Quick Revise '20th Century Europe'

Weimar Treaty of Versailles Gustav Weimar Collapse

Republic Stresemann (1930-1933)
20th Century ESSAY PLANS Question 1 Question 2
Europe
Question 3 Question 4 Question 5 Question 6
Question 7 Nazi Germany Question 8 Question 9
(1933-1939)
Question 10 Question 11 Question 12

Weimar Republic
How the Weimar Republic came to exist:
● The Kaiser has abdicated and left Germany
● A power vacuum has been created as there is no established form of
government
● Millions of German workers have been killed or seriously injured during the
war
● Germany has become an international pariah (outcast)
● Germany is subject to an imposed peace settlement
● In reality, this meant:
○ Political instability - There were uprisings against the fledgling republic
even before it was properly formed.
○ Economic ruin - The war has devastated the economy and further
problems occur as a result of the Peace settlement.
○ Unemployment - Millions of soldiers have returned home to find no jobs
available.
The Republic
As the First World War drew to a close, morale in the army and at home collapsed. A
series of defeats led to strikes throughout Germany. The Sailors at the Kiel naval
base mutinied rather than sail to for a final showdown with the British fleet. Soldiers,
sailors and workers formed councils or soviets with echoes of events in Communist
Russia.
The Kaiser, William II abdicated and went into exile in Holland. A republic was
proclaimed with the SPD leader Frederich Ebert as Chancellor (Prime Minister). The
first act of the new government was to sign the armistice with the Allies. Many
including Adolf Hitler saw this as an act of treason and the men who agreed to
surrender became known as the “November Criminals.”
The new republic faced a host of problems. These included:
● Over two and half million Germans had died in the war and four million were
wounded.
● The army and many other Nationalist groups in German society were
unhappy that the Kaiser had been forced to abdicate. Some of these owed a
very shaky allegiance to the new republic. Many were completely hostile and
viewed the government with contempt.
● Economic problems were serious, including rising prices, unemployment and
a continued Allied blockade.
● Germany faced the prospect of a harsh treaty that was being negotiated in
Paris.
The Spartacist Revolt
Even before the constitution had been drawn up there was a serious challenge from
the left. Many hoped to see a Russian style revolution in Germany. The left wing
Spartacus movement led by Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg began a revolt
in Berlin in January 1919. They seized buildings throughout the city. The government
fled the city.
Many feared the “red plague” and the defense minister Gustav Noske used the
army and the Freikorps to crush the revolt. The Freikorps was a volunteer militia
made up of ex army men set up to defend the borders of Germany. It was strongly
anti-communist and took brutal steps to restore order with summary executions
becoming commonplace. Liebknecht and Luxemburg were shot and the revolt was
crushed. In Bavaria another Communist revolt was defeated with Freikorps help in
May. Political violence had marred the foundation of the new state.
The video below provides an overview of the Spartacist Revolt.
The New Constitution
Despite the Spartacus revolt, the majority of Germans voted for parties in January
1919 that favored the new democratic republic. These parties were the SPD, the
liberal DDP and the Catholic Centre party. The constituent assembly met at
Weimar in February 1919 and Ebert was chosen as president.
The new constitution was very democratic. Germany was to be a Federal state with
the states or Lander retaining considerable control over their own affairs. The
parliament (Reichstag) was to be elected every four years with a system of
proportional representation that meant it was impossible for one party to get an
overall majority.
All people over the age of twenty could vote. The Reichstag dealt with issues such
as tax, trade, defense and foreign affairs. As there were a large number of political
parties, there were many coalition governments. During the fourteen years of the
Weimar Republic, there were twenty separate coalitions. The longest
government lasted two years. This political chaos caused many to lose faith in the
new democratic system.
The head of state was to be the president who was elected every seven years. The
president was the commander of the armed forces and was designed to a largely
figurehead position. He did have the power to dissolve the Reichstag and to
nominate the Chancellor who was to enjoy the support of the Reichstag. Crucially
under Article 48, the president could declare a state of emergency and rule by
decree. He could also veto laws passed by the Reichstag that he did not like.
The video below explains the Weimar constitution.
Summary of the key events in Weimar Germany:

Treaty of Versailles
The news of the treaty came as a complete shock to the new government and to the
German people. Virtually all sections of German opinion denounced the treaty. It was
known as the Diktat as Germany had been forced to sign the treaty.

On the day it was signed, Germany’s Protestant churches declared a day of national
mourning. Germans were outraged at the loss of her colonies and her territory and
population to France, Belgium and Poland.
She also resented the limitations placed on the size of her army and navy, the ban
on an air force and tanks and the demilitarization of the Rhineland. She felt that the
principle of self-determination had been ignored in the case of the Germans of
Austria and the Sudetenland. She believed that the War Guilt Clause and the
reparations payments were unjust. One effect of the Treaty was an immediate lack of
confidence in the politicians that had signed it. This was reflected in the poor
performance of the parties that supported the republic in the elections of 1920.
● Terms of the Peace treaty
● Massively reduced military capability
● ‘War guilt’ clause imposed
● Reparations fixed at a very high level
● All of this led to BIG problems from 1919
Problems from 1919 - 1924
● Anger directed at the government for signing the Treaty of Versailles
● The new constitution reliant on coalition governments, which weakens its
power
● Economic problems as all profit is sent directly to the Allies as reparations
pay-outs
● Valueless currency as economic crisis leads to hyper-inflation
● Rise of extremist groups attempting to wrestle power from the de-stabilised
government (Freikorps, Spartacists etc.)
Opposition Uprisings
● The Communist Spartacists in 1919, defeated by the right-wing militia of the
Freikorps
● The right-wing Kapp Putsch, defeated by a general strike
The Kapp Putsch
Right wing dissatisfaction with the new government was worsened when the
government moved to disband Freikorps units. A nationalist politician, Wofgang
Kapp led a revolt in Berlin backed by the Freikorps and the military commander of
Berlin. The regular army refused to crush the revolt and the government fled to
Stuttgart. Its call for a general strike was carried out by the trade unions in the city
and the putsch collapsed. At the same time a communist revolt was crushed in the
Ruhr, the industrial heartland of Germany, with over a thousand dead.
Right wing assassinations were to plague the early years of the new republic with
leading politicians such as Matthias Erzberger and Walther Rathenau
assassinated. Many of the murderers were treated with great leniency by the courts
but the murders did have the effect of strengthening support for the institutions of the
republic.
Summary
● Germany is in a desperate situation.
● The terms of the Treaty of Versailles cripple the economy and prevent
German recovery after the war.
● This in turn leads to the new Weimar government being unable to restore
pre-war conditions.
● Animosity towards those who signed the treaty grows and many German
people look for people to blame for the crisis, leading to theories of ‘the stab in
the back'.
● The new government, already under fire, is likely to fail in its duty to provide
security, prosperity and comfort given the conditions that it has inherited.
The videos below provide an overview of the treaty of Versailles.

