The origins of the German revolution can be found in the socio-economic tensions within Germany at the time, its undemocratic constitution and the unwillingness or inability of the German leaders to reform. The revolution was triggered by the decisions to run Germany as a military-industrial dictatorship and to deliver one last battle to the British Royal Navy, in the face of an already unequivocal defeat. The Sailor’s Revolt, which took place after this was announced, spread across the whole country within days and led to the proclamation of a republic on the 9th of November 1918 and shortly after to the abdication of Kaiser Wilhelm II. This would have shown many Germans that uprisings and revolutions are potentially successful, undermining the Republic’s authority when it gained control of Germany, and inspiring other revolutionaries to do the same.
Further reaching goals of the revolutionaries inspired by socialist ideas failed because of the resistance of the Social Democratic Party leaders in January 1919. In an endeavor to prevent an all-out civil war, they sought an alliance with the army and Freikorps in order to gain their aid in quelling the Spartacist uprising. The suppression of the uprising is considered to mark the end of the German Revolution and during the post-war period, the Spartacist Uprising remained a highly controversial issue between the German socialists and Communists, since both sides considered the uprising as having determined the further development of the German labour movement and the nature of the Weimar Republic. This contributed to the disillusionment within Germany, which was directed towards the Weimar Republic, its policies and the Treaty of Versailles.
The Republic soon discovered that not only the government itself was threatened, but individuals who carried out the policies of the Weimar Republic or who were involved in the signing of the Treaty were also targeted by extremists. Some ex-members of the Freikorps joined together and formed murder squads, killing 356 people in total between 1921 and 1923. Among those murdered was Matthias Erzberger, who had signed the surrender of Germany in 1918, and was shot dead in 1921 while walking in the Black Forest. These murders were depriving the government of some of its key officials and posed a very real threat to the stability of the Republic.
Dissatisfaction with the Republic was also evident in the June 1920 elections, in which the Weimar coalition lost its majority. A combined total vote of 28.9% for the German Nationalist People’s Party and the German People’s Party reflected that the German middle-class was filled with animosity towards democracy, as both parties wished to abolish the Weimar constitution. The Social Democratic Party’s strength fell to 21.7%, as some workers abandoned it in favour of right-winged groups. The increasing popularity of extreme right-winged groups posed a serious threat to the survival of the Republic.
In addition to venomous political opposition, the Republic had to contend with a weak economy plagued by high rates of inflation and unemployment. Inflation was fueled partly by the enormous wartime debts the imperial government had contracted rather than raise taxes to finance the war. Even more devastating were the enormous war reparations demanded by the Allies, which made economic recovery seem impossible to many objective expert observers. Inflation ruined many middle-class Germans, who saw their savings and pensions wiped out. Dorothy Haenkel, a German living in Frankfurt in 1923 was interviewed by William Guttmann and Patricia Meehan, in The Great Inflation, Germany 1919 – 1923, 1975 and stated
…A widow…with four children…was awarded three months of her husband’s salary (as a pension)….worked out the sum…sent the papers…they were checked, rubber stamped and sent back…by the time this was done, and the money finally paid to the widow, the amount she received would have only paid for three boxes of matches.
Unemployment also remained epidemic throughout the 1920s, hurting millions of wage earners and their families. Their economic misery made these groups susceptible to the claims of extremist political parties and therefore pinned the blame on the government for signing the Treaty of Versailles.
In an attempt to regain support from the people and return stability to the German Empire, Chancellor Ebert recruited the aid of Gustav Stresemann. In 1923 Stresemann called off the policy of passive resistance. This was an extremely courageous move, as he knew that the majority of the German people would feel that he was giving in to France. Although this would lead to a general outcry from the people, the situation in the Ruhr could not be allowed to continue, as the policy of passive resistance was bankrupting an already heavily burdened Germany. By ordering the workers to return to work, Germany was able to once again resume production in the Ruhr and create a flow of income for the workers from a different source. This allowed the Republic to focus on more pressing issues.
The Weimar Republic was also under the threat of losing the support of the army, who were strongly right-winged and felt that their allegiance lay with the Kaiser, and not with the Republic. Stresemann then took steps to regain the allegiance of the army, without whom he knew they could not survive as a government or a nation. The Weimar Republic gave orders that left-wing state governments in Saxony and Thuringia should be deposed. Once the government succeeded in appeasing the army, it was much easier to get them to act against the more dangerous right-wing nationalists in Bavaria who needed to be dealt with. This strengthened Germany, as the army now worked in accordance with the government’s wishes, rather than against them.
The German economy was able to quickly recover from its disastrous financial state. This was partially due to the introduction of the Rentenmark in 1923, which replaced the devalued currency and was then scrapped for a new permanent form of money called the Reichsmark. Stresemann also increased taxes so that more money could be allocated to welfare benefits for the poor and unemployed, which resulted in a large number of complaints from employers. Reparation payments were also made easier by the Reichstag's acceptance in mid-1924 of the Dawes Plan to effect significant reductions in payments until 1929. That year Stresemann introduced the Young Plan, which extended the payments by a further fifty-nine years. The Dawes Plan had also provided for the withdrawal of French and Belgian troops from the Ruhr district, which allowed for the profits to go to Germany once again. As a result the burden of reparations was lightened and the standard of living for many Germans generally lifted, improving the economy, though there were still extremes of wealth and poverty.
In addition, beginning in the mid-1920s, loans from the US stimulated the German economy, instigating a period of growth that lasted until 1930. As a result, more goods were produced, and exports rose. This meant that the labour force was in greater demand and, though the economy was not creating jobs fast enough to entirely support Germany’s rising population, unemployment did drop significantly. However, this meant that Germany depended on American loans, which could be withdrawn at any time and this was a serious weakness for Germany. Though this limited the nation, the loans it received from the US greatly strengthened Germany’s economy and allowed the nation to begin an upward spiral.
Stresemann also worked exceedingly hard at improving Germany’s image abroad and developing friendly relations with Europe. He began his rapprochement with the West by signing the Locarno Pact in 1925. Germany joined Britain, France, Belgium and Italy in an agreement to keep the existing borders between France, Germany and Belgium. Stresemann then made the bold move of taking Germany into the League of Nations, knowing many Germans saw the League as an enemy who would stop at nothing to uphold the Treaty of Versailles. He did this in order to show Europe that Germany was not beyond redemption and that they could be trusted if the terms of the Treaty were to be relaxed and the burden eased. The other nations began taking this on board, making it easier for Germany to recover.
The Weimar Republic found its self severely tested in the first five years and was threatened by major problems brought on by the aftermath of the war and the consequences of the Treaty of Versailles. It is evident that Stresemann’s actions from 1923 to 1929 allowed Germany to progress and recover from these problems, if only for a brief period. The main weakness of the Weimar Republic during this time was the severity of the crisis, which would evidently take more than five years to completely recover from and also its lack of support from the people of Germany, who saw many of Stresemann’s actions as a ‘betrayal’. However, during the brief period before The Great Depression, Germany was able to recover significantly from the crises and strengthen its economy, society and politics.
