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Home , August 1923, November 1923

Revision for Spring Mocks 2019 Germany (Paper 3) How did Germany survive 1923? The response of many German people to this economic chaos was the same as it had been to the . They didn’t blame the Kaiser (who had started the war) or the Allies (who had forced the German government to agree to the Treaty) or the French (who had actually invaded the )—they blamed the Weimar government. If democracy was to survive, action was needed. The man who stepped in to save the day was a man called , a member of the DVP - a centre-right political party, who became Chancellor in . He acted quickly and called off the policy of passive resistance and visited to tell the French government that he was prepared to work with them to resume reparation repayments. He also scrapped the old worthless money and introduced a new, temporary currency called the rentenmark. By strictly limiting the amount of this currency in circulation, the value of German money was stabilised, bringing hyperinflation under control. Within the year a new permanent currency called the Reichsmark was brought in. Because of Stresemann, Germany had survived its first major economic crisis but there was a cost. Many right-wing extremists were furious that once again Germany had given in to the French. Another humiliation by the Weimar government and within the year a small right wing group - the NSDAP which was led by - made its first attempt to seize power in , in . The attempted Putsch failed but it was a sign that the extreme-right wing was not going to just disappear.

The Golden Years of the Weimar Republic—1924-1929 Although he had managed to tackle the inflation problem, Gustav Stresemann was not popular with many people. He was too right wing for the Left and too left wing for the Right. This resulted in his removal as Chancellor in 1924. However his skills were recognised and he was a member of every government from 1923 and 1929. From 1924 to 1929 he held the post of Foreign Minister. For this reason the years 1924-1929 are often referred to as the Stresemann Era.

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The Dawes Plan 1924 and The Locarno Treaties 1925 The German recovery continued ​ in 1924 because of a deal Stresemann brokered with the French, British and Americans. Under The Dawes Plan of 1924, Germany was given longer to pay reparations so would be able to pay lower reparation payments. Germany agreed to pay as much as it could each year, starting with 1,000 million marks. As part of the deal, America agreed to lend Germany 800 million marks to get the plan started. This money was used to kick start the stagnant German economy. As Germany recovered from the crisis, more people from all social classes began to support their government. The next success for Stresemann was the Locarno Pact of ​ 1925. In a series of ​ treaties, the Germans promised to accept the land and border changes which had been made by the Treaty of Versailles. As a result of Stresemann’s cooperative stance Germany was, in 1926, at last invited to join the League of Nations Its status as a great power was also recognised as it was given a permanent seat on the League’s Council, alongside Britain and France. Finally in 1929, the Young Plan was ​ ​ ​ agreed. This greatly reduced the amount of money Germany had to pay as reparations and gave Germany longer to pay. As a result of this deal, Allied troops finally withdrew from the Rhineland.

2 Did all of this make the German people happy? Most Germans were pleased but a hard core of extremists weren’t happy because Stresemann had cooperated with the Allies rather than seeking revenge for the humiliation of the Treaty. They didn’t understand that Stresemann had recognised the fact that the only way in which the Allies would ever have agreed to change the terms of the Treaty, was if they could be made to trust Germany. Between 1924 and 1929 Stresemann had succeeded in winning the trust of the Allies and had therefore been able to negotiate concessions on the Treaty and ended the likelihood of future conflict.

A New President 1925 The Weimar Constitution stated that there should be an election for President every 7 years. In 1925 Ebert’s tenure came to an end and in the following election, General was elected President. This was very worrying for supporters of democracy in Germany. Although he was respected and trusted by the German people Hindenburg had always been a critic of democracy and the Weimar system. Before he took office, he had even written to his old friend, Kaiser Wilhelm II, to ask his permission to stand for election! The fact that this critic of democracy had been elected President suggests that support for the pro-democracy Weimar parties was getting weaker; Hindenburg represented the old Germany of the Kaiser, not the new Weimar Germany of the Social Democrats.

Economic Success and Political Stability Despite the election of Hindenburg as President, by the late , Weimar Germany seemed relatively stable. The reason for this was Germany’s economic revival. The 800 million marks loan from America, which had been part of the Dawes Plan, was invested in industry and commerce. Following America’s lead, foreign banks were also happy to lend money to German businessmen and farmers to invest in new equipment and premises; 25,000 million gold marks entered the German economy this way.

3 By 1930, Germany had become was one of the world’s leading exporters of consumer goods. 3 million new homes had been built, along with factories, public facilities, roads, railways, airships, ocean liners, film studios etc. Germany seemed like the most modern and prosperous country in the world outside the USA. The Dawes Plan had saved Germany from economic collapse and provided a kickstart to an economic recovery. One major advantage of the improved German economy was that there was a decline in support for extremist parties like the Nazis. Nazi representation in the Reichstag went from a high of 32 seats in 1924 to just 12 in 1928. Likewise, support for the Communists declined, though not as much. The message was clear: economic success led to political stability and to a decline in support for the extreme parties like the Nazis and the Communists.

