To what extent had Germany recovered by 1929? Flashcards
When was the year of crisis?
-1923
What were the political issues facing Germany?
-high profile uprisings eg Kapp and Munich Putsch->threats to democracy
-proportional representation ->allows a voice to extremist groups like KPD
-coalitions led to an unstable government
-association with the Armistice and the Treaty of Versailles made Weimar unpopular
How did Germany try and solve its political issues?
-the Weimar Republic became more stable->dominated by 2 parties (SDP and DVP) due to public support of democracy
-Hindenburg elected president and he was an ex army leader and represents authoritarian->people in Germany wanted this->he was highly respected due to his war service
Where the solutions to help political recovery successful?
-in 1928 Nazis had 3% of seats in the Reichstag->demonstrating that there had been no attempts to get rid of extremism
-proportional representation remained unchanged
-coalitions continued thought they were longer lasting
-Hindenburg was not supportive of Weimar democracy->demonstrates that democracy was not fully accepted
What were the foreign diplomacy (relationship with other countries) issues facing Germany?
-Treaty of Versailles->left Germany isolated from the rest of Europe and America->banned from joining the League of Nations, limited defence capabilities, limited trading opportunities
-occupation of the Ruhr region
How did Germany try to solve the foreign diplomacy issues?
-League of Nations allowed Germany to join in 1928
-Kellogg Briand Pact 1928
-Dawes Plan 1924
-Locarno Pact 1925
What was the impact of Germany joining the League of Nations to try and solve their foreign diplomacy issues?
-League of Nations allowed Germany to join in 1928->provided alliance to support->extremist parties were angered because they saw it as an extension of the Treaty of Versailles
What was the impact of the Kellogg Briand Pact to try and solve their foreign diplomacy issues?
-Kellogg Briand Pact 1928->could build Germany’s international strength and standing->agreed not to use war to end international distributes which gave Germany time to recover->not all Germans agreed with it because it didn’t remove all the Treaty of Versailles restrictions
What was the impact of the Dawes Plan to try and solve their foreign diplomacy issues?
-Dawes Plan 1924->first 5 years of reparation payments were fixed in accordance with Germany’s ability to pay->France and Belgium had to wait to be paid for the damages of WW1
What was the impact of the Locarno Pact to try and solve their foreign diplomacy issues?
-Locarno Pact 1925->allowed Germany to keep existing borders with Belgium and France which led to peace->demilitarisation of Rhineland was made permanent
-Treaty of Berlin with the USSR (Russia) 1926->increased military cooperation, opened up the possibility of a larger commercial market and reaffirmed the German-Soviet Treaty of Rapallo->placed even more pressure on Poland to give way to German demands about frontier changes
What were social issues facing Germany?
-poor quality of life
-living conditions
-Dolchstoss/Stab in the back theory
-unemployment
What were the economic issues facing Germany?
-Treaty of Versailles->6.6b reparations
-hyperinflation (1923) led to loss of savings->occupation of the Ruhr led to hyperinflation
What was the impact of cutting government expenditure in trying to improve the economy?
700,000+ employees sacked
->helped the government make more money->over 700,000 people were now unemployed
What was the impact of introducing a new currency in trying to improve the economy?
-new currency introduced by Schacht in 1923 (Rentenmark)-> helped solve hyperinflation but many people lost their savings
What was the impact of the Young Plan in trying to improve the economy?
-Young Plan 1924->lowered the reparations Germany had to pay based on what year and Germany’s economic stability at the time-> France and Belgium had to wait to get the money from Germany which would help them pay for the damage caused by WW1
What was the impact of the Dawes Plan in trying to improve the economy?
-Dawes Plan 1924->first 5 years of reparation payments were fixed in accordance with Germany’s ability to pay->America loaned Germany money which helped Germany rebuild their economy->it was still a lot of money for Germany to pay and Germany was just recovering from hyperinflation->America could recall loans with a months notice
What was Stresemann’s famous quote about the Golden Years?
-Germany was ‘dancing on a volcano’
-during the Golden Years many Germans were having good times and partying and enjoying themselves more
-the German government didn’t have to worry about paying reparations
-however the Wall Street Crash happened in 1929 which ended the Golden years
When was the Wall Street Crash?
1929
What were the economic issues facing Germany?
-the Treaty of Versailles->6.6B reparations
-hyperinflation in 1923 led to loss of savings
-occupation of the Ruhr led to hyperinflation
What were the positive and negative impacts on economic recovery when they cut government expenditure?
-over 7,000 made unemployed
+it helped the government have more money
What were the positive and negative impact on economic recovery on introducing the new currency (Rentenmark)?
-introduced by Schacht in 1923
+helped solve hyperinflation
-many people lost their savings
What were the positive and negative impacts on economic recovery with the introduction of the Young Plan in 1929?
+lowered reparations Germany had to pay based on what year and Germany’s economic stability at the time
-France and Belgium had to wait to get the money from Germany which would help them pay for the damage
What was the Young Plan and when was it?
-1929
-reduced the total amount of reparation payments demanded of Germany to 121 billion gold marks, almost $29 billion, payable over 58 years
What were the positive and negative impacts on economic recovery with the introduction on the Dawes Plan in 1924?
+Germany didn’t have the pressure to pay the reparations and could focus on rebuilding the economy
-it was still a lot of money for Germany to pay and Germany was just recovering from hyperinflation
-America could recall loans with a months notice
