The Weimar Republic

THE ORIGIN OF THE WEIMAR REPUBLIC AND THE REVOLUTION: 1918-1919

Background/History:

• Nov 1918: 
• - Germany was clearly losing the First World War.
• - German Kaiser (Wilhelm II) abdicated and fled to Holland. - GERMAN REVOLUTION
• - Germany now had a new Chancellor - Ebert (a socialist leader) 
• - He sets up new democratic constitution in the town of Weimar. - Germany becomes a REPUBLIC.

Summer 1919:

• - Summer 1919, he is elected as the first President of the new Weimar Republic? 
• - Germany signed an armistice with the allies and surrenders.

• A Democratic New Germany:
  In theory, the new Weimar constitution gave Germany a nearly perfect democratic system...
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• The ‘lower house’ or Reichstag, was election by proportional representation. 
  • The vote was by secret ballot and universal suffrage (every adult could vote). 
  • Elections were to be held every four years 

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..•The ‘upper house’ or Reichsrat, was made up of representatives.

⁃Representatives from each of the German states. 

⁃It could delay new laws.

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• The President was also the head of state and was elected every seven years.
  • The President appointed a Chancellor (usually the head of the largest party in the Reichstag) to form a government.
  • Chancellor’s role is similar to the British Prime Minister.

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In practice, it proved very difficult to get one party into power. Governments were usually coalitions of different parties and they tended to not last very long.

KEY WORDS:

Kaiser: 

An emperor 

Chancellor: 

A chief minister (like a British PM)

Constitution: 

An agreement or method of governing a country, with details usually written down and agreed on by those governed. 

Weimar Republic: 

New Republic government that first met in Weimar (republic - country without hereditary ruler, such as a king or emperor.)

Proportional Representation:

The number of representatives from a given party is determined by the share/proportion of votes that party gains nationally. 

Putsch: 

A revolt, rebellion or uprising aimed at overthrowing the current government. 

Problems In The New Republic: 

In the years immediately after the First World War, the new Weimar Republic was constantly under threat from extreme political groups.

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Spartacist Revolt, 1919 - opposition from the left:

• In November 1918, an independent socialist state was created in Bavaria under the leadership of Kurt Eisner. 

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• Communists in Germany, known as Spartacists, wanted a revolution similar to the one in Russia in 1917. In January 1919, Communist activists led by Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg seized power in Berlin and the Baltic ports.

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• Within weeks, however, all the revolts had been crushed by regular troops and the Freikorps (group of ex soldiers). The Communist leaders were assassinated. 

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Kapp Putsch, 1920 - opposition from the right:

German nationalists saw democracy as weak. For many nationalist, the new Weimar Republic was a symbol of Germany’s defeat in the war. They were furious with the Government for signing the hated Treaty of Versailles.

Vengeance, German nation!

Today in the Hall of Mirrors, the disgraceful treaty is…