Studied by 12 people
what were the left wing parties of Weimar
SPD - socialist democrats
USPD - independent
KPD - communists
what were the views of the left wing parties of Weimar
greater socio-economic equality
more tax spending on public services
greater worker rights
what were the centre parties of Weimar
DDP + Zentrum - catholics
what were the views of the centre parties of Weimar
Pro-Weimar
Liberal views
what were the right wing parties of Weimar
DVP - The German People's Party
DNVP - The German National People's Party
what were the views of the right wing parties of Weimar
favoured authoritarian leader
low taxation
tradition/conservative views
less equality - monarchists
what did the January 1919 elections state
SPD winning with 38% of the vote
CCP had 20%
DDP had 19%
What was the Bill of Rights
a law stating that everyone had the freedom of speech, right to work, welfare rights, right to property etc.
What was Article 48
an emergency law allowing the president to rule through presidential decree (basically become a dictator in emergencies) - any decrees made under article 48 were reviewed by Reichstag
criticisms of weimar
germany had not much experience in high levels of democracy
article 25 + 48 said to give president too much power
proportional representation made it difficult for coalition governments to last long
gave minority parties (think radical and extremists) the opportunities to gain full government control
What was article 25
allowed the president to dissolve the reichstag at any given moment
supporters of weimar
SPD, Z, DDP and Liberal DVP later in 1920 - with liberal views
Opponents to weimar
Conservative DVP - wanted constitutional monarchy.
Industrial and business owners - felt they gave too many rights to workers, did not serve their interests.
When and what were the Dawes and Young plans
the dawes plan 1924 was a receiving of loans from the USA (800 mil gold marks) to stabilise the economy
the young plan 1929, reduced the amount of money Germany had to pay off and extended the deadline to 58 years
What were the conditions of the TOV
reparation payments - 132 bil gold marks and taking responsibility of WWI
demilitarisation of the Rhineland, as well as restrictions on Germany’s military (only 100,000 soldiers, 6 battleships, no submarines or air forces)
lost territory - West posen and west Prussia to Poland, Saarlands and Lorraine to France
Anschluss banned.
what was the invasion of the Ruhr
germany failed to pay reparations - 1923-25 France occupied the ruhr, seizing their factories, mines, productions of raw materials and goods
how did germany retaliate to the invasion of the ruhr
workers striked and refused to co-operate, Germany paid these workers but that made inflation worse. the invasion heavily damaged german economy
exchange rate from marks to 1 USD 1919 compared to1923
April 1919 - 12 marks for $1
Jan 1923 - 4.2 trillion marks for $1
what main things did chancellor Stresemann suggest to stabilise Germany as a country
called off passive resistance to invasion of Ruhr - reduced reparation payments and calmed situation
began Dawes plan + began to resolve hyperinflation with banker Schacht and finance minister Luther.
intro-ed new currency ‘Rentenmark’ - 1 unit worth 1 trillion of old marks.
Hyperinflation effects of LS (living standards)
those with savings lost them - effected mostly middle class
those with debts had no debts anymore (working class)
maintained employment - good for workers, however wages did not keep up with inflation, bad for workers.
left extremism examples
spartacist uprising 1919 jan - attempt at communist revolution (KPD), diffused by Friekorps immediately
strikes and street violence - contribute to instability
right extremism examples
Kapp Putsch 1920 - Freikorps disbanded, many right wing politicians and soldiers
White terror - 354 political assassinations from right wing
Damaging ideas - stab in back, make democracy look bad
Nazi party
how many political assassinations between 1919-22
in total: 376
right: 354, 326 unpunished, 1 life sentence, 90 total years in jail handed out
left: 22, 4 unpunished, 10 death sentence, 3 life sentences, 250 total years in jail handed out
What was the munich putsch 1923
build support for Nazis, attempt to take control of gov through conservative meeting, Hitler announcing revolution
authorities notified, police stopped putsch
Hitler sentences to 5 years, served 9 months, made Mein Kampf
how did Weimar control extremism
weakness from extremist - Spartacist poorly planned, Hitler’s poor decisions during Putsch
Lack of public support - not widespread support for proper revolution (700K people show distaste in violence in Berlin)
Strengths of democracy
Ebert - ruthless to left extremism, ruled A48 during M.P.
Army crushed left rebellion
Foreign Policy, Dawes plan stabilised Germany
positive features of politics weimar golden years 1924-29
political stability - no putsch or political assassinations, Grand coalition had secure majority 60%
accepted democracy - 1928 election - 76% for pro Weimar parties, low Nazi support with 2.6%
Hindenburg - elected 1925, chose Muller chancellor
positive features of economics weimar golden years 1924-29
1928 - production equalled and nation income 12% from 1913
Dawes + Young plans
inflation + unemployment low
wages rose every years from 1924-30
negative features of politics weimar golden years 1924-29
immature party politics + unstable coalitions. unused parties unable to cooperate, 7 different govs in 1923-29, many didn’t have reichstag support
extremist support - ¼ parties anti-weimar (KPS 10% in 1928)
Hindenburg - supported far right, didn’t like SPD
negative features of economics weimar golden years 1924-29
dependence on US loans, Wall St. + Gt. D. = US pulled out.
