The Golden Years of the Weimar Republic presented a faade of success which in reality masked serious underlying weaknesses. How far do you agree with this judgement?

Through politics there was an appearance of political stability by comparison with the previous four years, due to the coups and assassinations that ended, such as, the Spartacists’ uprising (1919) and the Kapp (1920) and Munich (1923) Putsches, however, the true nature of the problem in politics lay with threats within the government rather than external challenges.  Proportional Representation laid down in the constitution meant that every 60,000 votes equated to a seat and 50% meant up to 28 parties could be present in the Reichstag.  This made it extremely difficult for any party to get a majority and thus coalitions had to be formed which, meant that any decision-making was near impossible.  In 1924 when the SPD and the DNVP allied to pass the Dawes Plan they alienated the DDP and ZP.  The DNVP were a right wing party and so would not make an allegiance with the left in usual circumstances, however, they were willing to change in order to gain some degree of power.  The DDP, who hugely opposed the Treaty of Versailles and therefore the Dawes Plan, felt isolated along with the ZP; this alienation led to the collapse of the government.  The Heidelberg Programme of 1926, which declared that the SPD would not work with the perceived bourgeoisie, also led to a decline in SPD influence as well as leading to the questioning of the true worth of democracy.  As the largest party, the SPD’s refusal to participate caused significant tremors in the government.  Despite the outward signs of success in politics, with the end of political violence, this was also a façade; it simply transferred the rife internally and made the dealing with structural issues within the Weimar Republic all but impossible.  

Arguably, the only genuine success of the Weimar Republic was seen within the foreign policy of the ‘Golden Years’.  With the appointment of Ramsay MacDonald in a Labour government in Britain and Edward Herriot of the Left in France, Germany saw an opportunity to improve relations with the Allies as the Entente powers were now more amenable to German inclusion in the international community.  The Locarno Pact of 1925 stipulated the agreement of western borders and the understanding that if one nation were invaded, the others would help.  This gained Germany international trust whilst simply accepting the terms of the Treaty of Versailles; additionally, there was no loss for Stresemann as it was impossible for Germany to use force to regain territory when their military was so limited.  This regaining of trust is clearly highlighted by Germany’s acceptance into the League of Nations in 1926.  Furthermore, the IMCC was withdrawn in early 1927, meaning that there were no longer any foreign soldiers on German soil.  Stresemann was indubitably successful with as foreign minister; by visibly regaining international trust, he was invaluable to Germany at this time.  From this it is evident that the foreign policy of the Weimar Republic was not a façade.  

Social welfare enshrined by Hugo Preuss’ Bill of Rights and exemplified by the Reich Relief Law and the Disability Law (1920) was revolutionary for this time.  With more doctors per 1,000 people than anywhere in Europe and spending on housing increasing by 33% during the period 1913-1929, on the face of it, the Weimar Government had laudable aims with regards to social welfare.  However, these changes faced strong opposition from employers and industrialists.  Furthermore, the cost of financing the welfare programme quickly became unsustainable with 3.6 million unemployed in Germany at this time.  As employers and industrialists clashed over who was to fund this, Müller’s government was forced to borrow 342 million Reichmarks from the government to provide unemployment benefits; this could not continue year after year.  Social welfare was undisputedly a façade and placed serious strain on Müller’s government.  

The art and culture (Neue Sachlichkiet) of 1920s Germany truly reflected and commented on the changing society.  For example, Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front described the hardship and mental stress soldiers that fought in the First World War suffered.  His pacifist novel sparked controversy in Germany for its frankness and stereotypical themes, indeed once the Nazis came to power it was one of the first books to be burned.  However, it gives insight into the thoughts and feelings of Germans during the ‘Golden Years’ of the Weimar Republic.  In addition to this, George Grosz’s Pillars of Society painting depicted the Weimar Republic in a very poor light; his depiction of the judiciary, army and politicians was in a very contemptuous manner and highlights the poor running of the government.  Neue Sachlichkiet commented on and criticised society.  Literature and theatre were highly politicised and could certainly influence popular opinion with regards to the political situation, which people observed around them.  

Overall, it is evident that the ‘Golden Years’ of the Weimar Republic were merely a façade; the economy was based on foreign loans, which could never truly be sustainable and the political structure and dynamics of the Weimar Government was internally threatened.  Despite the success of foreign policy, arguably the outpour of art, culture and literature in Germany at this time undermined any successes by challenging and altering the thoughts and opinions of German people, thus, outweighing any positives with negatives.