Unit 2 Germany

Features of the Weimar Republic

• Kaiser has abdicated
• Ebert's constitution had the following weaknesses 
• proportional representation 
• elections every 4 years 
• chancellor needed a majority in the reichstag to pass laws
• president had power to suspend  the constitution and pass laws by decree 

problems of the Weimar republic- 

• Treaty of versailles - politicians were blamed for signing it- traitors 
• Hyperinflation - living conditions declined
• french occupation of the ruhr - economy wrecked
• constitution - hard to pass laws by proportional representation so had to suspend the constitution often

The german economy showed signs of recovery and political stability

• Rentenmark- stabilised currency 
• Reichsmark- restored value of german money 
• Dawes plan - reorganised and reduced reparations; France withdrew from the Ruhr
• US loans - helped pay reparations/ helped german industry 
• Locarno pact- improved relations with B/F; guaranteed borders with Belgium France and italy
• Germanys entry into LON- germany recognised as great power again 
• Kellogg- briand - other countries trusted Germany; would settle disputes peacefully 
• young plan - set timescale and reduced reparations; france agreed to leave rhineland 

• Politics more stable - short lived coalition governments 
• extremist parties less popular - still around 
• unemployment fell - still high 
• new infrastructure - due to US loans 
• 1928 production was high - slowed down after 1927
• 1930 germany was a major exporter - reliant on US loans and imports
• Germany was accepted by other countries - but German nationalists hated the dawes and young plans 

• Wall street crash 
• Great depression 

German businesses -                                                        German people -

• couldnt pay back loans to US or get new ones                - unemployment
• higher taxes to government                                            - banks collapsed; people lostmoney
• markets dried up - little money available                          - poverty 

German Government - 

• couldnt borrow from the US 
• couldnt print more money so taxes increased 
• made cuts in government and benefits 
• dependance on US loans crippled economy 
• coalition meant they couldnt agree on how to resolve the crisis

• 1919 joined DAP - german workers party 
• name changed to NSDAP - national socialist german workers party (nazi's) 
• 1921 hitler took control of party 

policies: 

• versailles to be scrapped 
• lebensraum 
• no jews in germany 

Hitlers own private army - the SA  (stormtroopers) 

• for security and fighting communists 
• unemployed soldiers 
• Ernst Rohm put in charge 

Why did the Nazis try to take power in munich? 

• unpopularity of weimar increased because of payment of reparations to the french 
• Nazi's thought general Ludendorff could be persuaded to help the nazis gain army support 
• thought they were ready and had enough support - the most nazi support was in Munich 
• thought Bavarian governement would support them 
• copying Mussolini - march on Rome 

Consequences 

• 16 nazis killed 
• hitler imprisoned 
• hitlers trial was a propaganda victory 
• judge was sympathetic and gave minimum sentence 
• Hitler dictated Mein kampf - became a bestseller 
• Nazi party banned - hitler could not speak in public untill 1927

Hitler realised he needed to come to power legally 

• party split into regions 
• given money by wealthy companies 
• SA was expanded 400,000
• ** set up 1925 as an elite bodyguard 
• propaganda more effective 

- clear messages -close links with newspapers - new technology such as radio and film 

why were the years 1924 - 29 difficult for the nazi's? 

• economy had improved - less unemloyment 
• Hindenberg was president of the Weimar republic which increased its popularity 
• nazi's lost popularity 
• 1928 - 12 seats in the reichstag 

• Great depression 
• Nazis offered strong leadership 
• unemployment hit the middle and working class hard 
• people turned to extremist parties to solve the problems moderate ones couldnt 
• SA - stronger than communists 

• strong propaganda - Hitlers personal appeal and strong values including scrapping the treaty and lebensraum 
• women - some women supported the traditional womens role 
• Big business - strong leadership and protection from communists lead to support and money
• Farmers - Nazi's promised protection from communists 
• Middle class - hit hard by great depression, felt let down by moderate parties + liked anti communist message 
• some working class support - nazi's connected with jobs and a strong germany however alot of workers supported communism 

1932

• Hidenberg beats hitler in presidential election 
• Reichstag election is held to gain support for Von papens party but they lose seats and Hitler gains 230 (the majority) 
• Hidenburg refuses Hitler as chancellor 
• Hidenberg - still ruling by decree - removes von papen and replaces with von schleicher 
• Von papen persuades Hindengburg to make Hitler chancellor 

Why did von papen want hitler as chancellor? 

