The Failure Of The Weimar Republic

Weimar Republic weaknesses & Nazi strengths

WEIMAR WEAKNESSES

A. Political Problems:

1. The 'Stab in the Back' Myth and the Treaty of Versailles
2. The Weimar Constitution
3. Revolts and Rebellions, 1919-23

B. Economic Problems:

1. 1923: The Ruhr / Hyperinflation / The Munich Beer Hall Putsch.
2. 1929-1933: The Depression

C. ON THE OTHER HAND, to what extent had the republic recovered between 1924-29?

1. How did the government restore stability?
2. In what areas can this stability be seen most clearly?

NAZI STRENGTHS

1. What were Hitler's talents?
2. How did the party change following the Beer Hall Putsch?
3. How did the party change following the Depression?

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WEIMAR WEAKNESSES

A. Political Problems

1. The 'Stab in the Back' Myth and the Treaty of Versailles

• Autumn 1918 - the Allies are clearly winning the First World War. They offer Germany peace terms which demand that Germany becomes more democratic. The Kaiser refuses them but when a series of revolts break out he abdicates and flees to Holland in November.

• The leader of the Social Democrats (SPD), Ebert, becomes President, signs an armistice with the Allies and promptly holds the country's first free elections in January 1919. Ebert wins and becomes the first elected leader of the Weimar Republic, so called because its first government meets in the small town of Weimar rather than the dangerously unstable Berlin.

However, the new Republic faced overwhelming problems from the outset.

• On the Left, the Communists press for revolution like in the USSR.
• On the Right, nearly all the Kaiser's former advisors remain in place in the Civil Service, the Judiciary and the Army; the country itself is very authoritarian.

Its success depended on the German people accepting an instant change from autocratic German government to a democratic system which they have no experience of operating.

A massive problem for the Republic was that its politicians were felt to be "November Criminals" who "Stabbed Germany in the back" by signing the Armistice and the shameful Treaty of Versailles. They considered the Treaty very unfair as Wilson had promised an honourable peace based on the 14 Points if they got rid of the Kaiser. Ebert's foreign minister - Rathnau - was assassinated in 1922 for his part in the signing of the Treaty!

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2. The Weimar Constitution

Before the war Germany had been run by the Kaiser, who was virtually a dictator; but the Weimar constitution (i.e. the "rule book" for government) created the most democratic system in the world.

Proportional Representation

All votes are counted up centrally to divide seats fairly between parties. Differs from English system, where a party could get 49% of votes in each constituency and not get a single seat! Fair, democratic. Leads to no one party being strong enough to form a government. Coalitions result, weak and indecisive and unstable.

Article 48

President can rule without the Reichstag in emergencies. Provides a "safety valve" for young republic when things go wrong As the President decides what an emergency is, he could use Article 48 to turn himself into a dictator (e.g. 3 times as many Presidential Decrees as Reichstag laws in 1930!)

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3. Revolts and Rebellions, 1919-23

Name of Group	Spartacists
Leaders	Rosa Luxemburg, Karl Liebknecht
What do they want?	A communist state
What do they do?	Take over Bavaria, try to take Berlin in January 1919

How does Ebert react?

• Uses Freikorps to crush them
• Both leaders murdered (Ebert was appalled at this)
• SD's lose working class credibility, owe a lot to right-wing extremists they can't trust

Name of group	Freikorps
Leader	Dr Wolfgang Kapp
What do they want?	A right wing military dictatorship
What do they do?	Tries to take over Berlin in March 1920

How does Ebert react?

• Persuades the workers to stage a general strike, which brings Berlin to a halt
• The revolt collapses
• However, none of the rebels are punished

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B. Economic Problems

1. 1923: The Ruhr / Hyperinflation / The Munich "Beer Hall" Putsch.

Why did the French occupy the Ruhr in 1923?

In 1923 the Germans failed to pay their reparations. The French, as permitted under the Treaty of Versailles, occupied the Ruhr region of Germany and started helping themselves to industrial goods. They also tried to force the Germans to work harder.

What were the results of the occupation of the Ruhr?

Passive Resistance

the Germans went on strike and refused to co-operate. This raised tensions and several people were killed in skirmishes.

Hyperinflation

because the government had no goods to trade with, it had to print more paper money instead, which it used to pay off its debts. However, because there was more money around, prices quickly rose to soak it up. Because prices rose, people demanded more wages, so the government printed more money. This created a vicious circle until the currency was worthless. Wheelbarrows of money were needed to get bread; life savings and pensions became worthless overnight.

The Munich (Beer Hall) Putsch

Hitler joined forces with Ludendorff and tried to take over Bavaria on 8th November 1923. In the short term it was a disaster, it was easily crushed; but in the long term the Putsch was beneficial to the Nazis (see later notes).

