Summary 1: Germany 1918-1919

Question 1

What was Germany like before 1918 (the second reich) ?

Answer 1

Politically:
- filled by the kaiser
- elected parliament/Reichstag (but did not control the govt)
- Chancellor and govt (ministers) chosen by the Kaiser
- Germany = semi-absolutist state

Economically:
- dominant European country/economy
- rapidly expanding industry
- economic power in hands of Prussian landowners (Junkers - aristocracy who dominated German state + key positions in army/civil service/govt)

Question 2

When did Germany enter the war + when was it clear that defeat was inevitable ?

Answer 2

• kaiser Whilhelm II took G into war 1914
• by 1918 clear that defeat was inevitable (civil war/revolution possible at home + military morale was disintegrating)

Question 3

What were the key economic effects of the war ?

Answer 3

• national income decreased 2/3 from 1913
• industrial production fell by 1/3
• G close to bankruptcy (only 16% of war could be met by taxation therefore huge debt)
• huge inflation due to the war being financed by borrowing and printing more money
  -1913-1918 the mark lost 75% of its value
• by 1925 state was spending 1/3 of its budget on war pensions (600,00 widows + 2m children fatherless)

Question 4

What were the key social effects of the war ?

Answer 4

• living conditions deteriorated: disease, starvation and hypothermia was (killed 293,000 in 1918)
• earnings fell 20-30%
• 2mil deaths & 6.5m wounded

Question 5

what were key political effects of the war ?

Answer 5

• kaiser abdicated (end of 2nd Reich)
• increased military control in latter years
• split of SPD USPD formed opposing the war

Question 6

What was Germany like at the near end of the war (sept 1918)

Answer 6

• military defeat glooming
• people still believe victory is possible
• kaiser is discreated
• economic disaster
• army trying to ‘save face’
• communism attractive to some (Russian revolution 1917)
• opportunity to change the way G is run

Question 7

What was the revolution from above ?

Answer 7

Oct 1919: General Ludendorff persuaded Kaiser to:
- appoint Price Max as Chancellor
- establish a parliamentary democracy (handing power over to civilian govt answering to Reichstag + led by price max)
- armed forces put under control of civilian govt

*A cynical plot try and gain better peace terms (President Wilson would be impressed by G’s more towards democracy therefore be more willing to consider a lenient peace) + an attempt to save the kaisers rule (put blame of loosing the war on new govt)

Question 8

What is significant with the peace note to president Wilson ?

Answer 8

• Prince Max wrote to Wilson asking for an armistice
• W responded with harsh terms (effectively demanded for full surrender + kaiser abdication) → General Ludendorff fled to Sweden
• news of armistice = shattering blow to morale of Germans (G was losing) + undermined respect for the Kaiser (people suffered huge hardship for him)
• G armed forces started to rebel → 28th Oct first naval mutiny

Question 9

What was the revolution from below ?

Answer 9

• during last few weeks of the war (Oct/Nov 1918) saw wave of unrest from G people:
  
  • workers, soldiers, sailors (sailors failed to obey orders of final battle)
  • 28th Oct naval mutiny at Wilhemshaven
  • 3rd Nov naval mutiny at Kiel
• unrest spread across G → workers councils emerging for workers, soldiers & sailors (similar to Russian revolutionary soviets) mostly led by patriotic Germans wanting kaiser to be abdicated
• collapse of regime came at great speed:
  
  • 8th Nov republic declared in Bavaria (monarchy disposed)
  • 9th Nov SPD called for a general strike to forces kaiser to go (threatened Prince Max to withdraw support from his govt if he did not → govt dependant on SPD)
  • 9th Nov Prince M announced kaiser’s abdication + resigns as chancellor, hands position over to Friedrich Ebert (leader of SPD) → Kaiser fled to Holland
  • SPD declares new republic in Germany (2 days before armistice signed)

Question 10

Significant points of rev. from above:

Answer 10

• Ludendorff persuaded kaiser to establish a parliamentary democracy (civil govt) with prince max in charge
• cynical plot: attempt to get better peace terms + save kaisers rule

Question 11

Significant points of rev. from below:

Answer 11

• unrest due to news of armistice: 28th Oct + 3rd Nov naval mutiny
• workers, sailors, soldiers councils emerge across G
• 9th Nov: SPD call for general strike + threaten to withdraw support from govt if kaiser doesn’t go
• 9th Nov: prince max declares kaisers abdication + resigns as chancellor
• 9th Nov: Ebert as president + G declared a republic

Question 12

What was the ‘stab in the back myth’ ?

Answer 12

• idea that Germanys brave defeated army was ‘stabbed in the back’ by unpatriotic socialists (spd + jewish politicians associated with Weimar Republic)
• birth of G democracy takes place amongst shock of defeat + generals trying to save face
• G army stabbed in back by weak politicians → became widely believed (used for political benefit in future)

Question 13

Why was G defeated (ww1) ?

Answer 13

• overestimated themselves + underestimated allies (overconfidence of generals → think they’re untouchable)
• G surrounded by allies (encirclement)
• submarine warfare led to america joining war (help british)
• allies naval blockage of ports → stop supply lines (lack of resources) (very effective)

Question 14

Why was the stab…. myth questionable ?

