One thing the Germans were not happy in the treaty of Versailles is the War Guilt Clause, take blame for the war. Because of this they had to the reparation to the big three. The German government didn’t have the money to pay for the reparation as the country just lost a war and the factory are destroy and the environment is in a poor state. So then the USA banks lend Germany government loans. Its was all going well as Germany was getting in a better state and they are paying their reparation until 1929.
Bethmann-Hollweg, German Chancellor, told England’s Foreign Secretary that Germany had no intention on military occupation of Belgium or seizing Belgian territory. (Doc L). Germany crossed over into Belgium 4 August 1914, on that same day the UK declared war on Germany. Thus, the war may have possibly been an accident because Germany’s intentions were not fulfilled. It also may be possible to argue that WWI was an accident because the Great Powers took action in order to try to avoid war.
Lenin was exiled by Tsar Nicholas as an extremist and only made his way back to liberate Russia due to the First World War, in which he managed to sneak through the German frontline to help lead the Bolshevik uprising. At this moment in time the Provisional Government had already taken control after the popular revolution that had led to Tsar Nicholas’ abdication from the throne and eventual murder. However upon his return the role of liberator was immediately taken up with his April Theses aimed to gain support of the populace and put more sway behind the Bolshevik party, timely named “Peace, Bread Land.” In which he addressed the major issues of the population and the Proletariat whom he which knew would be the ones to help reach the end of capitalism due to the Marxist guidelines to the life line of capitalist society. This stance on policies also managed to place partisanship into Russia through opposing the Provisional Government on anything that was said. As Maxim Gorky said then “Lenin is a gifted man who has all the qualities of a leader”.
However these were compounded by other factors such as fundamental flaws in the democratic system, hyperinflation, the occupation of the Ruhr and the onset of the great depression. All of these factors in combination provided the situations where civil unrest, violence and revolution could place intolerable strain on the already struggling democratic Weimar republic. It is possible to trace the factors that led to the collapse of the Republic back the conditions of the TOV and its impact on the German economy. Therefore it can be said that the TOV was paramount in the fall of the Weimar Republic.
America, despite its efforts, could not remain neutral and was forced to enter World War 1. Germany did not respect America’s decision to stay neutral and purposely sunk their ships in the British Isles. They sent the Zimmerman Telegram uniting other countries against America. Lastly, they blockaded British ports and prevented American trade with France and GB. Over 100,000 Americans died during WW1, but were rewarded with patriotism, an Allie victory and trade which once again
In his foreign policy, it stated to destroy the Treaty of Versailles, which was what Germany had to adhere to due to their defeat in World War II. It also stated to unite all German speakers to one country and to expand eastwards into the east, which was Poland and Russia, to gain land for Germany. Germany was looking for a comeback. They wanted revenge. Hitler started to go into different parts of Europe to gain more territory.
The treaty of Versailles greatly humiliated Germany forcing it to accept soul responsibility for the war. Another fault in this treaty was that it did not work as intended. The idea that Germany could ever afford to pay the reparations to full amount was ludicrous as it was already suffering from the defeat of war. These reparations caused runaway inflation throughout Germany. But perhaps the biggest problem of all was that those who created it themselves did not enforce
German U-boats sank British passenger liners killing Americans. This was condemned by the U. S. but remained neutral after Germany apologized and vowed to not attack anymore ships without warning first. The British then intercepted the Zimmerman telegram which made Germany more of a threat since it said if Mexico declared war on the U. S. then Germany would return U. S. land back to Mexico. This convinced the president that, “the war was, indeed, a defense of democracy against German aggression.” (Roark, 692) The final incident that led us to enter the war was when German subs sank five American ships off Britain. No longer could the U. S. stand by and watch as Germany attacked and killed our people.
There were a number of factors throughout the period 1919-1934 which were responsible for the downfall of the Weimar Republic. The Weimar Republic's inability to deal with the increasingly dominant economic and social issues in Germany caused discontent throughout the country and consequently caused the German citizens to doubt the Republic. The actions of Hitler and the Nazi party were also a significant contributing factor to the destruction of the Weimar Republic, as as they gained support through their use of legality, propaganda and violence support for the Weimar Republic decreased. However the Weimar Republic's inability to deal with the problems of Germany was a more significant factor than the rise of the Nazis, as their failures were the main reason behind why the Nazis were able to gain power, demonstrating the Weimar Republic was mainly responsible for its own destruction. The failure of the Weimar Republic to fix the increasingly pressing problems of Germany consequently contributed massively to their downfall, as it demonstrated their weakness.
What came along the effects of The Depression was the soaring unemployment rate as well as the poor living and working conditions that much of the population had to endure, this caused the people of Germany to look to the government for support. When the republic failed to help their people, the citizens of Germany turned away from the government and instead turned to the the Nazi party, with its nationalistic ideology which seemed promising and an appealing alternative to the Weimer