when was the Kiel Mutiny?
November 3rd 1918
what happened during the Kiel Mutiny?
German sailors mutinied instead of following orders to attack British Royal Navy
What did the mutiny spark?
rebellions all over the country
when did Kaiser Wilhelm abdicate?
9 November 1918
Why did Kaiser Wilhelm abdicate?
When The Allies offered Germany peace, they had one strict condition. Germany should become democratic and the Kaiser should abdicate
why was the government called ‘‘November criminals’’?
because they signed an armistice behind the army’s back. Known as the stab-in-the-back theory (Dolchstasslegende)
Who is Friedrich Ebert?
leader of Social Democratic Party (SDP)
Who power over Germany after the Kaiser’s abdication?
Friedrich Ebert, who became the Chancellor
Why did Ebert and his party meet in Weimar?
Berlin was too unsafe after Spartacist uprising
When was the the new constitution signed?
August 1919
what were the strengths of the Weimar Republic?
a genuine democracy
Power of the Reichstag
A Bill of Rights
what was the bill of rights?
Guaranteed every German citizen freedom of speech, religion, and equality under the law
what were the weaknesses of the republic?
proportional representation
Article 48
why was proportional representation a weakness?
because each party got the same percentage of seats in the parliament as votes it received in an election. A lot of small parties in parliament making it difficult to pass laws and led to weak and short-lived governments
article 48
gave the president the power to act without parliament’s approval in an emergency
why was article 48 a weakness?
Did not define what ‘emergency’ was so the power was overused, which weakened Germans’ confidence in democracy
when did the Spartacists rebel in Berlin?
5-12 January 1919
who led the Spartacist uprising?
Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht
who are the Spartacists?
left-wing communists
who defeated the Spartacist rebels?
The Freikorps
Who are the Freikorps?
Right-wing nationalists
what happened in the aftermath of the Spartacist uprising?
communist workers’ councils took power all over Germany, and a Communist People’s Government took power in Bavaria
When was Luxemburg and Liebknecht arrested?
15 January 1919
Who killed Luxemburg and Liebknecht
the Freikorps
when did the Freikorps defeat all Spartacist uprisings?
By May 1919
Why did the Freikorps disband?
Due to terms of treaty of versailles
when did Dr Wolfgang Kapp lead a Freikorps takeover in Berlin?
13 - 17 March 1920
How was Kapp defeated?
when the workers in Berlin went on strike and refused to cooperate with him
The Kapp Putsch
A failed coup led by Wolfgang Kapp and supported by nationalist and paramilitary groups, it sought to establish a right-wing government.
When did Gustav Stresemann become Chancellor?
August 1923 during the hyperinflation crisis
Why did France and Belgium send troops into the Ruhr?
Because Germany defaulted on reparation payments
How did Germany react to the occupation of the Ruhr?
The German government ordered a passive resistance
what is passive resistance?
workers refusing to work or cooperate with foreign troops and in return the government would pay their wages
How did the French respond to the passive resistance?
They shot or expelled the workers
Who were the Black Reichswehr?
a nationalist group
How did Stresemann end hyperinflation? (4 points)
calling off passive resistance in the Ruhr
promising to pay reparations again
introducing a new currency - the rentenmark
reducing the amount of money the government sent
When was the Dawes Plan proposed and agreed?
Proposed April 1924, agreed September 1924
When was the Young Plan proposed and agreed?
Proposed August 1929, agreed January 1930
Locarno Treaties 1925
October 1925 Germany, France, and Belgium agreed to respect their post-versailles borders, whilst Germany agreed with Poland and czechoslovakia to settle any border disputes peacefully
How did Germany become a permanent member of the League of Nation Council?
by signing locarno treaties germany showed that it was accepting the Versailles settlement and later accepted as permanent member of the Council
Kellogg-Briand Pact 1928
62 countries signed up, committed its signatories to settling disputes between them peacefully
The Dawes Plan
a plan to restructure Germany’s reparation payments