How far did the Weimar Republic recover, 1919-29?
|
|
The republic survived the crises of 1919-23 by using the right-wing army and Freikorps units to crush the Communists, and getting the help of the left-wing unions to crush the Kapp Putsch. Stresemann, and American money (the Dawes Plan) led to a period of prosperity which saw a cultural flowering in Germany.
|
Going DeeperThe following links will help you widen your knowledge: BBC Bitesize on the Streseman recovery and Weimar social change How stable was the Weimar Republic? - Sixth Formers' ideas Gustav Stresemann - difficult but worth it
Prof. Rempel's page on Weimar culture (difficult)
Podcast The Bauhaus - BBC Witness History Giles Hill the Stresemann Years
YouTube Simple video on Weimar art & culture Mr Portman's great video - How far did Stresemann solve Germany's problems?
|
How did the Weimar Republic survive and recover, 1919-29?Although it seemed that the Weimar Republic MUST collapse, it managed to survive. To do this it used any method available to it:
1. FreikorpsAgainst the Communists, the SPD Defence Minister, Gustav Noske, used bands of Freikorps. They were right-wing and enjoyed putting down the Communist revolts of 1919–1920. 2. ArmyThe Army, led by von Seeckt, was also right-wing, and enjoyed putting down the Communist revolts of 1923. 3. StrikesThe Kapp Putsch was right-wing, so the Freikorps and Army refused to help the government. However, Ebert appealed to the workers of Berlin (who were left-wing), who went on strike. Berlin came to a standstill and the Putsch collapsed.
But then (and most of all)... 4. Stresemann's Achievements [DIFFERS] |
|
After 1924, a politician named Gustav Stresemann led the government (he became Chancellor in August 1923). At first he had opposed the Weimar Republic, but changed when he realised the alternative was anarchy.
a. Dawes Plan, 1924Stresemann called off the 1923 Ruhr strike and started to pay reparations again – but the American Dawes Plan gave Germany longer to make the payments (and the Young Plan of 1929 reduced the payments). b. Inflation controlled, November 1923Stresemann called in all the old, worthless marks and burned them. He replaced them with a new Rentenmark (worth 3,000 million old marks). c. French leave the Ruhr, April 1924Stresemann persuaded the French to leave. d. Foreign AffairsIn 1925, Stresemann signed the Locarno Treaty, agreeing to the loss of Alsace-Lorraine. In 1926, Germany was allowed to join the League of Nations. Germany had become a world power again. e. Economic GrowthGermany borrowed 25,000 million gold marks, mainly from America. This was used to build roads, railways and factories. The economy boomed and led to prosperity. Cultural life also boomed (the Roaring Twenties). f. Reforms and social changeStresemann introduced reforms to make life better for the working classes – notably Labour Exchanges and unemployment insurance (1927), and benefits for war veterans' families, single mothers and the disabled. The Republic developed infant, youth and materal welfare programmes. Money was spent on social infrastructure such as schools, sports facilities and local parks. The government spent money on housig, but also made low interest loans available, and tax breaks & land grants for housing developers. (See below) g. Strength at the CentreStresemann arranged a 'Great Coalition' of the moderate pro-democracy parties (based around the SDP, the Centre party and Stresemann's own 'German people's Party', the DVP). United together, they were able to resist the criticism from smaller extremist parties, and in this way, he overcame the effects of proportional representation – the government had enough members of the Reichstag supporting it to pass the laws it needed.
|
Source AStresemann was no genius. He was not the difference between pre- and post-1924 Germany. What made the difference was the Dawes Plan, and the economic prosperity that U.S. money created. Written by a modern historian.
Source BStresemann ... worked hard to rebuild his shattered country and for peace and co-operation abroad. Because of his leadership Germany is now prospering and has an important place in the affairs of Europe. from The Times, 4 October 1929. An account of his life and achievements which was written just after his death.
Source CThe German economy is doing well only on the surface. Germany is in fact dancing on a volcano. If the short-term loans are called in by America, most of our economy will collapse. from a speech made by Gustav Stresemann shortly before his death on 3 October 1929
|
Cultural Flowering – The 'Roaring Twenties'The 1920s became in Germany a time of real cultural creativity, with developments in Architecture, Art, Books, Films and Cabaret. There was a 'democratization' of the arts – they were made available to a much wider audience, particularly films and music. Famous names of this period include:
HOWEVER – I, much of the avant-garde art in the period was sexually explicit/liberated and highly politicised/left-wing. It provoked a strong reaction from the right-wing, which criticised it as 'decadent' and 'degenerate':
|
The film Cabaret was set in the Kit-Kat club in Berlin in 1930, before the Nazis took power.
|
Social developmentsThe AQA lesson suggestions expect students "to explore social change not only with reference to women and feminism but also Weimar Culture and the clash between modernists and traditionalists". The 1920s were a time of considerable social change, when "although a number of Eureopan countres embarked upon social programmes, Weimar Germany stood in the vanguard of this social modernisation" (as one historian wrote in 20); highlights included:
HOWEVER - II, not everybody was happy with the ways of this new modernity:
|
Consider:1. Importance of the individual: Which do you think was more important in bringing stability to the Weimar Republic, 1924-29, Stresemann, or the Dawes Plan? How does Source C help you decide?
2. 'Howevers' of doom: think about the problems some Germans had with the 'new culture' and the 'new society' developing in Germany during the Weimar Republic. For each, think about how it might have helped influence people to support the new repressive, racist dictatorship of Hitler's Nazi Party.
3. Looking at all the information on this page, how far do you think the Weimar Republic recovered, 1924-29?
|
Weaknesses of the Weimar RepublicHowever, many historians believe that the strength and success of the Weimar republic was largely an illusion:
In this way, the Wall Street collapse of 1929 was to prove a disaster for the Weimar Republic.
|