the armistice on behalf of the government.

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21
Q

What did the government do immediately after the armistice was signed in order to improve the unsettled political and economic situation?

WEIMAR

A
  • Set an eight hour working day
  • (less than previous 10-16 hours, allowed more people to be employed)
  • Allowed independent trade unions
  • (Workers could have more rights, more democratic)
  • Set up help for ex-soldiers to find work
  • (Reduce unemployment)
  • Widened health and unemployment benefit
  • More beneficial to lower/mid class
  • POSITIVE
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22
Q

Who were the Freikorps?

WEIMAR

A
  • Private army made up of ex-soldiers, unemployed youths.
  • Led by ex-officers and military
  • First formed in December 1918 after ww1 defeat
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23
Q

When and what was the Spartacist uprising?

WEIMAR

A
  • January 1919, Berlin
  • 50,000 workers on strike in Berlin.
  • Taken over by the Spartacist leadership.
  • Newspaper and communication buildings seized
  • Demonstrators armed themselves.
  • Ebert moved the government to Weimar (town) for safety
  • Freikorps brutally dealt with Spartacist leaders
  • Leaders Karl Liebnecht and Rosa Luxemburg were captured and murdered and the rising collapsed.
  • Over 100 killed
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24
Q

Spartacist Uprising Analysis

WEIMAR

A
  • Led to reduced left wing uprisings
  • Showed Hitler that gov responded harsher to left wing than right wing
  • NEGATIVE
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25
Q

How many voted in the first election of the Weimar government? What was the result?

WEIMAR

A
  • 82.7% of electors
  • ( high voter turnout shows people were interested in democracy and welfare of Weimar)
  • SPD won with coalition with Centre Party and DDP
  • Other parties had seats in the Reichstag but were not part of the government.
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26
Q

What was the German National People’s Party (DNVP)?

WEIMAR

A
  • created from older conservative parties •conservative, nationalist and monarchist
  • did not want social reform
  • disliked idea of a republic
  • supported army
  • members were largely wealthy landowners, many were anti-semitic
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27
Q

What was the German People’s Party (DVP)? Who was their leader?

WEIMAR

A
  • moderately conservative
  • new party restructured from the older National Liberals in 1919
  • Gustav Stresemann was leader
  • accepted, without truly supporting the republic
  • members were mostly wealthy industrial middle class
  • not in favour of social reform
  • wanted the economy to be fixed quickly so as business could go on
  • nationalist
  • supported the army
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28
Q

What was the Centre Party?

WEIMAR

A
  • largely Catholic and included defending the Church in its policies
  • drew in people from many social groups
  • conservative values but advocated for social reform
  • firmly against left-wing policies and fanatically opposed to communism
  • election posters showed the horrors that communism would bring and urged voters to vote against communism
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29
Q

Who were the German Democrats (DDP)?

WEIMAR

A
  • newly formed party
  • liberal, educated professionals
  • supported the idea of the republic and a more representative constitution
  • often part of the government coalition
  • members believed in social reform including regulating industry to give workers a better deal and reforming the army
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30
Q

Who were the Social Democrats (SPD)?

WEIMAR

A
  • largest party in the Reichstag from 1919 to 1929
  • long-established party
  • was not anti-monarchist before the war but in 1917 split and shifted to a republican stance to keep its members who increasingly favoured a republic
  • head of new post-war government
  • believed in the republic and moderate social reform
  • immediately after the war it attracted many workers groups
  • also had a liberal, middle-class following of people who wanted moderate reform
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31
Q

Who were the Independent Social Democrats (USPD)?

WEIMAR

A
  • split from the SPD in 1917
  • wanted more radical system than the republic
  • Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebnecht were members of USPD before forming the spartacists
  • stood for social reform and creating a moral equal society
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32
Q

What was the German Communist Party (KPD)?

WEIMAR

A
  • set up in 1919
  • wanted a workers’ revolution and establishment of communist state with abolition of private ownership
  • attracted the young, poor and unemployed- the promise of a future that was far better than any of the other parties had to offer
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33
Q

What were the results of the January 1919 elections? How did this change in the June 1920 elections?

WEIMAR

A
  • SPD 1919: most votes with 165 seats, 37.9% of votes
  • SPD 1920: 102 seats, 21.6% of vote
  • DNVP, DVP, USPD and KPD all increased their percentage of the votes
  • Centre, DDP, SPD all decreased their percentage

More extreme viewed parties began to gain a larger percentage of the vote in 1920.
Shows people not happy with Weimar gov

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34
Q

Who was the first President of the Republic?

WEIMAR

A

11th February 1919

Ebert was elected first president of the Republic by 277 votes to 51.

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35
Q

When was the Weimar constitution passed by the National Assembly?

WEIMAR

A

31st July 1919

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36
Q

What was the Chancellors role?

WEIMAR

A
  • head of government
  • chosen by the president
  • advises the president and the Reichstag
  • chooses the ministers that run the country
  • with his ministers, puts laws to the Reichstag
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37
Q

What was the Presidents role?

WEIMAR

A
  • head of state
  • runs foreign affairs
  • advises the Reichstag
  • elected every 7 years
  • chosen as a person, not party representative
  • chooses chancellor
  • in an emergency can suspend constitution and pass laws but these laws must be signed by the chancellor (article 48)
  • can take control of the army in an emergency
  • can dismiss the Reichstag and call for new elections
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38
Q

What was the Cabinets role?

WEIMAR

A
  • chosen from the ministers who give advice and administer the laws
  • chosen by the chancellor
  • advises the Reichstag
  • formulates laws to the Reichstag
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39
Q

What was Bill of Rights?

A
  • Freedom of speech, association and religion
  • Right to work, gov. ensures everyone has job and provides financial assistance
  • Workers had special protection
  • Universal suffrage over 20
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40
Q

What was the Reichstag’s role?