Gustav Stresemann
● Stresemann was Chancellor in 1923 only.
● His main role was as Foreign Minister from 1924
● He was a right-winger and more able than Ebert
● He built up Germany’s prosperity again although all of Europe was recovering
● Stresemann showed real skill in foreign policy
○ Locarno Treaties - 1925
○ 1926 - Germany joined the League of Nations
○ Young plan - 1929
● After a number of years in the wilderness Germany was accepted back into
the international community
During the dark days of 1923, Gustav Stresemann was appointed chancellor
and his policies would help to transform the fortunes of Weimar. He had been a
strong supporter of Germany’s involvement in World War I and advocated
unrestricted submarine warfare as the only means to defeat Britain.
At first, Stresemann felt no loyalty to the new Weimar Republic and he opposed the
Treaty of Versailles. He set up his own party the German People’s Party (DVP).
However his views developed and he advocated a great coalition from the SPD to
the DVP to consolidate democracy against the extremes of left and right.
He became Chancellor in August 1923. His government lasted a hundred days until
November 1923 but he remained as foreign minister in successive coalitions until his
death in October 1929. As Chancellor he took the crucial step of ceasing financial
support to the general strike in the Ruhr. He introduced a new and stable currency
(the Rentenmark) that ended the hyper-inflation. He also crushed a communist
revolt in Saxony and faced down the threat from Hitler in Bavaria.
The Period of Prosperity
Over the next six years, as foreign minister he sought to improve Germany’s
international position, cooperate with France and Britain in order to secure a revision
of some of the terms of the Treaty of Versailles. This policy became known as
fulfillment.
He achieved a large measure of success. Under Anglo-American pressure France
withdrew from the Ruhr. Stresemann accepted the recommendations of the Dawes
committee for a settlement of the reparations issue. A moderate scale of payments
was fixed rising from £50 million to £125 million after 5 years and a 2-year
moratorium (suspension) on reparation payments was set. A loan of $800 million
was raised for Germany, mainly in America. For the next 5 years American loans
poured into Germany which greatly improved the economic position.
The Locarno Pact
● Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Poland met at Locarno in
Switzerland.
● Signed a number of treaties to settle disputes between themselves
○ France, Belgium and Germany agreed to accept borders as drawn up
by Treaty of Versailles
○ Rhineland stayed demilitarized
○ France would protect Poland and Czechoslovakia if attacked by
Germany
○ Germany would not use force to settle disputes with neighbors
In 1925 he took the initiative that led to the Locarno Pact. Under this agreement
Germany recognised her Western frontiers as final and agreed to use peaceful
means to ensure revision of her frontiers in the east. Stresemann was a German
nationalist and was not prepared to give up what he saw as legitimate demands for
the return of Danzig and the northern half of the Polish Corridor.
In September 1926 Germany joined the League of Nations with a permanent seat on
the Council in recognition of her status as a great power.
As part of this policy of co-operation, the first of the three Rhineland zones which had
been placed under Allied military occupation by the Treaty of Versailles were
evacuated in 1926. In 1927 the Inter-Allied Control Commission to supervise
German disarmament was withdrawn.
The Young Plan agreed in 1929 greatly reduced German reparations to a figure of
£2 billion and Repayments were to be made over a period of 59 years. Stresemann
also won complete allied evacuation of the Rhineland by June 1930 (five years
ahead of schedule).
It is hardly surprising that when he died of a stroke in October 1929 at the early age
of fifty-one Stresemann’s reputation stood very high. He had also become a focus for
hopes of European peace. Hitler is reported to have remarked that in Stresemann’s
position “he could not have achieved more”.
Weimar Collapse (1930-1933)
The Great Depression and Germany
Stresemann’s death could not have come at a worse time for the young republic.
The onset of the Great Depression was to have dramatic effects on Germany
The German economy’s recovery after the inflation of 1923 had been financed by
loans from the United States. Many of these short term loans had been used to
finance capital projects such as road building. State governments financed their
activities with the help of these loans.
German interest rates were high, and capital flowed in. Large firms borrowed money
and depended heavily on American loans. German banks took out American loans to
invest in German businesses. The German economic recovery was based on
shaky foundations.
The Wall Street Crash
The German economy was in decline prior to the Wall Street Crash. There was no
growth in German industrial production in 1928-9 and unemployment rose to two and
a half million.
On the 24th October, “Black Thursday”, there was panic selling on the New York
Stock Exchange reacting to a business crisis in America. Early the following week,
“Black Tuesday”, 29th of October, panic selling set in again. 16.4 million shares
were sold, a record not surpassed for forty years. Share prices went into freefall. Ten
billion dollars was wiped off the value of share prices in one day.
Effects on Germany
As a result American demand for imports collapsed. American banks saw their
losses mount and they started calling in their short term loans with which so much of
the German economy had been financing itself for the past five years.
Firms began to cut back drastically. Industrial production fell quickly and by 1932 it
was 40% of its 1929 level. To make matters worse in 1931 a number of Austrian and
German banks went out of business. . Unemployment rose from 1.6 million in
October 1929 to 6.12 million in February 1932. 33% percent of the workforce were
now unemployed.
By 1932 roughly one worker in three was registered as unemployed with rates
even higher in industrial areas of Germany. Matters were made worse by the fact
that the drastic fall in people’s income caused a collapse in tax revenues. Many soon
were not in receipt of unemployment benefits as state governments could not afford
to pay it.
It was in this economic chaos that the Nazis and Communists thrived.
Crime and suicide rates rose sharply and many lost hope. People deserted the
democratic parties in droves and turned to either the Communists or the Nazis. In
the election of 1930, the Nazis made their electoral breakthrough winning 107
deputies while the Communists won 77. Both parties were opposed to the
democratic system and used violence against their political opponents. Hitler’s
Brownshirts clashed frequently on the streets with their Communist enemies.
Burning (1930-2)
The new chancellor, the Centre politician Heinrich Bruning, followed a policy of
economic austerity where government spending was cut in order to keep inflation
under control and keep German exports competitive. He increased taxes, reduced
salaries and reduced unemployment assistance.
While it was sound economic thinking at the time, it only worsened the situation. The
banking collapse in 1931 made matters even worse. Bruning was so unpopular that
when he traveled by train he had to keep the blinds down as when people caught
sight of him, they threw rocks! He was nicknamed the “hunger chancellor”.
The end of Parliamentary democracy
Given the unpopularity of Bruning’s policies, he found it very difficult to get a majority
in the Reichstag. He relied on Article 48 and the emergency powers of the president
to get laws passed. By 1932, parliament was being largely ignored.
Some of the advisors to the President including General Kurt von Schleicher
wanted to include the Nazis in government which Bruning opposed. They wanted to
bypass the Reichstag completely and bring in a right wing authoritarian government.
Hindenburg lost confidence in Bruning and they quarreled about land reform.
Bruning was replaced as chancellor by the equally unpopular von Papen. His
cabinet of barons had absolutely no support and this was shown in the election of
July 1932.
A disaster for Democracy
The result was a disaster for democracy in Weimar Germany. The Nazis received
37% of the vote and 230 seats while their communist enemies got 89 seats. A
majority of Germans had voted for non-democratic parties. Political violence
intensified with twelve people killed on the day of the polls.
The election of November 1932 saw a decline in Nazi but they still remained the
largest party in the Reichstag. Communist support continued to rise and this worried
many industrialists. Von Papen was replaced as chancellor by von Schleicher.
Von Papen immediately began to plot against von Schleicher and met Hitler. They
agreed that Hitler would become the chancellor of a government made up mainly of
von Papen’s supporters. Hindenburg, who disliked Hitler, was persuaded to appoint
him chancellor on the 30th of January. The Weimar Republic was dead!
Summary of the events leading to the rise of the Nazis:

20th Century Europe

Click on the relevant sections below:
ESSAY PLANS
Here are some examples of plans that can be used when writing an essay on the
subject of 20th Century European history:
1. Why did The Treaty of Versailles lack durability?
2. How important was the appeal of Fascism in the rise to power of Mussolini?
3. What was the Italian attitude to German expansion in the 1930s?
4. How far did the aims of Mussolini’s foreign policy change from 1922 to 1940?
5. Why did the Nationalists win the Spanish Civil War?
6. What were the causes of the Spanish Civil War?
7. What were the policies of the Big Powers towards the Spanish Civil War?
8. How successful was the German Weimar Republic in Foreign Policy?
9. How successful were the Nazis in achieving the aims of their social policies?
10. Examine the Nature of Weimar Germany’s Economic Problems
11. Did the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand make a general European
war inevitable?
12. How significant were the Moroccan Crises of 1905 and 1911?

Question 1
Why did The Treaty of Versailles lack durability?
Paragraph one
● Begin the answer setting out the factors that proved to be a problem:
● Germans throughout the political spectrum regarded it as a harsh ‘diktat’
with humiliating intentions and implications
● Victorious powers unable to agree on how far to go, but to many it seemed
vindictive, vengeful and imprudent
● It made worse the various tensions in German political life
● Outside France reservations about the treaty’s efficacy allowed the
Weimar regime to virtually restore German sovereignty before Hitler
became chancellor
● Post-1929 depression boosted revision of the Treaty and put paid to mere
revisionism in Germany – brought Hitler to power and he wanted more
than revisionism
● 1919 no consensus and resolve to diminish German power – no concerted
effort to be conciliatory either
Paragraph two
● Examine the nature of the ‘diktat’
● It contradicted the principles of Wilson’s 14 Points
● Germans shocked and angry
● German military limited – 100,000 strong army, no tanks, planes and
submarines, conscription banned and long-term military service imposed
to prevent build-up of large trained reserve forces
● Colonies confiscated
● Article 231 – war-guilt clause, Germany to accept blame for war
● Reparations set at £6,600 million by 1921
 ● Lost one-eighth of territory and 6 million of population
● East Prussia separated from main part of Germany causing ethnic
Germans to come under Polish rule
● German economy weak due to cost of war – exacerbated by loss of large
reserves of iron-ore, coal, and zinc (transferred to Poland and France)
Paragraph three
● Possible future consequences of the Treaty:
● President Wilson wanted conciliation and self-determination but French
wanted to diminish Germany’s potential as a power imposed tough military,
economic and territorial terms
● J.M. Keynes very critical of Treaty – believed Wilson undermined Lloyd
George’s attempts to lessen Clemenceau’s demands
● Reparations not based on German ability to pay – if implemented would
cause poverty, starvation and political instability – aggravated hatred of the
Treaty and enhanced nationalistic sentiment
● Marshall Foch said: ‘This is not a peace, it is a 20 year armistice!’
Paragraph Four
● German instability in 1920s
● January 1919 Spartacist Revolt (crushed by military)
● March 1920 Kapp Putsch defeated by general strike but showed that the
army could soon gain an autonomy which in alliance with other
conservative interests could lead to a dangerous surge in nationalist
sentiment
● June 1920 Reichstag elections republicans lost their majority – for this to
happen so early on was ominous
● From the early days there was an endemic problem of coalition crises in
government – by second half of 1920s this situation was made worse by
nationalist and anti-Semitic interest groups inside and outside the
Reichstag
● Continued discontent and unwavering hostility to Versailles by all political
groups made it unlikely that Germany would continue to comply with its
terms
Paragraph Five
● Concessions made to Germany before the advent of the 3rd Reich
● Early 1920s Germany unable to defy victors
● 1923 French and Belgians invade Ruhr over German failure to pay
reparations
● Caused economic crisis – new German currency
● Terms of reparations revised in Dawes Plan (1924)
● France and Great Britain coordinated a more conciliatory attitude towards
Germany
 ● This manifested in ‘Locarno spirit’ (1924-29) which seemed to restore
Germany to the family of nations
● Young Plan 1929 reduced annual payments of reparations
● After 1924 Germany received more in foreign investment than she paid in
reparations
● Foreign troops had left Germany by July 1930
● Of vital importance – Locarno Pact of 1925 while guaranteeing western
frontiers made no mention of eastern frontiers – so they believed that
these could changed
Paragraph Six
● Hitler’s intentions:
● 1933 left League and World Disarmament Conference
● France weakened economically and politically by the depression adopted
Appeasement – a policy long implicit in Great Britain’s dealings with
Germany
● Hitler steadily unpicked the Treaty of Versailles as the 1930s progressed
● This was a preliminary to the implementation of lebensraum which was
way beyond the mere reversal of the ‘diktat’
● The major powers acquiesced in his moves:
○ 1935 conscription
○ 1936 Rhineland and Spanish Civil War
○ 1938 Anschluss
● The treatment of Czechoslovakia was a prelude to the establishment of a
new German empire stretching from the Atlantic to the Urals. The 1919
treaties had become an irrelevant shadow of the attempt to limit the power
of Germany forever.
Question 2
How important was the appeal of Fascism in the rise to power of Mussolini?
This question requires you to discuss all of the reasons why Mussolini gained power.
The word ‘appeal’ (in the question) requires an assessment of stability, order, the
revival of Italy’s prestige and, of course, the appeal of Fascist ideology.
Paragraph One
● The challenge to parliamentary democracy in post-war Europe
● This had recently been established and was not working well
● Discontent evident in Italy with regard to the political system
● Dissatisfaction with Treaty of Versailles
● Fear of social disorder and threat to private property
Paragraph Two
● Weak political structure –
○ hostile Church
 ○ masses saw democracy as middle class concern for liberal freedom
rather than improving the lot of the common people
○ undermining of democracy by entry into war (1915)
○ state dominated by interest groups
Paragraph Three
● Post-war situation:
● 1919 general elections – Liberals lose control
● Difficulties forming effective and stable government – parliamentary paralysis
● Attitude of public opinion to post-war settlement’s failure to deliver the
promises of the Treaty of London (1915)
Paragraph Four
● Land seizure and factory occupations
● Core of new Fascist Party formed from ex-servicemen
● Offered to suppress the Left for the aristocracy and industrialists
● Seemed to promise the restoration of order
● Found support in armed forces and Royal family
● Catholic middle classes feared Socialism so gave support to Mussolini
Paragraph Five
● Why Mussolini was appointed – not because of the appeal of Fascism but for
the promise of law and order (Fascist ideas rather vague and not widely
known yet)
● It appeared there was no alternative – the king feared for his position so
agreed to let Mussolini lead a coalition
● Importance of March on Rome – Fascism favored by official Italy-a mainly
liberal parliament voted for Mussolini
● Alternatives? Bolshevism or military dictatorship
Question 3
What was the Italian attitude to German expansion in the 1930s?
Paragraph One