Answer 14

• Ludendorff and Hindenburg aware by end of summer that war was lost → why were the still saying their men could still fight in Oct/Nov

Question 15

How did Ebert deal with LW threats ?

Answer 15

• end of war workers councils emerging (LW saw this as a means to extend the revolution)
• councils were demanding: the nationalising of industry, break up aristocratic estates + the democratisation of the army & civil service
• 22nd nov agreements reach with new govt + Berlin councils → govt accepted it only exercised power in name of these councils

Question 16

How close was G to a LW revolution ?

Answer 16

• LW wanted more radical change (G saw the rise of communism)
• councils demanding but only won temp say in govt
• spartacists uprising relatively small scale (perceived as more dangerous)
• LW rev not as dangerous as Ebert imagined (rather exaggerated)

Question 17

What was the Ebert-Groener Pact

Answer 17

• 10th nov 1918: army officiers opposed democracy + feared civil war & LW rev
• Gen Groener offered the govt the army’s support (to defend germany against revolution) in return for he demanded Ebert resist councils calls for democratisation of army & uphold existing command structure of army (as was in 2nd reich)

Question 18

significance of E-G pact ?

Answer 18

• meant ebert can crush LW opposition with help of army
• limited revolution/extent of change for G democracy
• betrayal of the revolution

Question 19

Who were the spartacists + what did they do ?

Answer 19

• extreme LW? socialist group formed in 1919 led by Karl Leibknecht & rosa luxembourg
• renamed german communist party (KDP)
• wanted soviet style state just like russia
• Berlin Jan 1919 (just before elections) launched uprising/demonstration with aim of overthrowing the provisional govt to create soviet republic
• crushed by Freikorps

Question 20

Who were the Freikorps

Answer 20

• a group of ex soldiers who had fought in 1WW but were demobilised from the army (still had their weapons + loyal to old officers & many are RW who hate communism)
• organised by Ebert/defence minister Woske makes deal with freikorps to stop spartacists (crushed them by 13th jan)/ supress uprising (19 spartacists killed)

Question 21

what were the long lasting implications of Eberts reliance on the army and old elite ?

Answer 21

1. allowed elite to be hostile to democracy + remain in powerful positions (undermine new republic)
2. caused a rift in the left- ebert not forgiven by extreme left for his violent suppression of LW with the help of RW (LW left bitterly divided for years to come)

Question 22

Significance of Jan 1919 elections ?

Answer 22

• 19th jan 1919 elections held (before new constitution in place)
• SPD largest share of votes (did not secure majority of seats in reichstag)
• new govt made in small town of weimar in south G (berlin not safe → riots + possible revolutions) highlights difficulties faced by new govt
  -w workers councils had over power to new constitution

Question 23

what was the set up of the new constitution ?

Answer 23

• a federal system (central + state govts)
  - national parliament consisted of: elected reichstag + reichstrat
  - local power in hands of the lander (regional govts)
• universal suffrage: anyone over age of 20 had the vote
• proportional representation system
• welfare state + rights of G citizens (declaration of rights)
  -president was:
  -elected every 7 years
  - appointed the chancellor (based on reichstag votes)
  - commander in chief of armed forces
  - hugely powerful (article 48)

Question 24

what were the strengths of the Weimar constitution

Answer 24

• universal suffrage (20years old) one of most democratic in europe (women could vote on same basis as men)
• govt comes from elected reichstag/election results
• proportional representation: smaller parties win seats in reichstag + influence govt decisions (fair representation of public opinion)
• full democracy
• declaration of rights clearly set of rights of individuals
• powerful president (article 48) → could provide stability in times of unstable govt + traditional

Question 25

what were the weakness of the Weimar constitution ?

Answer 25

• lots of small parties
• PR system:
  
  • caused coalition govts (hard for party to gain overall majority) → weak + indecisive
  • allowed for anti-democratic parties to sit in a democratic parliament
• article 48 allowed room for abuse of power

Question 26

what was the problem with article 48 ?

Answer 26

• in a state of emergency allowed for president to make decisions for himself → can quickly make decisions
• however ebert used it on 136 occasions + used with increasing frequency in latter years of weimar republic: allowing hindenburg to undermine the reichstag & democratic govt
• abuse of power/open to misuse

Question 27

what was the problem with system of proportional representation ?

Answer 27

• system of voting where % of votes for a party= % of seats in reichstag + % of reichstag deputuies belong to that party
• democratic and widely used
• G had lots of small parties meaning highly unlikely for any party to win majority in the reichstag causing coalition govts to form (weak, unstable, indecisive)
• allowed for anti-democratic parties gaining seat in the reichstag (nazis + communists)

Question 28

what remained the same for key institutions/ survival of undemocratic constitutions ?

