Germany: Key Topic 1 - Establishment of the Weimar Republic & its early problems 1919-
The Occupation of the Ruhr: Impact of economic problems: What political challenges did the Weimar
Timeline of important events: After the end of WWI Germany were forced to pay the allies
compensation for the war, the amount of £6.6 Billion in
reparations was dictated to them in the Treaty of Versailles, HYPERINFLATION!!!
1922?
The first governments in the Weimar Republic faced opp
and so they were forced to pay. angered by the Treaty of Versailles, but by the left wing a
organisations.
Nov 8-9 1923 - Beer
Hall Putsch - led by
However, in 1920, Germany failed to pay their reparations
which resulted in the response of over 60,000 Belgian and
> Hyperinflation forced millions of Germans into poverty
The Spartacist Uprising: Left-wing Th
9th Nov 1918: Kaiser June 1919 - Treaty including the middle-class. Because the government had to
abdicated and went Hitler in atrmept to French troops passing through the Rhinelands in January In 1917, the left-wing revolutionary activity in Russia had
of Versailles blamed overthrow the pay the strikers money, they started printing more money
into exile in Holland 1923, a border area which was demilitarized as a part of the resulted in the overthrow of the Tsar and many people In 1
Germany for the government using 2000 printing shops and 200 printing mills which caused
10th Nov 1918: Council of treaty. They then invaded and occupied the Ruhr, a large saw poverty and discontent in Europe as an ideal and
war and Allies a stagger in prices the wages couldn't keep up to. In 1914, 4
25th Oct 1918: Naval People’s Representatives took industrial area for the production of raw materials, this was opportunity to spread communism - this was also that
imposed terms for marks was equivalent to 1 US dollar where as in Nov 1923 it
commanders at Keil control of Germany - Weimar March 1920: Kapp Putsch + one of their major sources of income - 80% of coal, iron and brought on by Kaiser’s abdication in 1918. gain
the treaty was 4.2 billion - this shows the impact of hyperinflation.
ordered sailors to fight, Republic overtook the German Ruher Red Rising after steel reserves were located here. them
leading to mutiny. Monarchy - and Friedrich Ebert Wolfgang Kapp fled. The Spartacist (Germany’s communist party) uprising aga
> In an already economically crippled country after the war,
(a social democrat) became the As Germany was behind in their reparations France and happened on the 5th of January 1919. It was a cen
this was detrimental. Pensioners income was almost worthless
first president of Germany. Belgium decided to take raw materials instead of cash communist organisation led by Rosa Luxemburg and who
as they had a fixed income, and savings didn’t amount to
payments. This enraged the whole of Germany, but they could Karl Liebknecht - they wanted to establish a communist him
anything regarding the hyperinflation, wiped out overnight!
not attack the invaders with power, as their army was made up government in Berlin. During the uprising, they took them
of 100,000 men and they had signed a peace treaty with these control of government newspaper headquarters and the
January > Gave the Weimar Republic temporary popularity and they
11th Nov 1918: 2 countries. The German government indulged in passive telephone offices and encouraged 500,000 workers to go flee
6th Nov 1918: Soldiers’ 1923 - had provided strike pay. However, most Germans later blamed
The armistice was resistance which included asking German workers to go on on strike and protest against the government. Moreover, Her
and workers’ councils 5th Jan 1919 - Occupation the Weimar Republic for their suffering which resulted in Hitler
signed strike to stop producing goods for the Fench to steal. Some they proclaimed the end of Weimar Republic. In order to pub
established in some Spartacist Uprising of the Ruhr using these economic problems to gain more support and
workers committed arson (fire) and other means of sabotage stop the uprising the Weimar turned to the freikorps - on s
German cities began attempted to overthrow the government - Beer Hall Putsch.
