The Weimar Republic 1918–29

• What happened with Germany and the First World War?

  The First World War had a huge impact on Germany's society, politics and economy.
• How did Germany enter the First World War?

  -Germany declared war on Russia on the 1st August, 1914.

  -After Germany invaded France, Great Britain declared war on Germany on the 4th August.

  -This was followed by the Ottoman Empire (Turkey) joining the war a few months later, in October, where it supported Germany.
• How was Germany affected by the First World War?

  -Germany's debt increased to 150 billion marks.

  -2 million troops and 763,000 civilians dead.

  -Many political groups attempted to seize power, the Kaiser's was abdicated and Germany became a republic.
• What was the German/November Revolution?


  Overthrow of the German monarchy and establishment of a republic in November 1918.
• What caused the German Revolution?

  The German revolution happened due to the economic problems of the war, war weariness and food shortages.
• What was the Weimar Republic?

  Elected following the First World War, the Weimar Republic was Germany's first democratic government. The new government was formed in the town of Weimar, following the abdication of Kaiser Wilhelm II. It lasted from 1919-1933.
• What was the structure of the constitution of the Weimar Republic?

  -The president was the head of state.

  -The chancellor was the head of parliament

  -The parliament which was divided into two houses, the Reichstag and the Reichsrat.

  -The electorate was made up of all men and women aged 21 and over who were eligible to vote for the members of parliament.
• What was the role of the president in the Weimar Republic?

  -Did not take part in the day-to-day running of the country.

  -Had the power to appoint and dismiss the chancellor.

  -Could declare when Germany was at war and controlled the army, navy and airforce.

  -He could use Article 48, under certain circumstances, to overrule his government and make emergency laws if he deemed it necessary.

  -Elected every 7 years by the people.
• What was the role of the chancellor in the Weimar Republic?

  -He was chosen/dismissed by the president

  -He was responsible for the day-to-day running of the country.

  -He could select all the government ministers.

  -He and the cabinet would propose laws to the Reichstag.

  -He was responsible for law and order, taxation, schooling, health care etc.

  -He had to have the support of the majority of the Reichstag to bring in new laws.
• What was the role of the Reichstag in the Weimar Republic?

  -The Reichstag had more power than the Reichsrat.

  -It controlled taxation.

  -There had to be elections to the Reichstag at least every 4 years.

  -It had the power to create laws but the Reichsrat had to agree to them.
• What was the role of the Reichsrat in the Weimar Republic?

  -The Reichsrat had to be elected every 4 years.

  -It could advise the Reichstag on the new laws, but the Reichstag could overrule it.

  -It represented all those regions of Weimar Germany that elected representatives.
• What was Article 48 of the Weimar Republic?

  The constitution of the Weimar Republic included Article 48. This allowed the chancellor to ask the president to take emergency measures without the support of the Reichstag.
• What were the Weimar Republic's constitutional strengths?

  -All Germans aged 21 and over were allowed to vote: very democratic.

  • A party was given a certain number of seats according to how many votes it gained in the election. This was considered fairer for smaller parties.
  • The power of one person or institution would be limited and therefore, they would not have too much power.
  • The chancellor introduced new laws, but they only became laws if the majority of the Reichstag and Reichsrat voted for them.
  • The Reichstag had more power but the Reichsrat could delay passing laws.
• What were the weaknesses of the Weimar Republic's constitution?

  . Proportional representation: no single party won enough seats to form a government on its own, so several parties had to form a coalition governments which often fell apart.

  • Article 48 of the constitution gave the president the power to take emergency measures, by-passing the Reichstag. This could effectively create another dictatorship, in all but name.
  • The leaders of the army wanted the kaiser back and did not support the Weimar Republic.
• What was the Treaty of Versailles?

  - The peace document which officially ended the First World War between Germany and the Allied Powers.

  -Signed on 28th June, 1919.
• What were the military terms of the Treaty of Versailles?

  -Limiting its army to 100,000 men

  -Limiting its navy to 15,000 men, 6 battleships and no submarines.

  -The Rhineland was demilitarised which meant no German armed forces were allowed to enter.

  -No military air force, tanks, armoured care or heavy artillery was allowed.
• What were the financial terms of the Treaty of Versailles?

