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Spartacists Uprising
The Spartacists were extremist communists and wanted to completely rid Germany of capitalism. From the 5th to the 15th of January, they staged a violent uprising and barricaded themselves inside a Berlin newspaper office.
The militarily trained, volunteer Freikorps crushed the radicalists. -
Period: to
Weimar Republic
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Germany signs the Treaty of Versailles
On the 11th of November, 1919, at the Palace of Versailles in France, the Treaty of Versailles between the Allies and the Central Powers was finally signed and all fighting ceased.
However, in Germany, due to heavy censoring and propoganda throughout the war, the people did not fully understand the extent of their losses and thus believed Germany to still be able to conquer their enemies.
This lead to a hatred of those who signed the treaty, earning them the label: 'The November Criminals'. -
Weimar Established
The Social Democrats chose the city of Weimar, as a safe place to draft a new Constitution, which was signed on August 11, 1919. -
Founding of the Nazi Party
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Berlin Kapp Putsch
On the 13th of March, 1920, a rogue brigade of German troops marched into Berlin in an attempt to seize power. The coup was successful, however the government rallied support and organised mass strikes which caused Germany to come to a stand-still.
The leaders of the revolt fled and the Weimar government resumed control.
This event outlined the weakness of Germany's government and its lack of support amongst the military. -
Assassination of Walter Rathenau
Walter Rathenau was in charge of resource allocation during World War One. He participated in the signing of the Treaty of Versailles and became the Foreign Minister in the Weimar Government. He was assassinated by right-wing nationalists on the 6th of March, 1922. -
Munich Beer Hall Putsch
Weimar Government Timeline- Munich Beer Hall PutschOn November 8th, 1923, the Bavarian government held a meeting in a Munich beer hall. Adolf Hitler arrived with armed stormtroopers, jumped onto a table, fired two shots in the air and told the audience that the National Revolution had begun. The next day he and 3,000 armed Nazi supporters clashed with Police. Arrested two days later, he was sentenced to five years imprisonment. -
Stresemann becomes Chancellor
On 13 August 1923, Stresemann was appointed Chancellor and Foreign Minister in the Weimar Republic. He was a key figure in easing the Allied pressure. He wrote to the Crown Prince on 23 July 1923: "The most important objective of German politics is the liberation of German territory from foreign occupation. First, we must remove the strangler from our throat". -
Berlin Riots on Hyperinflation
On the 5th and 6th of November, 1923, over 30,000 Germans rioted in Berlin protesting the hyperinflation. There was a strong anti-semitic feeling as many people blamed the Jewish community for Germany's economic downfall. -
The Dawes Plan
The Dawes Plan (as proposed by the Dawes Committee, chaired by Charles G. Dawes) was an attempt in 1924 to solve the reparations problem. Some of the agreements included the evacuation of Allied forces from the Ruhr and a reduction in reparations payments. -
Friedrich Ebert dies before relection
Friedrich Ebert, a Social Democrat and founder of the Republic, had been President since its creation in 1919. He was considered so likely to be relected, that there was no serious political campaign running against him. His death sparked a dramatic change for the Weimar Republic. -
Germany joins the League of Nations
At the creation of the League of Nations in April, 1919, Germany was not allowed to join until it had proven itself to be peaceful. In 1926, Germany was finally represented within the League. -
The Young Plan
The Young Plan was the second program for assisting German debt. It was headed by Owen Young and allowed German to borrow money from the United States and pay off the reparations in smaller installations. -
US: Wall Street Crash
On the 28th of October, 1929, the US stock-market collapsed, sending its economy into turmoil.
The impact of the crash was felt globally and forced many German companies into bankruptcy and cost millions of workers their jobs. -
Elections
The German Elections were held in 1932. About 38% of the votes were in favour of the Nazi party, making them the most popular party in Weimar history. -
Unemployment reaches 5 million
After 1929, millions of Germans began losing their jobs. By 1932, over 5 million Germans were jobless. -
Hitler named the last Weimar Chancellor
Hitler was named the Chancellor of Germany in 1933. He was swift to eradicate opposition and assume aboslute control over the Germany and its people. -
The Reichstag Fire
A young, mentally handicapped, Dutch communist was caught setting fire to the German government building, the Reichstag. Hitler used the arson attack to outlaw the communist party by using the Weimar Constitution's Article 48. -
Weimar Government Destroyed
Hitler commanded a majority in the legislative assembly. From this, he passed the Enabling Laws which permitted the Nazi government to decree laws without going through parliament.