so that production would stop. This resulted to over 100 they needed them since their regular army was limited to into
French workers were killed during fights between German and 100,000 men because of the Treaty of Versailles. The the
French workers. This was very profitable for France and Freikorps were an army volunteer group of soldiers who
Belgium so they did not remove their forces till July 1925, had been demobilised after the war but still had access Soo
after the Dawes plan (arrnagment for Germnay’s pay of to their weapons. The Freikorps hated communism and wat
reparations in WW1 between Germnay and the US) was soon put an end to the revolt - after they shot and killed strik
signed. the leaders due to their rebellion against the func
government. peo
Impacts of WW1: Social: The war had caused terrible suffering amongst the German people. For Swe
the
example, there were dreadful food shortages due to low domestic production and because their Allies had
imposed a naval blockade to prevent imports of food. This caused extreme food shortages to the point Ove
where 750,000 people died from starvation and other related diseases - with 300,000 of them being in 1918. mili
Furthermore, during WW1, Germany mobilised roughly 11 million military personnel which resulted in over city
1.8 million men killed, another 4 million men injured and over 1 million men taken as POW or went missing. Territory: > Alsace and Lorraine (pieces of land) were given back to France again. Germany =# The Ruhr Red Rising: had
rewarded with this land when they won a war with France in 1871 - Franco Prussian War. This event was known as the Ruhr Red Rsing Ber
> Economic: Cost of the war meant that the debts tripled from 50 billion, to 150 billion marks from 1914- > Germany = lost 13% of its land = almost 50% of Germany’s iron reserves, 15% of its agricultural because Left-wing workers in this industrial area
went on strike and took over several towns. They
1918. resources and 20% of its coal production - this land would have helped Germany earn money. demanded the right to arm themselves, in order to
Ass
> Political: When Germany entered the war in 1914, the Kaiser promised a quick recovery. Instead, > Germany lost all of its 11 colonies in Africa and the Far East. They were given to the victorious protect themselves against future putsches. Ove
countries. Evidently, 1000 workers were killed and the carr
Germany was brought into a bloody and long conflict against the Allies on the Western Front. By early government used the regular German army to put tact
November 1918 - after 4 years of fighting - German troops had been forced to retreat and the country faced the uprising down. gov
= This would negatively impact Germany’s international reputation. They would not be seen as a great Vers
a threat of military occupation, especially by their hostile neighbours France. Due to political unrest, Kaiser
power if they did not have an empire. It would also prevent them from obtaining more men for their cas
Wilhelm II abdicated on the 9th of November 1918, where he exiled to the Netherlands.
army.
Treaty of Versailles
Kaiser’s abdication: The Allies insisted that peace could not come until Kaiser’s abdication, but he
wouldn't agree to stand down. Military: Military Army = limited to 100,000 men only (3.8 million + during WW1) and no WEIMAR CONSTITUTION/ RE
conscription. 🚫Air force, any tanks, or submarines. The German Navy = limited to 6 battleships, 6 > Constitution = rules the government had to follow and also exp
Kiel Mutiny: German revolution: cruisers, 12 destroyers and 12 torpedo boats = not enough for Germany to be able to protect Reichstag the government’s par
themselves from naval attacks by other countries. Reichstag = Run and which made laws and appointed
overseen by the government = had proportional
On the 28th October 1918 the Kiel Mutiny When the news about the mutiny started to The Rhineland (an area on the Germany/French border) had to be demilitarized. chancellor = appointed by representation = the number of v
commenced where naval commanders at Keil were spread, over the course of a fortnight, there were the president = head of number of seats/representatives
forced to order their ships to fight against British strikes and protests across Germany and other the government = used laws for the country. This is wha
They would feel vulnerable, especially from Britain, who had one of the most powerful navies in the as a parliamentary democracy.
Naval forces, even though it was clear they would soldiers also mutinied against the army leaders. world.
his powers to provide
lose - Under Kaiser’s command to essentially The government sent soldiers to break up these checks and balances to
sacrifice themselves to which the people refused. protests, however, the German soldiers decided to the Reichstag
join the riots and refused to control them.There
The Kaiser had lost control many ordinary were calls from the German people for the Kaiser
War Guilt: Article 231 of the Treaty was known as the War Guilt Clause. Germany had to accept President = Elected every Weimar Republic = consisted
states, organised as a federati
blame for starting the war. 7 years. Doesn’t do any
Germans set up their own worker’s councils rather to abdicate - many held him responsible for day to day politics. meant that each state had its
than accepting the authority of Kaiser’s officials. Germany’s defeat. parliament, passed its own la
Reparations: = £6.6 billion. They would pay yearly installments = caused Germany a lot of > Article 48: This law
allowed the president to
its own police force. = State P
The chancellor of Germany, Prince Max, wanted to economic problems. The government already had war debts of 150 billion marks, they also had to
reduce the power of the Kaiser, to try and make allow any law to pass
rebuild their country after the war. They would find it really difficult to pay these reparations. without having to hgain
the people happy, and therefore instilled a law that > Ebert tried to reach out to
approval from anyone
stated that the government was answerable to the else - given power in case
different interest groups in G
Reichstag - the Kaiser couldn’t just do what he Germany had to immediately hand over all its merchant ships and a ¼ of its fishing fleet, as well as
of emergencies. This through a mixture of compro
wanted. build
article has a risk of and alliances. However, the n
200,000 tons of shipping for the Allies dictatorship. republic faced opposition fro
start.
Peace: Peace The League of Nations was set up as a result of WW1. It was a peace-keeping
organization.