● Mussolini Fascist dictator of Italy didn’t want a strong Germany on his border
● Austria – treaty of Versailles forbade union of Austria with Germany
● July 1934 Chancellor Dollfuss of Austria murdered by Austrian Nazis (wanted
union with Germany) – asked Hitler for help
● Schuschnigg new chancellor asked Mussolini for help
● Mussolini sent troops to Brenner Pass so Hitler backed down (not strong
enough yet)
Paragraph Two: Stresa Front
● Mussolini had meeting with Great Britain and France
 ● Signed agreement (Stresa Front) to prevent any attempt to tamper with
Versailles Treaty – clearly aimed at Hitler
● No need for this – covered by League of Nations
Paragraph Three: Abyssinia/Spain
● 1935-6 Italy conquered Abyssinia (Ethiopia)
● Great Britain and France against it
● Their attitude weakened Stresa Front
● Mussolini drawn into alliance with Hitler (Rome-Berlin Axis 1936)
● Cooperated in Spanish Civil War 1936-9
● 1937 Italy left League because it imposed sanctions over Abyssinia
● 1937 joined Germany and Japan in Anti-Comintern Pact
Paragraph Four: Anschluss
● Union of Austria and Germany (until 1945)
● This time Hitler didn’t face Italian opposition – Germany too strong and they
were now allies
Paragraph Five: Munich Crisis
● Sudetenland German speaking part of Czech
● Hitler threatened war if he didn’t get it
● Great Britain and France asked Mussolini to mediate
● He pretended to produce a plan – in fact it was given to him by the German
foreign office
● Germany got Sudetenland and Czechs got no help from Great Britain and
France even though USSR willing to act if France did
Paragraph Six: Pact of Steel
● March 1939 Germany took over ‘Rump’ of Czech
● Mussolini supported it
● Hitler and Mussolini signed Pact of Steel next – military alliance
● Italy now tied to fortunes of Germany
Paragraph Seven: Poland
● Mussolini warned Hitler that war against Poland would become a European
war and Italy wasn’t ready – even so Italy would support Germany
● Italy did not join in invasion of Poland
● Mussolini waited until he was sure Germany would win
● So Italy invaded France in 1940 just before France surrendered
● Entry into war proved disastrous – Italy surrendered 1943 when Great Britain,
USA etc. invaded mainland Italy – Mussolini deposed
Question 4
 How far did the aims of Mussolini’s foreign policy change from 1922 to
1940?
● You may argue that Mussolini’s foreign policy had no clear aims or
direction until the mid 1930s beyond some grand aim of restoring Italian
prestige.
● Discussion in relation to the 1920s may refer to the Corfu Incident, the
acquisition of Fiume and the Locarno Treaties.
● Mussolini in this period and up to the early 1930s, whilst seeking to cut a
figure on the international stage, sought acceptance by Britain and France
and valued a good relationship with them in the hope that they would
support his Mediterranean ambitions.
● 1930s Mussolini’s foreign policy became more assertive and defined,
looking for concessions from Britain and France, supporting Austrian
independence, and a drive for Empire (Abyssinia).
● The Abyssinian crisis was a turning point – ‘success’ was qualified by the
costs and the loss of British and French friendship.
● After 1935, increased cooperation (e.g. over involvement in the Spanish
Civil War) and alliance with Germany undermined Italy’s international
prestige and led Italy into a war for which it was unprepared.
● Whilst general aims may have remained the same the means to achieve
them and the detail of them did change.
Question 5
Why did the Nationalists win the Spanish Civil War?
Paragraph One: Non-military factors
● Nationalists held better land and better fed than Republicans
● 1937 Church leaders declared Nationalists to be the right cause (important in
a religious country)
● Nationalists used wireless propaganda (encouraged their side/depressed
Republicans)
● Franco’s will to win never wavered
● Many of his followers had different aims but he forcibly united them preventing
separatist moves
Paragraph Two: Difficulties of the Republic
● Main aim of many Republicans – carry out proletarian revolution rather than
defeat the Nationalists
● This aim meant different things to different groups
● Problems in republic’s forces:
○ no single army or general
○ lack of discipline
○ their few army officers were despised because they were members of
the old army (their advice was ignored)
 ○ resistance to formal training methods as unnecessary
○ it’s why they were usually beaten in open fighting (Nationalist troops
well trained)
○ many types of gun – inefficient
Dissension on Republican side
● 1937 Anarchists rose in revolt in Barcelona – crushed by Communists
● Frequent murders and shootings
● Led to slowing down of volunteers and supplies from abroad
● As Communist influence increased:
○ non-Communist commanders were replaced
○ Government orders ignored
● 1939 non-Communists in Madrid rose against the Communists
● This, plus the news that the government had fled to France, led to collapse of
morale among Madrid’s defenders
Paragraph Three: The activities of the Great Powers
Help for the Nationalists:
● By 1937 60,000 Italian troops in Spain – sent ships and planes too
● 1936 Hitler sent Condor Legion made up of tanks, bombers, fighters, artillery
● 1938 Hitler sent money and oil for final offensive
Help for the Republicans:
● USSR sent only enough aid to keep resistance going
● Great Britain and USA failed to aid democracy – Communist influence grew
● It increased determination of opposition to win
● Near end of 1938 Stalin stopped sending help to Republic
● Many members of International Brigades withdrawn
Paragraph Four: Military Factors
Nationalist military advantages:
● Most of the old officers in their army
● Republicans had few who had been through military school
● Disciplined units
● Complete command of the air in early stages
Republican tactical mistakes:
● Failed to stop Franco’s army crossing from Morocco
● Had many ships in area but couldn’t operate them properly (officers had been
killed)
● Republican units kept to roads in early stages – targets for planes
● 1938 Battle of the Ebro last major Republican offensive – failed – waste of
scarce resources
Significant moments:
● Defense of Alcazar fortress at Toledo – inspiration and propaganda value to
Nationalists
● 1937 defeat of Basques – coal and iron to Nationalists
● Allowed Nationalist navy to concentrate in Mediterranean
● Their army now concentrated on one front
● Nationalist victory at Tervel (1938) – exhausted Republicans
● Franco able to advance through Aragon and sever land link between Madrid
and Barcelona
Question 6
What were the causes of the Spanish Civil War?
Introduction
● 2nd Republic 1931 had troubled history
● Popular front won 1936 elections
● Popular Front – Republicans, Socialists and Communists
● Opposition feared Communist takeover
● Led to revolt by army officers and civil war
Paragraph One: Background Causes
● Long tradition of separatism in Spanish regions
● Hostility to those who favored united Spain
Paragraph Two
● The army unpopular because
● Corrupt
● Money spent on campaigns of no benefit to Spain
● Used to keep starving peasants in order
● 1917 army coup produced no improvements
Paragraph Three: Society
● Great divisions
● Hostility between rich and poor especially over land division
● Landless peasants – braceros
● Rich had huge estates
● Carlist Movement supported Church
● Also opposed liberalism
● Many turned against Church (associated with Carlists and its great
wealth)
● Town and country populations grew apart
● Countrymen supported Carlists and opposed modern ideas
● Industry undeveloped in towns
● Poor bitter towards government
Paragraph Four: Politics
● 1875-1917 landowners operated corrupt democracy
● Democratic ideas discredited
● Encouraged violence and terrorism
