Weimar Republic Flashcards
How did the German people react to the signing of the Treaty of Versailles?
Felt humiliated
Showed how weak they were
Opponents blamed the government
Reinforced the view that they had been stabbed in the back
What happened in the Munich Putsch?
1923 - Nazis planned to take over the government and set up a General Ludendorff as leader of Germany
Hitler and 600 of his SA burst into a meeting where Kahr was speaking and forced him support their plan
Did the Nazis have much success in trying to overthrow the government?
Had not been properly planned
Kahr was allowed to leave the beer hall and withdrew his support the following day
German gov ordered to crush the revolt
Nazis marched to a military base in Munich and were met by armed police and soldiers
14 Nazis killed, leader of putsch arrested and Hitler sentenced to prison for 5 years released after 9 months
Why did the Invasion of the Ruhr happen?
In 1922, Germany announced they couldn’t pay reparations to their Allies for another 3 years. The French didn’t believe this and were determined for Germany to pay.
What problems did the Invasion of the Ruhr cause?
German government told workers not to co-operate with the French
Workers went on strike (passive resistance)
140 Germans killed in clashes with trooper
Workers received money from gov to support their families
Cost gov a lot of money and no money was coming in from the Ruhr, Germany main industrial area
Led to hyper-inflation
By 1923, what was the German marks worth?
German was worthless
By November 1923- one dollar is worth 200 billion marks
Egg costs 80 million marks and a glass of beer is 150 marks
What were the 5 problems the Weimar Republic faced?
- Defeat in the First World War
- Political violence
- Treaty of Versailles
- Invasion of the Ruhr
- Hyper-Inflation
Who were the winner in the hyper-inflation?
People in debt found it easier to pay off their loans
Businessmen found it easier to pay back money they had borrowed to build up their business
Who was affected badly in Hyper-inflation?
Pensioners
People with savings were the biggest losers. The value of what they had save fell drastically
Workers - increased wages did not keep up with rising prices
How did Hyper-inflation affect food? What happened as a result of this?
There were major food shortages because farmers did not want to sell their old for worthless money
There were deaths from starvation.
Some people turned to crime because life was so bad
How did Hyper-Inflation damage the Weimar Republic?
Millions lost their savings, there was widespread poverty
Many people Ben moderate turned against the government
Hard to have confidence in the government
What 5 problems did Stresemann solve?
- Hyper-Inflation
- French occupation
- Germany is not trusted by other countries
- Germany facing massive reparations
- Germany need to rebuild its economy
What were the golden years in Germany?
1924-29; No attempts to overthrow the government
What was the main argument against Stresemann and what he did?
1924-29 was far from Golden
Stresemann policies were short-term solutions
They did not solve them long term
He covered up the country’s problems u
Underneath Germany remained weak and unstable
Describe Stresemanns first solution about introducing a new currency the result. What were still some of the problems?
Replaced old money with a new currency called the Rentenmark
Old notes were recalled and burned
Result; The new currency was quickly accepted by the German people. Inflation was brought under control
However; German people never forgot hyper-inflation; people who lost their savings were never compensated. They felt cheated and they blamed the Weimar Republic
Describe Stresemanns second policy about Persuaded the French to leave the Ruhr? What was the reusult? What problem was there still?
Called of passive resistance because it had not forced the French from the Ruhr and was causing serious economic problems
The French left the Ruhr
Was an unpopular policy in Germany, especially amongst right-wing extremists. They claimed it was a sign of weak government
Describe Stresemann third policy about improving Germany’s relationship with other countries? What was the result? What problems were their still?
He decided to co-operate with other countries in Europe
Some Germans thought that Stressmann was weak. By saying that Germany would not try to regain the land it had lost once again ‘ given in ‘ to France
Some Army generals believed that Stresemann should have built up the army instead and tried to regain by force the land it lost in TOV
What did Stresemann do in 1925 to improve relationships with other countries?
Signed the Locarno Pact with Britain, France, Belgium and Italy. They promised not to invade one another
What did Stresemann do in 1926 to improve relationships with other countries?
Joined the League of Nations. It was given great power status which meant that it had a say in any major decisions
When was the Locarno pact made and between which countries?
Britain .France, Belgium and Italy and Germany
Promised to not invade each other
In 1925
When did Germany join the League of Nations
In 1926
Describe Stresemann 4th policy about continuing to pay reparations? What problems did they still face?
Stresemann promised to pay reparations
The Dawes plan and the young plan were hated by many Germans who thought that Germsny should not have to pay reparations at all. Even under the young plan, they would still be paying by 1988
What did Stresemann do in 1924 to help out Germany in paying Reparations?
The Dawes Plan - Gave Germany longer to pay Allies
What did Stresemann do in 1929 to help out Germany in paying Reparations?
The young plan - lowered reparations from 132,000 million marks to 37,000 million
