Weimar Germany (1918-33)

-Shortage of food and fuel (300,000 people died from hypothermia and starvation in 1918)
-National income was about 1/3 what it was in 1913

-Living Standard gap between rich and poor was huge
-Many German workers were bitter at the restrictions on their earnings during the war while factory owners made vast profits

-Stress or the war led to a revolution in October-November. Fighting between left wing and right wing groups
-Many ex-soldiers and civilians despised the new democratic leaders

Army generals recommended the forming of a new civilian government and an armistice

New civilian government formed (German revolution start)

Kiel Mutiny - start of a nationwide series of worker and soldiers' rebellions

Germany declared a republic, Ebert (a social democrat) became the new president

-Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicates and flees to the Netherlands.
-Agreement between army and government for the army to retain its existence in return for stopping the revolts
-Formation of the Freikorps (ex-soldiers and right wing)

Armistice signed - end of WWI

-Spartacist Revolt in Germany
-First free elections in Germany
-Process of starting a new constitution started at Weimar

Treaty of Versailles signed

-The new constitution was completed and the Weimar Republic was officially established
-German Revolution ends

Germany military (mostly volunteer troops) used by the government of the Weimar republic 2) put down Spartacist revolt in 1919

-Set up the most democratic system in the world
-Not one man could gain too much power
-Every German over 20 could vote
-Proportional representation

German parliament (German version of the House of Commons)

Prime Minister (responsible for the day-to-day running of Germany)

-Head of state
-Stayed out of day-to-day running or Germany

-Gives the president emergency powers
-Doesn't need to consult the Reichstag
-Could be used as long as he wants

-Rights to vote
-Women can vote
-Democracy
-Representation of different parties
-No one gets too much power

-Easier to extremes to get seats
-Emergency powers could be abused
-Difficult to pass laws
-Frequent elections

-Set up the most democratic system in the world
-Not one man could gain too much power
-Every German over 20 could vote
-Proportional representation

German parliament (German version of the House of Commons)

Prime Minister (responsible for the day-to-day running of Germany)

-Head of state
-Stayed out of day-to-day running or Germany

-Gives the president emergency powers
-Doesn't need to consult the Reichstag
-Could be used as long as he wants

-Rights to vote
-Women can vote
-Democracy
-Representation of different parties
-No one gets too much power

-Easier to extremes to get seats
-Emergency powers could be abused
-Difficult to pass laws
-Frequent elections

Name: Spartacists (KPD)
Leadership: Karl Leibkhecht, Rosa Luxemburg
Demands/Aims: Wanted Germany ruled by worker's councils or soviets)
Suporrted by: Rebel soldiers and sailors
Methods: Creation of Soviets (councils) / use of violence
Consequences: 2000 casualties, Leibkhnect and Luxemburg killer, KPD remains a popular political party in Weimar Germany

Name: NSDAP (National Socialist German Workers Party)
Leadership: Wolfgang Kapp
Demands/Aims: Overthrow government, restore German prosperity, undo Treaty of Versailles
Supported by: Freikorps
Methods: 5000 Freikorps rebelled in Germany (Kapp Putsch), seized buildings in Berlin
How defeated: German people, especially worker of Berlin declared a general strike
Consequences: Kapp hunted down, died abroad, political assassinations (eg Rathenau - Foreign minister), Rebels treated leniently, Encourages other right wing revolutions

Left wing - Put down a revolt by paying the Freikorps (who were far right), harsh punishments
Right wing - Paid the Freikorps (far right) to stop the rebellion (working with far right), lenient punishments

-Reparations of £6.6B - annual instalments of 2% of Germany's annual output
-German war debts
-Halt in industrial production
-Loss of resources

-Germany stopped paying reparations in 1922
-French and Belgian occupation of the Ruhr (industrial part of Germany)
-Passive resistance
-German govt prints money to support workers (leads to Hyperinflation)

winners - people with debts, tangible assets
losers - people with money saved in the bank

-Gustav Stresemann creates new currency called Rentenmark
-Passive resistance called off - France and Belgium leave.
-American loans (Dawes Plan 1924)
-Stresemann starts paying reparations again and renegotiates reparation payments (Young Plan 1929)

-Weimar government popularity down
-The right wing had another reason to blame the government (objected to paying reparations again)
-Munich Putsch 1923

