The problems began after the 1st World War, and after the German government signed the papers at the Treaty of Versailles, agreeing to its conditions and punishments, the government was very much resented by the people. The first political event that marked the beginning of the collapse of the German democracy was the Treaty of Versailles. The treaty took place in Paris in 1919. After Germany was held responsible for starting the war, the government faced numerous problems: both economical and political. Although the conditions of the agreement seemed extremely severe, the allied countries had no sympathy for the Germans.
They needed the Americans, and they used an ingenious tactic to cause the Americans to join the war: the death of its own civilians. The civilians on the ship, warned by the Germans, refused to listen to a warning, causing their death on the Lusitania. The total number of Americans who died represented a very small portion of the United States’ total population. The American public over-exaggerated the sinking of the Lusitania and overreacted to the death of very few people compared to America as a whole. The British blockade kept all trades away from the Germans, including food (Ghost Liners 124).Yet, when the Germans retaliate, the Americans hate them for it.
All of these terms are what led Germany to economic and political instability in the years 1919-23. One of the terms of the treaty, which caused economic instability, were the reparations Germany had to pay for the war. The figure was set at £6.6 billion and undoubtedly Germany would not be able to pay this figure. The English economist, John Maynard Keynes, feared in 1919 that the reparation set would fundamentally weaken the economy of Germany with consequences for the whole of Europe. George Clemenceau aimed to cripple the German economy with the high reparations figure.
To what extent did the social and political tensions that existed within the Second Reich increase during the First World War? The Second Reich in Germany consisted of several tensions both socially and politically. These were consequences of industrialisation, the flawed constitution and growing political agitation. Initially after war broke out in 1914, these tensions seemingly disappeared, and the country was swept up on a wave of patriotism, fighting a defensive war together. Politically, the Burgfried technically united all political parties.
However, Germany was not the only country that blockaded US ships. Great Britain also blockaded some US ships, just not to the extent of the Germans. True, the Germans did sink the RMS Lusitania, but that ship not only carried civilians, but also some weaponry. And the declaration of war against Germany came two years later after the sinking of this ship. If America was truly angry about Germany harming innocent civilians, why did not the declaration of war follow the sinking of the Lusitania immediately?
They were stripped of territory, arms and were required to make reparations (payments for war damages). The Treaty of Versailles, which was signed with Germany, punished Germany severely. The German government agreed to sign the treaty only after the victorious powers threatened to invade. Many Germans particularly resented the clause that forced Germany to accept responsibility for causing World War I. The next factor that seemed to emphasize the cause of the war was German's dictator, Adolph Hitler, who led the Germans with the ideas of fascists.
The treaty was really harsh on the Germans. Germany had to accept all the blame for causing the start of WW1 when it wasn’t even Germany that started. The direct cause of WW1 was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria by Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb. The treaty also wanted Germany to pay huge amounts of cash to countries that faced damages due to the war. This is unfair because only Germany was required to pay for the reparations (about 6,600 million Euros).
They are many factors on why did Hitler became Chancellor of Germany in January 1933. World War one, treaty of Versailles, fear of communist and the great depression are the main reason on Hitler became Chancellor. The Germans sighted the treaty of Versailles 1919 after losing Great War, although they believed they treaty was harsh they had no choice either sign it or the country getting invaded. The Germans called the treaty Diktat as it was being forced on them and the Germans had no choice but to sign it. One thing the Germans were not happy in the treaty of Versailles is the War Guilt Clause, take blame for the war.
Brooman uses the statistic to show the high level of casualties resulting from the evacuation. Brooman says on source B9 that “they also abandoned 150000 of their French allies to become prisoner for Germans. This shows a great defeat for Britain because now they have lost their trust with the Frenchs which could have a bad impact on Britain and its
World War I began because of many obstacles that America would have to sustain in order for the war to diminish. On May 7, 1915, the German army sank a ship called the Lusitania. At this time, 1,198 people lost their lives and included 128 American people. This ship was carrying war shipments from the United States to England. The passengers on the ship knew there may be a possible attack on the ship but Woodrow Wilson condemned this attack as illegal and inhuman.