Willy Brandt Flashcards
What was the FDP/SPD Coalition called?
A progressive coalition.
What was Brandt’s background?
Was the mayor of West Berlin at the time of the raising of the Berlin Wall - understood the disruption caused by the division of Germany.
What was Brandt elected on? When?
251 votes to 249 votes - October 1969
What did Brandt promise?
To ‘dare more democracy’ and to be the ‘Chancellor of domestic reform’
What happened in June 1972?
Finance minister Schiller could not accept Brandt’s policies and resigned in June 1972 - Helmut Schmidt took over.
What happened in April 1972?
Brandt survives a vote of no confidence by two votes - it later emerge that these had only been obtained by bribery.
Why did some coalition deputies defect to the CDU/CSU?
Because of “Ostpolitik”
How did Brandt improve education?
RSLA to 16 - grants for poorer students to attend university - education spending increased.
How did Brandt improve employment and social welfare?
Job creation schemes increased - Factory Law (1972) increased workers participation in decision making - social housing budget increased by a third - pensions increased by 5% - sickness benefits increased by 10%
What liberalisation did Brandt introduce?
Voting age lowered to 18 - censorship and laws against homosexuality and abortion relaxed - criminal law reformed with greater emphasis on rehabilitation over punishment
What was Ostpolitik?
A series of treaties with the Eastern bloc re-establishing mutual recognition and co-operation. Other symbolic actions e.g. kneeling at the Warsaw Ghetto Memorial (Dec 1970)
What were the consequences of Ostpolitik?
Brandt was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1971.
November 1972 election turned into a referendum on Ostpolitik. SPD won the biggest victory in its history, becoming the strongest party in the Bundestag.
What economic difficulties did Brandt face?
Inflation continued to rise after 1972 and Brandt struggled to control it.
Oil crisis in 1973 made inflation worse
Series of strikes and conflicts with the unions also made situation worse.
What student opposition did Brandt face?
The baby-boomer students accused their “parental generation” of being outdated and old-fashioned and even of having a Nazi past. Many were willing to embrace more extreme socialist ideology (such as Maoism), and public heroes (such as Ho Chi Minh, Fidel Castro and Che Guevara), while living a looser and more promiscuous lifestyle.
What were the consequences of Brandt’s measures to deal with terrorism?
Drew opposition from some younger members of the party - the Jusos.