The Occupation of the Ruhr: Impact of economic problems: What political challenges did the Weimar
Timeline of important events: After the end of WWI Germany were forced to pay the allies
compensation for the war, the amount of £6.6 Billion in
reparations was dictated to them in the Treaty of Versailles, HYPERINFLATION!!!
1922?
The first governments in the Weimar Republic faced opp
and so they were forced to pay. angered by the Treaty of Versailles, but by the left wing a
organisations.
Nov 8-9 1923 - Beer
Hall Putsch - led by
However, in 1920, Germany failed to pay their reparations
which resulted in the response of over 60,000 Belgian and
> Hyperinflation forced millions of Germans into poverty
The Spartacist Uprising: Left-wing Th
9th Nov 1918: Kaiser June 1919 - Treaty including the middle-class. Because the government had to
abdicated and went Hitler in atrmept to French troops passing through the Rhinelands in January In 1917, the left-wing revolutionary activity in Russia had
of Versailles blamed overthrow the pay the strikers money, they started printing more money
into exile in Holland 1923, a border area which was demilitarized as a part of the resulted in the overthrow of the Tsar and many people In 1
Germany for the government using 2000 printing shops and 200 printing mills which caused
10th Nov 1918: Council of treaty. They then invaded and occupied the Ruhr, a large saw poverty and discontent in Europe as an ideal and
war and Allies a stagger in prices the wages couldn't keep up to. In 1914, 4
25th Oct 1918: Naval People’s Representatives took industrial area for the production of raw materials, this was opportunity to spread communism - this was also that
imposed terms for marks was equivalent to 1 US dollar where as in Nov 1923 it
commanders at Keil control of Germany - Weimar March 1920: Kapp Putsch + one of their major sources of income - 80% of coal, iron and brought on by Kaiser’s abdication in 1918. gain
the treaty was 4.2 billion - this shows the impact of hyperinflation.
ordered sailors to fight, Republic overtook the German Ruher Red Rising after steel reserves were located here. them
leading to mutiny. Monarchy - and Friedrich Ebert Wolfgang Kapp fled. The Spartacist (Germany’s communist party) uprising aga
> In an already economically crippled country after the war,
(a social democrat) became the As Germany was behind in their reparations France and happened on the 5th of January 1919. It was a cen
this was detrimental. Pensioners income was almost worthless
first president of Germany. Belgium decided to take raw materials instead of cash communist organisation led by Rosa Luxemburg and who
as they had a fixed income, and savings didn’t amount to
payments. This enraged the whole of Germany, but they could Karl Liebknecht - they wanted to establish a communist him
anything regarding the hyperinflation, wiped out overnight!
not attack the invaders with power, as their army was made up government in Berlin. During the uprising, they took them
of 100,000 men and they had signed a peace treaty with these control of government newspaper headquarters and the
January > Gave the Weimar Republic temporary popularity and they
11th Nov 1918: 2 countries. The German government indulged in passive telephone offices and encouraged 500,000 workers to go flee
6th Nov 1918: Soldiers’ 1923 - had provided strike pay. However, most Germans later blamed
The armistice was resistance which included asking German workers to go on on strike and protest against the government. Moreover, Her
and workers’ councils 5th Jan 1919 - Occupation the Weimar Republic for their suffering which resulted in Hitler
signed strike to stop producing goods for the Fench to steal. Some they proclaimed the end of Weimar Republic. In order to pub
established in some Spartacist Uprising of the Ruhr using these economic problems to gain more support and
workers committed arson (fire) and other means of sabotage stop the uprising the Weimar turned to the freikorps - on s
German cities began attempted to overthrow the government - Beer Hall Putsch.