Warning signs for the future All of this was very exciting. However, there were very serious weaknesses threatening the long term success of the German economy: ● Germany was dependent on American and foreign loans which could be withdrawn at any time and too big a percentage of its income came from exports. ● Unemployment remained a serious problem; the Weimar economy wasn’t providing enough jobs for Germany’s rising population. ● Farming never really recovered to its pre-war situation and income from agriculture actually fell between 1925 and 1929; farm workers in 1929 were earning little more than half the national average. ● There were extremes of wealth and poverty in Germany; economic power was still mainly in the hands of just a few very wealthy industrialists who ran more than half-Germany’s industry.

4 Was Weimar Germany a beautiful house built on shaky foundations? All of this meant was that the future of Weimar Germany was far from secure. Most of the very rich, the very poor and the farmers of Germany remained unimpressed by the Weimar government. Also, because Germany’s economic success was almost totally dependant on foreign investment and exports (mainly to America), if anything happened to the American economy then the German economy would collapse. Metaphorically if America were to sneeze, Germany would be very likely to catch a fatal cold! Stresemann himself knew this: Another warning sign for the future…. Between 1919 and 1933, no single party ever won a majority of seats in the Reichstag. Although the Social Democrats always won the most votes - and were by far the most popular political party - they never won enough seats to form a government on their own. Indeed between 1923 and 1928 they didn’t take part in any of the ruling coalitions. All Weimar governments were coalitions—parties working together—and these coalitions had a horrible habit of breaking down nearly as quickly as they were formed. In the 14 years of the Weimar Republic, there were 25 separate governments; some governments only lasted a matter of weeks. The only consistent feature of government at this time was Stresemann’s role as Foreign Minister. What would happen if there was a crisis and Stresemann wasn’t around to find a solution? Germany was about to find out!

The Rise of the Hitler and the Nazis 1919-1933 ​ The Nazi party was founded in Munich in 1919 by Anton Drexler NOT ​ ​ ​ Adolf Hitler. It was originally called the DAP (German Workers Party; it ​ ​ later became the National Socialist Workers party or Nazis. Before Hitler joined, it had less than 50 members, hardly any money, no party programme, no leaflets, no posters – not even the swastika symbol. In 1921, Hitler replaced Drexler as the leader. ​

5 Nazi Policies - The 25 Point Programme Hitler and Drexler wrote The 25-point Programme which stated the party’s 3 ​ ​ ​ ​ main policies. Anti-Semitism – This is a hatred of Jewish people and the belief ​ ​ that the Jews are to blame for many national and international problems.The Nazis said the Jewish people were the lowest race of people in the world and that if you were Jewish, you weren’t a German citizen.Jews were blamed for all of Germany’s problems, including the First World War. At this point, the Nazis didn’t say anything about removing the Jews from Germany, or killing them. Nationalism – This is the belief that your country is better than others and that ​ the government should do whatever is necessary for the good of your country.The Nazis said that the German government should never have surrendered and that they would rip up the Treaty of Versailles and take back all that Germany had lost. They wanted all German speaking people of Europe to be united into a “Greater Germany”.They believed that the German people were superior to all other races. Socialism - This is the belief that the government should take control of the ​ economy to make sure that wealth is distributed fairly and equally so that there is no big gap between the rich and the poor. Hitler said that he hated socialism but many ot the Nazi’s policies were socialist. Why did Hitler call his movement the National SOCIALIST Party of ​ ​ Germany? • Working class Germans were often jealous of their wealthy bosses and landlords. Hitler wanted to get their support because he thought he would need them if he was to seize power through violence; he thought he could win their support by saying the NSDAP was in favour of forces bosses to share profits with the workers. • Many working class Germans were jealous of wealthy Jews because they believed that too much land, property and corporations were owned by Jewish families; the Nazis also hated Jews and promised to adopt policies which would take land, wealth and power away from wealthy Jews so that the workers could be better off.

6 Who was Adolf Hitler and why was he a good leader?Hitler was a ​ genuine war hero, having been awarded the Iron Cross for bravery during the First World War. He was a very good public speaker. He believed that strong leadership and personal sacrifice would make Germany strong again. Up until his stay in prison after the Munich Putsch, Hitler planned to take power through a violent revolution.

The Importance of the SA ● Hitler created the SA in 1921 to attract members to the Nazi movement. ● This violent bunch of uniformed thugs was given the important task of guarding Nazi meetings and keeping out political opponents. ● Hitler also used the SA to disrupt the meetings of other political parties and beat up anyone who spoke out against the Nazis or his ideas. ● Most members were young, working class, mainly unemployed, ex-soldiers looking for a role in the new Germany. ● They loved their brown uniform and the feeling of being powerful and important.