WEIMAR

A

•elected by secret ballot every 4 years
•votes for party, not a person
- parties get 1 seat for every 60,000 votes
•votes sorted by proportional representation
•passes laws of country

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41
Q

What was the role of the Reichsrat?

WEIMAR

A
  • members sent by 18 Lander
  • could veto a law passed by the Reichstag, UNLESS Reichstag has two-thirds majority
  • advises the LanderWhat was the role of the Lander (local government)?

WEIMAR

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42
Q

What was the role of the Lander (local government)?

WEIMAR

A

•18 local regions, each of which had a parliament to decide issues in the region
- power is centralised
•run their own education, police, judiciary
•federal laws override the law of the Land
•Prussia no longer has special status
•chosen by Reichsrat

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43
Q

Who were the electors?

WEIMAR

A

All men and women over 20

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44
Q

Problems with the Weimar constitution: Proportional Representation Negatives

WEIMAR

A
  • 29 political parties in Reichstag 1920s
  • Only 60,000 votes to get a seat in gov.
  • Members moved parties and some parties disbanded
  • People voted for party rather than a person
  • party representative chosen from electoral list, if member died or resigned the next person on the list took their place
  • almost impossible for any party to have a majority- all Weimar chancellors had to form governments from coalitions of parties
  • 1919-23: 9 different coalitions which led to parties arguing
  • Chancellor had to ask the president to rule by Article 48 when coalitions often broke down
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45
Q

Challenges to Weimar constitution: Proportional Representation Positives

WEIMAR

A
  • 1924-29, Gustav Streseman created Grand Coalition between SPD, German Democrats, Centre Party and DDP
  • Encouraged parties to work together
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46
Q

Challenges to Weimar Constitution: Article 48 Negatives

WEIMAR

A
  • Constantly used by President Ebert 1919-23 (Crisis Years), making government look weak
  • Used 136 times
  • Undermines democracy
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47
Q

Challenges to the Weimar Constitution: Article 48 positives

WEIMAR

A
  • Ebert saved Weimar from several crises, eg. 1920 Ruhr Uprising
  • Hindenburg uses it to appoint SPD Chancellor Herman Muller
  • This leads to Conservatives and Socialists working together
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48
Q

Challenges to the Weimar Constitution: Treaty of Versailles Negatives

WEIMAR

A
  • Article 231 War Guilt: Diktat, Germans angered and humiliated, they felt they didnt start the war
  • Harsh conditions on Germany
  • £6.6 bil reparations put Weimar in economic crisis
  • Army limited to 100,000 soldiers; army was pride of Germans
  • Strengthened ‘stab in the back’ myth
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49
Q

Challenges to the Weimar Constitution: Gustav Streseman Positives

WEIMAR

A
  • 1926: Puts Germany into LoN
  • Locarno Pact and Kellog Briand Pact
  • Treaty of Berlin w/ USSR
  • Boosts Germany’s international prestige, Weimar look politically stable
  • 1923: Creates new currency Rentenmark
  • Rentenmark has value bcs it’s price is tied to gold
  • 1924: Dawes Plan organises loans from USA to Germany to help pay reparations
  • 1929: Young Plan reduces German reparations and extends time by 59 years
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50
Q

Challenges to the Weimar Constitution: Gustav Streseman Negatives

WEIMAR

A
  • All his reforms depended on American money.

- If that stopped, Germany would return to crisis

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51
Q

Challenges to the Weimar Constitution: Private Armies Negatives

WEIMAR

A
  • End of WW1: many trained soldiers hired by Weimar political parties
  • Leads to political violence and polarisation
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52
Q

Challenges to the Weimar Constitution: President Ebert Positives

WEIMAR

A
  • Ebert-Groener Pact 1919: Compromise with German army
  • Uses Army eg. Friekorps + Spartacist Uprising
  • Saves government with Article 48
  • Prepared to work with conservatives/ ex-soldiers in civil service
  • Does everything he can to uphold Weimar Republic
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53
Q

Challenges to the Weimar Constitution: Stab in the Back Myth Negatives

WEIMAR

A
  • Undermines new German Democracy
  • “WW1 was lost by betrayal of socialists, communists, jews and politicians who were pursuing an anti-war policy in Germany”
  • 1922: Jewish Politician Walter Rathenau (involved in signing of ToV) was assassinated
  • 30% votes were against Weimar
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54
Q

Challenges to the Weimar Constitution: President Hindenburg Negatives

WEIMAR

A
  • Profoundly conservative and unsympathetic to democracy
  • Believed it gave power to uneducated, poor people
  • Thought it was weak and indecisive
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55
Q

Challenges to the Weimar Constitution: President Hindenburg Positives

WEIMAR

A

Challenges to the Weimar Constitution: President Hindenburg Positives

WEIMAR

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56
Q

Challenges to the Weimar Constitution: Leninism Negatives

WEIMAR

A
  • Leninism which encourages a workers revolution (proletariat)
  • Leads to Communists in Germany wanting to do the same eg. Spartacist Uprising, Kiel Mutiny
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57
Q

Challenges to the Weimar Constitution: Leninism positives

WEIMAR

A
  • Right wing Germans would rather have Weimar Republic than Communism
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58
Q

Challenges to the Weimar Constitution: Coalition Negatives

WEIMAR

A
  • Party Confusion: 29 Political Parties
  • Division between Liberals and Sociaists
  • Socialist Parties were banned
  • Conservative Nationalists did not trust Socialists
  • Many party members switching between parties
  • KPD and USPD split as KPD wanted to overthrow gov.
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59
Q

Challenges to the Weimar Constitution: Coalition positives

WEIMAR

A
  • SPD, DDP, Centre Party all support Weimar and are very responsive to German people
  • Share same liberal beliefs
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60
Q

Between what years did the German economy recover and did Germany attempt to restore its position abroad?

WEIMAR

A

1924-29

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61
Q

How did Stresemann help Germany overcome its political challenges?

