the weimar constitution Flashcards
who was the head of the government
the president
how often was the president elected
every 7 years
what did the president have the power to do
- choose key ministers such as chancellor
- overrule the government and make laws by decree using article 48
what was article 48
gave the president the power to act without parliament’s approval in an emergency.
what was an issue with article 48
gave the president the power to act without parliament’s approval in an emergency. However, it did not clearly define what an ‘emergency’ was so the power was overused which weakened Germans’ confidence in democracy.
what was the role of the cabinet and who lead it
to make political decisions , it was lead by the chancellor
who was beneath the government (cabinet) in terms of power
the parliament - made up of the reichstag and reichsrat
what was proportional representation
the parties seats reflected the number of votes received ( if a party got 10% of the votes they would get 10% of the seats in parliament)
how often were the reichstag elected
every four years
how often were the reichsrat elected
every 4 years
who was more powerful the reichstag or reichsrat
the riechstag
what did the reichstag control
taxes
who could vote in elections in weimar germany
all men and women over the age of 20
2 strengths of the weimar constitution
- it was a genuine democracy (all men and women over 20 could vote)
- no one person or group could hold too much power making the constitution strong
2 weaknesses of the weimar constitution
- proportional representation meant that weak coalitions were the only way to gain power and lead germany
- article 48 made it so that the president could bypass democracy
