Topic 3: Weimar democracy Flashcards
Why was Gustav Stresemann important?
- Between 1923 and 1929, Stresemann played a leading role in German politics.
- In 1923 he briefly became chancellor, but his main role was foreign Minister between 1923 and 1929.
- He believed the best way to overthrow the treaty was to win the friendship and co-operation of Britain and France.
What was the German political system in 1919?
1) The President - elected every 7 years, controlled armed force, in an emergency could make laws without going through the Reichstag.
2) The Chancellor - appointed by the president from the Reichstag, responsible for day-day running of country, like a prime minister.
3) The Reichstag - voted on new laws, members elected every 4 years through a system called proportional representation.
4) The German people - elected president and member of Reichstag, all men & women over 20 could vote, all adults had equal rights and freedom of speech, freedom to their own businesses.
Which parties supported the Weimar Republic?
- Social Democrats: they were the main party that helped set up the WR, they had lots of support from the working class, they wanted to introduce reforms.
- Centre’s party: their main aim was to protect the interests of the Catholic church.
- Democratic party: mainly supported by middle class, struggled to gain support from workers.
- People’s party: main support came from middle class and industrialists, it also struggled to become popular.
Which parties opposed the Weimar Republic?
1) Extreme left wing party
- Communist party: believed country should run on behalf of
workers, wanted gov to run all farms and businesses for benefit
of the people, believed wealth should be shared equally, no
private property.
2) Extreme right wing parties
- Nazi party: believed Germany should have 1 strong leader,
wanted to ignore the treaty and build a strong army.
- German national party: wanted Germany to return to what it was
like before 1918, when ruled by a monarch.
- Army generals: they served under the Kaiser and didn’t like the
new democratic system of gov.
The Spartacists (1919)
- The Spartacists league was a communist group led by Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht.
- They didn’t trust the new gov and thought they wouldn’t improve the lives of the working class.
- In Jan 1919 workers were protesting, the spartacists tried to turn this into a revolution.
- They hoped protesters would join them and take over building but this didn’t happen.
- The gov ordered the army to stop the uprising, and the army was helped by the Freikorps.
- The uprising was badly planned, the leaders were both murdered, and without them the communist group struggled.
Freikorps - the Kapp Putsch (1920)
- The Freikorps were ex-army soldiers who hated communists.
- In 1920 the Weimar gov said they’d reduce the size of the army and disband the Freikorps, as they had little need for them.
- The leader of the group refused to disband and plan was formed to seize control of Berlin.
- Around 12,000 Freikorps marched to Berlin, the army was asked to stop them but the commander would not give the order.
- The gov was forced to flee Stuttgart.
- The leader of Weimar gov called on the people to not support the Putsch and go on strike.
- The Freikorps was not popular and after 4 days the new leader (Wolfgang Kapp) fled, and Weimar gov returned.
What was the Munich Putsch?
- In 1923 Hitler, the leader of the Nazi party and general Ludendorff attempted the Munich Putsch.
- Hitler believed democracy led to a weak gov, they thought there should be 1 party with 1 leader. Their plan was to take over the gov and set up the general as leader.
- 2000 armed Nazis star marching toward a military base in Munich, they’re stopped by police and Bavarian soldiers from the German army. A shot is fired.
- Ludendorff continues to march towards the so and is arrested as well as Hitler.
- Hitler is sentenced to 5 years but the general none.
- Hitler is released after 9 months, but the Nazi party had almost broken up.
What were Stresemann’s solutions to Germany’s problems?
1) Introduce a new currency: he replaced the old money with a new currency called the Rentenmark. Result - The currency was quickly accepted and inflation was brought under control. However - Germans never forgot hyperinflation, people weren’t compensated and they still felt betrayed by the gov.
2) Persuade French to leave the Ruhr: Stresemann called of passive resistance and promised to keep up reparation payments to France. Result - French left the Ruhr. However - It was a very unpopular solution, and some claimed it was sign of a weak gov.
3) Improve Germany’s relationship with other countries: Stresemann decided to co-operate with other countries in Europe. Result - 1925: Locarno pact was signed, promised not to invade France, Belgium and Italy and vice versa. 1926: Germany joined league of nations, given great power status. 1926: Stresemann awarded Nobel Peace Prize. 1928: Kellogg-Briand pact was signed between Germany and 64 other countries, agreed international disputes to be settled peacefully. However - Some Germans thought Stresemann was weak and believed he should have built up the army.
4) Continue to pay reparations. Result - Dawes plan (1924) gave them longer to pay, Young plan (1929) lowered the amount to under £2000 million. However - Plans were hated by Germans who thought they shouldn’t have to pay reparations.
5) Get help to improve economy: Daws plan saw that they had loan from the USA to boost their economy. Results - Gov improved buildings, US firms set up in Germany, pensions and wages rose, exports increased, welfare benefits increased. However - German economy depended on USA, wages didn’t rise for everyone, unemployment still remained around 1 million, rich people had to pay more tax.
6) Create political stability and unity: Germany was more peaceful, no more attempts to overthrown the gov. Results - Support for extremist groups dropped. However - No single party received enough votes to rule on their own, parties that formed the coalition gov often argued and fell out.
What were the key features of Weimar culture?
1) New faculties: economic boost meant new building were able to be built like swimming pools, sports stadiums and apartment block, these projects created jobs.
2) Architecture and design: German architects produced new styles of architecture and made use of modern materials. However - some Germans didn’t like this new style. They wanted to keep things traditional.
3) Literature: Writers produced novels with strong anti-war messages. However - some writers were critical of the gov and glorified experiences of WW1.
4) Art: Painters portrayed powerful political messages through their art. However - some Germans disapproved of this type of art and thought it to be unpatriotic.
5) Music and cabaret: People loved going to clubs and all restrictions were removed. There was an atmosphere of freedom and experimentation. However - some Germans thought that Weimar culture represented a moral decline and things had gone too far.
6) Cinema: The Weimar period was a golden age for German film industry. However - Some people didn’t approve of some of the movies produced.
7) Theatre: People produced plays about ‘ordinary people’, some directors were communists and aimed to shoe that the lives of ordinary people were just as suitable subjects for operas as stories of heroes and gods. However - Some Germans disapproved that they had constructed their operas around ‘lowlifes’ and saw it as another moral decline in the society.