WEIMAR

A
  • Spoke against ‘trust no one, betray everyone’ attitude between parties
  • (helped party co-operation and stabilised government)
  • Thought Germany needed Great Coalition
  • Supported economic recovery and peaceful international relations improved stability of Germany’s political system
  • Chancellor during 1923, foreign minister until 1929
  • Held Coalition of the DVP, Centre Party, SPD and DDP by forming working relations based on trust between leaders despite opposition from smaller extremist parties
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62
Q

What shows that the Weimar had improved from 1924-1929?

WEIMAR

A
  • No political figures were assassinated
  • Government had been in power long enough so people accepted it was now the political system in Germany
  • Support for extremist parties reduced May-December 1924 but Communists and Nazis began to regain by 1928
  • Coalition governments changed less often; 1924-1929 there were just six different coalitions
  • But no constitutional weaknesses had been solved
  • Stresemann died in 1929
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63
Q

What affected the collapse of democracy between 1930-33?

WEIMAR

A
  • Public feeling about the Weimar government
  • Government’s failure to deal with Economic Problems
  • Coalition failure
  • Rise of Nazi party
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64
Q

Why did public feeling about the Weimar government lead to the collapse of democracy?

WEIMAR

A
  • Public had long disliked association of government with the ToV
  • 1925: elected Hindenburg president who invented the ‘stab in the back’ theory as revenge
  • ‘Stab in the back theory’: German army could have won war but was betrayed by November criminals (those who signed armistice and treaty)
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65
Q

Why did economic problems and the government’s failure to deal with them lead to the collapse of democracy?

WEIMAR

A
  • 1929: WSC and Great Depression in USA, causing USA to call off all loans including ones w/ German economy
  • Europe and other countries dragged into depression
  • Prices rose rapidly, as did unemployment (5.5 mil) whilst wages fell
  • Governments failure to agree a policy to help the economy worsens economy
  • Support for extremist political parties (Communists, Nazis) rose
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66
Q

Why did coalition failure lead to the collapse of democracy?

WEIMAR

A
  • Hindenburg changed Chancellor’s who could not agree which made situation worse
  • Parties found it harder to work together
  • SPD refused to take part in any more coalitions
  • Hindenburg forced to fall back on Article 48 from July 1930 to 1932 elections
  • 109 laws created by Bruning, only 29 passed
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67
Q

Rise of the Nazi Party

WEIMAR

A
  • Economic Crisis caused people to vote Nazi
  • 1928: 2.8% of vote
  • Preciously no Nazi influence in Neidenburg, 1930: 25.8% vote
68
Q

Impact of WSC on Germany

WEIMAR

A
  • Recall of US loans and reduction on investments
  • Leads to loss of confidence in Germany
  • Leads to decline in trade and fall in demand
  • Leads to decline in business contracts
  • Therefore workers unemployed and less money
69
Q

The Collapse of Mullers Grand Coalition

A
  • Mullers Coalition government withstood attacks from National Opposition effectively
  • Muller struggled to hold coalition together
  • March 1930: Government brought down due to finance issue
  • Large deficit in new national insurance scheme created by sharp increase in unemployment
70
Q

In what elections did the communists and Nazis make gains?

WEIMAR

A

September 1930

71
Q

How did Nazis boost support in the September 1930 elections?

WEIMAR

A

Use of the Sturmabteilung (SA) and its attacks on political opponents.

72
Q

What happened in the 1932 presidential election?

WEIMAR

A
  • Hindenburg now 84 wanted to retire but was persuaded to run again to keep Hitler out
  • Hindenburg won by 19.4 million votes to Hitler’s 13.4 million votes
  • Hindenburg appointed Franz von Papen as Chancellor, who worked well in Reichstag and had support of people
73
Q

What happened after the 1932 Reichstag elections?

WEIMAR

A
  • Nazis now had the most seats in Reichstag- traditionally head of party was asked to be chancellor
  • Hindenburg instead offered position to Kurt von Schleicher, HI did not want to work with Hitler and offered Hitler cabinet post which Hitler refused
  • Hindenburg called new elections, Nazis were still biggest party
  • Hindenburg refused to carry on ruling by decree
  • Papen suggested that he make Hitler chancellor and himself vice chancellor so as he could control Hitler and Hitler could control the Reichstag
  • 30th January 1933: Hindenburg appointed Hitler chancellor
74
Q

When was Hitler appointed chancellor of Germany?

WEIMAR

A

30th January 1933

75
Q

Why did the Nazis become the largest party in Weimar 1919-22?

NAZI

A
  • 1919: German Workers Party (DAP) founded by Anton Drexler; Hitler becomes 55th member in Sept (P)
  • Feb 1920: DAP renamed NSDAP, Hitler drafts 25 Points (P)
  • 1921: Hitler become party leader, SA set up (P)
  • 1921/22: Helped by upper class contacts eg. Ludendorff, Rohms links with army obtain weapons for SA (P)
76
Q

Why did the Nazis become the largest party in Weimar 1923-26?

NAZI

A
  • Nov 1923: Munich Putsch fails, party reorganises to obtain power legally under Fuhrer (N)
  • Feb 1924: Hitlers trial becomes propaganda success, writes Mien Kampf in prison, make small election gains.
  • Dec 1924: Hitler released from prison, lose votes due to economic growth
  • 1925: Hitler refounds party
  • 1925-8: Party organisation improved, in strong position to exploit discontent when slump hit Germany
  • Feb 1926: Hitler gains control at Bamberg meeting, establishes Führer party and Heil Hitler salute
  • 1926: Faced criticism from northern socialist wing of Nazis to change 25 Point Programme in more Socialist direction.
77
Q

Why did the Nazis become the largest party in Weimar 1927-30?

