The Weimar Republic 1918-29 🌐

• how much debt was the government in 1918

  150 billion marks
• when was there riots and strikes?

  October 1918
• how many Germans had die from food shortages?

  over 750,000
• when did the kaiser abdicate?

  9th November 1918
• who proclaimed a new German Republic?

  Phillip Scheideman of the
• What were people doing in the revolution after the kaiser abdicated?

  -peaceful protests outside reichstag

  -collecting guns & taking over parts of the city
• who was the leader of the SPD? and new government head?

  Ebert
• what did Ebert and General Groener agree on?

  that government and army work together to keep communists out of power
• when was the armistice signed?

  11th November 1918
• what agreements did Ebert make with the heads of different departments?

  -assured General Groener the army wouldn't be reformed in return for military support

  -told industrial leaders like Stinnes that the Republic wouldn't nationalise private industries

  -promised trade unions leader Legien an 8 hour working day
• Ebert had support from both the left and right wing
• when was the new constitution drawn up?

  31 July 1919
• what were some strengths of the new constitution?

  -universal suffrage

  -civil liberties & freedom of speech

  -proportional representation

  -article 48 emergency decree
• what were some weaknesses of the new constitution?

  -proportional representation led to coalition government

  -article 48 would lead to dictatorship

  -lacked support from people
• what war based challenges did the Weimar Republic face?

  -treaty of versailles 1919 was unpopular with german people (called it the dolchtstoss stab in the back)

  -article 231: war guilt clause

  -army reduced to 100,000 men

  -demilitarised rhineland
• what political challenges did the Weimar Republic face?

  -right wing extremists wanted to return to 1 strong leader

  -elections on the 6th June 1920 because the extreme left & right had 20% of seats each (polarisation)

  -spartscist revolt Jan 1919 from left wing

  -Kapp Putsch March 1920 from right
• what happened in the Spartacist revolt?

  -led by Rosa Luxembourg & Karl Liebknecht

  -workers called general strike

  -100,000 workers on streets

  -weimar called freikorps to shut it down but that showed weakness
• what economic challenges did the Weimar Republic face?

  -couldnt afford to pay reparations so had to stop

  -started hyperinflation in 1923
• what happened during hyperinflation 1923?

  -a loaf of bread cost 200,000 billion marks

  -food shortages

  -rising unemployment

  -extremist parties gained strength
• what happened during the Kapp Putsch?

  -March 1920 opposition from the right wing

  -5000 freikorps marched Berlin

  -rebels soon controlled Berlin

  -government called on workers to strike meaning freikorps had to abandon city

  -showed weakness of government
• What were the three pacts of Stresemanns foreign policy?

  Locarno Pact

  League of Nations

  Kellogg-Briand Pact
• When was the Locarno Pact?

  1st December 1925
• When was the Kellog-Briand Pact?

  August 1928
• What was stated in the Locarno Pact?

  -germany accepted their new border with france

  -the rhineland would be permanently demilitarised
• Why was the Locarno Pact seen as a success?

  -germany could build better relationships with countries

  -they could also renegotiate the treaty of versailles
• why was the Locarno Pact critiqued?


  it was accepting parts of the treaty of versailles that german people didn't agree with
• Why was germany being given a place on the League of Nations a success?


  recognition from other countries, improving their foreign connections
• What was the Kellog-Briand pact?

  A promise that the 62 countries in it would not use war as a way to achieve foreign policy aims
• How did the Rentenbank and Rentenmark help end hyperinflation?


  It kept the economy more stable
• When was the Rentenbank and Rentenmark created?

  November 1923
• When was the Dawes plan?

  1924
• When was the Young plan?

  1929
• What was the Dawes plan?

  -reparations reduced to £50 million a year

  -US banks loaned 25 billion dollars to german industry between 1924 and 1930 (but they could be recalled anytime)
• What was the Young plan?

  -reduced total reparation debt from £6.6 billion to £2 billion

  -germany given a further 59 years to pay

  However the wall street crash meant the plan didn't have time to make an impact
• Unemployment fell from 2 million in 1926 to 1.3 million in 1928
• the length of the working week fell from 50 to 46 hours 1924-1929
• real wages rose 25% from 1925-1928
• from 1925 to 1929 private companies built 37,000 new homes

  however housing shortages
• Unemployment act of 1927 provided Germans with sickness benefits and money during unemployment (60 marks per week)
• 1920 pension law gave 750,000 war veterans and 400,000 war widows pensions