-
Hitler Earns Iron Cross
Allegedly, he was a brave soldier, evident by the 'Iron Cross First Class' he was awarded. He was very patriotic and nationalistic for Germany. -
Government of Prince Max of Baden.
A new government was formed by Prince Max of Baden, who aimed to begin peace talks with the Entente. However, the allies refused any discussion until the Kaiser abdicated. -
Germany Navy Mutinies
The sailors' mutiny in Kiel quickly escalated into an open rebellion against the Imperial German state by refusing to fight the British. -
Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicates
The Emperor of Germany leaves after initially refusing to agree to surrender and a new government was formed, under Chancellor Ebert. -
The Armistice is signed
Germany signs an armistice, bringing an end to the fighting. The politicians who signed this armistice were seen as 'November criminals'. -
First Spartacist Demonstration
The first demonstration against the army was staged in December 1918. It was unsuccessful and it resulted in the deaths of 16 people. -
The Spartacist Uprising
From the 5th to the 12th of January, the Spartacist League held an uprising in Berlin. Leaders include Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg. The Freikorps suppress the rebellion. -
DAP founded
The DAP (German Workers Party), founded by Anton Drexler, was the predecessor to the Nazi party. It was an anti-Weimar republic and it aligned with a lot of Hitler's personal views. -
Period: to
Friedrich Ebert's Presidency
-
Germany signs the Treaty of Versailles
Germany signed the Treaty of Versailles which set out the terms of peace following the first world war. -
Weimar Constitution Finalised
The first Assembly of the Weimar Republic is established and drafts the Constitution, which's conception began in January 1919. Friedrich Ebert is elected President. -
Twenty-Five Point Programme Published
This functioned as a Nazi political manifesto, consisting of the main points and principles of the Nazi party. It was purposely made to be relatively vague as to attract as many members as possible. -
Kapp Putsch
The Freikrops launched a rebellion with 5000 men in March 1920 in Berlin, known as the Kapp putsch. The army refused to support the government and stop the fighting. It looked like the putsch was successful until the workers declared a general strike and brought the capital to a halt, resulting in the putsch collapsing. -
Hitler Becomes Leading Member Of DAP
Hitler had risen up the ranks of the party and eventually became the leading member due to his impressive public speaking skills. As head of recruitment, he was also able to expand the size of the party. He also renamed the party the National Socialist German Workers Party and gave it a new flag. -
Nazi Party Grows to 6000 members
-
Occupation Of The Ruhr
The Weimar Republic had failed to make its first reparation payment. In January 1923, the French marched into the Ruhr industrial area in order to take payment in the form of industrial goods, resulting in a worker's strike. -
Gustav Stresemann made Chancellor
He served from 13 August to 23 November 1923. He was tasked with saving Germany from hyperinflation. -
Munich Putsch
The Munich Putsch was a Nazi attempt to seize power through means of military force. The plan was to stage a coup in Bavaria and then march upon Berlin. The putsch resulted in Hitler's imprisonment and the death of 16 Nazis. -
Peak Of Hyperinflation
Prices begin to rise rapidly made worse by the printing of money to pay striking workers in the Ruhr and the loss of industrial production as a result of the strikes. By November 1923, 4,200,000,000 German marks were worth $1 USD. -
Rentenmark introduced
The Rentenmark was introduced in November 1923 as a replacement to the Deutschemark. This was done as a temporary measure to regain stability. Instead of being based on the gold standard like the German mark, this currency was based on property values. It was converted to the Reichsmark in 1924. -
Stresemann Becomes Foreign Secretary
-
The Nazi Party Grows To 50,000 Members
-
Period: to
Weimar Golden Age
The Weimar Golden Age as many people experienced an increased standard of living. -
Period: to
The Lean Years
The period of 1924 to 1929 was known as the lean years for the Nazis, as it involved the growth in the number of party members but also a struggle to win seats in the Reichstag. -
Dawes Plan
The Dawes plan restructured Germany's reparations. It made it so payments matched Germany's ability to pay. Payments began at 1 billion Rentenmarks a year and gradually increased over 4 years to 2.5 billion Rentenmarks in the fourth year. It was also agreed to remove French troops from the Ruhr. As part of the plan, Germany also received American loans to help boost its economy. Over the next 6 years, American banks gave Germany loans of nearly 3 billion USD. -
Mein Kampf Published
Mein Kampf was key in the ideological development of the Nazis. -
Period: to
Paul von Hindenburg's Presidency
He was the chief of general staff from the First World War and became a proponent of the 'stab in the back' theory following the armistice. -
Locarno Pact
The Locarno Pact was a series of agreements between Germany, Britain, France, Italy, and Belgium that guaranteed to keep their existing borders. It greatly improved German-European relations. -
