Echoes of WWI: The Weimar Republic and the Rise of Nazism

1. German Expansion, 1918-1933

2. Effects of WWI • November 1918- Germans still believed victory possible • Power handed over to a civilian government • Wilson demanded Kaiser’s removal before an armistice • Domestic strikes, political unrest, food shortages • Armistice came as shock to Germans • Dolchstosslegende- “stab in the back” theory • Blamed socialists in new government for surrendering before German victory

3. Reaction to Versailles • “[the Treaty of Versailles] failed to solve the problem of both punishing and conciliating a country that remained a great power despite the four years of fighting and its military defeat…it was a bundle of compromises that fully satisfied none of the three peacemakers.” • - Zara Steiner, historian • What evidence do you think Steiner bases her argument that Germany “remained a great power?” What factors may mitigate her argument?

4. WWI and Adolf Hitler • Served in German army • Believer in the diktat of Germany; anti-communist and anti-socialist • Proponent of Social Darwinism • Became member of the German Workers’ Party • Renamed it the National Socialist German Workers’ Party

5. National Socialist Workers’ Party • Attempting to win working class support • Extreme nationalist party • Used the Sturmabteilung(stormtroopers)as a paramilitary group • Based on similar ideals to the Fascist Party • Also dominated by Hitler’s personal ideals

6. Sturmabteilung-“protection squadron” Schutzstaffel- “protection squadron”

7. Mein Kampf • Written while imprisoned after the Beer Hall Putsch (1923) • Wide range of issues: • German unity • Nationalism • Anti-Semitism • Mostly focused on foreign policy • Clearer than Mussolini’s

8. Hitler’s Foreign Policy Race and Living Space Natural Enemies and Allies Pan-Germanism German unification with Austria and territories with German-speaking minorities (Czechoslovakia and Poland) New country of “pure” Aryan Germans New space comes from East Dispossessing “inferior” nations Foundations for the 3rd Reich Enemies- Russia, France Ally- Britain, Italy Why these countries?

9. Increased Support for Nazism

10. The Weimar Republic Crises • Spartacists rebellion (1919) • Suppressed it and other left-wing uprisings • Failed putsch of the Freikorps (1920) • Failed after pro-government workers strike Wolfgang Kapp

11. The Weimar Republic Crises • Right-wing political assassinations (1919-1923: 376 total) • Conservatives looked to army to replace democracy • Ruhr Crisis (1923) • “Passive Resistance” by German workers • Hyperinflation especially affected the middle-class

12. Mary Fullbrook. The Fontana History of Germany: 1918-1990, page 34 (1991) “The savings, hopes, plans and assumptions and aspirations of huge numbers of people were swept away in a chaotic whirlwind…even when the worst material impact was over, the psychological shock of the experience was to have longer lasting effects, confirming a deep-seated dislike of democracy, which was thereafter equated with economic distress, and a heightened fear of the possibility of economic instability.”

13. Munich Putsch (1923) • Inspired by Mussolini’s March on Rome • Backed by Ludendorff and the Bavarian government • Bavaria backed down • Still attempted the putsch with 600 SA • Arrested and tried for treason; became a national figure

14. Economy in the Weimar Republic

15. Economic Recovery Gustav Stresemann • Chancellor, then foreign minister (1924-29) • Ended Ruhr Crisis in 1924 • Improved economic and diplomatic relations in Germany

16. Economic Recovery • Hyperinflation halts with the Rentenmark (new currency backed by real estate) • Dawes Plan • Froze reparation payments • Reduced total reparation amount • Set up U.S. loans (furthered with the Young Plan in 1929) Hans Luther

17. International Situation • Joined LoN in 1926 • Kellogg-Briand Pact (1928) • Lorcano Treaties; led to “Locarno Spring” • Overall goals not dissimilar to Hitler’s • More pragmatic approach; cooperation best option • How might these improvements in Germany have effected extremist politics?

18. The Great Depression • Germany linked to U.S. economy; financial support pulled after the Stock Market Crash • Unemployment: 2.8 million (1929) to 6 million (1932) Deflationary Policies Wage cuts/increased unemployment Government expenditure cuts

19. Effect on Politics • Germans turned to extreme parties • Communists (left) • Nationalists/Nazis (right) • Nazi party used depression to garner support • Criticism of Stresemann’s policies • Hitler’s aims did not change; looked more appealing to Germans

20. In your group, discuss the links between: • Economic prosperity/political stability • Economic crisis/political radicalization • Find examples from either Japan, Italy, or Germany (depending on what was assigned) to support your conclusions

21. Steps to Dictatorship • With a partner, provide a rating (1 unimportant- 4 extremely important) for each of the following events that led to Hitler’s dictatorship • Burning of the Reichstag building (Feb. 1933) • Enabling Act (March 1933) • Night of the Long Knives (June-July 1934) • Death of President Paul von Hindenburg (Aug. 1934) • Provide a brief description of the event and justify your rating