2. 1929-1933: The Depression

Economic policy

• To avoid hyperinflation the government raised taxes and cut wages - unpopular

Political policy

• President Hindenburg is aged 84, falls out with Chancellor Bruning, appoints his own friend (von Papen) as Chancellor. Papen is hated by the Reichstag, and Hindeburg has to fall back on Article 48 to get his laws passed.
• Hitler is offered the Chancellorship:
  • July 1932 - Hitler was the leader of the largest party in the Reichstag, but Hindenburg refused to make him Chancellor. Instead, he kept his unpopular friend Franz von Papen as Chancellor, ruling by Article 48 and ignoring the Reichstag.
  • November 1932 - there was another election. The result was such that Hindenburg was forced to replace Von Papen with Kurt von Schleicher, but on the other hand Hitler's share of the vote fell.
  • January 1933 - Hindenburg appointed Hitler as Chancellor with Von Papen as Vice Chancellor. His idea was that Hitler could be controlled by the conservatives. He was wrong.

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ON THE OTHER HAND, to what extent had the Republic recovered between 1924-29?

This is a crucial question because if we decide that the Republic had recovered by 1929 then we are saying that it was not doomed from the outset and vice versa.

1. How did the government restore stability?

• Stresemann, who was popular in the Reichstag, became Chancellor
• He called off passive resistance and started paying reparations again
• He introduced a new (temporary) currency called the Rentenmark which stabilised the economy
• He negotiated the Dawes Plan which spread payments out over a longer period and got a loan of 800 million Marks for Germany

2. In what areas can this stability be seen most clearly?

Foreign

1925 Locarno, 1926 enters League, 1929 Young Plan - leads to Allied forces pulling out of the Rhineland. Locarno will later encourage Germany to seek land in Eastern Europe.

Political

Between 1924-29 there were more stable coalition governments. The election of Hindenburg as President in 1925 showed how much support still remained for the old ways.

Economic

Dawes Plan gave 800 million Mark loan from the USA and spread reparations payments over a longer period; by 1928 Industrial production had surpassed pre-war levels. Young Plan 1929 reduced final reparations bill to $2000 million. Hyperinflation had destroyed savings, and prosperity after 1923 was dangerously dependent on American loans.

Cultural

No censorship meant that there was an explosion of creativity e.g. the Bauhaus movement and the German Expressionists (e.g. George Grosz) Many of these artists were anti-Weimar, e.g. Grosz, and undermined its status. The Nazis spoke for many people when they claimed that such art was "degenerate".

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NAZI STRENGTHS

1. What were Hitler's talents?

The successes and strengths of the Republic could be used to suggest that maybe it only failed because the Nazis were even more successful and even more strong.

Background

In 1921, Hitler became leader of the Nazi Party (founded by Anton Drexler), whose beliefs were summarised in the 25 Points (see p117 Walsh). He had been an unsuccessful street artist in Vienna who had found pride in the army, where he won the Iron Cross twice. He hated the Jews, who he saw as profiteers, and the shameful Versailles settlement.

Hitler's talents

Hitler was an incredibly charismatic speaker who could whip audiences into a frenzy with his emotional delivery and vague promises of a greater Germany.

However, beyond this the party remained rather poorly organised, with only a rudimentary army of thugs (the SA) to promote it; as a result, the 1923 Beer Hall Putsch failed dismally.

2. How did the party change after the Beer Hall Putsch?

After the Putsch the party was radically reformed to make it more effective.

Beliefs

Hitler wrote "Mein Kampf" ("My Struggle") in which he developed the 25 Point programme by adding the concept of the Fuhrer Principle i.e. the idea that one man should control the destiny of the country. He also puts more emphasis on generating hatred of Jews and minorities; appeals to emotion, not to reason.

Organisation

Local parties and the Hitler Youth were established; the SA were enlarged, the SS was established as an elite force; Goebbels was put in charge of propaganda.

Methods

Hitler abandoned the idea of an armed uprising against the Republic. Instead, he decided to destroy the system from within ("We must hold our noses and enter the Reichstag")

However, they remained a splinter party. In 1924 they had 5% of the seats in the Reichstag, in 1928 they had less than 2 per cent. Even the Communists had 4 times as many seats! The Stresemann prosperity was killing them.

3. How did the Depression help the Nazis?

The Depression changed everything. By 1932 40% of industrial workers were unemployed.

The main effect was that the Depression scared people; and in extreme situations there is a demand for extreme solutions.

• Industrialists, terrified of communists, poured money into the Nazi party
• Unemployed people were given shelter and food, promised "Work, Freedom and Bread"

Hitler himself drove the party into top gear to take full advantage of this situation -

• He raised his profile by running for President in 1932, and got 13 million votes.
• He dropped his policy of nationalisation and offered low taxes to appeal to the industrialists
• He went on a whistle-stop tour of Germany on his plane making radio broadcasts, rallies and distributing posters to spread the Nazi message.

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Related pages: Germany 1919-1945

Category: History

Author: Mrs March