Other aspects of the German society changed drastically due to the First World War was the percentage of women entering the workforce which increased to a 37% due to the lack of workers since men were off fighting in war and because of the decrease in economy. Post war, the figures of women working did not change due to the fact that since Germany was to blame for the war and had to pay reparations because of the Treaty of Versailles, women became important in the German economy. Women not only became significant to the Germany economy by increasing the workforce, they as well got the right to vote in 1919 after the signing of the Armistice. This development of the rights of women (e.g. being able to work, get an education and vote) would have eventually occurred but because of the war, it was accelerated.
Another aspect that affected greatly German society was the loss of so many men in war. This loss of men one another of the key reasons to why women stayed on top of the economy towards the end of the war, as well as years after. The loss and injury of so many German soldiers was called the “Lost Generation” in which 11,000,000 men mobilized, of those 1,718,000 were killed, 4,243,000 were wounded, with a total of 5,952,000 and a percentage of 54%.
The Versailles Treaty as well as the war left the once great, vast German empire in lack of resources and trade. Industrial output fell by over 40% between 1914 and 1918. Machinery was, at the end of the war, obsolete in many cases, run by ill trained people since many of working men had been killed in the war. The economic crisis of food shortages and supplies left from the war left extreme poverty in Germany and led to hyperinflation. This was worsened by the huge reparations bill which Germany struggled to pay(only one payment made in 1922-£50 million). Estimates suggest that up to 35% of all trade was organized illegally on the Black market. The economy also suffered from shortages of raw materials. From 1915 until the end of the war, Germans were forbidden to drive a car. The situation merely improved as a result of the Armistice, leaving the Germans with no means to purchase fuel on a large scale. Germany was left without any raw material because of them being used up in war and as well found it difficult to purchase raw materials because of the lack of money. As well, the international community turned away from them as a consequence of the war.
The military cut back and loss of land are two of the aspects which affected mostly the German ego. This is because before the war, back in the Kaiser Regime, when Germany was a grand, strong empire, Germany had a large strong military which consisted of a large army, submarines, a growing number of warship and aircrafts. This was reduced by the Versailles Treaty and aircrafts were not allowed. Land as well was taken away from Germany, causing not only the loss of land, but as well as well as German population. The land which was taken from Germany included Alsace-Lorraine which was returned to the French and Rhineland which was turned into a demilitarized zone, as well as the Saarland, the Sudetenland and the land between Germany and Poland known as the Polish Corridor. As mentioned above, this vast loss of land reduced Germany’s resources for industry and hence, for trade.
Reparations as well had to be paid by Germany because of the Guilt Clause which German officials agreed that Germany had to take all the blame for the outbreak of war. This not only scarred the German peoples’ ego, but as well outraged them calling the officials who signed the treaty the November Criminals, thus gaining the Weimar Republic a bad reputation from the state. This as well was later called by Hitler as “The Stab in the Back”.
In conclusion, Germany was the country most affected by the First World War, estimating to have cost of $38 billion. In addition to the lost of money and drop of economy, there was a massive loss of lives (the “Lost Generation”). Losing over 1.7 young men, 4.3 wounded with total casualties to be over 7 million, this including imprisoned men and those listed missing. Socially as well many changed took place and left the German ego’s shattered.
(The diagram above shows how much each country spent on the World War One, Germany being the highest, followed by Great Britain.)
Bibliography:
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Wikipedia, “World War One”,
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“The Impact of the First World War”,
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“Women and WWI: Feminist and Non-Feminist Women: Between Collaboration and Pacifist Resistance”,
- “Casualties of the First World War”, europeanhistory.about.com/library/weekly/blww1castable.htm
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