● Helped anarchist views – popular among poor
● Latter attacked government, Church and landowners
Immediate Causes
● Republic that lasted 1931-36 failed because:
One
● Came into existence at difficult time
● World economic depression – food shortage and no work
● Fascist groups e.g. Falange Espanola small but had great influence
● F.A.I. (anarchist group) emerged
● Socialists and Communists demanded state ownership
Two
● Moderate republicans (President Azana) tried to please rich and
poor
● This angered opponents and annoyed friends
Three
● Land
● 1932 Agrarian Law feeble – peasants annoyed
● 1934 farm laborers’ wages lowered
● 1936 Popular Front came to power – peasants seized landowners’
property
Four
● Church
● Government attacked Church – unwise; more urgent matters
● Gave scope for its real enemies to organize their opposition
(Fascists Army and landowners)
● Many areas loyal to the Church – government attacks on it made
more enemies for it than friends
Five
● The army
● Its role was critical – Republicans ignored danger from it
● They failed to see that they couldn’t rule without it (Spain bitterly
divided)
● Government mistakes:
 ○ no attempt to form a new people’s army
○ many officers anti-Republic – some resigned to
plot in secret
○ generals against government willingness to allow
parts of Spain to break away
Six
● The outbreak of war
● By 1936 regular violence and resistance to authority
● Government unable to keep order
● Lack of confidence in government as result
● Also – government kept changing policy
● Army decided to take action
● The revolt was planned for April 1936 – delayed
● 2 events persuaded the generals to act:
○ possible workers’ dictatorship planned
○ murder of Calvo Sotelo (opposition leader) – he
was opposed to the Republic
● The 2 events gave the generals stimulus for action – revolt began in
July
Question 7
What were the policies of the Big Powers towards the Spanish Civil War?
Introduction
● Situation in Spain and how the ideological struggles outside transformed the
struggle in Spain
Germany
● Hitler helped Nationalists (Franco) to:
● Strike blow against Communism
● Weaken France by creating an ally to south
● Test units of the new German forces
● Draw Italy (already helping Franco) closer to Germany, thus making it unlikely
that Mussolini would interfere when Hitler next moved against Austria
● To ensure a long conflict to distract Great Britain and France from German
aggression elsewhere
● March 1937 Franco’s agreement with Hitler for war supplies, pilots and
technicians
● Further deal late 1938 for oil and money – it allowed Franco to launch final
attack
● Hitler given 40% share in Spanish iron mines
Italy
 ● Mussolini helped Franco because:
● His victory would help Italy gain naval control of Mediterranean
● Also wanted another prestige victory after Abyssinia
● Hoped to weaken British hold on Gibraltar
● Italy involved from start – large forces sent
● Italian planes helped carry Franco’s army from Morocco
● November 1936 agreement on economic and political cooperation
● Weapons sent from Italy
● Quick victory didn’t happen – Italy gained little
USA
● Refused to get involved – 1935 Neutrality Act
● This prevented sale of arms to both sides
● Failure of US, Great Britain and France to help democratic Republicans
weakened them and influence of moderates e.g. Azana
● Communists came to dominate Republican side
Britain
● Said all nations should keep out of the war
● When other nations intervened feelings were:
● desire to maintain neutrality but prevent Germany and Italy gaining any
Spanish territory
● The large number of Communists on Republican side inhibited Great Britain
from sending them aid
● Great Britain banned arms exports to Spain
● Instrumental in setting up Non Intervention Committee: purpose to prevent
foreign powers sending aid
● All Great Powers except USA joined, but only Great Britain observed its
findings
France
● France had Popular Front government 1936 (similar to Spanish)
● Some members of government wanted to help Republic
● But involvement would expose France to German attack
● French cabinet divided on issue
● Great Britain pressed France not to become involved
● French banned arms exports to Spain
● Desire to be neutral but prevent Germany and Italy making gains
● Nyon Conference 1937 France and Great Britain agreed to take action
against Italian submarines trying to blockade Republican ports and attacking
British and French ships – the attacks soon ceased
● 1937 left wing politicians demanded intervention but government unwilling to
choose between Fascists and Communists
Russia
● By end of 1936 most of Spain’s gold reserve had gone to Russia to pay for
supplies and arms
● Russia only country prepared to help Republicans
● Stalin hoped initially to stop Franco winning
● Knew Great Britain and USA would never tolerate an openly Communist
government
● He thus decided to prolong the war as long as possible by supplying
Republicans with just enough to enable them to continue the fight
● Wanted to keep Italy and Germany occupied
● After Munich (1938) saw no chance of getting alliance with Great Britain and
France against Germany
● Turned to idea of alliance with Germany – so he slowed aid to Republic to
almost nothing
Conclusion
● Intervention by the Powers certain because
● Both sides seeking men, money and supplies
● Geographical position of Spain crucial
● March 1939 Franco signed defensive alliance with Italy but it didn’t lead to
Spanish support for Axis in World War II – he was only interested in Spain
Nazi Germany (1933-1939)
Dictatorship Established January-March 1933
● January 1933 Hitler appointed Chancellor
● February there was a Nazi reign of terror in run-up to the elections
● Also – anti-left campaign to weaken opposition
● Reichstag Fire destroyed the parliament building
● March 1933 election Nazis gained more seats in parliament (Reichstag)
● Main opposition parties were banned and Communists expelled from
Reichstag
● 23rd March Enabling Act gave Hitler power to rule for 4 years without
consultation
The video provides an overview into the events of 1933 and 1934 that took Germany
from a democracy into a dictatorship.
June – August 1934: Sturmabteilung ("Storm Battalion") SA and Army
● SA leader Ernst Röhm wanted a socialist policy
● Also wanted SA and army merged under his control
● Hitler feared Röhm as an opponent within the Nazi Party
● Also feared the power of the Army general Staff who disliked Röhm
● 30th June 1934 SA Purge: “The Night of the Long Knives” in which Röhm
was murdered
 ● August – President Hindenburg died
● The Army Oath – army sworn oath of loyalty to Hitler
● Hitler now merged the role of President and Chancellor (prime minister)
● He took this role and the title of Fuhrer
● This made him Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces
Important Nazi Ministers
Hermann Göring
● Minister of the Interior in Prussia – most important state in Germany
● Founded the Gestapo (secret police)
● He organized the reign of terror against Nazi opponents 1932-3
● Led the anti-left campaign after Reichstag Fire
● One of main organizers of SA Purge
● 1934 in charge of industrial development and 4 Year Plan
● Later became head of the Luftwaffe (air force) until 1945
Joseph Goebbels
● Nazi Party head of propaganda
● 1926 became Gauleiter (Party leader) in Berlin
● 1927 founded Der Angriff (a Berlin daily newspaper)
● 1928 elected to the Reichstag
● 1929 became Nazi propaganda chief
● 1933 appointed Minister of Propaganda and Enlightenment in Nazi state
Heinrich Himmler
● 1929 Hitler made him leader of the Schutzstaffel (SS)
● Later succeeded Göring as head of the Gestapo
● He was responsible for –
a) The SA Purge 1934
b) Crushing opposition to Hitler
c) Anti-Jewish campaigns
d) Running concentration camps

