What effect did the Treaty of Versailles have on Germany?
Germany lost a lot of it's territory, it's army was reduced, they had to pay reparations
How much money did Germany have to pay in reparations?
�6.6 billion
What was the War Guilt Clause?
The Germans had to accept complete responsibility for causing WWI
In what state was the German economy in after WWI?
Bad, it suffered due to the reparations plan and high unemployment from the demobilisation of soldiers
Why was there increased inflation in Germany between 1919 and 1922?
The government had to print more money in order to pay off war debts and reparations
What occurred as a result of Germany being unable to pay it's reparations?
French and Belgian troops invaded the Ruhr industrial region and confiscated raw materials and goods.
What were the effects of the Ruhr invasion?
There was passive resistance by German workers, a number of German workers died, the German mark collapsed and led to hyper inflation. The mark was now worthless
What was the impact of the collapse of the mark on the German middle class?
The value of their savings and pensions collapsed and workers were made poorer and many lost work
What was the impact of the collapse of the mark on the German landowners and industrialists?
They were now easily able to pay off loans and made huge fortunes when their property increased in value
How did the Weimar government react to the collapse of the mark?
They called off the Ruhr strikes and created a new currency, the Rentenmark. They negotiated special loans with the US and reduced the reparations payments using the Dawes plan
By what year had the German economy reached pre-war levels?
1928
In November 1923 how many marks could you buy with 1 dollar?
4 trillion
What had Germany achieved by 1929?
It became the leading industrial power on the the continent
What was the impact of the economic recovery on extremist parties such as the Nazis and Communists?
Support for them began to fall
What was the issue with the German economic recovery?
It was far too dependent on US loans
What brought an end to the German economic recovery?
The 1929 Wall Street Crash and the subsequent depression
Why did the economic depression in America affect Germany?
The American banks and companies were forced to call in their loans from Germany
What happened in Germany following the onset of the economic depression?
Businesses went bankrupt and closed down, factories and mines closed and workers were laid off leading to a dramatic rise in unemployment
How many were unemployed in Germany in 1932?
6 million
How many were unemployed in Germany in 1929?
1.5 million
What was the effect of the depression on middle class German families?
Many had to sell their homes and were unable to rent new ones. They moved to shantytowns and had to rely on soup kitchens for food
Why was the reputation of the Weimar government already damaged before the great depression?
Because they had signed the Treaty of Versailles and people believed they had stabbed the army in the back
What was the Weimar government also known as?
The November criminals
What was the attitude of judges, generals, teachers and civil servant to the Weimar government?
They wanted a more authoritarian government and they used their positions of influence to undermine the Weimar government
Who was the Chancellor during the economic crisis and what was his nickname?
Br�ning, also known as the Hunger Chancellor
How did the actions of Chancellor Br�ning worsen the economic crisis?
He cut back on government spending and reduced wages, pensions and unemployment benefit which increased dissatisfaction in the streets
Who was the President during the economic crisis?
Hindenberg
What power of Hindenberg's did Br�ning make use of?
He used Hindenberg's power to rule by decree to bring in some of his more unpopular measures
What did Br�ning's use of ruling by decree show?
The failure of democracy
What was shown by the 1930 general election?
A swing in favour of extremism with a marked increase in support for the Nazi and Communist parties
What did Hitler organise in 1923?
The failed Munich Putsch
What did Hitler change his tactics to after the Munich Putsch?
He no longer wanted to use force to achieve power he wanted to use democracy to destroy democracy even if "outvoting them would take longer than outshooting them
Who were the SA?
The paramilitary branch of the Nazi Party
Who were the SS?
Hitler's bodyguards
Why did Hitler appeal to nationalists?
He promised to destroy the Treaty of Versailles and unite all German speaking people
Why did Hitler appeal to industrialists and the middle class?
He was very anti-Communism and he used the violence of the SS and SA against Communists
Why was the support of industrialists and business leaders important to Hitler?
They helped to finance his elections
Where did most of the support for the Nazi party come from?
The lower middle class such as small merchants, farmers, craftsmen, white-collar workers and civil servants
Why did Hitler feel that being a great orator was important?
Because in his a mind a great leader had to have the ability to move the masses
Why did Hitler reduce most of his ideas to simple slogans?
Because he felt he had to get his ideas across to even those with "the most limited intelligence
What tools of propaganda did Hitler make use of in the run up to the 1930 election?
Films, gramophone records, loudspeakers from trucks
By what year was the Nazi party the largest in the Reichstag?
1932
What did many conservative politicians believe in 1932?
That Hitler would have to be a part of any government
What happened between July and November 1932?
The Nazis went from having 230 seats to 196 seats
What did Von Papen persuade Hindenberg to do in January 1933?
To make Hitler chancellor
Why did the conservative politicians believe they could control Hitler?
Because there were only 2 other Nazis in the cabinet
On what condition did Hitler accept the office of chancellor?
That he would be allowed to call a general election