Weimar republic challenges and constitution

• Leading members of Germany's Government, including Ebert, signed the November Armistice, providing an immediate end to the war. They became known as the November Criminals for signing the Armistice & Treaty of Versailles as many Germans felt they had been stabbed in the back


  11th November 1918
• A new constitution (set of rules) was drafted up in the town of Weimar in January 1919 – the Weimar Republic was born


  January 1919
• Challenges to the new Weimar Government


  • Kaiser Wilhelm II left Germany in such a hurry that a new government had not been discussed, let alone elected
  • The lead was taken by Friedrich Ebert (of the Social Democratic Party). This was the largest single party in the Reichstag (German Parliament)
  • But he was challenged by other parties in Germany
• Political groups with ideas about how Germany should be run

  • Spartacists (Left wing - Communists who wanted to overthrow the new Republic)
  • Social Democrats (Moderates who wanted Democracy, free choice and peace)
  • Freikorps (Right wing - Hated the new Republic. Felt Ebert had betrayed them in ending the War. Wanted the Kaiser back)
• The Spartacists Revolt! Members of the Spartacist movement attempted a revolution to overthrow the Weimar Government. Liebknecht and Luxemburg were the leaders of the movement and they took over important buildings like the newspaper headquarters. 50,000 workers went on strike in support. The newly formed Weimar Government reacted promptly and brutally. The army was deployed to bring the revolution to an end, and these were aided by 2000 Freikorps, a paramilitary group consisting of former servicemen. Over 100 workers were killed. Order had been restored to the streets of Berlin by the 13th January 1919. Both Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht were killed whilst in police custody


  1st January 1919
• The New Weimar Government met. Elections took place on 19th January 1919 and Ebert became President


  6th February 1919
• The Freikorps Revolt! (The Kapp Putsch) The Putsch (rebellion) was led by right-wing nationalist Wolfgang Kapp. The rebels (5000 Freikorps) took over Berlin and tried to bring back the Kaiser. The army refused to attack the rebels. However, the Kapp Putsch came to an end when the workers of Berlin called a general strike and brought the city to a standstill. There was no gas, water, electricity or trains. The Government again needed help – it was weak and unpopular!


  March 1920
• Weimar Constitution


  A new constitution was created in 1919 to decide how Germany should be run
• Strengths of the Weimar Constitution

  • All Germans had the right to vote
  • Each state had its own parliament giving individual region its say
  • Germans had civil rights such as freedom of speech and freedom of religion
  • The Constitution was extremely democratic. Proportional representation meant that all opinions were represented
• Weaknesses of the Weimar Constitution

  • The Weimar Republic had many enemies. Those enemies got seats in the Reichstag because of proportional representation
  • Article 48 gave the President too much power. It could be used to run Germany as a dictatorship
  • Proportional representation made it difficult to make decisions
  • German states sometimes tried to overthrow the government
  • There were enemies within the Republic such as judges, police etc
• Proportional representation


  A system used to elect a government where the number of votes cast very closely match the number of seats won by each party in Parliament
• Problems with proportional representation


  • No party ever had an overall majority in the Reichstag. This meant all governments had to be coalitions
  • This led to weak governments who could not agree on policies
  • This proved disastrous in times of crisis (1929-30)
  • Also encourages the growth of extremist parties such as the Communists and National Socialists as they are represented in the Reichstag if they get any votes
• Germans hated the Treaty of Versailles and blamed the Weimar Government's leaders for signing it
• Terms of the Treaty of Versailles

  • Land e.g. Alsace Lorraine (France), Northern Schleswig (Denmark), Saar (League of Nations for 15 years), Danzig made an independent city under the control of the League of Nations
  • Armed forces – 100,000 soldiers, 6 battleships, no air force, Rhineland De-militarised Zone, no conscription
  • Money – reparations, £6.6bn (1921); 42 years to pay it back
  • Blame – Clause 231 (war guilt) forced Germany to accept all blame for starting the war
• Many Germans felt the Treaty was unfair and too harsh
• Invasion of the Ruhr and the Hyperinflation Crisis of 1923


  1. In 1919 the Germans had to promise to pay reparations for causing WWI

  2. In 1921 the Reparations Commission announced that Germany would be required to pay £6.6 billion in annual instalments of goods and money. It managed to make the first payment

  3. In 1922 the German government announced it would not be able to pay and asked for more time. The British government agreed to this but the French government insisted that Germany must pay

  4. In January 1923, 60,000 French soldiers entered the Ruhr (an industrial area of West Germany) to take what they were owed – they took control of factories, mines, steelworks & railways

  5. The Germany was not strong enough to take military action against the French so ordered a policy of passive resistance, meaning Germans would not co-operate with the French

  6. The German workers went on strike and refused to work with the French. Production ground to a halt

  7. During the next eight months, 132 Germans were shot dead & 150,000 sent away from the region

  8. As the factories were not selling any goods or making money to pay the workers, the German Government paid the strikers by printing money & giving it to them