Why did the Weimar Republic face so many problems up to 1923?

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Nishaant Kaushal 12V

Why did the Weimar Republic face so many problems up to 1923?

The Weimar faced so many problems up to 1923 because as a newly established government, and had to deal with the problems in post-war Germany. There were vast amounts of political resistance to the new Republic, from right-wing nationalists and left-wing communists - both of these groups using violence in attempting to challenge the new Regime which they opposed greatly. The Treaty of Versailles also created many problems, mainly affecting the German economy, which was after all already weak due to the war.

The right wing posed a major threat to democracy. For instance in March 1920, a Freikorps brigade rebelled against the Treaty, led by Dr Wolfgang Kapp.  It took over Berlin and seized the main government buildings. The problem however was that the army refused to attack its comrades and did not stop the putsch. This highlighted that the Weimar government was in fact very weak and was easily pushed aside. It also gave major concern as it was clear to the Weimar government that the army were not willing to fight for them, and showed its typical right wing views. However the putsch shortly collapsed after four days as it did not have the support of the public, especially seeing as SPD members had called for a general strike. Kapp’s government had no real authority however, and Weimar soon returned. Another major right-wing threat was the consul organisation. During the years 1919 to 1921 there were 376 political murders, 345 of these assassinations were committed by the right wing. It was responsible for the assassination of key republican politicians. For example Walther Rathenau, the Foreign Minister, who drew up the Rapallo treaty with the USSR, was murdered because he was Jewish and was committed to democracy.

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Another problem faced by the Weimar Republic was the left wing uprising. In January 1919 the Spartacists led an armed rebellion against the Weimar government. They called for a general strike while occupying public buildings. This was not a major problem however as there was little chance of success. The army and Freikorps easily crushed the rebellion and over 100 rebels were killed. Liebknecht and Luxemberg, the leaders of the rebellion were brutally murdered while in Police custody. Even though the rebellion was easily disbanded it was the very fact that the rebellion had occurred that was a worrying factor ...

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