The reparations put Germany in a state of debt, and resulted in hyperinflation, which badly impacted the economy. Another immediate and important effect was the military terms and how it broke down the morale of Germany. The terms stated that the army was limited, there was to be no conscription and they lost
These men went on to be known as the November criminals, a clear sign of the resentment the German people had for the men that had effectively gave in to the allies as they saw it. Though in truth they had no choice, the treaty’s vindictive terms and unreasonable reparations resulted in a shattered German economy; hyperinflation ensued with the price of everyday necessities skyrocketing, millions of the population went into poverty and unemployment levels hit 25%. Though the treaty of Versailles was not totally to blame for the economic crisis, as the Kaiser had borrowed huge amounts of money to pay for the war effort, it was the most significant cause, it not only led to economic troubles but also much of the political instability that led to the republic’s downfall who used the treaty and the
The politicians, who signed the peace treaty on behalf of Germany, were named and shamed as ‘stabbing Germany in the back’. This notion was emphasised by opposing political parties who were egger to take any opportunity to make these politicians look bad to the people of Germany. Germany was a militaristic state which and the republic was not going to succeed with so many opposing forces such as ex-soldiers who were willing to fight any rivals. The treaty of Versailles caused a profound sense of injustice and resentment amongst the German people therefore this translated into hatred of democracy. The treaty was not the only reason for the failure of the Weimar Republic, issues such as the period time and the great depression contributed to this also.
Germany also had to pay reparation. This meant that Germany lost money. Germany was angry at war guilt because none of their allies had to take the blame and the lost money. A third reason Germany was angry was because there armed forces were cut. Germany’s armed forces were cut.
The Great Depression also severely impacted the lives of farmers. Farmers could no longer afford their land so they had to move away and this led to more problems such as foreclosure and starvation. Farms became vacant which created dust bowls which were basically sandstorms that made a huge mess of the air. The Great Depression had a huge effect on the whole world but mostly the United States. There were not only economic effects but also psychological, cultural, and political effects as well.
“Assess the view that the collapse of the Weimar Republic was primarily due to the appeal of Hitler and his Nazi party” The Weimar Republic government was riddled with weakness and incompetence in a variety of crucial social, economic and political areas. This caused the influence of the Nazi Party, which through its charismatic and nationalistic leader, Adolf Hitler, it gained a large amount of support. However it was due to the Weimar Republic’s own failings that the Nazi Party became appealing and as a result the Weimar Republic was brought to its inevitable demise in 1933 with Hitler ready to take the reigns. When the Treaty of the Versailles was signed in 1919, the government was making a very unpopular decision amongst the citizens, as it a result lead to the downfall of the Weimar Republic. The Treaty caused humiliation and shock amongst the citizens of the country, much of the political backlash was due to the fact that the Allies were dictating to Germany the harsh terms of the war reparations, which was seen as absurd by many citizens as they did not feel as if they were responsible for starting the war nor did they feel as though they had lost.
How far was Nicholas II responsible for the fall of the Romanovs in 1917? While Nicholas II was a major factor in the fall of the Romanovs there were other reasons such as the removal of the Dumas and him losing the support of the armed forces. Nicholas II became commander in chief of the army during world war one and in doing so left his wife Alexandra to rule the country. The fact that he had let someone so inexperienced take control angered many people due to the Tsar not leaving someone more experienced to rule and also due to her being unpopular as a result of her German nationality. Alexandra appointed Rasputin, who had saved her sons life, as her personal adviser.
A lot of Germans thought that the Treaty undermined Germany though it was initially set up with the intentions of becoming a peace agreement between Germany and its allies. In 1918 Germany became a republic and the Weimar constitution took force on the 11th of August 1919. The Weimar republic, which was a democratic, yet flawed system, wasn’t well liked by Germany because it had signed the Treaty of Versailles. Another reason why the Germans had a negative attitude was because when the Weimar was signed many people saw the leaders and socialist politicians as “stabbing Germany in the back.” (Geary 1993: 14) The Treaty became widely known as Diktat because the Germans found it so oppressing and it was so humiliating. The Treaty of Versailles did many things to Germany, but some of the most consequential points of all were that; Germany was forced to accept the blame for WWI, it had to pay £6,600 million in reparations, their army was reduced to just 100,000 men and a lot of their territory was given up to Great Britain and France.
Because of the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, Germany lost 13% of her territory, which included six million people as well as a large percentage of raw materials. With the land devastated and hope lost, the German people needed someone powerful to step up, take control, and make Germany glorious once again. Adolf Hitler took advantage of the weakened state of Germany and seized power using some effective methods. The most important factors that attributed to Hitler’s rise to power were both his persuasive speeches as well as his effective use of propaganda. The degraded and weakened state of Germany after World War One was vital for Hitler to seize power.
The first major reason was the Treaty of Versailles signed in 1919 after WWI ended. The Treaty of Versailles left Germany with only 100,000 soldiers and 6 battleships, which once used to be a strong and enormous army was now a weak and small army. In addition, Germany had to pay an amount of 6.6 billion to France and Britain, since it had to take responsibility for starting WWI. This lead to hyperinflation in Germany, causing an economic crisis. Because of all the shame and chaos the Treaty of Versailles brought to the Germans, the German people felt the need to take revenge, hence the rise of Adolf Hitler.