NAZI

A
  • 1927: Farmers hit by falling prices
  • 1928: Slight overall losses in elections, gain in rural areas
  • 1929: Hitler leads Anti- Young campaign
  • 1929: Local election gains, Nazis gain first majority in Coburg
  • Oct 1929: Wall Street Crash
  • 1930: Otto Strasser forced out of party
  • Sept 1930: Nazis makes major gains, Hitler soothes discontent, appoints radical Rohm as leader, builds SS
  • Oct 1930: Berlin SA mutiny at reactionary tendencies in NSDAP
78
Q

Why did the Nazis become the largest party in Weimar 1931-32?

NAZI

A
  • Feb 1931: SA purged of Berlin Leader, Stennes, and other non conformists
  • Goebbels in charge of centralised Reich Propaganda Leadership
  • Oct 1931: Harzburg Front; Nazis join DNVP, Stahlhelm and elites
  • 27 Jan 1932: Hitler welcomed by industrialists, promises existing social order, trade rights, weaken trade unions
  • March 1932: Hitler gains 37% vote in presidential election
  • Aug 1932: Hindenburg refuses Hitler’s demands to be Chancellor
  • Nov 1932: Nazis lose 2 mil election votes
  • Dec 1932: Internal party crisis due to financial problems, theres radical pressure to seize power
79
Q

How did Hitler establish a dictatorship 1933-34?

NAZI

A

1933

30th January- becomes chancellor
27th February- Reichstag fire
28th February- Presidential Decree gives Hitler emergency powers
5th March- new elections, Nazi vote increase
24th March- Enabling act
31st March- Lander stripped of most of their power
7th April- law to restore civil service; Jews and Nazi opponents can be removed
22nd June- SPD banned
27th June- DNVP dissolved
14th July- all political parties banned
20th July- cabinet discussion of laws no longer needed, written agreement is enough
12th November- elections see Nazi vote increase

1934

30th January- Hitler abolished Lander altogether in the Law for Reconstruction of the Reich
14th February- Hitler dissolves Reichsrat
24th April- People’s court set up to try cases of treason
30th June- SA is destroyed in Night of the Long Knives
2nd August- President Hindenburg dies and Hitler declares himself Fuhrer. Army takes an oath of loyalty to him and not Germany
19th August- Hitler is confirmed Fuhrer by plebiscite

80
Q

In January 1933 how many seats did the Nazis have in the Reichstag? How many cabinet members were Nazis?

NAZI

A

Only about 1/3

Only 2 of 12 cabinet members were Nazis

81
Q

What happened at the Reichstag fire? How did this benefit the Nazis?

NAZI

A
  • 27th February 1933
  • Reichstag burned down.
  • Dutch communist, Marinus van de Lubbe caught by Nazis.
  • Legal method of achieving dictatorship

Benefited Nazis because:

  • They got credit for catching arsonist
  • Able to stir up anti-communist propaganda
  • Gained from political and financial support; Fear of Communism made German industrialists contribute generously to Nazi funds
  • Hitler persuaded Hindenburg to declare state of emergency, Hitler now had control of the police, power to govern by decree
  • Decree for the Protection of the People and the State: suspended civil rights of German citizens so Hitler could legally arrest political opponents
  • 5 March: Hitler persuaded Hindenburg to call an election
  • 17.5 million votes won Nazis 288 seats in the Reichstag, Hitler used powers to ban 81 communists from taking a seat.
  • Support of DNVP (52 seats) gave Nazis a majority
82
Q

What was the enabling act?

NAZI

A
  • 24th March 1933
  • 444 votes to 84 (SPD voted against).
  • Hitler has right to pass laws without Reichstag.
  • Tore up Weimar constitution
  • Legal method of achieving dictatorship
  • Hitler got rid of parties in the Reichstag one by one
  • 14th July 1933, a law banned all remaining parties
  • Made the country a one-party state.
83
Q

How did anti-Communist propaganda help the Nazis?

NAZI

A
  • Nazis blamed Communists for the Reichstag Fire
  • Enabled Nazis to stir anti-Communist propaganda
  • People feared Communism and therefore supported Hitler as he promised to stop it
  • Legal method of achieving a dictatorship
84
Q

How did use of emergency powers benefit the Nazis?

NAZI

A
  • Hitler banned 81 Communists from taking their seats in March election
  • Therefore removing political opposition
  • Legal method of achieving dictatorship
85
Q

How did DNVPs support benefit Nazis?

NAZI

A
  • Gave the Nazis a majority in the March elections
  • Hitler was able to gain more political power
  • Legal method of achieving a dictatorship
86
Q

How did the Potsdam Garrison Church Ceremony benefit the Nazis?

NAZI

A
  • Opening of the Reichstag
  • Won over support of right wing
  • Nazis looked respectable
  • Hindenburg and aristocracy support Nazis
  • Continuity between Nazis and other gov.
87
Q

Why did the SA and Hitler have conflicts?

NAZI

A
  • SA seen as thugs so were bad for the Nazi image
  • Loyal to Rohm who was critical of Hitler’s conciliation of the old government, the army and industrialists.
  • Hitler felt he did not need the SA anymore as he feared Rohm might try and seek power.
88
Q

What happened on the Night of the Long Knives? When was it?

NAZI

A
  • 30th June 1934
  • 31st June: Rohm and senior SA officials were arrested and shot
  • Several hundred people murdered by SS.
  • Many were SA members
  • Dead included von Schleicher and his wife.
  • People relieved Hitler tames SS as they were brutal thugs
  • Eliminated all opposition, created fear
  • Illegal method of achieving dictatorship
89
Q

How did death of Hindenburg benefit the Nazis?

NAZI

A
  • 2nd August 1934
  • Hitler combined President and Chancellor to make Fuhrer
  • Officially became Dictator of Germany
  • Legal method of achieving a dictatorship
90
Q

How many laws did the Reichstag pass between 1934-45?

NAZI

A

7

91
Q

What stayed the same in the Nazi government from the Weimar?

