Revision Notes.Germany experienced a period of political calm, economic development and social progress in the mid 1920s. How far do you agree with this statement?

France and Belgium over the borders in late 1925- Treaty of Berlin in 1926 signed with Russia- Main democratic parties couldn’t work together or compromise, leading to instability (political polarisation)- The Treaty of Versailles had minimised many of their resources- Lots of Chancellors, none of them stayed long=unstable-“State of Emergency” was only lifted in early 1924- Stresemann’s successes were offset because many Germans didn’t like his ideas and wanted him to be tougher- Ideals of the constitution didn’t develop, and the system didn’t mature and become stable- Treaty of Berlin went against the terms of the treaty of VersaillesEconomic Development- Increased production – 1928 heavy industry was back to 1913 levels because of more efficient production levels- There were more cartels so Germany had better purchasing power- Increased Exports 1925-29 by 40%- Wages rise every year from 1924-1930- Uneven growth = production declines in 1926- There were more imports than exports- There was a decline in agriculture = grain production was 1/3 of the 1913 therefore the farmers were in debt- Unemployment never fell below 1.3 million, and it was 1.9 million in 1929- The government tariffs on imports didn’t solve the problems- Fall in World Prices in the 1920s wasn’t good for Germany’s agriculture because 1/3 of Germans relied on it- Germany’s economic recovery had no stable foundations because it was based on foreign loans- People had false ideas of prosperity- The problems in economy hidden by credit from abroad, so problems in the World cause serious problems for Germany- By late 1929 it had borrowed a total of 342 million reichsmarksSocial Progress-Social Welfare was written into the constitution (e.g. pensions, sickness benefit, unemployment- The state began to pay for social housing-Very modern, westernised culture, cabarets etc.- Class differences, regional differences and religious differences- Bitterness between employers and employees- use of constant State Scheme to settle disputes – 76,000 cases of arbitration from 1924-1932- Baby boom in the 1920s=population increase wasn’t good for unemployment