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376 political murders
354 by right wing; none sentenced to death. 22 by the left wing; 10 sentenced to death. -
Sparticist revolution
The spartacists, a left wing extremist party trying to overthrow the democratic leaders of democratic Germany, take over a newspaper company and barricade off a street. There was a general strike that marched through Berlin.The strikers obtained weapons and the leaders encouraged the workers to take armed action. They were soon combatted by the friekorps who took back the city. -
Germany Signs The Treaty of Versailles
The Germans signed a harsh treaty that aimed to stop their prosperity, and prohibit another German invasion. The treaty included harah limits to its military, the return of the territories they had occupied and large payments known as reparations. This Treaty had big repercussions for Geramny's people, and their government. The signing of the treaty contributed to the people resenting the government, as well as the signing of the armistice. -
Weimar Germany established
The Social Democrats chose the city of Weimar because it was the traditional centre for German culture and it was removed from the crisis in Berlin. They saw this as a safe place to draft the new constitution. -
Founding of the Nazi Party
The Nazi party was a party that arose from the German Workers party. The party was a far-right party that fought against the communist uprisings during World War 1, and was created to draw communist members away from their communist beliefs. To maintain the supposed purity and strength of a super race, the Nazis sought to exterminate or impose segregation upon minority groups that included: Jews, homosexuals, blacks, the physically and mentally handicapped, as well as their political opponents. -
Kapp Putsch
A coup attempt aimed at undoing the democratic government by setting up a fake government. The coup was supported by sections of the army and other reaction forces. The real German government was forced to flee the city. The coup attempt was stopped when German citizens followed the instructions of the government and refused to have anything to do with the fake government. -
Walter Rathenau Assassinated
Walter Rathenau was the Foreign Minister of Germany during the Weimar Republic. He signed the Treaty of Rapallo, an agreement between Germany and Russia after the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, on the 16th of April 1922. He was assassinated two months after this. He was assassinated by an ultra-nationalist group called the Organisation consul while driving to his foreign office. -
Stresseman becomes Chancellor
Shortly after becoming Chancellor, Stresseman called off the passive resistance of the French in the Ruhr, because he saw that the only way to get partial release from the treaty was to accept the Allies. He also introduced the Rentenmark, a new, temporary currency to replace the hyper-inflated mark. -
Berlin Riots on Hyper-Inflation
There were 30,000 people in Berlin who rioted against the misery brought by the hyper-inflation. They thought Jews controlled the economy and blamed them. Therefore, over 1,000 Jewish businesses were a prime target for rioters. Many believed that Jews had no place in the future of Germany and they tried to push them to move back to the holy lands of Palestine. -
Munich Beer Hall Putsch
The Munich Beer Hall Putsch occurred because Hitler, and other leaders opposed to the Weimar Government, got together and tried to start a revolution. They were to attempt to march through the streets of Munich and seize power from the government. Hitler, along with other leaders, and angered by the fact that the Bavarian Prime Minister was trying to control him, decided to interrupt a speech in a Beer Hall in Germany. It all failed when the police found out about it and shut it down. -
Dawes Plan
The Dawes plan was an agreement between America and Germany. The US Vice-President, Charles Dawes organised that reparations payments would be decreased and made easier for Germany to pay. France had to leave the Ruhr (occurred in 1925) and the US began to give loans to Germany to help payments. -
Friedrich Ebert Dies, Hindenburg becomes president
On February 28th, the first President of Germany, Friedrich Ebert died of septic shock, due to appendicitis. Paul von Hindenburg was his successor. -
German Joins The League Of Nations
In 1926, Germany joined the League demonstrating its move out of economic depression and toward normal diplomatic status. Germany’s admission was a victory for the Republic, and a step to overcoming defeat in World War I, and becoming once again a respected country in the world. -
The Young Plan
An American Banker, Owen Young, decided that the reparations payments should be dropped to ¾ of the payment, and awarded Germany 59 years to pay this sum off. Hitler opposed this, stating Germans should not have to pay reparations whatsoever. -
US: Wall Street Crash
The United States had a time of prosperity, but then, as a result of economic and industrial instability, this all crashed down. The United States helped support Germany with loans from the Dawes and Young Plans. After the crash the U.S. gave Germany 90 days to restart the payments. The impact of the crash forced many German companies to close and left millions unemployed. -
5 million unemployed
Unemployment had reached 5 Million by 1930 and was continuously on the rise. Rural Americans were hit the hardest. Children left school to support their families, with the dollar going down, businesses collapsed, banks went bankrupt, and the entire world followed American, plummeting into the Great Depression. -
Elections
The first elections, the presidential elections, were held during March, where Hindenburg, an independant supported by the republican supporters, beat out Hitler, a part of the Nazi Party. The next election, in June, was to become a part of the Reichstag. The Nazi Party won by a vast majority. This was because they gave the people what they wanted. Their leader, Adolph Hitler, was a antisemitic nationalist who faught in World War 1 -
Hitler named the last Weimar Chancellor
After being re-elected, Hindenburg began to experience instability in the Weimar Republic. Hitler had been demanding the role of Chancellor from Hindenburg for years, but Hindenburg denied it, out of his own personal hate for Hitler. But at last he gave in and Hitler was given the roll of Chancellor. -
Reichstag Fire
A fire was lit in the Reichstag Building(like the government house) in Berlin, which the Nazis convinced the public was a plot by the Communists against the government. 4 communist leaders, and the mentally handicapped communist arsonist were all arrested. Hitler convinvced Hindenburg to call upon a "ruthless confrontation of the Communist Party". With their seats empty, the Nazis now held the majority. -
Weimar Republic Destroyed: Enabling Laws Passed.
Even prior to Hindenburg’s death, the Weimar Republic was deteriorated within after the Enabling Act of 1933. The act, signed by President Hindenburg, gave the Cabinet the authority to pass laws by decree without the involvement of the Reichstag. Once Hindenburg had died, this meant that Hitler had the perfect way to establish himself as a dictator, which he did so, and thus gave birth to Nazi Germany.
