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Summary History IGCSE Cambridge Depth Study Germany Topic 1: Was the Weimar Republic doomed from the Start?
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Topic 1: Was the Weimar Republic doomed from the start?7.1 Impact of war on Germany
Physical
● Impact on production
○ Disruption farming and was a British blockade on German ports
○ 1918- 50% milk and 60% meat/ butter that was produced pre-1914
○ meat= 12% of consumption of pre-1914
○ 1916-1917 winter= Turnip Winter (no more potatoes)
● Shortages in medicine, clothing, fuel
● ¾ million died from disease
Economy
● Virtually bankrupt
● Industry production down (⅔ of what had been in 1913)
● vast number of widows/ children to provide for (600,000 widows and 2 million children)
○ 1925 state was spending about ⅓ of budget on war pensions
● 1913-1918 mark lost 75% of value= inflation
● National income about ⅓ of what it had been in 1913
● Huge gaps between living standards of rich and poor
● Many German workers were bitter at restrictions placed on their earning during the war while
factory owners made vast fortunes
● During war women were called up to work in factories (damaging to traditional family values and
socially as a whole
Political
● Only 16% of cost of war was met by taxation
● Hoping for reparations
● Funded war by borrowing and printing money
● Opposition to kaiser + government
○ During war government ran like a military dictatorship= opposition not tolerated + leaders
arrested
● Split in Socialist Party (SPD)=
, ○ SPD= supported war
○ USPD= didn’t support war
● July 1917 Reichstag voted for peace
● Armed demobilised soldiers returning from the front
○ Violent demonstrations against Kaiser
■ Anarchy
■ Unstable
Psychological
● Pride turned to anger/ bitterness
● Need for someone to blame
● Many ex-soldiers and civilians despised the new democratic leaders and believe that heroic
leader Hindenburg was betrayed by weak politicians
● Stresses of war led to a revolution in Oct-Nov 1918
7.1.1 Why did the Kaiser abdicate?
● October 1918= Revolution from above= Ludendorff and Hindenburg didn’t want to get
blame so advised Kaiser to negotiate peace and form a new government so that new
government would take responsibility for defeat (became a parliamentary democracy) and
get better peace terms from the allies
● It was a condition for peace that the Germans got rid of the Kaiser
● But he refused to abdicate
● Why did the sailors at Kiel mutiny on 25th October
○ Naval commanders at Kiel decided to send their ships out to fight the British fleet in one
last suicidal bid for glory. Sailors mutinied
● What was the response the the mutiny
○ The Kaiser and his government did not try to send the army to crush this mutiny and it
was quickly followed by strikes and demonstrations against the war and the Kaiser all
over Germany. Soldiers mutinied and joined the protests
○ By 9th November soldiers and workers councils had taken control in many cities and their
main aim was to end the war
○ But to the politicians looking on there seemed a real danger of a total Socialist revolution
● What did the SPD think about the situation and how did they react on the 7th- 9th Nov
○ Sent ultimatum to Kaiser saying that if he didn’t abdicate SPD would join the revolution
○ There was a general strike in Berlin on 9th Nov
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