the Weimar economic crisis and recovery (1918-29) Flashcards

1
Q

what economic crises did the government have to deal with?

A

social welfare
debt and reparations
the Ruhr
hyperinflation

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2
Q

how was social welfare an issue for the Weimar economy?

A

the Weimar government was liberal so it set provided loans to former soldiers as well as pension payments for widows and orphans
this meant that the government was paying a lot for welfare

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3
Q

how much of the population were receiving welfare payments?

A

10%

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4
Q

by 1924 how many people were the government supporting financially?

A

2.5 million Germans

children, disabled, war widows

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5
Q

how much did the government owe by 1918?

A

150 billion marks were borrowed for WW1

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6
Q

what put Germany in further debt?

A

the reparations set out by the Treaty of Versailles

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7
Q

until 1924, what did Germany pay reparations in?

A

wood
coal
railway carriages

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8
Q

what did Germany do to deal with reparations?

A

print more money which led to a deeper state of inflation

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9
Q

what was the London Ultimatum of 1921?

A

stated that if Germany failed to meet reparation payments by 1923, the allies would occupy the Ruhr

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10
Q

why was the Ruhr so important for the German economy?

A

its coal and industries provided a major source of income for Germany

without it, Germany would lose a lot of money

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11
Q

when did the French and Belgians occupy the Ruhr?

A

January 1923

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12
Q

what was the response of the German govt to the occupation of the Ruhr?

A

they stopped paying reparation
they funded passive resistance

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13
Q

what was passive resistance?

A

German workers in the Ruhr were instructed to work slower, strike more often and sabotage

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14
Q

when was passive resistance ended?

A

September 1923 by Stresemann

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15
Q

what had the occupation of the Ruhr lead to in Germany?

A

hyperinflation

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16
Q

what had hyperinflation lead to the creation of?

A

a black market

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17
Q

what happened to trust in currency?

A

the German people lost complete faith in the Mark

instead they looked to alternative currencies

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18
Q

what alternative currencies were used?

A

bartering
Notgeld (emergency money)

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19
Q

who profited from hyperinflation?

A

those with goods to sell

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20
Q

who suffered from hyperinflation?

A

the poor
the govt
anyone with savings

SO PRETTY MUCH EVERYONE

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21
Q

how many jobs did the govt cut to deal with hyperinflation?

A

750,000 jobs

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22
Q

how many Marks in circulation in 1918?

A

33,000

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23
Q

how many Marks in circulation in 1923?

A

17,000,000

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24
Q

when did Stresemann’s coalition government takeover?

A

August 1923

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25
Q

how did Stresemann act quickly and decisively?

A

through the use of emergency decrees
he was able to bypass the Reichstag to get decisions through quickly without the need to debate and discuss

26
Q

why did the Weimar govt not increase taxes and reduce expenditure?

A

would have been passively unpopular and would have led to increased unemployment

27
Q

why was losing control over the Ruhr a massive issue for the German economy?

A
  • could not raise taxes from the area
  • the French did not deliver any of the coal that was mined there to Germany
  • this meant Germany had to import their fuel
28
Q

when did Stresemann replace the Mark?

A

October 1923

29
Q

what replaced the Mark?

A

the Rentenmark

30
Q

what did Stresemann ban?

A

emergency money

31
Q

who oversaw the currency reform in 1923?

A

Hjalmar Schacht

32
Q

what role did Schacht hold in 1923?

A

President of the Reichsbank

33
Q

when did Schacht become President of the Reichsbank?

A

December 1923

34
Q

what effect did the currency change have on German confidence?

A

it restored faith in the German currency
- Germans switched to the Rentenmark and then the prices eventually settled

35
Q

when was the Rentenmark replaced?

A

August 1924

36
Q

what replaced the Rentenmark?

A

the Reichsmark

37
Q

how did Stresemann deal with reparations and their impact on the German economy?

A

the Dawes and Young plans reduced the impact of reparations
brought in loans from America which allowed Germany to recover

38
Q

what was cartelisation?

A

the merging of small businesses with big businesses to ensure their economic survival
prices would be controlled to ensure low costs to allow economic boom

39
Q

what was the biggest cartel in German industry?

A

I.G Farben
composed of various chemical groups

40
Q

what did govt investment in industry lead to in the 1920s?

A
  • better industrial infrastructure
  • factories were rebuilt with mass-production belts
41
Q

what was an issue in Weimar industry which developed through to the late 1920s?

A

employer-employee disputes

42
Q

why were employer-employee disputes more common?

A

workers started to pursue for greater rights and better conditions

owners were trying to:
- extend working hours
- cut wages

strikes and lockouts became more common

43
Q

how did the govt look to deal with employer-employee disputes?

A

they set up the state arbitration

44
Q

when was state arbitration set up?

A

October 1923

45
Q

what was state arbitration?

A

an 8 hour working day was set by the govt
HOWEVER
matters of pay were left up for debate between employers and workers

46
Q

how many cases were taken to arbitration?

A

60,000

47
Q

why was trade difficult for Germany to carry out in the 1920s?

A

poor relationship with their biggest neighbours in Britain and France

48
Q

why was Germany subject to harsher tarrifs?

A

many countries looked to exploit German trade by charging them more due to their involvement in WW1

49
Q

what were Germany’s key exports?

A

steel
chemicals

both were in high demand

50
Q

rise in German exports between 1925 and 1929

A

40%

51
Q

how much of the workforce worked in agriculture?

A

around 30%

52
Q

why did bigger farms fare better than smaller farms?

A

they could afford more innovative technology and use newer farming techniques

53
Q

how powerful were the Elite in preventing agricultural reform?

A

they held a strong position in preventing any reform which may harm their position as a landowner

54
Q

who prevented the 1918 Reich Settlement Law from being passed?

A

Hindenburg

55
Q

what did the 1918 Reich Settlement Law do?

A

make landowners sell land to the government which would then be redistributed out to the poorer farmers

56
Q

how did the mid-1920s Weimar economy function?

A

relied heavily on borrowing and taxation

57
Q

why did the USA look to invest more in Germany?

A

higher interests rates were very attractive

increased the dependancy of Germany on foreign nations

58
Q

why was the Weimar economy flawed?

A

by relying heavily on borrowing, it’s survival was dependant on the status of countries such as the USA
the cost of maintaining the welfare state was becoming too heavy

59
Q

what would the Weimar govt do with the short-loans?

A

SPEND!!!

they subsidised industry, agriculture and social welfare

60
Q

how many unemployed in 1929 and what does this show?

A

1.9 million

shows the Weimar economy did little in creating jobs