The Spartacist Revolt (Jan 1919)

• The Spartacist Revolt (Jan 1919)
• The Spartacists, led by Rosa

  Luxemburg and Karl

  Liebknecht, were from the

  left-wing Independent Socialist

  Party. They were based in Berlin

  and backed by the Soviet Union.
• They took over a government

  bureau and tried to organise a

  general strike in Berlin.
• Freikorp units were sent to put

  down the revolt.
• The Spartacists were an extreme group led by Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg who aimed to turn Germany into a communist country.
• In January 1919, 50,000 Spartacists attempted to overthrow Ebert and the Weimar Republic. They captured the government newspaper but failed to take any others, or get any support from other left wing groups.
• Ebert used the army (Reichswehr) and Freikorps to put down the rebellion. The Spartacist were defeated, Luxembourg and Karl Liebknecht were murdered. The communist threat ended after the swift and violent put down.
• On 4 January 1919, Ebert sacked Emil Eichhorn, the

  police chief in Berlin, who was popular with the workers.

  On the next day, thousands of workers took to the

  streets in protest. The Spartacists saw this as their

  chance to undermine the government. They called for an

  uprising and a general strike in Berlin and, on 6 January,

  over 100,000 workers took to the streets. They seized

  the government’s newspaper and telegraph offices. The

  Weimar government was losing control of the capital.
• By 13 January, the rebels had

  been driven off the streets. On 16 January, Luxemburg

  and Liebknecht were arrested and killed by Freikorps

  officers. Liebknecht was shot. Luxemburg was struck on

  the head with a rifle butt, shot in the head and her body

  dumped in a canal. For the time being, the left-wing

  communist rebellion had been suppressed.