Moreover, the Treaty of Versailles contributed greatly to the political instability that existed within Germany between 1919 and 1923. To many Germans the treaty was seen as wicked, unfair and a slave treaty, in which a significant proportion of the country’s population was to be lost to surrounding territories. Indeed, the Nationalist newspaper Deutsche Zeitung printed “Death rather than slavery” at the news that 1.5 million Germans were to live in Poland following the treaty. Political instability continued to grow at the fact that Germany’s army was to be humiliatingly scaled down: only 100,000 soldiers, no tanks, no military aircraft and a very limited army. The government was openly mocked among the public for accepting these terms and credibility was given to Adolf Hitler’s “Stabbed in the Back” myth about the government betraying the public, causing the phrase to be widely used. Therefore, it is clear that the Treaty of Versailles contributed dramatically to the political instability of 1919-23 within Germany as it not only created tensions between the public and the government but also massively increased Hitler’s support –used in 1923 to start the Munich Putsch, his attempt to take power from the Weimar Republic.
However, the inherent instability of the Weimar government also played a role in creating the political and economic instability within Germany during 1919-23. A proportionally representative electoral system caused successive coalitions to be formed in which no single decisive party was able to take control of the Reichstag or the country. In fact, in 1919 the Weimar government consisted of 3 parties in coalition. This clearly contributed hugely to the political instability facing Germany as parties who more concerned with ideology spent more time disputing with opposition parties than they did forging a strong basis for the Weimar Republic. Also, Hindenburg, an old friend of the Kaiser, was president of Germany between 1919 and 1923, effectively undermining the rule of the democratic Weimar Republic who did not elect him. From this it is clear to see that the Weimar Republic’s inherent instabilities were an important contributor to the political and economic instability of 1919-1923, as the government was highly unsuccessful at forming stable coalitions and in turn ineffective at dealing with the country’s economic difficulties.
Furthermore, the Armistice of 1918 also contributed to the political and economic instability that existed in Germany during 1919-23. With the country undefeated physically and only surrendering due to the negotiations of various politicians within the Reichstag, many people began to blame pacifists and socialists within the government for Germany’s loss. Indeed, those who signed the armistice were nicknamed the ‘November Criminals’ and calls were made for them to be punished. This contributed significantly to the political instability of 1919-23 as several ‘November Criminals’ were still in government at this time, causing anger to grow over their public betrayal. Moreover, with the armistice born out of German defeat in the First World War, further political instability was aroused as the Weimar government became commonly associated with the hated armistice. Therefore, it is clear to see that the Armistice of 1918 played an important role in developing the political instability of 1919-23 as it became associated with the Weimar government – a government that was hated by the very people is sought to represent.
In addition, a dramatic rise in the opposition to the Weimar government in the years 1919-23 played a significant role in creating political and economic instability at this time. From the very formation of the Weimar government the public was against it - demonstrated by the Spartacist uprising of January 1919 in Berlin, in which the government was forced to withdraw to Weimar. From this we can clearly see that a sudden surge in opposition caused a large amount of political instability as the government was effectively forced to retreat to safety out of obvious weakness. In fact, the extent of the country’s political instability is all too clear when we learn that there were 365 political murders between 1919 and 1922. Moreover, the Kapp Putsch of 1920 further contributed to political and economic instability as a wave of strikes and uprisings across Germany further damaged the already lifeless economy and worsened divisions between right and left wing parties in the Weimar Republic. With such growth in resistance towards the Weimar government between 1919 and 1923 it is clear to see that the effect it had on the already weak government played an important role in causing the political and economic instability that faced Germany at this time.
However, the most important reason for the political and economic instability in Germany between 1919 and 1923 was the First World War and it’s consequences for the German people. With a British naval blockade of German shipping routes preventing food supplies from entering the country, starvation began to set in among the public. Coupled with this, high unemployment and a decrease in real wages of 20-30% led to a significant increase in political instability as the call for revolution gained force – something which was amplified throughout the 1919-23 period. With the economy suffering massively due to the £8.394 billion spent on the war effort, vast amounts of money were printed, causing huge inflation which served only to worsen the economic instability facing Germany. Moreover, the war left behind 6.3 million wounded German soldiers who all needed state money to survive – putting further strain on the already detrimentally weakened German economy. Overall therefore, the consequences of the poor policy decisions made by the German government during the First World War were the most important reason for the political and economic instability the country faced during the 1919-1923 period.
To conclude, whilst it is clear that the weaknesses of the Weimar government, the Armistice, the growth of opposition and the Treaty of Versailles all played a role in Germany’s political and economic instability between 1919 and 1923, the most important reason was the poor policy decisions made by the government during the First World War. The war effectively destroyed the country financially and paved the way for further instability to continue. Without the impact of World War One on Germany, the country would ultimately not have been faced with the Treaty of Versailles in the first place and the government and economy would have been much stronger than was otherwise the case leading into 1919-23.