  -Germany was forced to pay reparations, or compensation, to the Allies for the destruction of land and the death of soldiers in the First World War.

  -The debt that Germany owed was set at £6.6 billion in 1921.

  -Germany had to give up its merchant fleet to Britain as compensation for the ships it had sunk during the war.
• What was the 'war guilt clause' of the Treaty of Versailles?

  Article 231 was the 'war guilt clause' that forced Germany to accept the blame for causing the war. This enabled the Allies to demand reparations or compensation from Germany.
• What were the territorial terms of the Treaty of Versailles?

  -Germany lost all 11 colonies.

  -Two areas of Germany were given a public vote, or plebiscite, to decide whether they would belong to Germany or not. Upper Silesia voted to join Poland. North Schleswig voted to join Denmark.

  -Germany lost 13% of its land in Europe and 10% of its population.

  -Germany was also prohibited from the Anschluss, which meant it could not unite with Austria.
• What was the German reaction to the Treaty of Versailles?

  -The majority of Germans were angered by the treaty and highly resented several of its terms, felt 'stabbed in the back'

  -Germans were given no say in the treaty. They saw it as a diktat, or a dictated peace.

  -The new Weimar government earned itself the nickname the November Criminals because Germans believed they had been betrayed by their government when it signed the Treaty of Versailles.

  -Germany felt further insulted by not being allowed to join the League of Nations until it had proven itself a peaceful nation.
• Why did the Weimar Republic face political challenges in the early years?

  -Signing the Treaty of Versailles made the Weimar Republic unpopular. The belief that the Weimar politicians had 'stabbed Germany in the back' and were 'November criminals' became popular opinion.

  -Extreme left-wing parties wanted a communist government in Germany. They wanted to end capitalism.

  -Extreme right-wing parties wanted a very strong government with a strong army. Some wanted the kaiser back. They hated the Weimar Republic because they saw it as weak.
• What was the Spartacist Revolt?

  -An attempted revolution to overthrow the Weimar Republic by an extreme left-wing group called the Spartacists.

  -5th-12th January, 1919.

  -Led by Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht.

  -Took place in Berlin
• Why did the Spartacist Revolt occur?

  -It took place because Chancellor Ebert sacked the chief of police of Berlin, Emil Eichhorn, on 4th January, 1919. The workers supported Eichhorn so there were protests.

  -The Spartacists used this as an opportunity to stage an uprising

  -They wanted Germany to be run by small councils of soldiers and workers.
• What were the key events of the Spartacist Revolt?

  -The party were joined by a mass demonstration of 100,000 other workers. The Spartacists took over key buildings and the government lost control.

  -However, some anti-communist soldiers called the Freikorps who were not supportive of the Spartacists; Ebert made an agreement with the Freikorps, so long as they crushed the Spartacists.

  -The two sides fought, resulting high losses. The Freikorps were victorious, and Luxemburg and Liebknecht were murdered.

  -The Spartacist uprising had failed, however other revolutions soon followed.
• How did the Weimar Republic react to the Spartacist Revolt?

  -The government needed military support. However, the German Army was too weak, so Ebert ordered them to use the Freikorps

  -The Freikorps were used by the government to crush the Spartacist Revolt. By March 1919, there were approximately 250,000 members of the Freikorps. They were very right-wing and hated the communists.

  -The Freikorps arrested and brutally murdered Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg on 16th January, 1919. Several thousand communist supporters were arrested and killed during the uprising.
• Why was the Spartacist Revolt important?

  -It showed that the Weimar Republic was weak and unpopular.

  -It gave the Freikorps a lot of power as they were allowed by the government to attack and kill the Spartacists without being arrested themselves.

  -The Weimar Republic survived and the German Army had supported it when it was needed.
• What was the Kapp Putsch?

  -The Kapp Putsch was a right-wing uprising against the Weimar Republic.

  -March 1920.

  -Happened in Berlin.

  -Organised by the Freikorps and led by Dr Wolfgang Kapp.
• Why did the Kapp Putsch occur?

  -The Freikorps had grown by 1920 and President Ebert could not control them. In March 1920, the Weimar government announced the Freikorps would be disbanded.

  -The leaders of the Putsch wanted to take over the country, make the army strong again and then recover the lands Germany had lost in the Treaty of Versailles.