NAZI

A
  • Kept much of the existing bureaucracy of government
  • Many clerks were already Nazis
  • Hitler also kept ministers who were not Nazis before one-party system
92
Q

What changed in the Nazi government from the Weimar?

NAZI

A
  • Not all ministries had equal power
  • Hitler kept foreign minister and many German ambassadors, but from 1934 Bureau Ribbentrop operated alongside the foreign ministry
  • It was either Ribbentrop or another loyal Nazi who was entrusted with foreign diplomatic mission
  • Hitler set up other ministries and authorities
  • some took over responsibilities of established ministries, others were new
93
Q

Positives of Nazi government

NAZI

A
  • Führer had a degree of organisation to an otherwise chaotic government
  • Agencies competing with each other led to impressive achievements eg. 100km of autobahn
  • Cumulative radicalisation: Chaotic gov led to development of nazi policy + ideology
94
Q

Negatives of Nazi Government

NAZI

A
  • Dictatorship
  • No written legal constitution
  • Significant overlap between party + state, eg. Regional govs and Gauleiters, Economic ministries and 4 Year Plan, Police service and SS
95
Q

What does Volksgemeinschaft mean?

NAZI

A

‘People’s community’

  • The German nation as a racially untied body working for the good of the nation.
  • Individuals were expected to obey Nazi government, make sacrifices for the nation.
96
Q

Reich Chancellery

NAZI

A
  • Responsible for co-ordinating government
97
Q

Gauleiter

NAZI

A
  • ‘Leader of a regional area’

- 1926: Nazi Party organised into 35 regions

98
Q

Autobahn

NAZI

A
  • Construction of motorways

- Implemented by Hitler as public works project to reduce unemployment

99
Q

Social Darwinism

NAZI

A
  • Nazi belief that strongest should naturally prevail

- Hitler wanted personal rivalries + competition as it would weed out weak party members

100
Q

Dualism

NAZI

A
  • System of government where two forces co-exist

- Nazi Party and German State

101
Q

Party v State example

NAZI

A
  • William Frick’s Administration by civil service

- This came into contact with Reich Special Agencies

102
Q

Polycratic Regime: Nature of Nazi Gov

NAZI

A
  • Hitler added slight organisation to mainly chaotic government
  • Many centres of power
  • Overlaps of Ministry eg. 4 Year Plan, Ministry of Labour, Ministry of Economics
  • Otto Dietrich: “ In the 12 years of his rule in Germany, Hitler produced the biggest confusion… that has ever existed.”
  • Caused chaos within gov
  • Hitler able to rule how he wanted
  • People competing to outdo each otheR
103
Q

Prerogative State: Nature of Nazi Gov

NAZI

A
  • Power came from Hitler’s prerogative, not laws/constitution
  • His will was basis of regime
  • 1930s Führerprinzip: Hitler knew best interests and collective will of Germans
  • Hitler’s law was not restrictive, so had limitless power to create radical policies
104
Q

Personal Rivalries: Nature of Nazi Gov

NAZI

A
  • No clear rules on how government should work
  • Fighting as people try to figure out Hitler’s will
  • NOLK, Killing of Rohm
  • 1934: Control of Political Police
  • Rivalries cause chaos, contributing to extreme ideas being developed
  • With no constitution, no laws stopping conflict
105
Q

Cumulative Radicalisation: Nature of Nazi Gov

NAZI

A
  • Gov figures developed policies that would win Hitler’s favour and advance position in gov
  • Anti Jewish policies became more extreme
  • 1937: Aryanisation
  • Made everyone have more extreme actions and political ideas
106
Q

Working towards the Fuhrer: Nature of Nazi Gov

NAZI

A
  • Senior Nazis spent as much time with Hitler as possible to discover his will
  • Hitler’s aims were purposefully vague
  • Martin Bormann controlled Hitler’s flow of info, involved himself in Hitlers decision making process
  • Kristallnacht
  • Each idea got more extreme and radical due to will to please Hitler
107
Q

Hitler’s Role: Nature of Nazi Government

NAZI

A
  • Hitler’s personality influenced working of government
  • Had a Bohemian lifestyle
  • Dislike formal gov meetings and admin
  • Wasn’t conductive to an efficient government
  • German cabinet met less frequently and ceased in 1938
  • Hitler played small role in crucial aspects of Nazi government
  • Led to radical actions/ideas
108
Q

What was leadership like in the Nazi government?

NAZI

A
  • Hitler: leader of the nation and had ultimate ‘Fuhrer power’
  • Whole Nazi state operated on policy of fuhrerprinzip
  • Fuhrerprinzip: strict hierarchical order where every area of life had someone in charge to tell people what to do.
  • Essential for people to work together and not make own decisions, initiative was frowned upon.
  • It was important to work as a nation and think only of the good of the nation.
109
Q

What was decision making like in the Nazi government?

NAZI

A
  • Impossible for Hitler to make every decision involved in running the country
  • Hated paperwork and made others do most of it
  • ‘Working towards the Fuhrer’: Everyone was aware of broad principles of what Hitler wanted
  • Those who were loyal and got good results were given more power and more responsibility
  • Trusted individuals e.g. Goebbels, Ministry of Propaganda, became very powerful
  • Hitler tried to stop people working together to form policy as it made it easier for opposition groups to form
  • E.g. He kept cabinet of ministers from previous government but abolished cabinet meetings. Ministers worked individually and sent each other draft laws on paper.
110
Q

What was administration like in the Nazi government?

NAZI

A
  • Largely done by the civil service under new minister William Frick, Ministry of the Interior.
  • Operated on Nazi ideology and Fuhrerprinzip.
  • Frick’s civil service frequently overlapped with the Reich special agencies, other ministries and Nazi party officials.
  • Civil service decisions taken after large amounts of planning were often overruled by ‘Nazi principle’ or another prevailing option.
111
Q

What was the One Nation like under Nazi government?

