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• Spartacists

  • Believed in communism
  • Wanted Germany to be run by small councils of soldiers and workers, not by a large parliament
  • Lead by Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht
• Free Corps

  • Lead by Friedrich Ebert, leader of the social democratic party
  • Group of 2000 ex-soldiers
• Spartacist revolt

  • 6th January 1919
  • Spartacists tried to take over Berlin
  • Thousands roamed around the streets, firing guns and trying to take over important buildings
  • Ebert sent the Free Corps to attack and after 3 days of fighting, they recaptured buildings and arrested the Spartacist leaders
  • Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht were beaten then murdered
• Start of the Weimar Republic

  • In late January 1919, Ebert held the election where the Social Democratic party won and Ebert became the new German President
  • Because of the recent violence in Berlin, the politicians met up on 11 February 1919 in Weimar to discuss how to run the country
• The Weimar Constitution

  • Written up in 1919 by German politicians
  • Formal set of rules for how Germany would be governed
  • A far more democratic system than when the Kaiser ruled Germany
  • The Weimar Republic was one of the most democratic countries in the world
• The Constitution of the Weimar Republic - THE PRESIDENT

  • Elected every seven years
  • Controlled navy, army and air force
  • Stayed out of day-to-day running of the country
  • In a crisis, he could rule on his own without getting the support of the Reichstag by issuing special emergency decrees known as Article 48
• The Constitution of the Weimar Republic - THE CHANCELLOR

  • Chosen by the President, usually from the political party with most votes at an election
  • Responsible for day-to-day running of the country, such as law and order, taxation, schooling, and healthcare
  • Must have the support of at least half of the MPs in the Reichstag to introduce new laws
• The Constitution of the Weimar Republic - THE REICHSTAG

  • Discussed and introduced laws
  • Members were elected every four years
  • The voting system used was called proportional representation. The number of MPs each political party had in the Reichstag was based on the number of votes they had. For example, if a party won ten percent of the votes, it was given ten percent of the seats
• The Constitution of the Weimar Republic - THE GERMAN PEOPLE (the electorate)

  • All men and women over the age of 20 could vote
  • Elected the politicians in the Reichstag
  • Constitution guaranteed them basic freedoms, such as free speech