Weimar Presentation

The political, economic and social issues faced by the Weimar Republic

After WW1 Germany suffered greatly and was presented with many problems; political, economic and social.

This presentation is going to explore how Germany was unable to keep a stable democracy during the years following the First World War.

Almost overnight Germany went from being the least democratic European country to the most.

The Weimar Government was a coalition government made up of 8 major parties. These parties ranged from Social Democrats and Communists to the left and People’s parties to the right.

Proportional representation lead to the development of weak governments as creating a majority from which a chancellor could effectively run the country proved to be difficult. Proportional representation also allowed extremist parties like the communists and Nazis to gain political influence in spite of small numbers and support.

Another issue that was faced by the Weimar Government in relation to politics lay in the constitution in which article 48 stated that “in the state of an emergency the president could rule by decree, ruling without the authority of the houses of parliament”. As a result presidential powers could be used and abused.

Signing the Treaty of Versailles presented Germany with outcomes that were far more severe than the people and politicians of Germany imagined. Germans were angry that it was a dictated piece and it couldn’t be negotiated. They were angry that they were the ones who seemed to be responsible. If the Germans didn’t, however, sign the treaty then the blockade would remain and Germany would continue to starve. To the people of Germany the signing of the treaty was the Republic’s first major betrayal to the country’s people.

Soon extremist attacks began against the Weimar Republic as a result of the German’s anger towards the new government, beginning in 1919 with the Spartacists.

On December 30, 1918 the Spartacists party declared themselves as the Communist party of Germany. Mass meetings and demonstrations broke out in January 1919 particularly in Berlin, urging counter revolution and the overthrow of the Ebert Government. Ebert was at risk of losing the capital and then the whole of Germany.

Many on the right wing still believed they could restore some of Germany’s pride and in early 1920 an uprising was started in Berlin by the nationalist Wolf Gang Kapp – one of the leaders of the Freikorps.

The Kapp Putsch has been said to have been a right-wing monarchist reaction, supported by the army and the police of Berlin. It was an extreme attempt to overthrow the Republic and was fiercely against the Treaty of Versailles and in particular the military clauses within it. Ebert’s government was forced to flee Berlin and called on the left wing to bring the Kapp Putsch to an end. To achieve this they ordered a general strike, which was successful for the Weimar. The Kapp Putsch lasted no more than a few days.

Emily McTaggart

The Weimar Government was faced with huge economic issues. With the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, Germany had to pay £6600 million in reparations to the allied countries; crippling the German economy. This made the Germans angry as they believed it was unfair, especially considering the state of the German economy following the war.

By the end of 1922 Germany was unable to make repayments; they defaulted on their commitment.

In an attempt to get their money the French and Belgians marched into the German industrial area, the Ruhr, on the 9th of January 1923.

The government reacted by asking all German workers to strike to prevent the French from having any raw materials or any industrial products to leave the country. This was called passive resistance.

150,000 workers were removed from the Ruhr, and in riots and protests many were shot. Industrial production in Germany ground to a halt.

The German government only continued to delve deeper into bankruptcy so their solution was simple; print more money.

The price of living dramatically increased and as a result so did wages to keep up with the price of general goods and service, therefore more paper had to be printed.

The more money that was printed the more diluted its value. Eventually money became worthless. This is where hyperinflation comes in.

Many Germans suffered greatly from hyperinflation. These were people with fixed wages and people with savings.

Although so many people suffered, there were some who benefitted from hyperinflation. Smaller farming classes for example as food always valuable and farmers could increase wealth through barter.

In the end inflation was so bad that normal businesses and trade became impossible, causing high unemployment.

In September 1923, Gustav Stresemann became Chancellor; this was the only way Germany could return to any semblance of normality.Under him Germany would prosper in what was to become known as the “Golden Years”.

Stresemann called off passive resistance and promised to pay reparations and in November 1923, introduced a new currency the to end inflation.

Having gone through a time in German history with various attempts at revolution and a fiercely struggling economy German culture suffered greatly. Public confidence was at an all time low. However, during the 1920’s there was a remarkable upsurge of cultural life.

National morale rocketed for the first time in nearly a decade.

Emily McTaggart