NAZI

A
  • Nazis were against division of Germany in Lander.
  • They wanted a centralised state with centralised administration.
  • March 1933: Lander were stripped of their powers
  • 30th January 1934: Law for Reconstruction of the Reich officially terminated them.
  • Hitler justified this by saying that the German people now had a unity that overrode regional differences.
  • Reorganised Civil service, with minister of interior ,Frick, running regional and local government.
  • This was never entirely achieved as Frick’s civil service often conflicted with the Gauleiters who were in charge of regional party organisation.
112
Q

What was control like under the Nazi government?

NAZI

A
  • 26th April 1933: Control established over ‘political’ matters using the Gestapo, set up under Goering
  • 1936: Gestapo was then taken over by Himmler’s SS
  • SS and Gestapo run as separate groups.
  • Gestapo and SS developed own judiciary system for ‘political’ offences.
  • Gestapo controlled concentration camps which were set up to manage political prisoners.
  • Sometimes people who were freed by courts were at once arrested by the Gestapo.
  • They were put in concentration camps and could be held indefinitely without trial.
113
Q

How did SS numbers change during the war?

NAZI

A

1939: 240,000
1944: Over 1 million

114
Q

How did regions of Germany change during the war?

NAZI

A
  • 13 ‘military districts’ formed from German regions
  • Their Gauleiters were made Reich Defence Commissioners (RVKs).
  • They ran Home Front activities in the local areas, eg. civil defence, rationing and the Volkssturm (home guard)
115
Q

What happened to ministries during the war?

NAZI

A
  • Each of armed forces given its own ministry to co-ordinate supplies, troops etc.
  • Work was coordinated by new high commander of the armed forces, Wilhelm Keitel
  • Each of armed services competed for biggest budget for their needs)
116
Q

What was the Council for Defence?

NAZI

A
  • 30th August 1939: Ministerial Council for the Defence of the Reich set up
  • Coordinated domestic affairs to support war effort
  • Council for Defence chaired by Goering
  • Frick, Funk, Keitel, Hess and Lammers were all members
  • Council didn’t last long, fell victim to Hitler’s dislike of group meetings
  • November 1939: Disbanded but Frick, Funk and Keitel met infrequently as the ‘Group of Three’
117
Q

What were the problems with the growing Reich?

NAZI

A
  • SS in charge of clearing out undesirables in newly claimed land
  • Allocated land to incoming Germans, running it became the job of 11 new Reichsgau (regional govs) run by Reichsstatthalter
    •Centralised government became harder and Gauleiters became increasingly powerful- from 1942 they were given control of all civil defence measures including firefighting, bomb damagae clearance, rehousing and rationing, using Nazi Party organisations
    •August 1944 decree for ‘Implementation of Total War Mobilisation’ gave Gauleiters control over local bureaucracy, not just Nazi party officials and gave them significant power over local businesses
118
Q

What happened to Poland once Hitler had invaded?

NAZI

A
  • Hitler made it clear poles were untrustworthy and only used for hard labour
  • Polish leaders were to be shot
  • Southern Poland was treated as a ‘colony’ called the General Government
  • General Gov administered by Hans Frank, used as dumping ground for polish and undesirable slaves
  • Other parts of Poland absorbed into Third Reich and Germanised
  • Roughly half a million poles deported to make room
  • Over half a million ethnic Germans (mostly from Baltic countries and USSR) went to Warthegau area of Western Poland
119
Q

What happened after Germany invaded the USSR in 1941?

NAZI

A
  • Soviet Red Army and people did not collapse as Nazis assumed they would
  • German army fought war on two fronts
  • December 1941: USA joined the war
  • German forces were badly overstretched, Germany began to suffer
  • 1944: Boys as young as 12-16 conscripted in large numbers
  • Rationing became tighter
  • ‘Total War’ meant shops that did not contribute to war efforts were banned (sweet shops, cake shops) as were sporting events
120
Q

When did the Nazi government collapse? What events led to this?

NAZI

A
  • June 1944: Allies landed in Normandy and moved from east and west towards Berlin
  • Hitler moved to safe bunker in Berlin with trusted staff, Eva Braun and the Goebbels family
  • 30 April 1945: He and Braun married and then committed suicide
  • 1 May 1945: Goebbels and his family suicided
  • Many Nazis committed suicide just before or just after capture by Allies
  • German government collapsed
121
Q

What happened immediately after the Allies took over Berlin?

FRG

A
  • 7th May 1945 Germany signed the final surrender
  • Allied armed forces took joint control of the German government
  • agreement that democracy should be restored to Germany
122
Q

What happened at the Potsdam conference from 17th July to 2nd August 1945?

FRG

A
  • Germany was divided into 4 zones to be run by the USSR, France, the USA and Britain
  • Berlin was also divided into 4 zones
  • Allies set up Allied Control Council to make decisions across zones to keep ‘Germany’ in tact for reunification
  • focused on disarming and demilitarising the country, decentralising it and de-Nazifying it
123
Q

What political parties reemerged after the war?

FRG

A

There were different leaders in the Soviet and Western Allied zones.

  • 11th June KPD announced itself- wanted ‘German socialism’ not capitalism with land reform, new education system and a democratic government
  • 15th June SPD reformed- had moral advantage as many members including Schumacher the leader had been in concentration camps, had more radical polices than KPD, nationalisation of banks, land and key industries, social welfare systems
  • Centre party tried unsuccessfully to reform.
124
Q

Which new political parties formed after the war?

FRG

A
  • Christian Democratic Union (CDU)
  • Christian Social Union of Bavaria (CSU)
  • Liberal Democratic Party
  • 1947 the liberal groups formed the Free Democracy Party (FDP)
  • most faith groups joined the CDU in 1949
125
Q

What is a cold war?

FRG

A

When two hostile sides try to defeat each other by using political propaganda, economic restrictions and agreements, and military intervention in other wars, but not direct conflict between the countries concerned.

Such a state developed between the East and the West, specifically the USSR and the USA after World War Two.

