The War Ends

• World War I had a devastating impact on germany

  -Towards the end of the war, people in Germany were undergoing severe hardship. The allies had set up naval blockades which prevented imports of food and essential goods- by 1918, many people faced starvation.

  -Public opinion had turned against Kaiser Wilhelm II and there was class for a democracy. Germany's population was war-weary – they were tired of fighting and wanted an end to the war. There was widespread unrest.
• -In November 1918, some members of the German navy rebelled and refused to board their ships

  -In Hanover, German troops refused to control rioters.

  -A jewish communist called Kurt Einser encouraged a general uprising, which sparked mass strikes in Munich.
• Social Unrest turned into Revolution

  -By November 1918, the situation in Germany was almost a civil war. A  huge public protest was held in Berlin, and members of the SPD called for the Kaiser's resignation

  -Kaiser Wilhelm abdicated(Resigned) on 9th November 1918. On the same day, two different socialist parties, the SPD and the USPD- declared a republic(country ruled without a monarch and power is held by the people via elected representatives.
• Social Unrest turned into Revolution

  -On November 10th, all the state leaders that had been appointed by the monarchy left their posts. New revolutionary state governments took over instead. The monarchy had been abolished and Germany had the chance to become a democracy

  -Germany was made up of 18 states, and each had its own government. The national government decided national affairs, and state governments dealt with more local affairs.
• The signing of the Armistice

  -On 11th November 1918, a ceasefire to end the First World War was agreed. The Allies(Britain,France and the USA) signed an armistice(TRuce) with Germany.

  -The new government didn't think Germany could continue fighting- its people were starving and military morale was low.

  -The armistice wasnt supported by some right-wing Germans, who saw the truce as a betrayal. They believed Germany could still win the war.
• The Socialists set up a Temporary Government

  -After the abdication of the Kaiser, Germany was disorganised. Different political parties claimed control over different towns.

  -A temporary national government was established, consisting of the SPD and the USPD. It was called the Council of People’s Representatives

  -It controlled Germany until January 1919, when elections were held for a new Reichstag(parliament)
• The Weimar Republic

  The Weimar Republic was formed

  -Friedrich Ebert became the first president, with Philip Scheidemann as Chancellor. Ebert was the leader of the SPD, a moderate party of the socialists

  -In February 1919, the members of the new Reichstag met at Weimar to create a new constitution for Germany. The constitution decided how the government would be organised, and established its main principles. This was the beginning of a new period of Germany's history that historians called the Weimar Republic
• The Weimar Constitution made Germany more Democratic

  -The new constitution reorganised the German system of government.

  -President

  -Elected every 7 years

  -Chooses the Chancellor and is head of the army

  -Can dissolve the Reichstag, call new elections and suspend the constitution.

  Reichstag

  -The new German Parliament

  -Members are elected every 4 years using proportional representation

  Reichsrat

  -Second(less powerful) house of parliament

  -Consists of members from each local region

  -Can delay measures passed by the Reichstag
• The Weimar Constitution

  -The new constitution was designed to be as fair as possible. Even very small political parties were given seats in the Reichstag if they got 0.4 percent of the vote or above.

  -The constitution allowed women to vote for the first time, and lowered the voting age to 20– more germans could vote and the German public had greater power
• But the constitution had weaknesses

  -Proportional representation meant that even parties with a very small number of votes were guaranteed to get into the reichstag. This meant it was difficult to make decisions because there were so many parties, and they all had different points of view.

  -When a decision couldnt be reached, the President could suspend the constitutional and pass laws without the Reichstags consent-Article 48 was the president's ability to force through his own decision
• But the constitution had weaknesses

  -This power was only supposed to be used in an emergency, but became a useful way of getting around disagreements that took place in the Reichstag. This meant it undermined the new democracy