Hjalmar Schacht
● 1918 he was a partner in a Bremen bank
● 1924 devised plan to restore stable currency after 1933 inflation collapse
● Issued new currency called the Rentenmark
● 1924 while head of the Reichsbank involved in securing the Dawes Plan
● 1933 supported Hitler’s rise to power
● 1933-7 Nazi Economics Minister
● As Economics Minister he –
a) Devised a scheme to re-arm Germany
 b) Supported public spending to reduce unemployment
c) Arranged trade and currency deals with other states to enhance trade

● 2nd January as Reichsbank President he wanted to reduce arms spending to

stop inflation and balance the budget so –
● Hitler sacked him
The video below highlights prominent Nazi’s and their roles within the evil regime.
Nazi Organisations
Hitler Youth
● Formed 1920s
● Nazis won the support of the young by it
● Boys sent to camps and wore uniforms at weekends
● Similar organization for girls: The League of German Maidens
Sturmabteilung (SA)
● This was Hitler’s private army
● Commanded by Captain Ernst Röhm
● Industrialists provided the finance for the SA being afraid of communism
● The SA fought the communists on the streets in the late 1920s
● They wore a brown uniform hence the nickname “Brown Shirts”
● 1930 they numbered 2 million
● They disrupted the meetings of other political parties opposed to the Nazis
● January-March 1933 terrorized the opposition helping Hitler establish
dictatorship
● They were purged by Hitler in 1934 using the SS
Schutzstaffel (SS)
● These “Black Shirts” (after their uniform) were set up in 1928
● They were Hitler’s bodyguard originally, and rivaled the SA
● SS = Protection Squads
● SS had a military organization like SA but also had artillery
● There were full-time members (like in SA) but many were part time
● SS had 500,000 members
● 1929 Hitler appointed Himmler leader of the SS
● They were used in the Night of the Long Knives or SA Purge
Gestapo (Geheime Staatspolizei)
● 1933 Hitler set up the Gestapo as his secret police
● Himmler replaced Göring as its leader
● So now the SS and Gestapo were under Himmler’s control
● Gestapo infiltrated every ant-Nazi organization
● Used terror to wipe out anti-Nazi opposition
 ● Compiled secret files on every important German including Nazis
● Himmler used these to blackmail people and gain more power
● Himmler organized the anti-Jewish campaigns
● They ran the concentration camps and “Final Solution” (Jewish extermination)
The Labour Front
● All workers were members
● Trade unions were abolished – it was claimed they were socialist/communist
organizations
● Strikes were banned as anti-state activities
Opposition to the Nazis
● State parliaments were abolished in 1934
● The Reichsrat or 2nd House of Parliament went with the abolition of separate
states
● This gave power to the Reichstag
● This gave Hitler dictatorial powers for 4 years
● All political parties except the Nazis were abolished
● Included Nationalists, Catholics, Conservatives
● Trade Unions were also illegal
The Catholic Church
● Hitler said a German could not be a good German and a Christian
● 1933 he made a Concordat with the Pope
● This allowed Catholic Church to have schools and newspapers
● Many Catholics saw this as Papal approval of Nazism
● Persecution of the Jews caused a rift though
● 1937 Pope issued an Encyclical (papal letter) called ‘Mit Brenneder Sorge’
(With Burning Anxiety) – condemning Nazi race theories and practices
● Some Church leaders wrote and preached against Nazism
● The majority of Catholics went along with Nazi policy because it seemed to
work
The Protestant (Lutheran) Church
● Many Protestants supported Hitler who gave hope and pride
● Opposition was led by Pastor Niemöller
● He, along with many others, were sent to concentration camps
Support for the Nazis
The Army
● The officer corps helped their rise to power
● Ludendorff took part in the Munich Putsch of 1923
 ● Schleicher used his influence politically during 1932-3 but was killed during
the SA Purge
● The officer corps supported the post 1933 rearmament programme
● Also supported Hitler’s demands for the end to the Versailles Treaty
● Hoped to have the same control in Nazi Germany as the army leaders had
under Bismarck and when Kaiser Wilhelm II let Schlieffen and the army to
determine foreign policy
● 1934 they swore an oath of loyalty to Hitler
● Hitler knew they might oppose him because –
a) He was Austrian – most of them were Prussian Junkers
b) He had only been a corporal in World War I
c) They hated the Brown Shirts (SA) and terrorist tactics – saw them as
gangsters
d) Opposed his expansionary foreign policy but –

● Success of Hitler’s foreign policy 1935-40 made their opposition unlikely