The Bamberg Conference
Hitler meets with leading Nazis to reorganize the party and cement his authority, by removing internal opposition. -
Germany Joins League Of Nations
The League of Nations was an international peace-keeping organisation formed by Woodrow Wilson after WW1. Germany gained a permanent seat in the League of Nations in September 1926, which solidified its status as a Great Power. -
Unemployment Insurance Law
This law required taxpayers to contribute to a national unemployment welfare scheme. -
State Of German Economy
The value of German wages had steadily increased from 1924 and, by 1928, German workers were among the best paid in Europe. The unemployment rate had gradually fallen to 8.4% in 1928, but unemployment remained high in professions such as lawyers, civil servants and teachers. Between 1924 and 1931, over 2 million new homes were built and homelessness was reduced by 60%. -
State Of Nazi Party
Nazi Party Grows To 100,000 Members but only wins 12 seats in the Reichstag. -
Kellog-Briand Pact
The Kellogg-Briand pact was an agreement between Germany and 64 other countries to handle future disputes diplomatically and to keep their armies for only self-defense. -
Young Plan
The Young plan further extended the deadline for reparations to 1988 and also reduced the total amount of reparations from £6.6 billion to £1.85 billion. -
Gustav Stresemann Dies
Former Chancellor and Foreign Minister who helped the Weimar Republic recover dies of a stroke. -
Wall Street Crash
It was the collapse of the US stock market, which led to American loans, which Germany was still highly dependent on, being recalled. This led to many German workers losing their jobs, resulting in mass unemployment. -
Period: to
Heinrich Bruning's Chancellorship
Bruning took over from Muller in 1930 and reduced government spending, introduced pay cuts, reduced unemployment benefits, and increased taxes. These changes made him unpopular, forcing him to resign in May 1932. -
SD Introduced
The SD, which was introduced in 1931, was the Nazi intelligence agency and was under the control of Heinrich Himmler and Reinhard Heydrich. The aim of the SD was to find and remove actual potential threats to the Nazi party. -
German Unemployment Skyrockets
By 1932 over 6 million German people were unemployed, as the unemployment rate stood at up to 30%. -
State Of Communist Party
In November 1932, the communists had won 100 (17%) of the seats in the Reichstag. -
The SA Grow To 600,000 Men
By 1932, The SA had grown to a size of 600,000. They marched around Germany, showcasing order in a time of chaos, which impressed the ordinary German citizen. The SA continued to be used to intimidate opposition groups. -
Hindenburg Wins Presidential Election
In the presidential election of March 1932, Hindenburg won with 19 million votes, however, Hitler's reputation improved as he had 13 million votes. -
Period: to
Franz von Papen's Chancellorship
von Papen was a friend of President Hindenburg and became Chancellor from May 1932 to December 1932. He was the leader of the Centre Party, which only had 68 seats in the Reichstag, thus he was dependent on the government by decree. -
Nazis win July 1932 Election
von Papen called an election, with the hope of gaining more support. However, by July 1932, The Nazi party had become the most popular party in Germany, achieving a total of 230 seats (39%) in the Reichstag. -
Nazis Win November 1932 Elections
In November 1932, von Papen held elections again but received even fewer votes. The Nazi's seats fell to 196, partly due to a lack of funds for an election campaign as well as public fear over the increasing violence of the SA. -
Period: to
Kurt von Schleicher's Chancellorship
In December 1932, Hindenburg appointed von Schliecher as chancellor. There was major opposition to von Schleicher from the army, industrialists, and landowners, as fears of a communist takeover grew. -
State Of Female Employment
By 1933, there were 100,000 female teachers and 3,000 female doctors. -
German Lawyers Front was established
In 1933, the German Lawyers Front was established, which ensured that lawyers would 'follow the course of the Fuhrer'. -
Reich's Church Formed
In 1933, Protestants who supported Nazism formed 'the Reich's Church'. This was led by Ludwig Muller. -
Trade Unions Replaced With The German Labour Front
The German Labour Front did not allow for workers to fight for better pay or reduced work hours; strikes were banned. -
Jewish Business Boycotted
In 1933, the SA organised a boycott of Jewish shops and businesses. The Jews were excluded from government jobs. -
Family Loans Introduced
In 1933, loans were provided for couples to marry and start families, provided that the wife left her job. With each child that was born to the couple, 25% of the loan would be forgiven (up to 4 children). On Hitler's mother's birthday, medals were awarded to women with large families. -
Hitler Becomes Chancellor
In January 1933, von Papen was determined to regain power and so negotiated to appoint Hitler as Chancellor and himself as Vice-Chancellor. von Papen argued that the alternative was a civil war and they would be able to use Hitler as a puppet leader. Eventually, on January 31st, 1933, Hitler became Chancellor of Germany. -
Reichstag Fire
