The Weimar Republic

WHAT WAS THE WEIMAR REPUBLIC?

A republic is a country without a hereditary ruler 

The new government met in a town called Weimar hence why it is called the 'Weimar Republic'

POST WW1

The Kaiser of Germany was forced to abdicate after WW1 

The Weimar Republic replaced the Kaiser but they were not very popular... 

PROBLEMS FOR THE WEIMAR REPUBLIC 

1 - Blame for the defeat in WW1 

The leaders of the Weimar Republic signed a ceace-fire agreement (armstice - treaty of versailles) which led to the German people feeling betrayed.

They believed that the Government was weak. 

Treaty of Versailles = LAMB 

Land 

Army 

Money 

Blame 

2 - The treaty 

Germany had to give up 13% of its land including important areas 

German army reduced to 100,000 men

No aircraft allowed 

Navy reduced 

Had to pay for reperations to France and Belgium - £6.6 billion! 

Germany had to take the blame for the war. 

These terms were unfair for Germany, and the opponents of the Weimar Republic saw the Government as weak. 

3 - Political Violence 

As previously stated, the Weimar Republic were unpopular and many people disagreed with the way that they were running the country. 

Political uprisings: 

The Spartacist Upsrising 1919:

Communists wanted an uprising in Germany. 

They wanted to replicate the Russian Revolution (1917) 

Led by Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg

Took place in the centre of Berlin 

Newspapers and communication centres were taken over by the Sparticists 

The Weimar Republic employed the friekorps (ex soldiers, forced out of the forces by the treaty of versailles) to stop the uprising - they succeeded. The…