Unemployment 1.3mil. + climbing
B + F had better economy
high social tensions between workers and business owners
what is the New Woman
behaved and dressed more relaxed (smoking, trousers)
more independent with careers, less focused on marriage and family
more sexually liberated - more liberal too
what is the Traditional Woman
stayed at home and focused on tending to family and husband
more conservative
weimar artist culture and its impact
Bauhaus inspired architecture
American Jazz was popular - not so fascist
All Quiet on the Western Front - people opposed WWI and its outcome
Metropolis - hope for change in future
what years were the Great Depression
1929-32
how much did national income shrink during the Great Depression
39%
what effect would low national income have on a country, living standards and economy
leads to unemployment, poor living standards due to poverty
gov may cut funds towards public services (like Bruning cut welfare spendings)
political instability may lead to people looking toward parties that seek immediate change, like extremist parties
how much did industrial produce decline by during Great Depression
more than 40%
what effect would low industrial produce have on a country, LS and economy
unemployment + reduced income in industrial sector - low LS due to poverty + income inequality, people unable to afford goods.
dependency on foreign policy + imports
looking toward extremist parties
about how many were unemployed in 1932
over 6 million, compared to 1929 - 1.3 million
how many banks went bankrupt
50,000 around the country, 5 MAJOR banks went bankrupt
what were living standards like during the Great Depression
increased homelessness + unemployment, reduction in welfare spending made matters worse
many middle class lost savings in banking crash, + reduced wages
bank owners went bust
how did hindenburg respond to the Gt D
refused to back SPD chancellor Muller over whether or not to cut welfare spendings - Hindenburg supported the idea
attempted to increase support for new Bruning government using A48 to stabilise him more
What party was Bruning from
the Zentrum Party
How did Bruning respond to the Gt D
known as the ‘hunger chancellor’, cut welfare spendings to end reparation payments
relied on Hindenburg to take measure to stabilise his gov
began a public works scheme
his policies viewed as ‘Too Little, Too Late’ - led the way for Hitler to rise to power
Why did Bruning cut unemployment welfare
he thought cutting benefits would make people more inclined to get a job, therefore, increasing employment levels for the good of the economy
What did schools try to prioritise in their students
civil responsibilities
personal development
teach reconciliation with other nations from WWI
The School Law 1920
insurance that all children receive a standard education for first 4 school years
the four types of Weimar schools
Gymnasium - private school, focused on discipline
Realgymnasium - less prestigious, used integrated curriculum from Gymnasium
Oberrealschule - focused on core subjects as well as languages
Aufbauschule - offer gymnasium style but for poor children.
what were the (important) weimar chancellors
Ebert, Hindenburg, Muller, Bruning, Von Papen, Schleicher
What years was Ebert chancellor for
1919-24
What years was Hindenburg chancellor for
1925-28
What years was Muller chancellor for
June 1928-March 1930
What years was Bruning chancellor for
March 1930-May 1932
What years was Von Papen chancellor for
May 1932-November 1932
What years was Schleicher chancellor for
December 1932-January 1933
how many members were in the Nazi party by early 1933
around 2 million
how many SA members in 1931 compared to
what percentage of votes did the nazi party have in 1928
2.6% - 12 seats
what percentage of votes did the nazi party have in 1930
18.3% - 107 seats
what percentage of votes did the nazi party have by July 1932
37.3% - 230 seats, single largest party in the Reichstag
what percentage of nazi members were working class
31% and 46% of population was Working Class
what people were typically members of / voted for the nazi party
first-time women voters, typically conservative who opposed democracy and weimar.
younger males 2/3 under 40
working class
office workers and self-employed overrepresented
who was the nazi’s head of propaganda
Joseph Goebbels - portrayed hitler as a courageous and credible leader - strong + decisive whilst other politicians weak and unreliable
what was the outcome of the 1932 presidential election
Hindenburg VS. Hitler, Hitler lost but established himself as a great political leader - giving more hope for his party in next presidential election
what propaganda was placed in Working Class areas
messages about bread and work - hitler for the working class people making it seem he could solve their issues unlike Weimar
what propaganda was placed in rural areas
Mostly Anti-semitism
How effective was propaganda in gaining popularity for the Nazi party
in areas where propaganda wasn’t used, people still voted for the party, could be argued it wasn’t so effective
but in places it was used were proven to be the majority of votes
whilst it wasn’t fully necessary, it was useful and somewhat effective
what type of propaganda was used by Hitler and Goebbels
leaflets, rallies, speeches, posters etc
the use of modern tech, radios and film etc. made Hitler appear dynamic and favourable with more forward thinking implying dramatic change from Weimar
When was Hitler appointed chancellor
30 January 1933
who or what was Hindenburg pressured by to appoint Hitler
influential bankers (Schacht) and industrialists (Farben and Krupp)
Von Papen, wishing to be vice-chancellor and ‘control Hitler’
conservative political members and economic elite
threat of KPD growth
What was the vote share for KPD in 1928 compared to 1933
1928 - 3 million
November 1933 - 5.9 million
what factors contributed to the appointment of Hitler
taking advantage of Great Depression and political crisis, make Hitler seem way more appealing than Weimar
Hitler was a charismatic leader
Nazi propaganda
KPD threat
SA violence
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