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Summary Notes IB History Paper 3 Option 14 Europe Interwar Years
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1Paper 3 Option 14: European states in the
Interwar years (1918-1939)
,2
1. Weimar Germany: constitutional, political,
economic/financial and social issues (1918-1933);
initial challenges (1918-1923); “Golden Era”
under Streseman (1924-1929); the crisis years and
the rise of Hitler (1929-1933)
M21: Discuss the factors that allowed the Weimar Republic to survive the political and
economic challenges it faced between 1918-1924.
M2019: “Germany experienced a ‘Golden Era’ during the Streseman years (1924-1929)’. To
what extent do you agree with this statement?
Specimen: Evaluate the reasons for the survival of the Weimar Republic in the period from
1918 to 1923.
N 2016: By 1929, the Weimar Republic had overcome the problems of the immediate post-war
years. Discuss
M 2016: “Political divisions between 1929 and 1933 were the main cause of the collapse of
democracy in Germany.” Discuss
N2015: To what extent was Germany economically and politically stable by 1929?
M 2015: Examine the reasons why the democratic government in Germany was able to survive
the various crises it faced in the years 1919 to 1924.
N 2013: Compare and contrast the economic and political problems facing Germany in the
years 1919-1923 and 1929-1933.
A. Constitutional, political, economic/financial and social
issues (1918-33) (and Weimar’s achievements in the 1.
crisis)
Overview: The Weimar Republic faced many problems. Perhaps the greatest danger was 'the weakness
within' - the constitution gave the President, the states and the army too much power, whilst proportional
voting meant that the Reichstag was divided and weak. In 1919-23, extremists on both the Left
(especially the Spartacist revolt) and the Right (especially the Kapp Putsch) tried to overthrow the
government. The worst crisis occurred in 1923, when the French invaded the Ruhr to try to force
Germany to pay reparations. This led to hyperinflation and a number of rebellions (particularly Hitler's
Munich Putsch).
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A.1. Constitutional issues of the Weimarer Verfassung 1919: Ineffective
Constitution because of proportional representation and Article 48
While the Weimar Constitution created the first democratic state in Germany, gave everybody over 20
the right to vote and gave the right of free speech, it did not generate a strong government:
● Article 48 of the constitution allowed the president to rule by degree and suspend the constitution
in times of emergency and gave him sole power – something he took often. Ebert used Art. 48
136 times. Perspective historian Lee: “The presidential power meant the existence of a
reserve or parallel constitution - which had no need of parliamentary parties”.
● Short-lived coalitions due to the system of proportional representation led to 28 parties. This
made it virtually impossible to establish a majority in the Reichstag, leading to coalitions and
with it to frequent changes in the government when compromises could not be found. During
1919-33, there were 20 separate coalition governments and the longest government lasted only 2
years (6 governments between 1919-1923; longest lasting 6 months). This political chaos caused
many to lose faith in the new democratic system. The German states (Bundesländer) had too
much power and often ignored the government.
● Federal system: each of the 18 states had its own rules, parliament, police, courts and schools -
A.2. Political issues of Weimar Germany
A.2.1 The Army, led by the right-wing General Hans von Seeckt, was not fully under the government’s
control. It failed to support the government during the Kapp Putsch or the crisis of 1923.
A.2.2 Contingency of traditional institutions - Enemies of the republic: Many government officials –
especially judges – were right-wing and wanted to destroy the government. After the Kapp Putsch, 700
rebels were tried for treason; only 1 went to prison. After the Munich Putsch, Hitler went to prison for
only 9 months. Army remained traditionell too.
A.2.3 Treaty of Versailles (were felt until the 1930s), Stab in the Back Theory
One of the main problems for the Weimar government was the right-wing Dolchstosslegende - the claim
that the Army had been 'stabbed in the back' by the government (whom the right called 'the November
criminals'). According to the right-wing Dolchstosslegende/stab in the back theory, the politicians
who had signed the armistice to end the war and later the Treaty of Versailles had stabbed the
nation in the back. People who believed that thought that Germany had not lost the war, had not truly
been defeated, as Germany had been told for long that their army was, having occupied parts of France
and Belgium and defeated Russia, on the verge of victory. General Hindenburg created the expression,
that the war had been lost because there had been no proper cooperation between politicians and the army
and that “the German army was stabbed in the back”. Unlikely that Hitler would have been so popular
without promising to revise the TOV
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A.2.4 Political extremists parties in the Reichstag:
Several parties, such as the communists on the left and the nationalists on the right, hated the
Weimar Republic, the constitution and were opposed to democracy because it conflicted with
their own ideology. This meant they were deliberately problematic in discussions, votes and the
passing of legislation.
A.2.5. Series of uprisings and rebellions: WEIMAR REPUBLIC WAS ABLE TO
SUCCESSFULLY DEFEAT ALL THOSE UPRISINGS
Because the Weimar Republic was unpopular from the start, many enemies of the republic tried to
overthrow it from early on. Violence on the street became the norm as politics became more polarized. In
the June 1920 elections, more extreme right and left groups received increased support.
Left-wing Rebellions - Communists (believing in equal pay and property for everyone):
● Spartacist uprising 1919: In Jan 1919, 50,000 Spartacists (also known as KPD or German
Communist Party) rebelled in Berlin, led by Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht. They
wanted a Russian-style revolution and create a similar republic ruled by a working council and
took control of Government’s newspaper headquarters and telegraph office. Failed to capture
other things. Ebert called in the army, but needed additional support by FREIKORPS (not an
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