so that production would stop. This resulted to over 100 they needed them since their regular army was limited to into
French workers were killed during fights between German and 100,000 men because of the Treaty of Versailles. The the
French workers. This was very profitable for France and Freikorps were an army volunteer group of soldiers who
Belgium so they did not remove their forces till July 1925, had been demobilised after the war but still had access Soo
after the Dawes plan (arrnagment for Germnay’s pay of to their weapons. The Freikorps hated communism and wat
reparations in WW1 between Germnay and the US) was soon put an end to the revolt - after they shot and killed strik
signed. the leaders due to their rebellion against the func
government. peo
Impacts of WW1: Social: The war had caused terrible suffering amongst the German people. For Swe
the
example, there were dreadful food shortages due to low domestic production and because their Allies had
imposed a naval blockade to prevent imports of food. This caused extreme food shortages to the point Ove
where 750,000 people died from starvation and other related diseases - with 300,000 of them being in 1918. mili
Furthermore, during WW1, Germany mobilised roughly 11 million military personnel which resulted in over city
1.8 million men killed, another 4 million men injured and over 1 million men taken as POW or went missing. Territory: > Alsace and Lorraine (pieces of land) were given back to France again. Germany =# The Ruhr Red Rising: had
rewarded with this land when they won a war with France in 1871 - Franco Prussian War. This event was known as the Ruhr Red Rsing Ber
> Economic: Cost of the war meant that the debts tripled from 50 billion, to 150 billion marks from 1914- > Germany = lost 13% of its land = almost 50% of Germany’s iron reserves, 15% of its agricultural because Left-wing workers in this industrial area
went on strike and took over several towns. They
1918. resources and 20% of its coal production - this land would have helped Germany earn money. demanded the right to arm themselves, in order to
Ass
> Political: When Germany entered the war in 1914, the Kaiser promised a quick recovery. Instead, > Germany lost all of its 11 colonies in Africa and the Far East. They were given to the victorious protect themselves against future putsches. Ove
countries. Evidently, 1000 workers were killed and the carr
Germany was brought into a bloody and long conflict against the Allies on the Western Front. By early government used the regular German army to put tact
November 1918 - after 4 years of fighting - German troops had been forced to retreat and the country faced the uprising down. gov
= This would negatively impact Germany’s international reputation. They would not be seen as a great Vers
a threat of military occupation, especially by their hostile neighbours France. Due to political unrest, Kaiser
power if they did not have an empire. It would also prevent them from obtaining more men for their cas
Wilhelm II abdicated on the 9th of November 1918, where he exiled to the Netherlands.
army.
Treaty of Versailles
Kaiser’s abdication: The Allies insisted that peace could not come until Kaiser’s abdication, but he
wouldn't agree to stand down. Military: Military Army = limited to 100,000 men only (3.8 million + during WW1) and no WEIMAR CONSTITUTION/ RE
conscription. 🚫Air force, any tanks, or submarines. The German Navy = limited to 6 battleships, 6 > Constitution = rules the government had to follow and also exp
Kiel Mutiny: German revolution: cruisers, 12 destroyers and 12 torpedo boats = not enough for Germany to be able to protect Reichstag the government’s par
themselves from naval attacks by other countries. Reichstag = Run and which made laws and appointed
overseen by the government = had proportional
On the 28th October 1918 the Kiel Mutiny When the news about the mutiny started to The Rhineland (an area on the Germany/French border) had to be demilitarized. chancellor = appointed by representation = the number of v
commenced where naval commanders at Keil were spread, over the course of a fortnight, there were the president = head of number of seats/representatives
forced to order their ships to fight against British strikes and protests across Germany and other the government = used laws for the country. This is wha
They would feel vulnerable, especially from Britain, who had one of the most powerful navies in the as a parliamentary democracy.
Naval forces, even though it was clear they would soldiers also mutinied against the army leaders. world.
his powers to provide
lose - Under Kaiser’s command to essentially The government sent soldiers to break up these checks and balances to
sacrifice themselves to which the people refused. protests, however, the German soldiers decided to the Reichstag
join the riots and refused to control them.There
The Kaiser had lost control many ordinary were calls from the German people for the Kaiser
War Guilt: Article 231 of the Treaty was known as the War Guilt Clause. Germany had to accept President = Elected every Weimar Republic = consisted
states, organised as a federati
blame for starting the war. 7 years. Doesn’t do any
Germans set up their own worker’s councils rather to abdicate - many held him responsible for day to day politics. meant that each state had its
than accepting the authority of Kaiser’s officials. Germany’s defeat. parliament, passed its own la
Reparations: = £6.6 billion. They would pay yearly installments = caused Germany a lot of > Article 48: This law
allowed the president to
its own police force. = State P
The chancellor of Germany, Prince Max, wanted to economic problems. The government already had war debts of 150 billion marks, they also had to
reduce the power of the Kaiser, to try and make allow any law to pass
rebuild their country after the war. They would find it really difficult to pay these reparations. without having to hgain
the people happy, and therefore instilled a law that > Ebert tried to reach out to
approval from anyone
stated that the government was answerable to the else - given power in case
different interest groups in G
Reichstag - the Kaiser couldn’t just do what he Germany had to immediately hand over all its merchant ships and a ¼ of its fishing fleet, as well as
of emergencies. This through a mixture of compro
wanted. build
article has a risk of and alliances. However, the n
200,000 tons of shipping for the Allies dictatorship. republic faced opposition fro
start.
Peace: Peace The League of Nations was set up as a result of WW1. It was a peace-keeping
organization.
