POLITICAL INSTABILITY Flashcards
Explain why there was political instability in the Weimar Republic from 1919 to 1923. (12)
P1: LEFT WING POLITICAL EXTREMISM.
E1: The Spartacist League, led by Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg, were a communist organisation with a very radical vision for Germany. In January 1919, the Spartacists began their revolt and called for an uprising of all workers. On 6 January, over 100,000 workers took to the streets and soon had control over Berlin. The German armed forces were in no shape to put down the revolt alone, and so Ebert turned to the Freikorps - semi-organised groups of ex-soldiers - for help. Many of the Freikorps members were right wing and did not actually support the new Weimar Republic; however, they hated the Communists. By January 1919, there were approximately 200 Freikorps units in Germany. The unarmed workers were no match for the well-trained and well-armed Freikorps and by 13 January, Luxemburg and Liebknecht were arrested and killed by the Freikorps without trial. In March 1919, a further Communist uprising in Berlin was put down by 30,000 Freikorps: over 1,000 rebels were killed and 800 ‘suspected Communists’ were rounded-up and executed by the Freikorps. This was repeated again in April, in which the Freikorps were once more sent in by the government to crush the Communist rebels.
A1: Consequently, this explains that continued Communist uprisings and support for left-wing extremism contributed towards the political instability that was present in Germany between 1919 and 1923.
Explain why there was political instability in the Weimar Republic from 1919 to 1923. (12)
P2: RIGHT WING POLITICAL EXTREMISM.
E2: In March 1920 Ebert’s government announced plans to reduce the size of the army (in accordance with the Treaty of Versailles) and disband the Freikorps. This sparked uproar from the ex-soldiers who feared that they would now be unemployed. The leader of the Berlin Freikorps, Erhardt, joined with a leading politician, Wolfgang Kapp, and created a plan to seize Berlin and form a new right-wing government with Kapp as the Chancellor. Over 5,000 armed Freikorps marched on Berlin with the intention of overthrowing the government. When President Ebert ordered the army to put down the rebels, General Seeckt refused and simply said ‘Troops do not fire upon Troops’. The Weimar Government were faced with being overthrown, and were forced to flee with the rebels declaring that they would be inviting the Kaiser to return from exile and rule the country. Unable to defeat the revolt by force, the Weimar Government called upon the people of Berlin to go on strike. Many thousands of workers went out on strike with essential services such as gas, electricity, and transport all stopping and Berlin grounding to a halt. After four days, Kapp realised that he did not have the support of the people of Berlin and so could not govern. The rebellion collapsed and the Weimar government returned.
A2: Consequently, this explains that continued hatred of the Weimar Government resulted in the overthrowing and returning of the Weimar Government, therefore contributing to the political instability.
Explain why there was political instability in the Weimar Republic from 1919 to 1923. (12)
P3: POLITICAL VIOLENCE/LACK OF JUDICIAL SUPPORT.
E3: One of the most troubling problems in the period of 1919 to 1923 was the continued political assassinations. Firstly, Hugo Haase, a member of Ebert’s Weimar government, was murdered in 1919. Matthias Erzeberger, the politician who signed the surrender in 1918, was shot and killed in 1921. Lastly, Walter Rathenau, the Foreign Minister, was murdered in June 1922. Between 1919-1922 there were 376 political assassinations, mostly by the right-wing. Not a single right-wing assassin was convicted and executed, however, ten left-wing assassins were executed. The judges in the courts had no love for the new government and many were still loyal to the Kaiser. Therefore, even in the courts, the Weimar Republic was not support.
A3: Consequently, this explains that continued political assassinations and a lack of judicial support for the Weimar Republic led to significant political instability in the Weimar Republic between 1919 and 1923.
