Weimar and Nazi Germany History
Which left wing party took over just after the war to stop extremists taking over ?
SPD
What was the first act of the Weimar Republic ?
Signed an armistice- advised by German generals
Who were the November criminals and why ?
-The politicians who signed the armistice
-People wanted somebody to blame after Germany lost the war and terrible peace terms were agreed
What was the stab in the back myth ?
-The belief that the German army could have won the war- myth was supported by German generals who said the government betrayed them
Who was the Weimar Republics first president ?
Ebert
What is proportional representation ?
-seats in parliament allocated for so many votes (in Weimar Germany 60,000)
How often were elections held in Weimar Germany ?
- For the Reichstag- every 4 years
-Presidential elections- every 7 years
What did article 48 of the Weimar constitution allow ?
-The president could use special powers in an emergency to suspend democracy-could ignore Reichstag
-The chancellor could use it to pass laws through the president without the need of the Reichstag in times of crisis
Why was ToV called the "Diktat"?
-Germany were forced to sign it with no negotiations-"dictated peace"
Why did German officials have to sign the ToV ?
-Allies would start a war and/or continue naval blockade of Germany
When were war reparations agreed and the amount ?
-1921
-£6.6 billion
What were the main military terms of the ToV ?
-Army limited to 100,000 men with no tanks
-Germany not allowed an air force
-Navy reduced to 15,000 sailors with limited battleships, cruisers, and destroyers and no submarines
-Rhineland had to be demilitarised with allied troops allowed to be stationed there, but not German
How did moderate parties do in the 1920 election and what problems did this cause ?
-moderates only got 45% of votes so it was difficult to pass laws from the Reichstag
Spartacist Revolt
-January 1919
-Communists tried to seize power by seizing important buildings like newspaper and railway offices
-Government had to ask Freikorps for help to stop rebellion which they did
-Freikorps violently murdered revolt leaders (Luxemburg and Liebknecht)
Why did the communist party refuse to join a coalition with the social democrats after the spartacist revolt and why was this a problem ?
-Because Ebert used Freikorps against communists
-SPD needed support in a coalition- its natural left wing ally should have helped but didn't which made the government weak to right wing groups
Kapp Putsch
-March 1920
- Lead by right wing extremist Wolfgang Kapp
-Freikorps units marched on Berlin forcing government to flee
-Berlin workers went on strike as a protest against the right wing
-Kapp could not rule without workers so fled and government returned
-Nobody was punished for this as the legal system favoured right wing extremists
Who were the Freikorps and what did they think of the Weimar Republic ?
-Ex-soldiers with extreme right wing views who hated communism
-Hated republic for signing armistice and then ToV which made Germany seem weak
Why was there an economic crisis in 1923 ?
-The German industrial heartland (Ruhr) was occupied by French forces after Germany failed to make second reparation payment
-Goods were seized and German workers went on strike- 150,000 expelled by French
-Industrial production stopped- Germany had no access to 80% of its industrial reserves causing shortages
-Shortages caused inflation which government tried to solve by printing money which depreciated currency value
-Hyperinflation causes- prices of goods would rise throughout the day and everyone was affected badly by the economic problems
Why did the 1923 economic crisis affect the middle class so badly ?
-middle classes savings and fixed incomes both became worthless
-many middle class owned business had to shut down as normal trade was not possible
Why was lack of support from the middle class a problem for the republic ?
-Middle class should have been the strongest supporters of a democratic state, but many were critical of it so their loyality wasnt guaranteed
What 2 government positions did Gustav Stresemann hold ?
-Chancellor
-Foreign minister
What 3 economic problems needed to be solved and how were they ?
-Hyperinflation- new currency introduced (rentenmark later renamed to reichsmark) tied to industry so had value and helped stabilise hyperinflation
-French occupation of the Ruhr-promised to pay reparations and proved Germany's reliability so the French left
-Weak German economy- Dawes plan and Young plan
What was the Locarno pact 1925 ?
-Agreement signed by Germany, Britain, France, Italy and Belgium
-Agreed not to invade each other and accept borders
What was the main term of the 1928 Kellogg-Briand pact ?
-63 countries would not use war to achieve a foreign policy aim
Munich Putsch
-8th November 1923
-Hitler and nazis interrupted meeting in Beer hall in Munich and forced Bavarian politicians to support his attempt to seize power
-The next day Hitler and the SA marched through Munich but were stopped by police and army who did not support the putsch
-Hitler sent to prison for 5 years but only served 9 months
Why did the Munich Putsch fail ?
-Hitler over estimated support from the German people
-Badly organised
-Army stayed loyal to the state
What were the main ideas in "Mein Kampf"?
-nationalism, extreme racism and traditional German right wing values
-Very anti-democratic
How did Hitler reorganise the Nazi party after his release from prison ?
-Made it so he had full control of the parties policies
-Different sections of the party responsible for different things and different regions (nazi leader of a region called gaultier)
-Got money from wealthy businessmen who were worried about communists
-Set up the SS
Why did people in the years 1924-29 not vote for extremist parties ?
-Content with Stresemann's policies
-Economic policy solved hyperinflation and so people were better off
-Germany had become more respected internationally
-Hindenburg as president reassured people as he was a respected war hero with strong German values
How was Germany economically and socially affected by Wall St crash ?
-Businesses closed down
-People lost jobs
-Higher taxes
-Homelessness and theft/violence
Which political parties benefitted from economic problems in 1929 ?
-Communist-workers-unemployment and falling wages
-Nazis-upper and middle class-protect them from communism
Why did poeple vote for the Nazi's after 1929 ?
-Economic crisis
-Appeal of Hitler and Nazi's and fear of communism
-Propaganda
-Work of the SA
When did Hitler become chancellor ?
30th January 1933
Why was Hitler elected Chancellor ?
-Nazi's had many seats in Reichstag so could get laws passed
The political situation which influenced Hitler being chosen as Chancellor
-1932-chancellors couldn't get laws passed
-President having to use emergency decree article 41 and article 48
-Hindenburg reluctant to appoint Nazi's as he saw them as too violent
-Von Papen and Von Schleicher appointed as chancellor but neither could get laws passed
-Von Papen convinced Hindenburg to appoint Hitler
-Von Papen believed Hitler could be controlled to pass laws