Notes
- Democratic gov't formed after ww1
- First Chancellor is Friedrich Ebert until 1925
- Many people feel the government constitution was its downfall
- People mad that they followed Treaty of Versailles
2 Challenges:
- Began by Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg
- Turned a socialist group Spartakists League into German Communist Party
- Tried to take over Berlin in January 1919
- brutally put down by the Freikorps
- Luxemburg and Liebknecht murdered
The Kapp Putsch, 1920:
- In German Pusch stands for coup d'etat
- Freikorps are asked to disband
- Treaty of Versailles (100,000)
- Wolfgang Kapp March on Berlin in March 1920
- German workers save Weimar Republic- general strike
Summary
The Weimar Republic was started by Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg. This system evolved into a socialist group, while the Spartakist group turned into the German Communist Party. This was a form of government adopted in 1919 to replace the imperialistic form of government that had been in place prior. This new government was a semi-presidential/democratic system that lasted fourteen years. During it's period, it faced numerous problems ranging from hyperinflation to political extremists. This government was tested in many ways by these challenges. It would ultimately see it's end in 1930 when President Hindenburg adopts dictator like emergency powers to back the administrations of Chancellors including Hitler. It would be during the final stages of this government, where a surge in unemployment led to the the rise of the Nazi Party and Hitler. The republic technically existed until 1945, as the constitution was never actually repealed. However, the early actions of the Nazis that allowed them to make legal choices without consulting the constitution rendered the constitution itself virtually irrelevant.
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Political Cartoon
Quote
"As I would not be a slave, so I would not be a master. This expresses my idea of democracy."
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Subjunctive Question
If either of the two groups that challenged the WR had succeeded would Hitler have taken power?