Studied by 34 people
Legacy of the first world war (1914-1918)
-Two million German troops died & over four million wounded
-Government debt increased from 50m to 150m marks
-More than 750,000 Germans died due to food shortages
→ This led many to revolt my rioting and striking
Abdication of the Kaiser
9th November- Kaiser refused to abdicate but when denied support from army officers abdicated
10th November- The Kaiser fled to Holland
Strengths & Weaknesses of new Constitution
+No one group or person could have too much power
+Parties had a fair share of seats
+Women and men aged 21+ could vote
-Proportional representation led to unstable coalition governments
-Not the choice of the people- unpopular
-Lack of a strong government led to weakness- president could pass laws without Reichstag consent in an emergency (suspend constitution)- Article 48
Armistice & Revolution 1918-19- impact
Armistice:
-Signed 11th November
-First major decision of Ebert’s new republic
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-Germany republic declared on 9th November 1918
-Berlin streets crowded. Some armed hoping to take over parts of the city
-Scheidemann (of the SDP- largest party in the Reichstag) declared the new republic to the crowds. He was fearful that armed rioters were preparing to declare a communist government in Berlin. So to prevent this he promoted a peaceful transition
Stabbed in the back/Dolchtoss
German people didn’t believe their army lost in the war. Some who opposed the treaty claimed the army was betrayed by politicians for being forced to surrender when they could have won
Unpopularity of Weimar- reasons
-War Guilt Clause (Article 231)- made Germany accept blame for the war → shame
-Reparations (Article 232)- Germany owed 6600 million pounds. Cause hyperinflation & poverty
-Leaders of new republic blamed for signing Treaty of Versailles → labelled as November Criminals & seen as traitors to their country
1923 Hyperinflation- causes & concequences
-Caused by the government printing more money
-Caused the German mark to become worthless
-Some could not afford essentials such as bread
-Some businesses went bankrupt
-Savings became worthless
→ People blamed the Weimar government which made it less popular
Spartacists
January 1919- they took over the government’s newspaper & telegraph bureau to try and organise strikes. The Weimar government sent Freikorps units to shut it down
Freikorps
-Right-wing
-Made up of ex-soldiers who had kept their weapons after WW1
-They had 250,000 members in March 1919
-Organised by the regular army
March 1920- Kapp Putsch
Freikorps troops, fearing unemployment, marched on Berlin. Ebert asked the head of army to resist but he refused. Dr Wolfgang Kapp put in charge by rebels while the Weimar government fled Berlin for safety. To put down the rebels, the government organised trade unions to strike- this caused so much chaos that Kapp could not rule Germany & was forced to flee. The Weimar politicians returned to Germany.
January 1923- French Occupation of the Ruhr
-French troops invaded the Ruhr to take reparations payments in the form of goods
-German workers went on strike.
-80% of German coal, iron and steel reserves were in the ruhr. The occupation was a disaster for Germany
→ Weimar government printed more money to pay strikers and make up for loss of coal, steel and iron production
The Dawes Plan 1924
Charles Dawes’ (American banker) plan to help Germany pay reparations:
-Instalments temporarily reduced to £50m a year
-US banks agreed to make loans to German industry
→ Made the Allies more confident that they would get their reparations payments
Locarno Pact 1925- domestic impact
Agreement between Germany, Britain, France, Italy and Belgium
-Germany had a new border with France → improved relations
-Allies & Germany agreed on the permanent demilitarisation of Rhineland
-Germany membership to the League of Nations was in discussion
Impact:
-Improved relations with France
-Not imposed on Germany (unlike the Treaty of Versailles)
-Increased the popularity of the Weimar Republic
-Boosted confidence in more moderate political parties
League of Nations 1926- domestic impact
New international body- hoped to discuss world problems to avoid war.
Set up in 1920- Germany initially excluded
1926- Germany invited to become a member of the council
Impact:
-Showed Germany’s views counted
-Boosted the confidence held by most Germans in the Weimar government
Kellogg-Briand Pact 1928- domestic impact
Agreement between 62 nations- committed countries to avoiding war to achieve foreign policy objectives
-Showed Germany was a major power again
-Showed moderate political parties could build Germany’s strength internationally
-Increased public confidence in how Germany was being led
Young Plan 1929
Organised by Owen Young & committee:
-Reduced total reparations to £2b from £6b
-Payments made over a longer time- up to 1988
Stresemann- domestic & international impact
-Strengthened the confidence of German people in the Weimar republic
-Reduced support for extremist parties (such as Nazis and communists)
-Increased support for moderate parties
-Reduced the economic hardships of the German people
Rentenmark
November 1923- Stresemann set up the Rentenbank and issued the new currency Rentenmark. Supply of these tightly controlled- value tied to the price of gold so it had real value
August 1924- Reichsbank given control of this new currency- renamed Rentenmark. Hyperinflation was over
Role of America
America loaned Germany money (Dawes & Young plans) so they could pay reparations to Britain and France. Then Britain and France could repay war loans to USA
Reasons for economic recovery
-Industrial output doubled by 1928 & passed pre-WW1 levels
-Employment & trade increased
Wages and work
+Working hours reduced
+Wages rose
+Working conditions improved
-Hyperinflation made employment insecure
-Well-off Germans resented seeing workers benefitting
Unemployment insurance
+3% of worker’s earnings were deducted to be put towards insurance that would give them a basic amount of benefits if they became unemployed or sick
Cultural changes- cinema
-Films internationally popular= 1920
-Expressionism flourished especially in Weimar Germany due to fewer restrictions
-Challenged traditional cinema
Cultural changes- architecture
-Bahaus school- set up by Walter Gropius who wanted to bring together all the disciplines (art, architecture, design, typography, sculpture etc)
-Challenged traditional styles from before the war
Cultural changes- art
-Represented everyday life
-Aimed to make people think/comment on problems- expressionism
-Raw emotion & disaster of WW1
-Otto Dix, George Grosz, Paul Klee
Housing
+15% rent tax was introduced to fund building associations
+Between 1925 and 1929, 101,000 homes were built
-There was still a housing shortage but things had improved
Changes in the standard of living
Living standards improved after 1924, brought about by government funding and policies
Position of women in work
-Most women gave up work after marriage
-Few women secured high status jobs
-Women encouraged to go to university
-Increase in part time work
Position in women in politics
-1918: women earned the vote and could stand for elections
-Marriage= equal partnership
-Article 109 of constitution: men & women had equal rights (including in the workplace)
Note 
Flashcard (135)