The Weimar Constitution Flashcards
What was set up to temporarily lead after the Kaiser’s abdication?
The Council of People’s Representatives
Who was allowed to vote for the new National Assembly? How many voted?
Everyone male or female over the age of 20. 83% of those eligible.
What was the new National Assembly responsible for?
Drafting a constitution for the new republic
When were the elections held for the new National Assembly?
19th of January 1919
What were the results of the vote?
SDP- 40%
Centre Party- 20%
Mostly non-extreme, moderate parties
When and where did the first National Assembly meet?
February 1919. Met in Weimar (town 250km from Berlin) due to unrest Berlin- why the new government became known as the Weimar Republic.
When was the new constitution agreed? What did the constitution set out?
31st July 1919.
Set out how the government should operate and it’s structure.
Features of the President (4)
- head of state (Weimar Republic)
- elected by the people every seven years
- played no part in day-to-day politics
- had some important political powers- in charge of army and chose the chancellor
Features of chancellor (5)
- chosen by president
- head of government
- chose all government ministers
- member of and led the Reichstag (German parliament)
- made important decisions
Features of the parliament
- made up of two houses: the Reichstag and the Reichsrat (normally, all laws had to pass through both houses)
Features of Reichstag (3)
- the more powerful of the two houses
- controlled taxation and policy
- directly elected by people every 4 years
Features of Reichsrat (2)
- also elected every 4 years
- represented regions of Germany - each region sent certain number of representatives, depending on its size
Features of electorate (1)
- all men and women aged 20 or over
Strengths of the constitution (3)
- Democratic: Article 1 confirmed Germany as a democracy
- most advanced democracy in Europe as both men and women could vote from the age of 20
- seats in Reichstag chosen by proportional representation (number of seats proportional to number of votes- one representative for every 60,000 votes)
- Designed to provide balance between the powers
- president chose chancellor, rather than party with most votes. Could also dismiss parliament if believed weren’t doing a good job
- chancellor decided which laws should pass, but these voted on in Reichstag. Reichsrat could delay laws if believed to be unfair
- president in charge of army- minority parties couldn’t start a war without consulting president
- Local governments
- local governments held traditional powers such as control of policing and schools
- were elected
- each of 18 regions had local government- ‘Lander’
Weaknesses of constitution (3)
- Coalition governments
- due to proportional representation, many small parties won seats in Reichstag (29 in 1920s). only way governments could be formed was by several parties joining together as coalitions
- coalition partners had to compromise- lack of clear, strong policies
- frequently argued and fell apart (9 coalition govs 1919-1923)
- Weakness in a crisis
- lack of strong single-party gov was problem during a crisis when quick decisions needed
- solution was Article 48- allowed President to give control to chancellor- too much power
- by 1930, the chancellor relied regularly on president to pass laws, bypassing democratic rules
- made constitution seem weak- made people think a single, all powerful leader was better than a parliament
- Based on division and violence
- even though vote given to electorate, felt that government didn’t actually represent them as votes spread between dozens of parties
- gov used army and force to put down riots in Berlin
- army generals and judges same as served Kaiser- opposed Weimar Republic
- extreme parties (communists, nationalists) elected to Reichstag - opposed democracy and Weimar Republic, always undermining parliament
