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Armistice signed
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Abdication of Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany
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Weimar Republic is proclaimed in Germany
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Armistice Day - End of WW1
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Communist uprisings begin in Germany
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Hitler joins the German Workers' Party
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Communist uprising defeated in Berlin
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New National Assembly meets in the city of Weimar, Germany.
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Treaty of Versailles is ratified by German Reichstag
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Treaty of Versailles enacted
The Treaty of Versailles is imposed on defeated Germany by Britain, France, and the United States. Germany is forced to cede territory to France (Alsace-Lorraine), Poland (the Polish Corridor, Upper Silesia), Denmark, and Belgium, and forbidden to unite with Austria. Germany also must limit its army to 100,000 men; keep troops out of its Western territories (the "demilitarized" Rhineland); and make heavy reparations payments for damage caused in the war. -
Treaty of Versailles is signed by all parties
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League of Nations
The world's first international security organization goes into operation. The United States does not join, and Germany and Soviet Russia are not admitted. -
Hitler's 25 Point Program outlined at German Workers' Party meeting
Outlines the party's political agenda. It demands racial purity in Germany; proclaims Germany's destiny to rule over inferior races; and identifies Jews as racial enemies. Point 4 concludes that "No Jew, therefore, may be a member of the Nation." -
Final reparations amount set.
132 billion gold marks or 6.6 billion British pounds, to be payable in annual instalments of 1.5 per cent -
Hitler becomes leader of National Socialists (NSDAP)
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Italian fascist leader, Benito Mussolini ends 'March on Rome'
March of Rome: "Our program is simple: we want to rule Italy." The march itself was composed of fewer than 30,000 men. The March on Rome was not the conquest of power that Mussolini later called it but rather a transfer of power made possible by the surrender of public authorities in the face of fascist intimidation. Two days later he is appointed the prime minister of Italy. Mussolini’s achievement convinces Adolf Hitler to adopt a similar tactic in Germany. -
Occupation of the Ruhr
France and Belgium occupy the heavily industralised Ruhr Valley in an effort to compel Germany to step up its payments of war reparations. German civilians engaged in acts of passive resistance and civil disobedience, during which 130 were killed. Ended 25 August 1925 -
End of Russian Civil War - Bolshevik victory
Started 7 November 1917 -
Hyperinflation in Germany
Exchange rates in Germany reach 10,000,000 (ten million) Reichmarks for one US dollar. -
Adolf Hitler attempts Beer Hall Putsch in Munich
An attempt to seize control of Bavaria. Hitler is arrested following day. -
The Nazi Party wins 24 extra seats in the Reichstag.
Nazis now has 95 seats 19.5% of the vote. Just under the leading party who had 20.5%. -
Dawes Plan
The Dawes Plan:
1. The Ruhr area was to be evacuated by foreign troops
2. Reparation payments would begin at one billion marks the first year, increasing annually to two and a half billion marks after five years
3. The Reichsbank would be re-organized under Allied supervision
4. The sources for the reparation money would include transportation, excise, and customs taxes
5. Germany would be loaned about $200 million, primarily through Wall Street bond issues in the United States. -
Hitler released from prison
Served less than 9 months for a 5 year sentence. -
Hindenburg is elected as the 2nd president of the Weimar Republic.
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Mein Kampf is published
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Locarno Treaties
The Locarno Treaties were seven agreements negotiated at Locarno, Switzerland, formally signed in London, in which the WW1 Western European Allied powers and the new states of Central and Eastern Europe sought to secure the post-war territorial settlement, in return for normalizing relations with the defeated German Reich (the Weimar Republic). It also stated that Germany would never go to war with the other countries. -
Treaty of Berlin.
Germany and the Soviet Union sign the Treaty of Berlin, a five-year non-aggression pact. -
Germany joins the League of Nations
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The Nazi Party holds its first Nuremberg Rally.
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Hindenburg speech provokes international outrage.
Asserting that Germany was not responsible for causing World War I. -
Kellogg-Briand Pact
A proposal drafted by the United States and France that, in effect, outlawed war to resolve "disputes or conflicts of whatever nature or of whatever origin they may be, which may arise among them". It was signed by Australia, Belgium, Canada, Czechoslovakia, France, Germany, Great Britain, India, the Irish Free State, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Poland, South Africa, and the United States. -
Young Plan finalised
Implemented in January 1930
After the Dawes Plan was put into operation in 1924, it became apparent that Germany would not willingly meet the annual payments. The Young Plan reduced further payments by about 20 percent. Although the theoretical total was 112 billion Gold Marks, equivalent to US ca. $27 billion in 1929 (US$ 119 billion in 2021) over a period of 58 years, which would end in 1988. -
Stock market crash in Wall Street
The plummet in the value of stocks that is associated with the New York stock market crash brings a rash of business bankruptcies. Widespread unemployment occurs in the United States. The "Great Depression," as it is called, sparks a worldwide economic crisis. In Germany, six million are unemployed by June 1932 -
"Liberty Law"
It was a failed attempt to introduce a 'Law against the Enslavement of the German People'. The legislation, proposed by German nationalists, would formally renounce the Treaty of Versailles and make it a criminal offence for German officials to co-operate in the collecting of reparations. Although it was approved by 94.5% of those who voted, voter turnout was just 14.9%, well below the 50% necessary for it to pass.