Hitler rise to power Flashcards
THE WEIMAR REPUBLIC
Established at the end of the Great War
Found at time of extreme challenges – homefront shortages, challenges with war
Navy mutinied, riots and revolts took place, Kaiser Wilhelm forced to abdicate
Lasted until Adolf Hitler came to power in January of 1933
January 1919 elections held for new Reichstag (parliament)
February 1919 new government agreed with constitution – Weimar
Frederich Ebert elected President of the new Republic
President was elected every seven years – could rule by decree if needed
Chancellor – appointed by President – head of government
Elected Reichstag – seats would be allocated according to proportional representation
New constitution gave very broad guarantees– free speech, free expression, etc.
Born out of chaos and confusion in aftermath of War
CHALLENGES FACING NEW
REPUBLIC
1919 - 1923
Political
Government blamed for signing the armistice– November Criminals
Then blamed for signing the hated Treaty of Versailles
Responsible for reduction of military, loss of land and colonies, and economic issues
Allowed for too many political parties and too many freedoms to exist
Multi-party coalition governments were often needed to pass legislation
Article 48 gave President power to operate without parliament– undermines democracy
Government faced challenges from various groups that sought to overthrow it
Left wing socialist groups – Sparticists – who led uprisings in 1919
Right wing nationalists, monarchists and fascists – Kapp Putsch 1920, Munich Putsch 1923
No real strong tradition with democratic government - easy to give way to authoritarianism
CHALLENGES FACING THE NEW
REPUBLIC
1919 - 1923
Economic
Responsible for Reparations stemming from Great War
People were starving and facing severe shortages during war and after
Challenges with converting from war time to peace time economy –job loss
Inflation and unemployment common – soldiers returning with no jobs
Much of industry and industrial capacity under supervision
1923 faced near economic collapse with French and Belgian occupation of Ruhr
Led to hyperinflation, general strike, devaluation of currency and chaos
CHALLENGES FACING NEW
REPUBLIC
1919 - 1923
Social
Social chaos and confusion in aftermath of War
Lack of stability in government made its way on the streets – disorder
Violence and unrest was common while nation attempted to return to “normal”
Bands of soldiers refused to disband and formed private armies – Freikorps
Workers looked to soviets and others to address grievances – Communist groups
These groups attempted to seize power all over Germany
Nationalists and others looked to form new political parties or overthrow govt
Middle Class hit hard as they lost much of their savings as money is worthless
STRESEMANN YEARS
GOLDEN YEARS OF REPUBLIC: 1924 -
1929
Years named for period of stability and growth in Germany after chaos
Named after the foreign minister Gustav Stresemann and initiatives taken
Aided by improvements globally and desire to see Germany recover
Major events
- Occupation of the Ruhr region ended – workers ended passive resistance
- Dawes Plan (1924) and Young Plan (1929) – helped German economy recover - loans
- German reparations reset – enabled to pay back over longer periods of time
- Germany received series of foreign loans from American to rebuild (see above)
- Germany recognized boarders created in post war world in West (Locarno)
- Germany invited into League of Nations (1925) – reassessment of Versailles
- Period of stability translated politically – President Hindenburg remains in office
