From Weimar to Nazism...What went wrong? | The History Notes

So...As part of the higher course we have to learn about the Weimar Republic, as part of the so called 'Interwar Years' (A period of supposed democracy and diplomacy within Europe). However as we haven't learnt about that yet, I'm solely going to touch on the failure of the Weimar Republic, and the disastrous effects this had upon Germany - paving the way for Hitler to emerge as leader.

Lets set the scene....

1918. The end of WW1, a continental war that crippled Germany economically and diplomatically.

1919. June. The Treaty of Versailles - you know the one that meant Germany had to pay reparations for the damaged they caused to the entente. They lost territory e.g the loss of Alsace Lorraine, The Polish Corridor and the demilitarisation of the Rhineland. Their army was restricted to only 100,000 which is insane compared to the size of the British army at the time. AND - they owed $6.6 billion in rearations.

Also in 1919...the Spartacist Communist Revolt...so some background to this, links to Higher. Communism was just about setting its place in Russia, under the Bolshevik Party, two years after the 1917 October Revolution under Lenin and Trotsky. This socialist feeling was spreading continentally throughout Europe but Germany wasn't having it. The Weimar Leaders linked communism to the anti-Semitic feeling at the time...creating mass fear in Germany and an anti communist feeling. Basically the Spartacists (think Spartacus off of Horrible Histories), were crushed by the Right Wing nationalist Freikorps.

1929. What major American event had a massive economic fallout globally?

You got it, the Wall Street Crash. 

So, back to the point of the post, what went wrong in the Weimar Republic? Well, you might say everything. (Yes, there was a decade long gap between 1919 and the crash but we'll get to that don't you worry).

Here are 4 main problems with the Weimar Republic

1. The Way they ended WW1 and the consequent socioeconomic impact upon the German people. This allowed the Nazi party to adopt the 'Stab in the Back' theory under the Treaty of Versailles , and the November Criminals theory...two myths that blamed the Weimar government for embarrassing Germany and damaging their pride.

2. Economic problems as a result of the Weimar inefficiencies. In order to pay for the large costs of the ongoing First World War, Germany suspended the gold standard. The London Ultimatum of May 1921, however, demanded reparations in gold or foreign currency to be paid in annual instalments of 2,000,000,000 (2 billion) gold marks plus 26 percent of the value of Germany's exports. The economic fallout after the war was detrimental upon the German people. French occupation of the industrial Ruhr in January 1923 was as a result of German defaults on payments, caused a lack of internal and foreign trade. 1923 became renown as a year of crisis lso hyperinflation of 1923, the mass printing of money in order to pay for the 'passive resistance that was occurring in the Ruhr.  By November 1923, the American dollar was worth 4,210,500,000,000 German marks. This led to the 'Dawes Plan' of April 1924 whereby America loaned $800,000,000 to reinvigorate German industry. The cycle of depression that was created basically paved the way for mass support for the Nazis.

3. Political problems. Stresemann, the foreign minister (1924-29) was strongly opposed by nationalists, something that the Nazis jumped on for their advantage. Political opposition was prominent from both the left and the right, with discontent allowing political extremism to emerge. Ultimately it was hard to establish democracy, as people had differing ideas and a lack of support from the public. Representation was disproportionate, due to numerate coalitions...v. unstable. 

Here are some of the political uprisings that occured...

• A nationalist group called Black Reichswehr rebelled in Berlin.
• A fascist group called the Nazis attempted a putsch[Putsch: A small revolt against a government. ] in Munich.
• Communists took over the governments of Saxony and Thuringia
• Communists also took over the Rhineland and declared it independent.

4. Foreign Reliance/Subservience - As noted in the economic section, Germany had to rely upon the Dawes Plan loan to restore their economy. Territorial losses were due to the fact that the Weimars were at the mercy of the allies. The status of Post War Germany was determined by the allies, basically allowing them to redraw the map of Germany, to lost land North, East and West. Germany lost all her colonies in Africa and China. At first glance, one might not link together foreign subservience and the Nazi rise, but imagine the public discontent that this created, due to the embarrassment!

So there you have it, the Weimar Republic had serious problems, and this was perfection for Hitler. You'll see the same trends in China and Cuba, but that's for another day.