The Weimar Republic Flashcards
Who temporarily became the leader of Germany after the Kaiser abdicated?
Friedrich Ebert, the leader of the SPD.
What was one of the first actions Friedrich Ebert took as leader?
He signed an armistice to end the First World War.
What is an armistice?
An agreement, or truce, to stop fighting.
Give 5 orders Ebert gave after signing the armistice:
-Improvements to working conditions
-Help for the unemployed
-Improved housing
-More food supplies
-Freedom of speech and religion
What type of Republic did Ebert declare Germany would be?
A democratic republic.
What was the Spartacus League?
One of the political groups in Germany.
What political idea did the Spartacists believe in?
Communism.
Other than communism, what else did the Spartacists want?
They wanted Germany to be run by small councils of soldiers and workers, not by a large parliament.
When did the Spartacists try and take over Berlin?
6th January 1919.
How did Ebert respond to the Spartacist’s revolt in Berlin?
He sent in a group of 2000 ex-soldiers, known as the Free Corps, to attack the Spartacists.
How many days of brutal street fighting was there during the fight between the Spartacists and Free Corps?
3 days.
Who did the Free Corps arrest?
They arrested Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht, the Spartacist leaders.
What did the Free Corps do to the arrested leaders?
They beat them then murdered them.
What ended the Spartacist revolt?
When the 2 leaders, Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht, were murdered.
When did Ebert become the new German President?
In late January 1919
Give 3 beliefs in Communism:
-Everyone is equal
-No private property and the government (or council) runs farms and businesses
-Little need for money and laws because everyone lives a simple life, sharing all they have with others
Who were the Free Corps?
A group of ex-soldiers who had recently come home from the First World War.
Who did the Free Corps hate?
They hated the Spartacists (and all communists) as they blamed them for stirring up trouble near the end of the war.
When did Germany’s politicians draw up the Weimar Constitution?
1919.
What was the Weimar Constitution?
A formal set of rules for how Germany should be governed
What was proportional representation?
Lots of different political parties were able to win seats in the Reichstag.
Why did proportional representation not work?
It made it difficult to make decisions and introduce laws as sometimes there were over 20 different political parties all arguing over a single issue. With no majority, the leading party had to do deals with smaller groups in order to get anything done, again, this made law-making a very slow process.