Political And Governmental Change Weimar Flashcards
DNVP: (acronym, leaders, beliefs, memberships)
- German National People’s Party
- Karl Helfferich + Alfred Hugenberg
- Members were wealthy landowners + anti-Semitic
DVP: (acronym, leaders, beliefs)
- German People’s Party
- Gustav Stresemann
- Nationalist
ZP: (acronym, leaders, beliefs + memberships)
- Centre Party
- Matthias Erzberger + Heinrich Brüning
- Catholic, conservative values
- Became more authoritarian near end of 1920s
- Against left-wing and communism policies
- Members from mix of social grps
DDP: (acronym, leaders, beliefs + memberships)
- German Democrats
- Walther Rathenau + Huga Preuss
- Liberal
- Members were educated professionals (middle class)
SPD: (acronym, leaders, memberships)
- Social Democrats
- Friedrich Ebert + Philip Schiedemann
- Members were workers’ grps and liberal middle class
- Originally Marxist
- Dom party in Prussia, Germany’s largest state w/ 57% of pop
USPD: (acronym, leaders, + split)
- Independent Social Democrats
- Split from SPD in 1917
- Karl Kautsky + Hugo Hasse
Spartacist Union: (leaders, split)
- Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg
- Split from USPD in Dec 1918
- Want to replace gov w/ network of soviets
KPD: (acronym, leaders, beliefs + memberships)
German Communist Party
- Ernest Thälmann
- Members are workers esp young, poor, unemployed
NSDAP: (acronym, leaders, beliefs + memberships)
- National Socialist German Workers’ Party
- Adolf Hitler
- Extreme right wing, antisemitic, nationalist
- Members are from lower middle classes
BVP: (acronym, leaders, beliefs + splits)
- Bavarian People’s Party
- Split from ZP in 1919
- Heinrich Held
- Conservative
- Supported upholding of Bavaria’s local interests
Between 1871 and 1918, what was the constitution like?
- Authoritarian
- Extensive powers for Kaiser
- Kaiser elected gov
- No legal protection of civil rights
- Reichstag elected regularly but w/ no women
Who was the new gov led by and what did they ask the Allies for after someone’s advice?
Prince Max Baden (aristocrat liberal)
- 3rd Oct 1918 –> Asked allies for armistice following General Ludendorff’s advice in Sep
Why was the new constitution necessary?
- The impact of Germany’s defeat had to be lessened
- Democracy would encourage USA, GBR + FRA to treat Germany sympathetically
- Easier to protect the army leaders from blame of losing war eg. Generals Paul von Hindenburg and Erich Ludendorff
What caused the formation of the Ebert-Groener Pact, what did it say and when was it formed?
- Spartacists demonstrated to gain support, which frightened SPD
- Formed on 10 Nov 1918 w/ army chief Groener
- Established link that army would support gov and gov would oppose more left-wing ideas in the Reichstag + they could end communist threat
Who were the Freikorps, when were they formed and why?
- Private army of ex-soldiers
- Formed in Dec 1918
- Right-wing nationalist, but preferred democracy to communism
Initially what happened when Prince Max urged the Kaiser to abdicate and what two factors meant he had to in the end?
- At first he refused.
- 8 Nov 1918 –> Bavaria broke away from GER and named itself a republic + SPD, which was in coalition with Max’s gov threatened to withdraw support if the Kaiser did not abdicate.
- 9 Nov –> Kaiser abdicated and fled to Holland
What did the SPD do immediately after the abdication anyway on 10 Nov 1918?
- Withdrew from Max’s gov and replaced it with their own (Council of People’s Representatives)
- Made of grps in Reichstag (USPD+ SPD)
- Temporary until elections could be held for a National Constituent Assembly
Who won the largest number of seats in the National Constituent Assembly and what did this mean?
SPD and ZP so they had the greatest influence over the new constitution
When was the National Assembly set up, who decided on this and where did this happen?
- 25 Nov 1918
- Representatives of the Länder (states that can make their own policies as long as it follows federal law)
- Berlin
Why was Ebert desperate to set up a National Assembly and how intense did this get?
- USPD + other smaller parties could not agree
- Council members resigned
- Many USPD members joined the KPD
When did 30 millions of Germans go to the polls to elect an new parliament, when did they first meet and who did it consist of?
- 19 Jan 1919
- First met on 6 Feb in Weimar due to fighting between Spartacists and Freikorps in Berlin
- By 10 Feb –> Interim gov created + Ebert named President
- SPD, ZP + DDP
How did the threat of left affect support for the 3 pro-Weimar parties?
- 76.2% of vote in Jan 1919
- Support diminished after 1919, when communist threat receded
When was the constitution published and what did it change?
Published in Aug 1919
- Before 1918, men over 25 vote. Now, all men and women over 20 vote
- President elected every 7 years
- President appointed chancellor
- Laws can be passed through plebiscites
- PR
- Provided human and civil rights eg. Freedom of speech, free travel, freedom of religious beliefs
- Previously, head of state was Kaiser Wilhelm II (King of Prussia). Now, Freidrich Ebert, elected by the people as the Chancellor
- Article 48, president can suspend the constitution and pass laws (must also be signed by Chancellor)
How many times did Ebert use Article 48 during his presidency and in what circumstances were they usually used?
- 136 times
- Fight threats from left, not usually the right
- In non-emergencies to bypass Reichstag opposition
What were Ebert’s strengths and weaknesses?
