challenges from the right

• Many extreme parties emerged on the right, most notably the German Workers' Party, whose meetings Hitler attended. The major challenge to Weimar came from the Kapp Putsch in March 1920, led by Wolfgang Kapp, the founder of the German Fatherland Party, following government attempts to disband the Freikorps. It was defeated by trade unions calling a general strike, which paralysed public services
• The Kapp Putsch

  • an attempt to overthrow the growing weimar government
  • it involved members of the freikorps when the government tried to break them up
  • 5,000 freikorps marched on Berlin so Ebert ordered the German army to stop the rebellion but the army refused to do anything as they didn't want to act against their former soldiers
• Munich Putsch

  • Bavaria was governed by a conservative Catholic regime.
  • It wanted to unite the nationalist right, which included the Nazi Party, to restore traditional values.
  • Despite some opposition, the plan was for a putsch in Munich and then a march on Berlin.
  • Hitler acted and seized the Bavarian state governor.
  • After initial success, it was defeated by police.
  • Sixteen Nazis and three police were killed; Hitler was arrested, put on trial and sentenced to imprisonment for five years, but was released after just nine months.
• Munich putsch

  • when hitler tried to take advantage of the hyperinflation crisis by trying to launch a revolution in Munich
  • it seemed like the perfect opportunity to take power but poor planning and misjudgement meant failure and imprisonment of hitler
  • hitler hoped to copy Mussolini who had come to power in Italy in 1922
• when did the Munich putsch happen 


  November 1923
• when did the Kapp putsch happen

  march 1920