19191933 Ao1a Ao1b Recall select deploy and communicate relevant historical knowledge clearly and effectively Demonstrate understanding of the past through explanation analysis and arriving at substantiated judgements of key concepts causes consequence significance continuity change a ID: 527276
Download Presentation The PPT/PDF document "How strong was Weimar Germany?" is the property of its rightful owner. Permission is granted to download and print the materials on this web site for personal, non-commercial use only, and to display it on your personal computer provided you do not modify the materials and that you retain all copyright notices contained in the materials. By downloading content from our website, you accept the terms of this agreement.
Slide1
How strong was Weimar Germany?
1919-1933
Ao1a
Ao1b
Recall, select, deploy and communicate relevant historical knowledge clearly and effectively.
Demonstrate understanding of the past through explanation, analysis and arriving at substantiated judgements of key concepts (causes/ consequence/ significance/ continuity/ change and relationships between key features.Slide2
Three Stages of Weimar Germany
Uneasy
Start (1919-1923)
Consequences of WWI/ The
‘Revolution’
Impact of Treaty of Versailles/ reparations/ guilt/ army/ November Criminals
Weimar constitution/ proportional representation/ Article 48/ Coalitions/ President/ Chancellor
Uprisings/ Revolts
French invasion of the Ruhr/ Hyperinflation
Golden Years (1924-1929)
Gustav Stresemann/ Dawes
, Young Plans/ Locarno Treaty/ League of Nations/ Kellogg-Briand Pact
Weimar Culture
Relative political stability.
Collapse (1930-1933)
Impact of Great Depression/
Rise of Nazis/ Hitler and Propaganda/ Communism/ collapse of central parties/ coalitions/ weakness of Weimar
Legacy of Versailles
Hindenburg/ Papen/ Schleicher and ‘Backstairs Intrigue’
Reichstag Fire, Enabling ActSlide3
the golden years of Weimar
To what extent is this the case, 1924-1929?Slide4
The Economy
Stabilised by the Rentenmark (temporary currency) and then the Reichsmark.
Dawes Plan (April 1924): British and US forced the French to look at reparations. Final total not reduced, but a timetable was and an loan of 800 million marks raised for Germany.Slide5
Modest recovery
Compared to 1919-1923 and 1930-1933
this was a period of relative prosperity.
BUT: how
were Weimar
going to
compensate
those that had
lost their
savings during
hyperinflation?
Some compensation for those who had lost all investments in war bonds (12.5% of the original value, spread over 30 years.
Mittelstand
saw it as a
betrayal). Slide6
Mo’ Money, Mo’ Problems
Cost of German exports higher: industrialists had to ‘rationalise’ industry.
Jobs decreasing matched a time of ‘baby boom’ (pre war) babies reaching adulthood.
5million more people in the workforce than had been there in 1907.
extra people in the workforce
Unemployed
This leads to deteriorating l
abour relations
and calls to dismantle the welfare state.
Leads employers to a party that will promise law
and order.Slide7
The farmers get the worst of it
Agricultural depression in late 1927; global overproduction of food.
Anger at the state, which rural communities claimed were favouring the urban working classes and trade policies which were importing foreign food in exchange for being able to export German industrial goods.
Peasant protests in Schleswig-Holstein and Oldenburg.Nazis able to exploit this feeling “blood and soil”.Slide8
Foreign Influence
Stresemann: a nationalist with plans to revise the Treaty of Versailles.Locarno Treaty (1925)= Locarno Honeymoon.
League of Nations (1926).Allied Disarmament Commission withdrawn from Germany 1927, followed by 10,000 troops from the Rhineland.Young Plan 1929 (to reduce reparation totals from 132 billion gold marks to 40 billion golf marks, dismantle controls over the German economy). Dissent from right wing, but passed anyway. 1930, Britain and France evacuated the Rhineland.
SuccessSlide9
Politics
A Reichstag commanding majority (Proportional Representation) could only happen under a Centre-Left coalition or a Centre-Right.Hindenburg’s election to the Presidency, 1925- a blow for the republic (old school, military dictator, supported DNVP, loathed SPD). The people seemed to be going right.
The Centre party also went right.Liberal parties’ voters went towards the ‘special interest parties’ after financial compensation for losses during the inflation years. 1930, many of them go over to the Nazis.
Weimar is losing support: even before 1929.Slide10
Culture
Culture went left, politics went right. Backlash for the ‘Golden Age of Weimar culture’. Even the left wing politics were violently anti-Weimar.Didn’t apply to all Germans- if you lived in Berlin, you had more chance of getting involved. Many ordinary Germans were disgusted by it.Slide11
Should Weimar have collapsed?
YES
Never won loyalty of people.
Heavy costs: lost war, welfare state, angry working classes, angry agricultural workers.NO
No one could predict the Great Depression.
Prussia (3/5ths of Germany) SPD, Centre and DDP coalition stable during these years.No reason in 1929 why it should collapse?
Extremist parties (such as Nazis) pretty marginal during this period.Slide12
Exam Questions on the Weimar Republic.
Assess the reasons for the survival of the Weimar Republic in the 1920s.To what extent did the Weimar Republic in the 1920s overcome the problems it faced?
How effectively did Weimar governments deal with the problems they faced in the 1920s?‘Investment and support from foreign powers was the main reasons the Weimar Republic survived in the 1920s’. How far do you agree?Slide13
To what extent did the Weimar Republic in the 1920s overcome the problems it faced?