Industrialists
● Stresemann had presided over Germany’s recovery
● So by 1930 their economy was the second most powerful industrial country
● Provided finance for the Nazis e.g. Thyssen and Krupp
● Supported the Nazis in the newspapers they owned
● After 1933 they prospered from rearmament i.e. –
a) Large numbers of tanks built
b) ½ million men called up into the armed forces
c) Luftwaffe (air force) ordered large numbers of aircraft
d) German navy expanded – both surface ships and u-boats
e) Rearmament led to expansion of iron and steel, coal and engineering

● Also the development of public works –

a) Roads (autobahns)
b) Houses
c) Hospitals
d) Schools

Middle Class
● Feared repeat of inflation and chaos of 1923
● 1931 feared more of the same
● Provided leadership for SA
● Welcomed strong government provided by the Nazis
Working Class
 ● Hitler inherited 6 million unemployed 1933; it was zero by 1939
● Provided jobs by –
a) Conscription into the armed forces
b) Rearmament and industrial expansion e.g. 4 Year Plans
c) Public works e.g. roads
d) Helped agriculture
e) Promoted industrial development e.g. cars (Volkswagen), radios, etc.

Anti-communists
● Hitler had a fanatical hatred of communism
● Signed Anti-Comintern Pact (anti-communist) with Japan and Italy
● This was liked by -
a) Industrialists feared loss of property
b) Churches feared atheistic Marxism
c) Middle classes

Nationalists
● Nationalists from all classes liked the growing strength of Germany
● Also regaining of provinces lost at Versailles e.g. Saar 1935
● New confidence as German economy boomed
Propaganda
● In Mein Kampf Hitler writes at length about the importance of propaganda
● 1922 onwards Goebbels was in charge of propaganda
● Hitler used it against –
a) Communists
b) Jews
c) Socialists e.g. Stresemann
d) The Treaty of Versailles

● He promised –
a) To crush Bolshevik (communist unrest)
b) ‘Work and bread’ instead of unemployment
c) A ‘Greater Germany’ instead of the Weimar Republic

● Goebbels was a brilliant orator whose speeches aimed to rouse the masses
● He also used the following –
a) Radio (government controlled) to send out propaganda in plays, stories and
news broadcasts
b) The Press (government controlled) to push the Nazi point of view
 c) Demonstrations, rallies and marches in which thousands sang songs and
chanted slogans while carrying Nazi banners
d) Sports events and individuals e.g. the 1936 Olympics in Berlin

Education
● Teachers had to teach what they were told
● Textbooks fitted Nazi views on history and race
● Children were recruited into various organizations:
a) The Little Fellows at age of 6
b) The Jungvolk at 10
c) Hitler Youth at 14

● All swore an oath to Hitler as ‘the savior of Germany’

● Girls joined the League of German Maidens
● Teachers who didn’t measure up to Nazi ideological demands were sacked
● Books unacceptable to the Nazis were burned
● All was enforced by the Gestapo and the concentration camps
The Jews and Anti-Semitism
● Hitler said that the Jews were responsible for the defeat of 1918
● They were also blamed for the economic collapse of 1923
● They were also blamed for the economic crisis of 1929-32
● They were the bankers who caused the Wall Street Crash
● Der Sturmer was a Nazi newspaper specialising in anti-Jewish propaganda
● 1st April 1933 Hitler declared boycott of Jewish shops, businesses, doctors
and lawyers
● SA put notices on Jewish shops telling the public not to enter
● Guards were posted outside to enforce this order
● 1933 Jews banned from universities
● Later they were banned from certain professions
1935 Nuremberg Laws
● Germans of Jewish blood lost citizenship
● People with even one Jewish grandparent were classed as Jewish
● Marriage between Jews and Aryans were banned
● Jews had to wear a yellow Star of David badge for identification
● Concentration camps were built to house Jews and opponents of the Nazis
● First was near Munich and held 5,000 people
● Many Jews fled abroad e.g. Albert Einstein
Crystal Night 1938
● 7th November German Jewish refugee killed a member of the German
embassy in Paris
 ● In reprisal the Nazis launched an attack on Jews in Germany
● Synagogues, homes and businesses were destroyed
● Name Crystal Night comes from the broken glass of the thousands of broken
windows
● 200 synagogues were destroyed
● 35 Jews were killed
● 20,000 were arrested for ‘resistance’
● Afterwards all male Jews aged 16 and over were sent to concentration camps
The Final Solution
● This was ordered in 1942 and involved the extermination of Europe’s Jews
● They were killed in gas chambers in the concentration camps
● 6 million died by 1945
Summary of the developments that led to Nazi control:

