Due to the lack of morale, war weariness and economic crisis the unrest was beginning to form a dangerous revolution. (J Hite & C Hinton. 2000) Fearing for his life and under the advice of his Supreme Commander General Ludendorff William II the Kaiser of Germany handed over his power to a civilian government thereby abdicating his throne. He then left Germany and went into exile in Holland, where he lived until 1941. The new regime headed by Prince Max, attempted some reforms but ultimately this was ineffective due to the discontent and anger within the population of the failed war.
To understand and identify the aspects of the totalitarian system in both countries it's important to consider both countries history. On November the 11th 1918 Germany agreed to signed the Armistice. After Germany was forced to accept Versailles agreement by accepting guilt for WW 1. As a consequence the German people were demotivated and had no confidence in the new liberal democratic Weimar government and international forces. This resulted in risings such as the Spartacist rising where communists fuelled by the success of the Russian revolution almost occupied nearly every major city in Germany.
Both Ebert and the Army simply wanted to ensure that there would be no Left Wing Revolution. After the Kaiser had been abducted a new government was created under Prince Max. This meant that a new (civilian) government would have to surrender to the allies. This led to them being tainted and blamed for the defeat-‘Stab in the Back myth’- this was significant change that amounted to a revolution. On the 29th October a mutiny among some sailors who refused to obey orders disputed.
Communism’s goal was to bring down capitalism in any way possible. When Stalin came into power in 1924, the US mistrusted him even more. During this time, Germany was in the process of building itself up. Stalin was concerned that Russia would be attacked and the US was concerned watching Hitler spread his rule. Stalin and the US created a brief alliance because they were both concerned with stopping Hitler.
The new Weimar Republic was born in 1918, its construction was against Germany’s defeat and humiliation at Versailles. The legitimacy of the state’s existence was questioned by many and as a result the new democracy was experiencing threats. Threats to the Republic from the political right were clear in the early 1920’s. The demand for reduction of the German army from 650,000 to 200,000, and 100,000 in 1919 was seemingly too much of a strain for a large number of right wing parties, who began to demand that the Versailles Treaty and the new Weimar Republic be rejected. The leaders of this movement were General Ludendorff, Wolfgang Kapp from the Patriotic Party and General von Luttwitz of the Freikorps.
Therefore Liberals wanted constitutional reform and more power to be given to the Reichstag. Whereas socialists demanded social reform and power to the workers and trade unions. However conservatives, such as Bismarck wanted to conserve to the Junkers – the elite class. To do this he proposed the Anti-Socialist Law in 1879 and also passed the Tariff Law, which appeased the liberals. The years leading up to the war the German people were dreading it, there were protests in Berlin in July 1914.
But even thought many peasants would now have their land many of the youths of the landlords would rise up against the peasants for killing their parents. This group would be known as the “Black Hundred”. This group brutally beat or killed peasants to take revenge as an effect this kept the peasants under control. The Tsar had to crush what was left of his opposition. The Tsar was desperate to get Russia back in control so in December the Tsar’s loyal army was used to demolish what was left of the working class strikers.
Later that year in Potsdam, many open disagreements took place because Germany had lost the war so Russia had promised to fulfil, Churchill had lost the 1945 election and Roosevelt died so Truman, who replaced him was angered by the large scale reparations imposed on Germany and the setting up of a communist government in Poland. He did not trust Russia, so kept him in the dark about him having the atomic bomb in 1945 before he dropped it on Japan to get them to surrender. By America using the atomic bomb, Stalin knew that it was possible for it to be used against them. Russia was therefore tricked by America preventing the Red Army from going to Japan. This threatened Russia and warned them that America was wary of them and could act on it.
• Frankfurt Parliament • Divisions : Liberals want to safeguard the rights of local government and individual • Radicals wanted to get rid of German Princes and form a German Republic • Examples : Radicals stormed the Pauluskirche with eighty people being killed (most of these being radicals killed by government troops • Effects : Liberals side with conservatives as they believed that law and order was more important than freedom and equality • MP : This exemplifies the inability of the frankfurt to move forward decisively and with such the bitter divisions escalating to violence perhaps the parliament was destined to fail • Lacked an army : The Frankfurt Parliament had legal authority granted to them by the Confederation of German states however they lacked the physical force to assert their authority • Examples : Prussian Army declared armistice with Danes the Frankfurt Parliament was then unable to continue the war as it lack its own army • Effects : Lack of power brings doubt into minds of revolutionaries and to other Germans as the parliament can't enforce its authority • Focused on wrong people : Frankfurt parliament composed almost entirely of m/c liberals and constantly feared w/c uprisings • Example: FP lost mass support through crushing Baden revolutionaries, actions may be viewed as hypocritical because the Baden revolutionaries were fighting for freedom as the FP liberals had previously • Effects : The German people lose faith in FP • Being unfocused allows the Princes to plan their attack on FP • Unable to agree Greater or Lesser Germany • Effects : Inability to fill power vacuum whilst Austria and Prussia were preoccupied with internal revolutions • Causes religious tension as Lesser Germany would be ruled by Protestant Prussia • Greater Germany ruled by Catholic Austria • Liberal Ministry's lack of Rural support • Effects :
After discovering what the treaty of Versailles true meanings were, the Germans were outraged. The socialists (SPD) at the time also known as the “November criminals” were blamed for stabbing their country in the back, dishonoring Germany by agreeing to such terms and creating humiliation for the Germans by allowing them to be titled the “defeated nation”. After being crowned the defeated nation following the First World War Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht alongside millions of Germans were furious, and ready to take action. However Luxemburg and Liebknecht had an advantage, they were the leaders of a radical social group the “Spartacists”. Resulting with the signing of the treaty of Versailles and being named the defeated nation, the spartacists, also known as the left wing rebellions attempted an uprising through a politically driven revolution.