Answer 28

• army: maintains authority as was in 2nd reich (command structure left largely intact ➡️ army far from being politically neutral), Gen Hans von Seeckt appointed commander in chief 1920 (didn’t believe army owed
  loyalty to the republic- saw as only temporary)
• civil service: given freedom of expression + guarantee of their ‘well earned rights’ ➡️ govt bureaucracy left in hands of those who served in 2nd reich (anti-democratic monarchists) + could be very powerful as coalition govts proved fragmented
• judiciary: article 102 guaranteed independence of judges ➡️ very little change from judiciary that served in 2nd reich: judges remained (anti-democratic) seen in biased legal judgements (harsh treatment of LW + Rw threats dealt with leniently)

🔔 their loyalties didn’t lie with the new republic + would remain a powerful and influential hostile group towards democracy (from within the system)

Question 29

What was the TofV ?

Answer 29

• war had ended with an armistice (ceasefire), on 11th Nov 1918 (not a surrender)
• the ceasefire would last until peace terms could be agreed, but Germany not invited to Peace Conference and their comments to first draft largely ignored
• Germany given 7 days to accept the treaty, first coaltion govt refused but second saw no alternative

🔔Much harsher than German people ever imagined (seen as diktat bcs Germans had demobalised and Allies had not so Germans had no ability to fight back against terms), hatred of the treaty and the politicians who signed it would have long lasting effects on the WR
❗️ lost 13% territory, 12% of its population, 48% iron ore, 16% coal, 15% agricultural production

Question 30

What were the terms of the TofV ?

Answer 30

• League of Nations: Germany not allowed to join (as defeated nation)
• Territory:❗️Eupen Malmedy to Belgium, North Schleswig to Denmark, Alsace Lorraine to France, Posen & Danzig to Poland ect (particularly annoyed bcs was East Prussia, had been owned for hundred and hundreds of years by Prussia, Prussia formed Germany so losing Prussian territory was particularly bad) + East Prussia separated from the rest of Germany + vital agricultural areas (Posen) and industrial areas (Saar coalfields) lost
• Military:❗️army cut to 100,0000 volunteers, no new wepons or technology (submarines, tanks, air force), limited navy (6 battleships), Rhineland demilitarised and to be occupied by Allies for 15 years
• war guilt: Germany had to accept it was to blame for WW1
• economic: war guilt clause forced Germany to accept blame for the war and so had to pay reparations (an additional burden on the already fragile German economy)

Question 31

What were the reasons for Germans resentment ?

Answer 31

1. it was a ‘diktat’ - no negotiation, it was imposed under the threat of further Allied military action
2. Germany had signed the armistice on understanding that the peace would be based on Wilson’s 14 points (much of the treaty was not)
3. self-determination was denied to Germany
4. War guilt ➡️ national humiliation + carried further penalty of REPARATIONS which was unfair (felt they signed a blank check - amount was not decided when signed TofV)
5. Germany’s treatment was demeaning of such power ➡️ was exacerbated by the exclusion Germany’s exclusion for the League of Nations (seen as a tool of the Allies and not a genuine peace keeping organisation as a result)
6. only defeated powers were forced to disarm ➡️ Germany’s proud military destroyed

Question 32

Counter arguments for German resentment ?

Answer 32

• German reactions were mainly emotional rhetoric inflamed by nationalist propaganda + the shock of defeat
• some aspects of Wilson’s 14 points were applied (but still disliked) eg. the return of Alsace Lorraine
• TofV was moderate compared to peace terms Germany had imposed on Russia in 1917 (Treaty of Brest Litovsk)
• Germany would have imposed similar terms on the allies (if won)

Question 33

Who signed the TofV ?

Answer 33

• Philip Scheidemann resigned as Chancellor rather than sign the treaty and a new coalition govt was formed under Gustav Bauer
• army briefly considered starting up military action to resist the treaty (but even Goerner realised there was no chance of success)
• in the end Bauer govt. had to sign

Question 34

How did the SPD respond to the TofV ?

Answer 34

• the SPD and their allies realised that they would suffer for their actions ➡️ decided to comply with the terms of the treaty in the short-term to try to lay foundations for revisions in the long term (policy of fulfilment)

Question 35

What was the political impact of the TofV ?

Answer 35

• the treaty turned some initial supporters of the Republic against tit ➡️ moderates who had accepted democracy and the new constitution (treaty demoralised some at the centre)
• WR became associated with failure and defeat
• on the right the treaty cemented some groups determination to overthrow the republic ➡️ called democratic politicians ‘November Criminals’ and perpetuated the ‘Stab in the back’ myth (the Germany army had been stabbed in the back by weak, pacifist, unpatriotic politicians
• ex soldiers humiliated by defeat and treaty gravitated towards the Freikorps and violent nationalist groups ➡️ could continue to threaten Weimar democracy (Kapp Putsch/Munich Putsch)

Question 36

Conclusion ?

Answer 36

the Weimar democracy replaced the Second Reich but had shaky foundations: lack of support for key german groups (elite/army) + lack of democratic tradition in Germany + associated with defeat
- revolutionary threat perhaps over estimated but its suppression with the help of army meant LW weakened and divided while right allowed to remain powerful (hostile to democracy)
- new constitution flawed ➡️ potential for abuse of Article 48 and PR voting system (leaving door open to anti-democratic groups having a voice in Reichstag + weak coalition govts)
- TofV exacerbates resentment for the new Weimar govt