Munich Putsch/ Beer Hall Putsch 1923

• Munich Putsch 1923

  • The Beer Hall Putsch was a failed attempt by Hitler and his followers to overthrow the Bavarian government.
• • Hitler planned to kidnap Bavarian leaders, including Gustav von Kahr, and use Erich Ludendorff as a figurehead for a march on Berlin.
• • Hitler interrupted a speech by von Kahr in a Munich beer hall, demanding support for his coup.
• • Ludendorff convinced the leaders to initially support the march, but Hitler’s absence led to failed attempts to seize government buildings.
• • The Bavarian leaders withdrew support, and the putsch was crushed by military forces.
• • A confrontation in Munich led to deaths on both sides, and Hitler was arrested two days later, charged with treason.
• Hitler's trial

  • During the trial, Hitler argued that he had been forced to act to save the German people from a failing Government.
  • Hitler was found guilty and sentenced to five years in prison but was released after only nine months.
  • Hitler used the time in prison to write his book Mein Kampf, in which he outlined his fascist ideas and plans for changing German society.
  • The failed putsch showed that there was a great deal of opposition to the Weimar Government which Hitler took advantage of in the following years.