The Reichstag was burned down. A young Dutch communist, Marius van der Lubbe, took responsibility for the crime. Hitler blamed the communists for the act of arson and used the incident as a way to rally the Germans against the communists. He was also able to persuade Hindenburg to pass an emergency decree that allowed the Gestapo to arrest communists without trial and eventually ban the communist party. -
The Enabling Act
The Enabling Act was an emergency decree that allowed Hitler to make laws without the consultation of the Reichstag. This was able to pass because of the 2/3 majority the Nazis now had, following the banning of the communists. This effectively marked the start of Hitler's dictatorship as all other political parties were banned. -
Boycott of Jewish shops and businesses
The Nazis organise a boycott of Jewish shops and businesses. The SA were used to intimidate customers. -
Establishment of the Gestapo
The official secret police of Nazi Germany is created by Hermann Göring. -
Concordat with the Catholic Church
The Nazis and Catholic Church sign an agreement to leave each other alone. -
People's Court Established
In 1934, the People's Court was established to deal with treason. -
Jews Banned From Public Places
-
Night of the Long Knives
On June 30, 1934, Hitler arranged for a meeting with Rohm and 100 high-ranking members of the SA. In the meeting, they were arrested by the SS and shot. Over the next few days, a total of 400 further members of the SA were killed. Many of Hitler's political opponents were removed and this consolidated Hitler's control over the army and industrialists. Now, the SA had a minor role and the SS were the more prominent organisation. -
The Hindenburg Oath
Following the death of Paul von Hindenburg, all army leaders had to swear an oath of allegiance to Hitler, promising their loyalty to the state. Hitler combined the positions of president and chancellor and declared himself as 'Fuhrer' of Germany. -
German-Gypsie Marriage Banned
-
Nuremberg Laws
Jews could no longer marry Germans, as to prevent 'contamination of the Aryan master race'. Jews would lose their citizenship and right to vote. -
Mandatory Service Reich Labour Service Introduced
The Reich Labour Service was a scheme that provided young men with manual labour jobs. From 1935 onwards, it became compulsory for men aged 18 to 25 to serve on the RAD for six months. Workers lived in camps and wore uniforms. They had very low pay and also had to carry out military drills. -
The Berlin Olympics
The 1936 Olympic games, which were an international sporting showcase, were held in Berlin. Hitler used Germany's victory in the Olympics to highlight the supposed Aryan (Pure German) racial superiority and impress the outside world, building better public relations. -
Youth Organisations Made Compulsory
From 1936, it became compulsory for parents to enroll their children in these youth organisations, although many still didn't join. -
Improvements To Unemployment
In 1932, there were 6 million unemployed Germans. By 1938, this had been reduced to 1 million. This was done through various strategies including job-creation schemes, the Reich Labour Service (RAD), rearmament, and invisible unemployment. By 1938, 37 billion marks had been spent on job creation schemes. For example, the Autobahns, which were German motorways improved the speed and efficiency of German industry and they also gave jobs to thousands of unemployed Germans. -
Kristllnacht
On the 8th of November 1938, Goebbels organised an attack that destroyed 7500 Jewish businesses and sent 30,000 Jews to concentration camps. -
SS Grow to 250,000 Members
By 1939, the SS had grown to 250,000 members from 50,000 in 1934. The SS, led by Heinrich Himmler, was Hitler's private bodyguards that were now, following the Night Of The Long Knives, responsible for the removal of opposition and maintenance of German obedience, through intimidation. By 1939, the SS had grown to 250,000 members from 50,000 in 1934. -
Growth Of Concentration Camps
By 1939, 1.3 million people had been sent to concentration camps, of which 150,000 were political prisoners and 10,000 were vagrants, and around 300,000 minorities had fled the country. However, this was never a threat to the security of the regime. -
Growth Of Women In Employment
The number of employed women actually had an overall rise, from 4.9 million in 1933 to 7.1 million in 1939. This was because of the labour shortage from 1936 onwards. Women's wages remained at 66% of a man's. This made employers prefer hiring women. Some women were angered by their new role in society. -
Membership Of Hitler Youth Rises
Membership of the Hitler Youth rose from 5.4 million in 1936 to 7 million in 1939. However, at least 3 million youngsters did not join the Hitler Youth by 1938. -
Rearmament Grows
Rearmament was the building of the German armed forces, which started in 1936. This meant that much more money was being spent on the military and heavy industry grew; by 1939, 26 billion marks had been spent on rearmament. From 1935 onwards, it became compulsory for men aged 18 to 25 to undergo 2 years of military service. The German army expanded from 100,000 men in 1933 to 1.4 million men in 1939. -
White Rose Group Arrested
The White Rose group was an anti-war opposition group that was arrested by the Nazis in 1943. -
300,000 Disabled People Sterelised