weimar republic

• The Structure of the Weimar Republic

  The Weimar Republic faced a number of difficulties in the 1920s and 1930s. You could say that in times of hardship, the government was unpopular, and in times of prosperity (success), it was popular.
• weimar republic

  to set up the new republuc away from the unrest in Berlin, politicains moved to weimar, where a new Government was created
• the structure of the weimar republic

  • the head was the president and would change every 7 years
  • the president had the power to choose key ministers i.e the chancellor
• parliament

  • beneath the government was parliament
  • parties were given proportional representation
  • reichstag and reichsrat were elected every 4 years
  • reichstag controlled tax
  • reichsrat represented each region of germany
• electorate

  • beneath the parliament was the electorate~
  • men and women 20+ could vote
• The Weimar Constitution

  According to the constitution, all men and women over 20 were eligible to vote in elections. The new constitution was drawn up by a Jewish man named Hugo Preuss.
• strengths

  • genuine democracy
  • no person or group could hold to much power
• weaknesses

  • proportional representation
  • strong german states held power through reichsrat
• The Treaty of Versailles

  The terms of peace were agreed in the Treaty of Versailles, in 1919. The German people believed the treaty was diktat (a dictated peace) and that it was unfair.
• General terms of Versailles

  • Germany accepted blame for the war (Article 231, the ‘War Guilt Clause’).
  • Germany must pay £6.6 billion in reparations (payments to the victors) to the Allies.
  • This meant a huge loss of land in Europe and all their German colonies.
  • Germany lost 13% of its land and 12.5% of its population.
• Military terms of Versailles

  • Military restrictions, which included having a maximum of 100,000 soldiers, 15,000 sailors, 6 ships, 0 submarines and 0 armoured vehicles.
  • The demilitarisation (removing military from an area) of the Rhineland.
  • Not being able to join with Austria.
• resentment of versailles

  some germans felt stabbed in the back
• Public opinion

  • The historian James Hawes says 'Germany should have won the war'. Germany was usually the first country to develop new weapons
  • This made the terms of Versailles even harder to accept.
• Political Changes and Unrest in the Weimar Republic

  In its early years, the Weimar Republic struggled to cope with the pressures of the Treaty of Versailles. Already unpopular, the Weimar Republic needed to prove that democracy could be a success. Between 1919 and 1923, there were 376 political assassinations.
• Challenges from the left - Spartacist Uprising

  • The Spartacists were a Communist group supported by the Soviet Union. They were led by Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht.
  • In January 1919, the Spartacists staged a revolt (rebellion) in Berlin and hoped to lead a general strike. The ultimate aim was to overthrow the Weimar Republic.
  • Ebert used a right-wing (conservative) group of former soldiers, called the Freikorps, to stop the uprising.
  • He recognised the need to use political extremist (holding extreme views) groups against one another.
• Key challenges from the right - Kapp Putsch

  • In March 1920, the Freikorps in Berlin staged a rebellion. Wolfgang Kapp was the leader of the Freikorps in this rebellion.
  • The aim was to seize control and stop the Weimar democratic system.
  • The putsch failed because German workers went on strike. This forced Kapp to flee.
  • Wolfgang Kapp was a nationalist German civil servant. Some people believe that Kapp was a puppet for General Ludendorff, although this is unconfirmed.
  • One unit in the Kapp Putsch had swastikas on their helmets.
• Background of the Munich Putsch

  • The second challenge from the right was the Munich Putsch in 1923.
  • The National Socialist German Worker’s Party (NSDAP), also known as the Nazi Party, staged the Munich Putsch.
  • Hitler had been introduced to Ludendorff by Rohm, the leader of the SA.
  • Adolf Hitler and Ludendorff (the general who told the Kaiser to abdicate in World War One) led the putsch.
  • The Nazis thought the Weimar Republic was weak because of the economic crisis in 1923.
• The Munich Putsch

  • In November 1923, the Nazis entered a meeting of the Bavarian government. Hitler demanded the government’s support.
  • The Nazis took control of the local police and army headquarters. But Ludendorff secretly let the government leaders go.
  • The next day, Hitler marched on Munich to declare himself President of Germany.
  • But the state police met the Nazis. They arrested Hitler, who received a 1-year sentence of 'fortress arrest'.
• Hitler's imprisonment

  • Hitler used his trial for publicity to spread the Nazi message.
  • In prison he wrote his bestseller, 'Mein Kampf', which outlined his political objectives.
  • Most importantly, the need to destroy democracy, the need for Lebensraum (to expand German territory to house the population), and the inferiority of the Jews.
  • Hitler realised he needed to reorganise the Nazi party to gain success
• 'Mein Kampf'

  • Hitler wrote 'Mein Kampf' in prison.
  • He spoke of the 'need' to destroy German democracy, to increase Lebensraum (living space) to house Germans, and spoke of the 'inferiority' of the Jews.