Germany Flashcards
when was germany unified as one nation
1871
which state was the most powerful when germany was unified
prussia
what was the kaisers job
to rule over all the states in germany. he could ignore government advice and make is own decisions. he made all military and foreign policy decisions
what was the chancellors job
advise the kaiser and look after the day to day running of germany
what was the Bundesrat
it was made up of representatives from every state
what was the reichstag
parliament elected by men over 25. They debated and voted on laws made by the kaiser and his ministers
who was kaiser wilhelm ii
he was from prussia and belived in having strong armed forces (militarism) prussian generals made up the basis of the new german army.
his mother was queen Victoria’s daughter
he was born with an arm problem and blamed the english doctor
he wanted a bigger army than england
what was WELTPOLITIK
germany becoming a global power with a larger empire than england
how did socialism grow during kaiser wilhelms reign
many workers were unhappy in low paying jobs with bad conditions. they joined trade unions and went on organised strikes. by 1914 over 3 million workers were in trade unions. the social democratic party became very popular.
what did the SDP want during kaiser wilhems reign
they wanted the kaiser to allow the reichstag to make more social reforms to improve workers rights. they disagreed with the privalidge that the factory workers held. extremists wanted a revolution
what were the navy laws
between 1898 and 1912 a series of navy laws were introduced to rapidly increase the seize of the german army.
why was germany close to defeat in 1916
a flu epidemic killed those weak from starvation.
soldiers were worn down
protesters at home demanded an end to the war
what did kaiser wilhelm do at the end of ww1 so that the allies would treat germany more fairly
he allowed the main political parties to form a government and transferred some of his powers to the reichstag
what events lead to the kaiser abdicating in 1918
navy in keil mutinied and soldiers sent to deal with the protest join the sailors. the kaiser knew he had lost control as cities in germany were being governed by workers and sailors councils. the kaiser abdicated secretly leaving germany on 9 nov 1918
who took over when the kaiser abdicated
Ebert because he was leader of the largest political party (spd)
what were the impacts of ww1 on germany
virtually bankrupt
owed money on loans
factories were exhausted
war pensions were expensive
women worked in factories which some people thought damaged traditional family values
revolutions everywhere - politically unstable
what happened during the spartacists revolt
Ebert declared germany would be a democratic republic and elections would be held in january 1919.
a group of communists called the spartacists wanted germany to be run by small councils . they seized power of berlin on 6 jan 1919
ebert sent 2000 freikorps to attack and after 3 days of street fighting the spartacist leaders were captured
what was the weimar constitution
a formal set of rules for how germany would be run
what were the weaknesses in the weimar constitution
proportional representation = different political partys were allowed to win seats in the reichstag but it was difficult for one party to get a majority
many people didnt like the new democratic system ( generals . landowners , upperclass families )
what was article 48
laws could be passed without the reichstag by order of the president
what was demanded of germany in the treaty of versailles
land- all coloneys were given to the winnig countries - no german soldiers could enter the rhineland
army- 100,000 soldiers only
money - £6.6 billion
blame- take full blame for the war
why did france and belgium invade the ruhr in 1923
germany announced it could not pay the second reparations’ instalment so france and belgium decided to invade the ruhr with 60 000 soldiers in january 1923 to take back what they were owed in goods
when was hyperinflation
1923
what caused hyperinflation
the government ordered all its workers in the ruhr to go on strike and not help the french and belgium soldiers, however they continued to pay them. in order to do so the gov printed loads of money which was spent in shops and prices increased. prices rose so high that workers were paid daily so that they could afford food
who lost money during hyperinflation
people with money in savings
elderly people living on fixed pensions
small businesses when trading was impossible due to daily price changes
who gained from hyperinflation
people with loans found it easier to pay off debt
what happened during the kapp putch
in march 1920 right wing ( socialist ) politicians and 5000 freikorps took over berlin.
kapp wanted to take over the country and regain land lost in the treaty of versallies.
workers went on strike and ebert left the city. after 100 hours as leader kapp feld abroard and ebert returned to berlin
what happened during the munich putch
on the 8th november 1923 hitler crashed a bavarian government meeting in a beer hall
he took three ministers hostage whilst ernst rohm and the SA took over the police
when hitler left ludendorf allowed the three hostages to return home
however they alerted the police
on the 9th hitler 2000 supporteers and 1000 SA marched on munich
the people and army did not support him
in the end hitler escaped but was later arrested and the NSDAP was banned
when was the stresseman era
1924-1929
how did stresseman fix hyperinflation
replaced the worthless currancy with a temporary note called the rentmark. in 1924 it was replaced by the riechmark which remained stable for 25 years
how did stresseman get troops out of the ruhr
the dawes plan (1924) meant that the usa leant germany 800 million marks to re start reperation payments. the french and belgium troops left the ruhr
what plan reduced the reperation payment to £2.2 billion
young plan in 1929
how did stressemnan help economic recovery
built new factories , houses , schools and roads. this meant more jobs for german people
how did stresseman improve foreign policy
1925 locardo pack with britain , france , belgium and italy to never invade each other
joined the league of nations in 1926
1928 kellog briand pack - to never go to war unless in defence
what concerns surrounded stresseman
people who lost savings with the old currancy never got their money back
people wanted reperations payments scrapped altogether
fears he relied too much on american money
think he should have demanded back money from the treaty of versallies
why were the 1920s the golden age
cinema , nightlife , jazz bands , 120 newspapers and magazines , modern art and architecture
when did the depression start
1929