  -They deeply resented the Treaty of Versailles for their crippled economy.

  -Some wanted the kaiser to return from exile.
• What were the key events of the Kapp Putsch?

  -The Freikorps reacted to the government's disbanding of the group by marching into Berlin with around 5,000 men.

  -Members of the army refused to fire on them as they were ex-soldiers.

  -The rebels took control of Berlin and they looked to be successful. However, the government was saved by the industrial workers of Berlin who went on strike - as a result the capital came to a halt.

  -With no power, water or resources, it became clear to Dr Kapp that they could not succeed. He fled the country and later died before coming to trial.
• How did the Weimar Republic react to the Kapp Putsch?

  -The government fled to Dresden as Berlin was under the control of the rebels.

  -They asked the public to go on strike which stopped gas, electricity, water and transport services.

  -The rebels fled after realising they could not govern the country.

  -Kapp was captured in April 1922 when he returned to Germany from Sweden, but died while waiting to be put on trial.
• Why was the Kapp Putsch important to the Weimar Republic?

  The Kapp Putsch was important because it showed how unpopular the Weimar Republic was with right-wing parties, and that the army would not support it if the extreme right launched an attack.
• What was the Ruhr Occupation?

  -A period of military occupation by France and Belgium of the Ruhr region in Germany.

  -11th January, 1923 - 25th August, 1925
• Why did the Ruhr Occupation occur?

  -By the end of 1922, Germany stated that they would miss the next reparation payment that was due.

  -In response, the French and Belgians took control of the area because it was Germany's main industrial area.

  -They were then able to take goods or resources from the Ruhr as a form of reparations.

  -The terms of the Treaty of Versailles meant this was legal.
• What actions did France and Belgium take during the Ruhr Occupation?

  -Sent in 60,000 French and Belgian soldiers.

  -Took over factories, mines and railways.

  -Took food and goods.

  -Arrested Germans and 100 Germans were killed.

  -Threw 15,000 Germans out of their homes.

  -They forced over 100,000 protesters to leave the area.
• What was Germany's response to the Ruhr Occupation?

  -The German government ordered its workers in the Ruhr to not fight back.

  -Instead, the German workers used passive resistance. They went on strike. They would not help the French or Belgium troops remove coal or manufactured goods from the Ruhr.

  -France and Belgium brought in their own workers to take their place.

  -The government's halting of production of the largest industrial region in Germany, crippled the country's economy.
• What were the consequences of the Ruhr Occupation?

  -The Weimar Republic responded by printing more money to pay the reparations bill and the striking Ruhr workers.

  -Printing money led to hyperinflation where money became worthless and the price of goods drastically increased. For example, the price of bread in the summer of 1923 was 1,200 marks but by November 1923 it was 428 billion marks!
• What caused the hyperinflation crisis in Weimar Republic?

  To pay reparations and the workers striking in the Ruhr, Germany printed more money. This led to hyperinflation and had a disastrous effect on the economy. The value of the German mark fell and the prices of goods increased.
• What were the economic consequences of the hyperinflation crisis in the Weimar Republic?

  -Many people traded items instead of paying with money

  -Those with savings lost their money.

  -People used the money in other ways, such as burning it for fuel and toys for children

  -People on fixed incomes could not renegotiate their earnings and the elderly on fixed pensions received no increases. This meant their incomes became almost worthless.

  -Many small business owners went bankrupt.

  -Foreign businesses would not accept the worthless currency which led to shortages of imported goods.
• Who benefitted from the hyperinflation crisis in the Weimar Republic?

  -Those with debts found it easier to pay off what they owed.

  -Farmers benefitted from the increase in food prices because people were paying more for food.

  -Foreign visitors benefitted. They could buy more with their money because they could exchange their currency for more German marks. This made the people very angry.
• What was the solution to the hyperinflation crisis in the Weimar Republic?

  -Stresemann replaced the worthless currency with a temporary one called the Rentenmark in October 1924.

  -Eventually the Rentenmark became the main currency in 1924. This was a stable currency that remained for the next 25 years.

  -Stresemann signed the Dawes Plan in 1924 which organised American loans to German banks and businesses and temporarily lowered annual reparation payments to help the German economy recover.