Strengths:
- Pragmatist
- Good negotiator: compromised positively with right-wingers like army + Stresemann
Weaknesses:
- Not charismatic
- Bad orator
How did parliament change after the constitution?
- Before 1918, only allowed to vote on taxes + laws not on foreign/military affairs or choosing ministers
- 1 seat for every 60,000 votes now
- Used to have 379 deputies. Now, 528.
- Now, members can also be ministers
- Bundesrat = Council of ambassadors from the 26 states. Now, replaced by Reichsrat, consisting of elected members of 18 states and can veto laws passed by Reichstag unless they have 2/3 majority
What are challenges of forming a coalition?
- Only 60,000 votes = 1 seat + PR. More parties elected, more difficulty working together (eg. 9 coalitions between 1919 and 1923)
- Members moved between parties/split so shifts confused voters
- Unpopular with public due to Treaty of Versailles
- Private armies formed by parties from demobilised soldiers
How did the Weimar Republic overcome these challenges?
- Reichstag continued meeting regardless
- Stresemann’s policies allowed the recovery of Germany’s economy
- Allowed social conditions to stablise and political violence + support for extremist parties to reduce
Where did the Allies representatives meet and when was the agreement for the end of the war signed?
11 Nov 1918 at Compiègne
When was the Treaty of Versailles signed?
28 Jun 1919
What term was applied to those who had negotiated the terms of Treaty of Versailles + armistice?
November Criminals
List the main points of the Treaty of Versailles:
- Loss of land
- Military consequences
- Reparations (Article 232)
- War Guilt (Article 231)
- Covenant of the League of Nations (Germany could not join)
Explain the loss of land in the Treaty:
- 13% of its territory was lost
- 12% of pop
- All land gained in Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, Upper Silesia, Alsace + Lorraine (French border), Eupen + Malmédy (Belgium border)
- Included areas rich in coal and iron –> coal production reduced by more than 15%
- Anschluss (unity w/ Austria) forbidden
- Some lands eg. Eupen + Malmédy were subject to plebiscites
Explain the military consequences faced by Germany:
- Rhineland became demilitarised buffer zone for France. Still German but German troops cannot enter
- Limited to 100,000 troops
- No tanks/heavy artillery/submarines/air force/warships over 10000 tonnes
- Conscription abolished
- 6 battleships, 6 cruisers, 12 destroyers and 12 torpedo boats (German fleet sank its own ships at Scapa Flow on Treaty of Versailles day to stop this)
Explain the reparations in the treaty:
- Actual size of reparations not stated in treaty
- IARC in 1921 fixed the sum at 132 bn gold marks
- Germany was to make substantial payments in kind eg. Timber
When did the gov collapse and what happened as a result?
Aug 1923
- Emergency decrees of 10 Aug gave the new coalition gov powers w/ Gustav Stresemann as chancellor + foreign minister
- The powers included governing by decree and postponing Reichstag meetings if necessary
Until when did the new coalition government last but what was unchanged?
- Until Nov 1923
- Stresemann asked to remain as foreign minister for the next gov
When did Ebert die and who was elected as president after his death?
- Feb 1925
- Paul von Hindenburg
How did the German public view Hindenburg and why?
- A hero and greatly supported by right
- His disastrous strategy on Western front was hidden from the public
Who was appointed in 1925 and why did this improve relations?
- Ariside Briand (French minister) was appointed who was more left-wing so relations improved
When was the Locarno Pact signed, with who and what was it?
- 1 Dec 1925 signed w/ Britain, France, Belgium + Italy
- Accepted Germany’s western borders
- Renounced the use of invasion (besides self-defence)
- Renounced the use of force on Eastern borders after arbitration treaties w/ Poland + Czechoslovakia
- Allies left Zone 1 by end of Dec, Zone 2 in Nov 1929 and final zone in Jun 1930
What was signed in Apr 1926 and what was it?
- Treaty of Berlin with Russia
- Developed good relations to put mild pressure on West
When did Germany join the League of Nations and what did this do for them?
- 10 Sep 1926
- Great power status w/ veto power granted
- Could not participate in collective action against aggression due to limited military
- Used this position to raise matters of German interest
What was the Kellogg-Briand Pact and when was it signed?
- 27 Aug 1928
- Signed between USA, France + 70 other countries
- Germany renounced use of force
- Secretly rearmed beyond restrictions
What were the results of 1928 elections?
- Nazis + KPD received less than 15% of vote between them
- Together conservative nationalists + extremists gained 50% of vote
- Pro-Weimar parties only gained 49.9% of vote
What are the key factors that caused the collapse of democracy?
- Public feeling about Weimar gov
- Economic crisis
- Coalition failure
How did nationalists (DVP + DNVP) feel about the new style of gov, why did they dislike it and what acts showed their hatred for democracy?
- Thought it was illegitimate
- Believed they were responsible for stabbing Germany in back
- Only supported it when there was threat of communist rev –> no longer wanted it
- Celebrated Hindenburg’s election w/ imperial flags rather than the new republic flags
What shows that the army also never fully supported the democracy?
- Ebert-Groener Pact was extremely unpopular in higher levels of army
- Army refused to support new gov in Kapp Putsch
- Their new general himself refused to support gov
Give examples showing politicians + parties to become more authoritarian
- ZP began to favour replacing democracy w/ dictatorship under influence of Pope Pius XI
- Hindenburg appointed more and more authoritarian chancellors after Muller + gov increasingly relied on Article 48
- Each new chancellor used their power to undermine German democracy
