gov Flashcards
(26 cards)
When was the Weimar Constitution adopted?
August 1919
What type of government did the Weimar Constitution establish?
A democratic republic with proportional representation and universal suffrage.
What was the role of the Reichstag?
The Reichstag was the main legislative body that passed laws and represented the German people.
Who was the head of state under the Weimar Constitution?
The President, elected every 7 years.
How did proportional representation affect the stability of government?
It led to many small parties, weak coalitions, and frequent changes in government.
Name one key strength of the Weimar Constitution.
It guaranteed civil rights like free speech, equality, and freedom of religion.
Name one key weakness of the Weimar Constitution.
Article 48 allowed democratic breakdown by enabling authoritarian rule.
Who was the first Chancellor of the Weimar Republic?
Friedrich Ebert (leader of the SPD – Social Democratic Party).
Why was the judiciary a threat to the Weimar government?
Many judges were right-wing and lenient towards conservative and nationalist offenders, undermining democracy.
How many different coalition governments were there between 1919 and 1933?
20 different coalition governments — showing instability and short-lived administrations.
What percentage of the vote did extremist parties (Nazi + Communist) receive in the 1932 election?
Over 50% combined – Nazi Party: 37.3%, KPD: 14.3% (July 1932 election).
What percentage of seats did the Nazi Party win in the May 1928 election?
Just 2.6% — showing how quickly their support grew between 1928 and 1932.
How many votes did Hindenburg receive in the 1932 Presidential election (second round)?
19.3 million votes
How many paramilitary members did the SA (Sturmabteilung) have by 1932?
400,000
What percentage of the vote did the SPD receive in 1919?
Around 38% — the largest party in the first Weimar government.
How many seats did the Nazi Party win in the July 1932 Reichstag election?
230 seats — making them the largest party in the Reichstag for the first time.
how many chancellors were there between 1929 and 1933?
Four: Müller, Brüning, von Papen, and Schleicher — a sign of increasing instability.
who was von schleicher
Von Schleicher was appointed Chancellor in December 1932 after the resignation of Franz von Papen.
Von Schleicher sought to form a coalition government of military leaders, conservative elites, and some moderate socialists.
His resignation paved the way for Hitler’s appointment as Chancellor on January 30, 1933.
who was von papen
After Heinrich Brüning’s resignation in May 1932, von Papen became Chancellor of Germany.
Von Papen’s government was formed largely through presidential decrees under Article 48 of the Weimar Constitution, which allowed the president to rule by emergency decree.
In January 1933, von Papen became Vice Chancellor again in a coalition government with Adolf Hitler as Chancellor.
how did the judicary contribute to failure of weimar
judiciary was largely conservative and sympathetic to the old monarchy. Many judges were hostile to the new republic and often gave light sentences to political criminals from the right-wing and military. This created a perception of unequal justice, further eroding the legitimacy of the Republic. The judiciary’s bias contributed to the rise of extremism.
how did the military contribute to failure of weimar
The Reichswehr was not fully loyal to the Weimar Republic. It had a monarchical mindset and was deeply conservative. The military resented the limitations imposed on it by the Versailles Treaty and was not committed to defending the Republic. After the Kapp Putsch (1920), a failed coup, and during the 1923 Munich Putsch, the military leadership often sided with conservative and right-wing movements, rather than supporting democratic rule.
who was the army dominated by
prussian junker elite
between 1919-1922 there were 376 politcal murders
how many out of 22 murders from the left were left unpunished
4 out of 22 werent punished from the left
326 out of 354 cases on the right never faced justice for their crimes
how many cases on the right never faced justice for their crimes
326 out of 354 cases
