History(Germany)

• Weimar Republic


  • Suffered from a few major teething problems, and struggled to survive (1918-23)
  • 'The Golden Twenties' - things were on the up as it recovered from earlier problems, but weaknesses remained beneath the surface (1924-28)
  • Came 'crashing down' with the Wall St. Crash and the Great Depression (1929-1933)
• Weimar Republic


  A new government set up in 1918 to rule Germany after the monarchy was overthrown
• Germany had been a monarchy before 1918, with the Kaiser as the ruling monarch
• Germany's defeat in WW1 pushed the Kaiser to abdicate in 1918
• The Allies said they would not accept Germany's surrender unless the Kaiser (who they blamed for starting the war) went
• Chaos ensued, with armed soldiers and factory workers taking control of many German cities and wanting the Kaiser to go
• Reluctantly, the Kaiser was persuaded by his military advisers to abdicate, and overnight Germany went from being a monarchy to a republic
• Weimar Constitution


  • Made Germany the most democratic country in Europe at the time
  • Contained many flaws, and when things didn't go well for the Weimar Republic, its politicians were blamed for creating a weak system of government

  
• Article 48


  A rule which said that in a national emergency, the President could make any law he wanted without having to go through the Reichstag
• Proportional Representation (PR) was used in the Weimar Constitution, but understanding it isn't necessary for the exam
• When he had just taken power, Chancellor Ebert of the Social Democrats signed the armistice, which brought an end to WW1 as both sides agreed to lay down their weapons and stop fighting
• When the peace talks started, Germany wasn't even allowed in!
• Key terms of the Treaty of Versailles, 1919

  • Germany lost 13% of its land, including Alsace Lorraine and the Saarland
  • Germany's army was reduced to a maximum of 100,000 soldiers, and it wasn't allowed to have an air force, tanks or submarines
  • Germany was forced to accept the War Guilt Clause, stating that it was to blame for starting the war
  • Germany lost its empire and all of its colonies
  • Germany had to pay the Allies £6.6 billion in reparations

  
• The terms of the Treaty of Versailles were so humiliating for Germany that it was called the "shameful diktat" by the press
• The armistice and Treaty of Versailles

  Indirectly led to the occupation of the Ruhr and hyperinflation in 1923
• Right wingers such as the Nazi and Freikorps labelled the politicians who'd signed the armistice the 'November Criminals'
• The 'Stab In The Back Myth' said that the politicians of the Weimar Republic had 'stabbed the German army in the back' by signing the armistice and Treaty of Versailles
• Between 1918 and 1923, the Weimar Republic faced constant threats from both left and right-wing groups who didn't support Germany's new government
• The Kapp Putsch in 1920 and the Munich Putsch in 1923 were partly because of the Treaty of Versailles and the 'Stab In The Back Myth'
• In 1923, Germany fell behind in its reparations payments, and the French marched into the Ruhr, Germany's most important industrial region, to seize raw materials as payment
• The Germans in the Ruhr responded with passive resistance, refusing to work, which caused violence between French troops and German strikers and led to hyperinflation
• How hyperinflation affected different people

  • Workers were OK at first, with unemployment benefit rising and wages increasing
  • Rich businessmen could take over smaller companies going bankrupt
  • Those with debts could pay money back at a fraction of the real cost
  • The rich with land, possessions and foreign currency could barter for essentials
  • Old people living on fixed pensions/savings soon found these were worthless
  • The middle classes saw their savings and small businesses destroyed - they were the biggest losers
• In August 1923, Stresemann became Chancellor and is credited with leading the Weimar Republic out of crisis to recovery between 1924-1929, a period known as 'The Golden Twenties'
• Underneath the surface, Germany was still struggling, and Stresemann may have just covered up the symptoms rather than curing the disease
• Exam questions don't tend to focus much on the drawbacks of Stresemann's policies, but understanding these could help with 16 mark questions about the relative importance of his different actions
• The period from 1923-1929 is often known as the 'Golden Twenties' in Germany, when the economy was internationally more stable
• Underneath the surface, Germany was still struggling and there were bad times ahead
• The Dawes Plan made Germany's economy dangerously dependent upon the USA's economy
• The new currency restored confidence in Germany's money, leading to greater spending and investment from foreign businessmen, but it didn't restore the savings of those who had lost them during hyperinflation
• The right-wing resented Stresemann's cooperation with the Allies
• Stresemann's policies were all connected and worked together to help restore stability to Germany after the various problems of 1918-23
• As the currency stabilised


  Foreign investors became more willing to invest their money in Germany
• Increased cooperation with foreign investors

  Led to the Dawes Plan with the USA
• Increased communication with other countries


  Led to Locarno and Kellogg-Briand
• Germany proving they were now peaceful


  Led to Germany's entry into the League of Nations
• Germany's entry into the League of Nations

  Led to the Allies being more willing to reduce some of the worst features of the Treaty of Versailles
• Reduction of reparations in the Young Plan


  Partly led to greater support for the Weimar Republic/moderate parties and less votes for extremist parties like the Nazis and Spartacists
• By 1929, Germany had experienced 5 years of stability due to the loans from the USA (Dawes Plan)
• When the US stock market collapsed in 1929, this had huge consequences for the German economy
• By 1932, 6 million, or 1 in 3 men, were unemployed in Germany