The Munich () 1923 In 1923, Hitler and the SA tried to seize power in Munich. It was a total disaster, 16 Nazis were killed and Hitler was jailed. However Hitler made the most of his trial, making passionate speeches from the dock which were reported all over Germany. Many Germans related to his claim that he was trying to save Germany from a weak government which had stabbed the army in the back and kept giving in to the French. Then while he was in jail, Hitler wrote his famous book, Mein Kampf, and came up with a new ​ ​ ​ strategy to gain power - the Nazis would try to win power legally by winning ​ the most votes in elections. He would use democracy to kill democracy. ​ ​ This postcard was sold by the Nazis after the trial as a war of raising money. It shows the main conspirators outside the courtroom before the trial. The man in the middle is General Ludendorff, who played an active role in the putsch, but was not found guilty of treason because he was a national hero. To Hitler’s left is Ernst Rohm the leader of the SA.

7 What happened to the Nazis between 1924 and 1929? After 4 years of economic chaos, the German economy recovered between 1924 and 1929 because of the policies and deals secured by Gustav Stresemann. Most Germans were happy with their government and had no interest in what Hitler and the Nazis thought or said at this time. So what were the Nazis up to at this time? • The ban on the NSDAP was lifted in 1925. • 3 new Nazi organisations were set up to increase support: The Nazi Students’ League; the German Women’s Order and the SS (in 1925). • Hitler used donations by wealthy businessmen like , Bosch and Thyssen to open a branch of the Nazi movement in every Weimar constituency. • Local Nazis were given courses on how to be better public speakers. • Newspapers were purchased to spread Nazi propaganda. The Schutzstaffel (SS) Key Facts • Hitler’s Elite Bodyguards • 3,000 ‘pure bred’ Aryan’s led by Himmler. • A bit like the officer class of the SA. • Known as the Blackshirts. The Bamberg Conference 1926 ● Nazis in the rural south of Germany wanted to focus on Nationalism and Anti-Semitism; they had to financial backing of wealthy businessmen because they promised to crush the Trade Unions. Hitler supported this faction of the movement. ● The Nazis in the north (which was more urban than the south) wanted to focus on Socialist policies and often verbally attacked ‘capitalists’ for their ‘crimes against workers’. It would be impossible for this ‘dual identity’ of the Nazi party to continue; Whose support was more important for the future - the workers or the businessmen (and their money)?

8 In 1926 the future direction of the National Socialist movement was decided at the Bamberg Conference. Hitler asserted his authority at Bamburg and the movement united behind his nationalist programme abandoning the socialist policies.

DISASTER! The Wall Street Crash 29 October 1929 In 1929 the American economy collapsed following ‘The Wall Street Crash’. When the US economy collapsed, so did Germany’s and between 1929 and 1932 unemployment in Germany rose from less than 2 million to more than 6 million. The German government failed to come up with any effective policies to create jobs and the ruling coalition fell apart. By 1932 - the year that the Nazis became Germany’s biggest political party - President Hindenburg was having to pass decrees using Article 48 of the Weimar Constitution. This was because the Reichstag was unable to get a majority to pass any laws. Hitler had always said that democracy couldn’t work in Germany. Were economic and political developments working in his favour to prove that he was right?

The Role of the SA During this time, the SA used donations from wealthy Nazi supporters to open hostels for the homeless and run soup kitchens to feed people who couldn’t afford food. These legal activities convinced many people to vote for the Nazis. At the same time the SA was violently disrupting other political parties’ meetings and beating up people who dared to speak out against Hitler. They created a sense of fear and lawlessness on Germany’s streets by starting street battles with the Communists. Hitler showed his political genius at this point; he blamed the violence that the SA was creating on the Communists and promised his middle and upper class voters that he would stop the violence and restore law and order to Germany if he was elected! In other words he created a problem and then promised to solve it!

9 How did the Nazis win votes? 1 Effective use of propaganda devised by the Nazis propaganda genius, ​ Joseph Goebbels including: ● Posters targeting specific audiences, using simple and clear messages and images ● Newspapers owned by the Nazis producing ‘fake news’ ● Mass Rallies and Public Meetings ● Pamphlets distributed by the SA and the Hitler Youth movement ● Bold graffiti on walls 2 The Activities of the SA under the leadership of Ernst Rohm ● Hindering the campaigns of other political parties by disrupting meetings. ● Distributing pamphlets and putting graffiti on walls. ● Running soup kitchens/ serving free food with propaganda thrown in, 3 Effective leadership Hitler was a very charismatic leader who was able to inspire huge crowds of people with his speeches which were passionate and emotional. None of the other political parties had a leader with his personal following or skill set. Also he could refer to his ‘heroic’ attempt to save Germany in 1923 (The Munich Putsch). Election Results 1924 - 1932 • 1924 1,918,000 • 1928 810,000 • 1930 6,409,000 • 1932 (May) 13,745,000 • 1932 (Nov) 11,737,000 ​ ​

By 1932 the Nazis were the biggest political party. Other politicians tried to run Germany as Chancellor but failed. Consequently, in January 1933 the President of Germany, Paul Hindenburg, had no real choice but to invite Hitler to be Chancellor (like our Prime Minister). The change of strategy that Hitler had come up with while he was in prison following the Munich Putsch had worked. The Nazis had successfully used the democratic system to become the biggest party and as a result Hitler had become the .

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