Years of Crisis, 1918-

23HI136, History of Germany

Lecture 6

The

Birth

of

Germ

an

Dem

ocra

cy?

Did 1918 mark a break from the 19 th century?

How revolutionary were the events of 1918?

What compromises led to birth of the parliamentary republic?

What changes in German politics and society did the birth of the Weimar Republic signal?

The

Dom

estic

Im

pact

of t

he

War

Growing unrest from 1915.

Mounting casualties, falling

living standards and food &

fuel shortages led to growing labour unrest.

Mass strikes in Jan. 1918

throughout Germany and

Austria-Hungary. The realisation of defeat a

profound shock to the German people – all their

suffering had been for nothing.

The October

Reforms

3 October: Prince Max

von Baden installed

as Chancellor.

Coalition of Centre

Party, Liberals and

SPD.

26 October: Reform of

the Constitution

announced

The 3 class franchise

in Prussia abolished.

The Kaiser’s powers

over the army and

appointments

severely curtailed.

The Chancellor and

the Government

made accountable

to the Reichstag.

A ‘Revolution from

above’?

The

Nove

mbe

r Re

volu

tion Mutinous sailors at Kiel, November 1918

The

Proclamation of

the Republic

Philipp Scheidemann (marked by the cross)

proclaims the formation of the German

Republic from the window of the Reichstag, 9

November 1918

The

Split

in th

e Le

ft

The SPD split in April 1917 over

continuing support for the war.

The MSPD represented the more

reformist wing of the party, upheld

democracy and wanted moderate

reforms rather than soviet-style

communism. The USPD wanted radical social,

economic and political reform, but

shied away from full communism. It

was deeply divided and its influence

was curtailed by factional squabbles.

The Spartacists and Revolutionary

Shop Stewards campaigned for a

socialist republic based on the

Workers’ and Soldiers’ Councils which

would follow the same path as

Bolshevik Russia.

Fata

l Co

mpr

omise

s?

Ebert-Groener Pact (10 Nov.

1918) The Army promised to support

the new government in return

for a commitment to resist

Bolshevism and free hand in

military affairs. A betrayal of the revolution or a

sensible precaution? Stinnes-Legien Agreement (15

Nov. 1918) Employers agree to recognise

unions & introduce 8 hour

working day if Unions abandon

calls for nationalisation of

industry.

The

Frei

korp

s

The Spartacist

Uprising

Street fighting in Berlin, January

1919

Revolution in

BavariaKurt Eisner (1867-1919), the leader of the

Bavarian Revolution …

… And his assassin, the 22 year old Anton Graf

von Arco auf Valley (1897-1945)

Revo

lutio

n in

Ba

varia

Above:The Revolutionary leaders Ernst Toller and Eugene Levine.

Below: Freikorps entering Munich, May 1919

The Weim

ar

Constitution Power derived from the people:

The President elected by universal suffrage every 7

years.

The Reichstag elected by universal suffrage

through proportional representation ever 4 years.

The Chancellor and Cabinet were appointed by the

President, but required parliamentary support to pass

legislation.

Extended the vote to women and lowered the

voting age.

Established fundamental civil rights:

Freedom of press, speech & assembly (Article 114)

Equality before the law (Article 109)

The right to economic justice (Article 151)

The

Wei

mar

Co

nstit

utio

n

Source: John Traynor, Europe 1890-1990 (1993)

Polit

ical P

artie

s

Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands (German Social Democratic Party, SPD).

Unabhängige Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands (Independent German Social Democratic Party, USPD).

Kommunistische Partei Deutschlands (Communist Party of Germany, KPD).

Deutsche Demokratische Partei (German Democratic Party, DDP).

Zentrumspartei (Centre Party). Deutsche Volkspartei (German People’s Party, DVP). Deutschenationale Volkspartei (German National

People’s Party, DNVP). Various smaller parties including the Bayerische

Volkspartei (Bavarian People’s Party, BVP) and the Nationalsozialistische Partei Deutschlands (NSDAP).

The Kapp

Putsch

Left: Freikorps distribute leaflets in Berlin, March

1920

Right: Wolfgang Kapp, figurehead of the Kapp Putsch

The Ruhr

Uprising

Left: Left-wing unsurgents during the

Ruhr Uprising, March 1920

Right: Soldiers killed in action during the

uprising.

Matthias Erzberger (1875-1921)

Centre Party

Leader

Proponent of

self-determination

Supported

Armistice and

signed Versailles Treaty

1919-1920: Vice

Chancellor &

Finance Minister

Killed on holiday

in Black Forest,

26 August 1921.

Walther

Rathenau

(1867-1922) Industrialist and

financier.

Responsible for

setting up the

Kreigsrohstoffabteilu

ng in WWI.

Germany’s first

Jewish foreign

minister.

Assassinated 24 June

1922.

Econ

omic

Crisi

s

Had its roots in the pre-war and wartime

economy. Lack of capital investment, large trade deficit

and difficulties in switching from a war-time to

peace-time economy were made worse by the

necessity of paying reparations to the

victorious allies. The Government refused to either raise taxes

or cut expenditure on political grounds – it was

feared that both measures would lead to

unemployment and political unrest.

Default on reparations payments led to French

and Belgian occupation of Ruhr (1923-24).

Unable to collect taxes from the Ruhr and cut

off from the supplies of coal that powered

German industry and exports, the

Government’s finances collapsed.

The Munich

‘Beer Hall’

Putsch

Defendants at the treason trial following the

Munich Beer Hall Pustsch. Ludendorff is in

The centre. Hitler is on his left.

Conc

lusio

n

German politics were radicalized by the experience of war and defeat.

But the vast majority of Germans were primarily concerned with their material well-being, not political reform.

The circumstances of its birth hampered the Weimar Republic – revolution and counter-revolution, economic crisis and the bitter legacy of defeat all helped to undermine faith in the new democracy.

The Weimar constitution achieved much (a democratic system, welfare state etc.), but did little to solve deep divisions within German society and left key institutions unreformed.

But the Republic weathered the storm – which should indicate that it had more popular support and stronger institutions than has sometimes been suggested.