Same amount to pay but over longer time period

Germany to pay 1/3 less - pay more if economically successful

The German Workers Party (DAP) is created by Anton Drexler

-anti-semitic
-anti-communist
-anti-Treaty Of Versailles
-anti-capitalist
-Aryan dominant/superior

Hitler joins DAP

-DAP changes name to NSDAP
-The 25 point programme is introduced
(-abolition of Treaty of Versailles
-Union of Germany and Austria
-Only "true" Germans to be allowed to live in Germany
-Jews excluded
-Industries and businesses nationalised
-strong central government
-generous old-age pension)

Hitler becomes leader of NSDAP
-aims to overthrow Weimar Germany

SA created (NSDAP paramilitary force)
-Brown Shirts
-Storm troopers
-Made up of Freikorps members

-Hyperinflation
-Ruhr Crisis
-Treaty of Versailles
-Challenge from left
-Challenge from right

-Root cause for many German problems
-High reparation bill
-Demilitarisation

-Obscure party
-Hitler was put on trial
-Military put down Munich Putsch

-Achieved same levels of production as before the war
-Wages for industrial workers rose -> Higher standard of living
-Reliant on US loans (1929)
-Small shopkeepers threatened by large department stores

-No more attempted revolutions after 1923
-moderate parties had 136 more seats in the Reichstag than the radical parties
-Around 30% of the vote went to parties who opposed republic
-German people voted in a president who opposed Democracy in 1929

-Freedom of expressions -> writers and poets flourished
-1920s was a golden age for German cinema (eg Marlene Dietrich, international star)
-The culture of cities represented moral decline according to those in towns/villages
-Wandervogel movement - called for a return to simple country values

-1925 - Stresemann sign the Locarno Treaties
-1926 - Germany accepted into League of Nations
-Nationalists attacked Stresemann for joining League of Nations
-Communists attacked Locarno, seeing it a part of a plot against the USSR government)

Agreement promoting peace and securing post WWI territorial settlements in Europe (Germany's western border)

-Hitler sentences and put on trial
-NSDAP were banned temporarily
-The Nazis were seen as extremists

-Physical force and violence
-Legal measures

-Army didn't support Munich Putsch
-Lack of popular support for NSDAP may have deterred police and army from supporting them (3% of election votes)

-Wide support of KPD/SPD
-Nazi policies weren't appealing
-Golden age

-Limited membership
-3% of votes
-Failure of Munich Putsch

-Same level of production as before the war
-Germany accepted into League of Nations
-Fix hyperinflation

-The aims/desires of the NSDAP were made clear

-Nationwide attention
-Writes his book "Mein Kampf"

-Attracted conservative Germans who wanted a return to traditional German values
-Farmers - "true" Germans / large %

-Help promote Nazi policies (eg anti-semitism)
-Disrupt communist parties
-Guard NSDAP meetings
-look organised/credible

-NSDAP's message spread quickly and efficiently

-1929 -> Wall Street Crash
-American businessmen lost huge amounts of money
-They asked German banks to repay the money they borrowed in order to pay off their debts
-Economic collapse in Germany
-Businesses bankrupt, workers laid off, unemployment rose to 6 million in Germany by 1932
-Germany still had to pay reparations
-Government tried to act but with Weimar's constitution, decisive action made difficult
-Nazi and KPD support increased
-Weimar popularity down
-Weimar politically unstable (4 elections in 3 years)
-Paul Von Hindenburg used article 48 (1930-33)
-Four chancellors
-NSDAP policies become appealing
-Weimar policies unpopular (eg increase tax, lower benefits)

1928 - 3%
1930 - 18%
1932 - 37%
1932 - 33%
1933 - 44%

-Burning
-Von Papen
-Von Schleicher
-Hitler

-Appealing slogan (eg "Work, freedom, bread)
-Joseph Goebbels
-Spread ideas
-Unpopular messages dropped (eg nationalise industry)

-Physical force and violence in order to silence opponents
-Rallies outside of opponent's meetings

-Increase tax, lower benefits
-6,000,000 unemployed by 1932
-4 chancellors in 3 years
-Article 48 used

-Wouldn't work together to make coalition
-4 different election, 4 parliaments, 4 chancellors (Reichstag not working together efficiently)

-Hitler offers solution
-Weimar ineffective

-Hindenburg (President) and Von Papen (Vice Chancellor) decides to make Hitler chancellor because they believed they could control him and use them as his puppet/figurehead