• his party needed support from others to get laws passed 
• Hitler had majority - needed his support 
• but hitlers party was linked to thugs - the SA 

von papen came up with this plan : 

• get nazi backing (230)           - Hitler can be chancellor but they could manipulate him
• nazi's wont remain popular so they can be manipulated 
• nazi's depend on money from big businesses - von papen was in control of this and could stop it 

• Reichstag building burned down 
• dutch communist Van der Lubbe confessed 
• Hitler convinced Hindenburg to declare a state of emergency and call an election 
• Nazi's won majority - intimidation was used 
• Reichstag voted itself out of power 
• Enabling act gave Hitler the power to rule by decree without the Reichstag's consent for four years 

After the Enabling act- 

• people could be arrested without trial 
• any house could be searched and stuff confiscated 
• censorship 
• regional parliaments closed 
• trade unions banned/ strikes illegal 
• other political arties banned 

NOLK 

• Rohm challenged Hitler because he wanted the party to be more about workers than businesses 
• the ** shot rohm and about 400 other opponents 

THE DEATH OF HINDENBURG 

• President died 
• Hitler declares himself Fuhrer 
• made all soldiers swear alliegence 
• propaganda influenced the vote on hitlers right to be fuhrer 

• New laws - crime to listen to foreign radio and talk against Hitler
• ** arrested people for breaking the new laws or opposing the Nazis 
• Gestapo - spied on people 
• Wardens - report on public 
• people encouraged to spy on friends and family 
• law courts - under nazi control, no trials, all judges took allegiance to Hitler 
• Totalitarian regime - central government in charge of all aspects of the country 

targets- 

• communists and political opponants 
• Christians 
• undesirables (jews,unemployed,gay,disabled) put in concentration camps

The churches 

• nazi deal allowed german catholics to worship if they supported the nazi's 
• nazis went back on their promise 
• Many protestants backed hitler- the ones who opposed were sent to concentratoin camps

Goebbels ( Nazi minister of enlightenment and  propaganda)

• only short range radios were produced - no foreign stations 
• newspapers that opposed were shut down 
• books only published with Goebbels permission
• public burning of jewish books 
• plays,art,sport,slogans,rallies,cinema,radio,posters

young people 

• nazi youth groups - opposition; edelweiss pirates
• race studies 
• lost of p.e. 
• boys trained for military roles/girls trained to be mothers 

Women 

• children,kitchen,church 
• women lost jobs 
• laws helped marriage and children 
• medals 

how successful?

• marriages and birth rate increased - could be due to improved economy 
• employers would rather employ women - cheaper 
• few women had more than 2 children 
• many women supported the traditional roles 

1. DAF (german labour front)

set working hours and pay rates; made sure workers and employers did what state needed 

2. RAD  (national labour service) 

get unemployed working; compulsary army style work for young men; public work e.g. roads

2. Rearmament 

Nazis wanted to rebuild Germany's military power and to be ready for war; helped reduce unemployment and boosted the economy 

+arguments for 

• unemployment went from 4.8mill to 0.5mill 
• wages rose and people could afford consumer goods 
• car ownership increased x3
• SDA improved working conditions
• KdF organised holidays and leisur activities for workers 
• lots of public support for Nazis because of raised living conditions 

-arguments against 

• people had to work longer hours 
• Nazi's reduced unemployment by putting them into the army or RAD 
• although wages rose, so did prices 
• because standards were so low during the great depression; they were bound to rise in the years following 
• overspending on the military could lead to lack of money for everything else 

• Boycotts of jewish shops ; other restrictions placed e.g. no army, no inheritance
• jews banned from public places 
• Nuremburg laws - denies jews German citenzenship so they cant vote and cant marry aryans 
• jews jobs restricted 
• register all their property 
• carry identity cards
• Kristallnacht - 20,000 arrested 100 killed, jews to pay a fine for the attack and to pay damages for their own property
• Jews barred from ownign property 
• Jews evicted and sent to ghettos - thousands died 

why? 

• long standing distrust of Jews 
• nazi anti-semetic propaganda 
• fear of gestapo and ** 

Aryans  Lesser races e.g. slavs  Untermenschen e.g. africans  Lebensunwertes e.g. jews/gypsies  Disabled people and other 'weak' people should be sterilised  Gypsies were persecuted much like Jews