In what way, and for what reasons, did the Treaty of Versailles cause political problems in the 1920's in Germany, under the Weimar Republic?
A continent that has most definitely gone through much turmoil throughout its existence is Europe. World War I, for example, had numerous devastating effects on many European nations. To try and put an end to the fighting and bring about peace in Europe, the Treaty of Versailles was instituted. This treaty was very successful in coming up with the necessary reparations posed to countries, such as Germany, deemed as punishable for the war in its attempt to prevent further fighting. The reparations imposed on Germany under the Weimar Republic caused many political problems within the nation. First of all, the signing of the Versailles Treaty was reflected badly on the Weimar government. Secondly, the extreme reparation costs ended up in an economic collapse, which led to enormous discontent with the Weimar government. Lastly, the loss of territory that Germany had to endure exacerbated the discontent with the government among the Germans. As a result of these three points, the Treaty of Versailles caused political problems in Germany in the 1920’s, along with economic and social problems that led to further political problems.
The sheer fact that Germany, under the Weimar Republic, had signed the Treaty of Versailles greatly exacerbated the political instability that the country was facing during the early 1920’s, marked by revolts and political tension. The signing of the Treaty was viewed upon by a majority of the Germans as a betrayal to Germany and her citizens. It resulted in public discontent, reducing the popularity of the Weimar government. The punishments that were laid on Germany’s shoulders were extremely large, and people had no choice but to blame their own government as responsible for these reparations. Germany was forced to accept blame for starting the war, lost all of her colonies, lost most of her army, navy and air force, lost huge territories in Europe, and had to pay reparations of 6.6 billion pounds, spurring enormous discontent within the country. By signing the Treaty, the Weimar Republic was associated with the negative effects that the Treaty caused, and thus discontent with the Weimar Republic grew. This extreme discontent with the government caused political instability in that other political ideals had the chance to flourish under what was thought to be a failing Weimar Republic. Communists had the opportunity to try and create a state that they wanted, and discontented people became incited to form a multitude of political parties, increasing the political instability of the republic greatly. Eventually, this instability was the cause of revolts and attempted coups. Right wing and left wing groups equally became more extreme, and political tensions grew dramatically as the Weimar government faced opposition from both sides. What resulted was the Kapp Putch revolt in 1920, where monarchists seized government buildings in Berlin, forcing the government to flee to Stuttgart. However, the government managed a narrow escape when the rebels surrendered on March 17 as unions declared a general strike. Following this, in June 1922, Walther Rathenau, a leading Weimar politician who believed that Germany should fulfil the terms of the treaty of Versailles, was murdered by right wing extremists, who threw a bomb into his car and shot him several times whilst he was driving to work. Therefore, support for the government weakened and these rebellions showed the deteriorating support people, including Germany’s own army, had for the new republic. Revolts, political discontent, and immense tension were no doubt definite examples of how the actual signing of the Treaty of Versailles by the Weimar government brought about political problems such as instability.
