Weimar 1919-1933 Flashcards
What was the short-term impact of the First World War on Germany?
Debt worth 144 billion RM
Black market leading to cripplingly high food prices
Agricultural and industrial production collapsed
Morale was low
How did the impact of the First World War impact German society?
Morale was low - Loss of 2 million German men
Stabbed-in-the-back myth emerged as people felt betrayed by the government
What was the stabbed-in-the-back myth and who promoted it?
The view that the military hadn’t lost the war but that Germany’s leaders had
The right-wing
How did Ebert secure stability?
Ebert-Groener Pact (1918) - If the army suppressed revolutionary activity, the government would retain the authority of the army
Stinnes-Leigen Agreement (1918) - Agreement with the unions to end general strikes
USPD left the coalition 1918
What triggered the 1918 Revolution?
Military defeats
Hunger
Mutinies e.g. Kiel Mutiny Nov 1918
What did the 1918 revolution achieve?
Forced abdication of the kaiser and the establishment of the Weimar Republic
What were the benefits and drawbacks of the USPD leaving the SPD coalition in 1918?
Benefits:
SPD and Ebert could act more freely
drawbacks
Increased left wing opposition, ultimately led to the Spartacists uprising
When was the KPD formed?
1918
Details on the 1919 Spartacist uprising?
Over 100,000 workers
Armed communists stormed public buildings in Berlin
Ebert used General Noske and Freikorps to crush the uprising
Rosa Luxembourg and Karl Liebknecht were killed by Freikorps despite being ordered not to
Left-wingers viewed this as the SPD losing its soul
What were the events in Bavaria in 1919?
January
- Eisner’s USPD government lost in the elections and right-wingers shot him
April
- Communists set up an independent Soviet Union in Bavaria which was crushed by the Freikorps and saw many communists shot
Evidence for effective left-wing opposition to Weimar
Spartacists and Bavarian Soviet Union Required Freikorps intervention
Evidence against effective left-wing opposition to Weimar
Spartacists and Bavarian Soviet Union crushed quickly and easily
Losses of large numbers of communists, especially leaders such as Rosa Luxembourg and Karl Liebknecht
What were the results of the 1919 Elections?
SPD were the largest party with 163 seats
76% of the population voted for parties which supported democracy
Evidence for German constitution being democratic
Proportional Representation - 1 person, 1 vote
Abolishing of the Prussian Three Tier voting system
Constitution contained measures such as freedom of speech, religion and equality before the law
Evidence against the German constitution being democratic
Article 48
Unclear as to whether the president or the Reichstag had power
How did the Treaty of Versailles impact the economy
6.6 billion in reparations
Loss of colonies
Loss of key economic regions:
15% of arable land
75% of iron ore
68% of zinc ore
25% of coal
How did the Treaty of Versailles lead to growing right-wing opposition?
War guilt clause 231
Loss of colonies
Reduction in military (army 100,000, 6 battleships, ban of tanks and air force) made Germany feel vulnerable
NSDAP’s use of the Stabbed-in-the-back myth
“November Criminals” signed the treaty
1920 Kapp Putsch
Evidence for effective right-wing opposition
Assassinations of Hasse, Erzeberger and Rathenau
Kahr took control of Bavaria, making it a right-wing haven
Assassinations led to elections in 1920 where the SPD lost seats and they had to form a coalition with the DVP
Evidence against effective right-wing opposition
Lack of support for the Kapp Putsch in 1920 and it disintegrated
How did Wirth hope to lower reparations?
By following a policy of fulfillment to show that they were impossible to pay off
More money was printed, hoping that controlled inflation would make debt easier to repay
Evidence for successful economy to 1924
Low unemployment (0.9%)
Wage rises
Stresemann’s solving of hyperinflation (Rentenmark, Dawes and Young Plans)
Evidence for unsuccessful economy to 1924
Wirth’s “controlled” inflation made Germany vulnerable to hyperinflation
Passive resistance and hyperinflation
Details on hyperinflation
1923
Germany had defaulted on reparation payments
France invaded the Ruhr to seize materials worth the reparations they were owed
Cuno adopted a policy of Passive Resistance
France were also annoyed at the Treaty of Rapallo which saw rstored relations with the USSR
What were time impacts of the hyperinflation?
Right-wingers blamed the demilitarisation of Germany for leaving them exposed to French aggression
Middle classes lost on their savings
Those in debt and exporters gained
