Glossary - Topic 1

schlieffen plan

a military strategy used by Germany in WW1 to defeat France then fight Russia

Imperial Germany

Germany was a powerful capitalist empire under the rule of the Kaiser 1871-1918

black market

illegal trade networks supplying prohibited goods

total war

where a nation mobilises all economic, industrial, human, and technological resources to achieve complete victory during a military conflict

autocracy

where one person holds absolute power

constitutional monarchy

where a monarch servees as a symbolic head of state, however their power is strictly limited by parliament

kaiser

title used by German rulers

‘stab in the back' myth (dolchstoss)

post WW1 conspiracy that German army wasnt defeated in battle , but betrayed by civilians and politicians who signed the armistice

Weimar Republic

a democratic, capitalist republic in Germany 1919-1933

president

head of state, elected by citizens

chancellor

head of governmennt, appointed by president

parliamentary democracy

a gov where people elect representatives to a parliament

Reichstag

German parliament during the Weimar Republic responsible for making laws

armistice

a peace agreement to stop fighting

coalition government

formed by multiple political parties working together

Bolshevik revolution

the 1917 seizure of power by Lenin's Bolshevik's overthrowing provisional government to establish soviet rule

proletariat

exploited, wage earning, working class in a capitalist society who sold labour to earn wages

Freikorps

paramilitary groups formed by WW1 veterans to suppress leftist uprisings

constitution

a set of fundamental principles and laws that define how a state is governed

proportional representation

electoral system where partie gain seats in proportion to the number of votes they received

article 48

a provision in the Weimar constitution allowing the president to rule by emergency decree

junkers

conservative prussian aristocratic landowners who dominated 19th century German economics and politics through their significant influence

welfare state

where government takes primary responsibility for the economic and social wellbeing of their citizens, ensuring a basic standard of living from ‘cradle to grave'

antisemitism

hostility or prejudice against Jews

november criminals

German politicians who signed the armistice ending WW1

authoritarianism

a singulr leader holds absolute power

nationalism

a political ideology that emphasises a nations cultture leading to the desire of national independance or dominance

putsch

a sudden violent attempt by a small group to overthrow government without democratic consent

annexation

a country forcibly or legally aquiring territory against inhabitants will

unilateral disarnment

a policy where a state voluntarily reduces military capabilities

diktat

a dictated peace imposed without negotiation

demilitarisation

reduction of a nations military capabilities

anschluss

Nazi Germany’s forced annexation of Austria in 1938 violating internal treaties

reparations

formal payments acting as compensation the defeated country pays the victorious country post war

league of nations

organisation founded in 1920 under Treaty of Versailles to promote world peace, resolve disputes, enforce collective security, and address global issues

social democratic party (SPD)

a centre-left political party founded in 1863 advocating democracy, social and worker rights

great depression

a severe worldwide economic downturn 1929-30

real wages

the amount of goods and services a worker can buy with earnings after inflation

mittelstand

smaller family owned enterprises that played a key role in post war economic recovery

the great inflation

prolonged period of high inflation in the US 1960s-1980s

passive resistance

non violent way of refusing cooperation

hard currency

a globally traded currency that serves as a reliable store of value as its backed by strong economic institutions and commodiities

deficit financing

government borrowing money to cover budget shortfalls to stimmulate economic growth

hyperinflation

an extremely high, accelerating rate of inflation causingcurrency value to plummet

munich beer hall putsch

a failed coup d'etat where Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party attempted to overthrow Bavarian and German federal government

wolfgang kapp

a right winged nationalist prussian civil servant who led 1920 Kapp Putsch

Stresemann's 100 days

Aug-Nov 1923 when Stresemann was chancellor and mad changes to support Germany during crisis

the centre party

a moderate political party that was part of the Weimar coalition and mainly supported by Catholics

pogrom

a violent targeted mob attack by the majority of a population against a minority group

avant garde

describes radical, innovative, experimental individuals or movements that deliberately break from traditional norms

neue sachlichkeit

a cynical realistic way of looking at the world

the dawes plan 1924

a plan to help Germany pay reparations post WW1 → USA loans

the locarno pact 1925

agreements between Germany and other European countries where Germany accepted western borders, annd improved relations

the treaty of Berlin 1926

agreement Germany + USSR promise neutral stance if either attacked by another, improved relations

expressionism

art culture movement that shows emotion rather than reality

SA (stormtroopers)

the Nazis brown-shrted fighting force

volk

‘the people' refers to Germans as a united community

weltpolitik

‘world politics’ refers to Germany becoming a world power, adopted under Kaiser Wilhelm II