The Impact Of The First World War

Question 1

what three categories can the impacts of ww1 be organised into?

Answer 1

1. economic
2. social
3. political

Question 2

what were the economic impacts of ww1 on germany? (4)

Answer 2

• germany had borrowed money to pay for naval laws/the war that would need paying back
• they had lent some of their own money to their allies (would they ever get this back?)
• war pensions would cost the government a fortune in the future
• german factories had been too busy producing war materials and didn’t have enough goods to sell to make money

Question 3

what were the social impacts of ww1 on germany? (4)

Answer 3

• war had left 600,000 war widows and two million children without fathers
• women had worked in factories during the war; some germans thought this went against traditional german family values
• factory owners made a fortune while workers had restrictions placed on their wages
• the german people were surviving on turnips and bread and a deadly flu epidemic was sweeping the country, killing thousands already weak from poor diet

Question 4

what were the political impacts of ww1 on germany? (2)

Answer 4

• before the war, germany was a rich and stable nation but now it was full of mutiny and revolution
• general ludendorff told german politicians that they would never be able to win the war

Question 5

what was ludendorff’s advice to the kaiser?

Answer 5

he said the british, french and americans might treat germany fairly if they were a more democratic country; the kaiser should share some of his power with the reichstag

Question 6

what did the kaiser allow to happen following ludendorff’s advice?

Answer 6

he allowed the main political parties to form a new government

Question 7

did the formation of a new government calm the people?

Answer 7

no, the changes came too late to satisfy and some thought the kaiser should give up the throne whilst others talked of overthrowing him in a revolution