126
Q

Between 1945-47 which countries became communist states?

FRG

A
  • Yugoslavia
  • Albania
  • Bulgaria
  • Hungary
  • Poland
127
Q

What was the Marshall Plan? How did this help the divided situation of the time?

FRG

A

Economic aid plan for European countries set up in 1947. Provided supplies (food, railway carriages) and money to help post-war recovery, provided aid to prevent USSR from gaining influence.

128
Q

What happened in the October 1946 elections in Berlin?

FRG

A

Communists won in the Soviet zone (where SPD was forced to join KPD) but they did badly in other zones (where they were still separate).

129
Q

When did the FRG announce their constitution?

FRG

A

The Basic Law- 23rd May 1949 (Parliamentary council drew it up)

130
Q

What did the Basic Law say?

FRG

A

Outlined a free and liberal democracy.

It promised:
•equal rights to German citizens regardless of sex, race, political views or religion
•free speech, the freedom to form unions or other groups, free assembly and no censorship
•a state education for all, although private schooling was allowed

It did also have clauses that suggested it could be more repressive e.g. it was possible to ban political parties if they seemed to undermine FRG or its democratic principles

131
Q

What did Article 20 of Basic Law say?

FRG

A

Article 20
•federal republic of Germany is a democratic and social federal state
•all state authority is derived from the people and shall be exercised by the people through elections and other votes and specific legislative, executive and judicial bodies
•legislature shall be bound by constitutional order, executive and judiciary by law and justice
•all Germans shall have the right to resist any person seeking to abolish this constitutional order, if no other remedy is available

132
Q

What did Article 21 of Basic Law say?

FRG

A
  • political parties shall participate in the formation of the political will of the people. They may be freely established. Their internal organisation must conform to democratic principles. They must publicly account for their assets and for the sources and use of their funds
  • parties that, by reason of their aims or the behaviour of their adherents seek to undermine or abolish the free democratic basic order or to endanger the existence of the FRG shall be unconstitutional. The Federal Constitutional Court shall rule on the question of unconstitutionality.
133
Q

What was the role of the Bundestag?

FRG

A
  • elected by a secret ballot of all electors every four years
  • electors vote for a regional representative but also vote for a party
  • votes are sorted by proportional representation
  • party needs at least 5% of the vote to gain the seat
  • pass laws of the country
134
Q

What was the role of the Bundesrat?

FRG

A

•representatives from Lander, chosen by the Lander from those elected to the Lander

135
Q

Who made up the executive parts of the government?

FRG

A
  • Chancellor
  • Ministers
  • Civil service
136
Q

Who was the head of state in the FRG?

FRG

A

President
•elected by a Federal Convention every 5 years- convention made up of all Bundestag members and an equal number of Bundesrat members

137
Q

How was regional government laid out?

A
  • legislature- 16 Lander elected by voters in their region
  • executive- civil service
  • judiciary- enforces and interprets laws of regional courts
138
Q

How were local governments run?

FRG

A

Varies, reflecting the way that the original state government varied when each state was set up. Each state is divided into counties and these counties run their own local services and local officials have some power over local planing.

Cities have their own municipal government as do some, but not all, towns. Local officials get their powers from the state, but are elected by the people in their district.

139
Q

When did the first elections to the Bundestag take place?

FRG

A

14th August 1949

140
Q

Who won the first elections of the Bundestag?

FRG

A

Small parties still took enough of the vote to ensure that there was not a majority party.

CDU/CSU party won 31% of the vote, SPD won 29.2% and FDP/Liberal Coalition won 11.9% of the vote, so they held the balance of power.

141
Q

Who was the first chancellor of the FRG?

FRG

A

Adenauer, leader of the CDU

142
Q

How did USSR respond to the creation of the FRG?

FRG

A

By setting up the German Democratic Republic (GDR) announcing its constitution on 7th October 1949.

143
Q

What was the Hallestein Doctrine of 1955?

FRG

A

Walter Hallstein (Adanauer’s undersecretary of state) was responsible for the development of the Hallstein doctrine which hardened West Germany’s attitude to East Germany.

The Doctrine refused to recognise the legality of East Germany as a separate country.

In 1955, the FRG announced that it spoke for the whole of Germany in world affairs, including the ‘Soviet zone’ which had not yet been absorbed.

It refused to accept the GDR as a lawful government and so it said it would no longer have diplomatic relations with any country that had diplomatic relations with the GDR. It acted on this twice, cutting off relations with Yugoslavia in 1957 and Cuba in 1963.

144
Q

Who was Adenauer?

FRG

A
  • mayor of cologne under Weimar Government
  • seen as the father of modern Germany
  • Chancellor 1949-1963
  • Critics (SPD and FDP) objected to his authoritarian style and forceful management
  • ‘Chancellor democracy’
  • until 1955 he controlled foreign and domestic policy as chancellor and foreign minister
  • Criticised for appointing weak ministers who he treated as advisers not equals
  • kept coalitions working until 1957 when CDU/CSU won majority
  • remained majority until 1969
145
Q

How did Adenauer create a stable political base for the FRG?

FRG

A
  • 20th September 1949 set out policy in Bundestag concentrating on domestic economy and foreign policy
  • wanted to unite Germany and work for closer European integration
  • Adenauer worked to exclude political opposition, especially left win opposition
  • 1953 changes to vote allocations and seats in the Bundestag made it harder for small parties to gain a seat
  • 1952 extreme right wing Socialist Reich Party was banned, while in 1956 KPD was declared unconstitutional (all members stripped of seats and party banned)
  • 1957 seat allocation limited small parties even more
146
Q

How did Adenauer restore the civil service and government?

FRG

A
  • Adenauer was criticised for allowing too many ex-Nazis into the government but part of the problem was that in 1939 all government workers had to join the Nazi party or lose their jobs
  • Adenauer had a policy of ‘year zero’ in 1945
147
Q

What was added to Basic Law in May 1951?

