POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT 1924-28

Question 1

Death of Ebert

Answer 1

• February 1925
• Hindenburg voted as successor
  > old field marshall, requested Kaiser’s permission to participate, only participated in 2nd round

Question 2

Hindenburg

Answer 2

• won second round with 48.3%
• April 1925
• Did not believe in democracy; increasingly ruled by decree

Question 3

May and December1924 election

Answer 3

• May: over 61% for pro-republican parties
  > first election contested by Nazis, won 6.5%
• December: 67%
  > Nazis won 3%
  > Right wing parties began working with Republican rather than against it
  > both the KPD and DVP won more seats in the 1928 election

Question 4

Coalitions

Answer 4

• 7 coalitions November 1923 -March 1930
• Despite more support for democratic parties- instability still persistent
• Trivial things could trigger wreck a cabinet: 1926, Luther’s cabinet collapsed due to disputes over the old imperial flag being flown next to the new one

Question 5

Grand coalition 1928

Answer 5

• Hermann Müller of the SPD
• one of the longest-lived coalitions in Weimar June 1928- March 1930
• Still highly divided- did not agree on government policies until 1929
• Only survived due to Müller and Stresemann’s working relationship

Question 6

Development of parties

Answer 6

• largely failed to establish a stable democracy supported by the majority of Germans
  > deputies in Reichstag did not represent particular constituency; deputies chosen from party lists to collectively represent a large area- no connection
  > party list system gave party committees control over Reichstag deputies- no individuality but strictly according to party
  > Leadership of main pro-democracy parties- factional rivalries weakened many parties; higher priority of protecting the interests of their party rather than the nation

Question 7

SPD

Answer 7

• 1924-28; SPD largest single party
• Leading role in 1918 revolution and establishment of Weimar
• could not let go of Marxist rhetoric that had belonged to them since 1860s
• inflexible on many issues
• close links with trade unions and industrial workers
• no support among farmers, Mittelstand; little support among women and youth

Question 8

Centre Party

Answer 8

• Defended interests of Catholic Church in German Empire- continued to do so
• Supported by industrial workers and industrialists, farmers and landlords, professional groups
• Broad base of appeal made them flexible and pragmatic
• No coalition government formed without its participation
• Marx replaced by Brüning in 1928- shift to the right

Question 9

DDP

Answer 9

• liberal, appeal to academics and professionals
• Declining by mid 20s
• internal disputes, difficulty in conveying what it stood for
• participated in all coalition governments of this period
• Dedicated to democracy

Question 10

DVP

Answer 10

• Conservative, committed to parliamentary democracy and participated in all coalitions
• support mainly from industrialists
• Stresemann was their leader- after death of 1929 party shifted to right and promoted interest of big business

Question 11

DNVP

Answer 11

• broadened its appeal- industrialists, professionals, even some industrial workers
• anti-democratic and nationalist- wanted to remove ToV and bring back Kaiser
• refused to join coalitions but newer younger members began willing to compromise
• Joined Luther cabinet 1926 and Marx cabinet 1927
• 1928: lost a lot of support; returned to anti-democratic ways
• Hugenberg became party leader 1928- massive shift to right; led to alliance with NSDAP and paramilitary groups against Young plan in 1929

Question 12

NSDAP

Answer 12

• After failure of Munich Putsch 1923 had been banned until 1925- Hitler stopped from public speaking until 1927 (Goebbels spoke and gathered support)
• Reflected- began working with system; wrote Mein Kampf
• 1928- began broadening appeal and capitalise on discontent of farmers
• Clear revival signs
  > lost 10,000 seats in 1928; but had 150,000 members by 1929

Question 13

KPD

Answer 13

• largest communist party outside of Russia
• support in industrial and port areas: Ruhr, Saxony, Hamburg, Berlin
• revolutionary- dedicated itself to overthrowing government
• policies dictated by Soviet Union
• 1923: at height of crisis and occupation of Ruhr, KPD leaders summoned to Moscow to be instructed to launch a revolution- led to communist uprisings in Saxony and Hamburg that were brutally suppressed
• KPD then focused on undermining SPD
• Divisions between working-class movement weakened anti-Nazi forces