Hitler and Nazi Germany - discontent towards weimar

1. Hitler and Nazi Germany
Discontent
towards the
Weimar
Republic

2. In today’s class, I am learning to:
• Explain why many people in Germany
were unhappy with the Weimar
Republic
Discontent towards Weimar

3. The Weimar Republic was created in 1919 and lasted
until Hitler achieved power in 1933. During this time it
faced various criticisms from different Germans.
Discontent towards Weimar

4. Discontent towards Weimar
Criticism of the Weimar
Republic was based on
various issues, including:
• Political problems
• Economic problems
• The Treaty of Versailles
Eventually these problems
became too much and led to
the Weimar system’s
collapse .

5. Discontent towards Weimar
Political problems
Using a proportional
representation voting system
led to coalition governments
involving many different
political parties.
These coalitions struggled to
agree what action to take and
regularly collapsed, so the
public lost faith in democracy.

6. Discontent towards Weimar
Between 1920 and 1933,
thirteen different men
(including Hitler) were
German Chancellor, an
average of more than one
per year.
During this same time there
were eight elections to the
Reichstag, showing the
political instability.

7. Discontent towards Weimar
1932 was a clear example of
political problems and
instability in Weimar
Germany.
Three different men held
the position of Chancellor
that year (Heinrich Bruning,
Franz von Papen, Kurt von
Schleicher). The next man
would be Adolf Hitler.

8. Discontent towards Weimar
Many Germans had a very
negative view of mainstream
political parties in Germany.
They often seemed to be
more interested in arguing
amongst themselves rather
than taking action to
improve people’s lives.
Extremist parties however
offered simple solutions.

9. Discontent towards Weimar
Some politicians’ actions
hurt Weimar too.
Franz von Papen was
Chancellor but was removed
from power, partly due to
complaints from Kurt von
Schleicher.
When Schleicher then
became Chancellor, Papen
now plotted against him.

10. Discontent towards Weimar
The proportional
representation system also
caused problems because it
allowed small parties (often
extreme) to get elected.
This gave groups like the
Nazis a chance to be
represented in the Reichstag
and get a profile to criticise
the Republic.

11. Discontent towards Weimar
The powers of the President
also caused political
problems in Weimar
Germany.
The President often used
Article 48 to pass laws, even
if the Reichstag did not
support the action. This
made some people question
the Reichstag’s value.

12. Discontent towards Weimar
The violence involved in
political protests also caused
problems for Weimar.
The Spartacist Revolt,
Munich Putsch and other
events (including
assassinations) led some
Germans to think that
Weimar was unstable and
could not keep them safe.

13. Discontent towards Weimar
Economic problems
Germans suffered from
extreme economic crises,
especially hyperinflation and
the Depression.
Many of them blamed the
Weimar government for
these events, and so were
attracted instead to
extremist parties.

14. Discontent towards Weimar
Some actions taken by
Weimar governments at
these times also caused
concern for Germans.
During the Depression,
governments cut public
spending or reduced the
amount of money given to
pensioners or war widows,
again leading to anger.

15. Discontent towards Weimar
The Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles was
signed (June 1919) before the
official start of the Weimar
Republic (August 1919).
However many Germans
were still angry and felt that
Weimar politicians were
responsible for agreeing to
the treaty.

16. Discontent towards Weimar
Nationalist Germans wanted
the Republic to refuse to
follow the treaty’s rules –
and felt Weimar politicians
who refused to do this were
traitors.
This anger grew after
Weimar allowed France and
Belgium to invade the Ruhr
without a fight.