FRG

A

Article 131- officially allowed ex-Nazis to work in the civil service

148
Q

How many ex-Nazis were named to have been working in the foreign ministry in a 1952 report?

FRG

A

4- this could damage FRG’s reputation abroad

149
Q

Why were Adenauer’s moves against political opponents questioned?

FRG

A
  • he tried to limit freedom of speech
  • January 1961 Adenauer tried to set up a government-controlled TV station, realising that TV would play a large part of campaigns but on the 28th February the Supreme court ruled it unconstitutional
  • October 1962, Der Spiegel published an article criticising the performance of West German troops in NATO exercises and Adenauer supported the arrest of journalists involved- Adenauer then promised to resign in 1963
150
Q

Who were the two CDU chancellors that came after Adenauer?

FRG

A

Ludwig Erhard (1963-66)

Kurt Kiesinger (1966-69)

151
Q

After Adenauer, what did the CDU/CSU split into?

FRG

A

The ‘Atlanticists’ who wanted to carry on working with the West, especially with the USA and Britain

and

The ‘Gaullists’ who were prepared to work with France, but wanted to shift the focus to co-operation with East Germany

152
Q

What did Erhard do as chancellor?

FRG

A
  • followed Adenauer’s Atlanticist policies and tried, increasingly often to introduce an emergency law to tap phones, search homes, open mail etc. in times of ‘serious political tensions’ (SPD refused to support)
  • 1966, Erhard introduced a budget that included such heavy taxation that the FDP ministers resigned
  • Erhard could not form a coalition so he resigned
153
Q

Who was the Grand coalition formed of?

FRG

A

CDU/CSU/SDP formed with Kurt Kiesenger as chancellor but SPD leader Willy Brandt as vice-chancellor and foreign minister.

154
Q

Where did opposition come from 1965 onwards?

FRG

A

Small extremist parties such as the neo-Nazi national Democratic Party and from other groups such as students and the German Federation of Trade Unions.

155
Q

What was Ostpolitik?

FRG

A

Establishing friendly relations with East Germany rather than treating it as the Soviet zone, as had happened under the Hallestein Doctrine.

156
Q

Who was the first CSU chancellor to support Ostpolitik?

FRG

A

Kurt Kiesenger

157
Q

When did Willy Brandt become chancellor?

FRG

A

1969- first SPD chancellor

158
Q

Who was Willy Brandt?

FRG

A
  • had spent the war in Norway
  • critical of Adenauer’s policy of ex-Nazi assimilation
  • Ostpolitik
  • decriminalised homosexuality
  • reduced the voting age to 18

(last two subject to opposition)

159
Q

What led to Brandt’s resignation?

FRG

A
  • October 1970 several FDP poltiicans joined CDU, in March 1972 several SPD members also joined CDU
  • they then forced a ‘constructive vote of no confidence’ naming Rainer Barzel of the CDU as replacement chancellor which failed by 2 votes
  • Brandt responded by calling an early election in November 1972 which had its highest turnout ever where SPD won the most seats
  • In 1974, it was discovered that one of Brandt’s advisers was a GDR spy, even when it was shown he knew nothing of this, he felt compelled to resign
  • 24th May 1974, despite the support of his party, he resigned as he felt he should’ve known about the spy
160
Q

Who won the 1976 and 1980 elections?

FRG

A

Helmut Schmidt, mainly because there was no viable CDU candidate and he was careful not to introduce policies that rocked the political boat.

161
Q

What did Helmut Schmidt do as chancellor?

FRG

A
  • accused of adopting economic measures e.g. high taxation and welfare cuts that made him as conservative as members of the CSU
  • faced growing opposition for his failure to push through economic policies
  • also faced opposition from the green party
162
Q

Why did Helmut Schmidt resign?

FRG

A

1st October 1982, a constructive vote of no confidence in the Bundestag forced him to resign.

163
Q

Who replaced Helmut Schmidt?

FRG

A

Helmut Kohl

164
Q

How did the green party progress in this era? What protest can be used to show their popularity? When was the national green party set up? What was this called?

FRG

A
  • environmental issues were of growing concern throughout the 1970s and 1980s
  • smog, nuclear power plants and other issues attracted a growing number of protesters of all ages and classes
  • March 1977, 15,000 people protested against the building of a nuclear reprocessing plant in Lower Saxony
  • July 1978, the first national green party, Green Action for the Future was set up
  • January 1980 the Greens national political party was set up
  • from 1983 it steadily gained a share of the vote
165
Q

What was the first thing Kohl did as an unelected chancellor?

FRG

A

Called early elections on the 6th March 1983 which brought the CDU/CSU 48.8% of the vote and validated his position.

166
Q

Why did Helmut Kohl struggle?

FRG

A
  • faced opposition in the Bundestag from Greens on the left and the Republicans
  • had to manage a parliament where the media was uncovering corruption scandals that affected politicians in every party but the Greens
  • he promised continuity and his economic policies followed that of earlier governments
  • faced a sustained outbreak of terrorism directed at other governments and German institutions (e.g. bombing of both US airbase in Rein-Main and Frankfurt Airport in 1985)
  • working for unification but still seemed a distant prospect
167
Q

What were the events that led to the fall of the Berlin wall?

FRG

A
  • 1989, Hungary opened its border to the West and lifted travel restrictions across it
  • 1st January 1989, East Germany relaxed its travel restrictions (end of September 161,000 people had applied to emigrate)
  • in August, Austria abolished visa requirements for citizens from Hungary and East Germany; about 3000 East Germans had fled West via Hungary and Austria by the end of the month
  • From September, Hungary allowed East Germans to cross any border- thousands of East Germans made their way to the FRG
  • 9th November, a government officail announced that travel restrictions were lifted, people flooded through the Berlin wall checkpoints and Germany, physically reunited, faced new political future

Option 1G: Germany and West Germany, 1918-89 (7 decks)

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