An overview of the social and economic policies of the Nazis:

Question 8
How successful was the German Weimar Republic in Foreign Policy?
Paragraph One
● 2 objectives post 1919: restore German sovereignty lost at Versailles;
selective recovery of land lost at Versailles
● 1924-32 Stresemann &successors recovered most of sovereignty lost in
1919
● But – no return of territory
● World depression post 1929 aided treaty changes
● But also assisted in destroying Weimar revisionists and brought Hitler to
power
● His objectives went well beyond restoring 1914 borders
Paragraph Two
● Germans shocked by 1919 ‘diktat’
● Germany demilitarized (details)
● Lost her colonies (details)
● Article 231 – war guilt clause accepted by Germany
● By 1921 reparations fixed at £6,600 million
 ● Lost 1/8 of territory and 6 million people
● East Prussia separated from Germany - ethnic Germans under Polish rule
● Lost large reserves of coal, zinc, iron-ore to France and Poland
● This aggravated weakness of German economy
Paragraph Three
● German anger that 14 Points advocating peace without vindictiveness had
not curbed French demands for reparations and annexations
● Conservatives vowed to regain eastern lands even though the Corridor
and Posen had Polish majorities
● Reason – historic heart of Prussia and by extension Germany
● Some senior army officers ready to resume the war to this end
● Reluctantly had to accept that signing the treaty was unavoidable
● The Republic’s democrats were later vilified for accepting the ‘shameful
peace’
Paragraph Four
● In fact the democrats were as determined to revise the settlement as were
monarchists and other conservatives
● Wanted to restore German sovereignty and regain lost land
● Accepted that status quo ante-bellum could not be restored
● Regarded lost territory of West e.g. Alsace Lorraine as permanently lost
● Some Nationalists disagreed
● All agreed on recovery of Eastern lands where losses in area and
population were largest
Paragraph Five
● Poles saw danger to themselves if Germany regained lost sovereignty and
was restored militarily
● Derived no comfort from France’s post-war exhaustion and loss of morale
● Other problems included:
○ break up of Habsburg Empire
○ lack of Anglo-Russian cooperation
○ America’s post-war retreat into isolation
Paragraph Six
● Germany hoped to exploit Anglo-French differences
● Great Britain urged France to be more flexible to Germany
● But France insisted on strict implementation of 1919 settlement and
reparations
● But even at height of Ruhr crisis (1923) despite her opposition to France’s
actions, Great Britain refused to take measures which would have
embarrassed French and Belgian forces
 Paragraph Seven
● At first reparations most contentious issue in German relations with Great
Britain and France
● Ruhr episode caused collapse of German currency
● Ruined middle classes – many already hostile to Weimar
● Reparations now reassessed – Dawes Plan (1924) reduced payments
● 1929 Young Plan level of annuities reduced
● After 1924 Germany paid less in annuities than she received in foreign
investments
Paragraph Eight
● Russo-German Rapallo Treaty 1922 but relations remained ideologically
strained
● Shared common interests but no close association developed
● 1925 Locarno Pact gave Germany equality with Western powers
● But not her Eastern borders (to dismay of Czech and Poland)
● Encouraged Germany to believe modification of these borders was
possible
● French invested in Maginot Line so was ready to allow allied evacuation of
Rhineland by 1930
Paragraph Nine
● Such concessions not enough for German opinion
● Soon after foreign troops left Germany (July 1930) Nazis won 18.3 % of
vote in elections
● Bruning’s frustration and impatience seen when he sought an
Austro-German customs union in 1931
● 1932 France forced him to abandon it
● Extremist policies were now triumphing in Germany
● Weimar, to which Great Britain and France had conceded the restoration
of most of Germany’s sovereignty, was soon superseded by the rule of
Hitler
● His ultimate aims went far beyond restoration of 1914 borders
● Wanted lebensraum in Eastern Europe and enslavement of Slav peoples
● Anschluss and restoring Posen and the Corridor to Germany, which were
ends in themselves for Weimar, were only the beginning for Hitler

Question 9
How successful were the Nazis in achieving the aims of their social
policies?
● Discuss what the Nazis were aiming to do in their social policies and then
assess the impact of those policies.
 ● Social policies include their policies towards children, education, women,
workers and arguably race and the Church.
● Discuss some or all of these. Higher grade candidates may discuss the
overarching vision of the Nazis of a ‘volksgemeinschaft’, or people’s
community, the desire to create a population indoctrinated with Nazi ideas
that would lay the foundation for the thousand year Reich.
● Nazi policies may have had the greatest impact on the young and least on
the old
● Discuss the impact of particular policies (such as the attempts to
encourage women to have children or produce the necessary martial
qualities in the young).
● Question the success of policies by reference, for example, to the growth
of resistance in the young, for example.

Question 10
Examine the Nature of Weimar Germany’s Economic Problems
Paragraph One: World economic conditions
● World situation in 1920s less favorable than pre-1914
● Germany had relied on exports as an impetus for growth
● But world manufacturing output recovered from impact of war more quickly
than world trade
● Foreign trade now had smaller role in German economic life than pre-war
● 1910-13 German exports 17.5% of Net National Product (NNP)
● 1925-9 when Weimar most prosperous NNP figure was 14.9%
● Note that as Germany’s territory was smaller after the war, if her economic
activity had remained at pre-war levels, her export share ought to have
risen
Paragraph Two: Economic effects of Versailles
● Lost Silesian coal field, Saar Basin and phosphoric iron-ore fields of
Lorraine
● German chemical and pharmaceutical business had been one of the
Empire’s most important industries – it faced new competition during
1920s because the victorious powers had confiscated the German patents
● These problems limited the possibilities for German economic growth
Paragraph Three: Demographic developments
● Developments in this area meant higher unemployment
● German population, and thus overall demand, had fallen due to war
casualties
● Malnutrition and epidemic disease attacked population reducing number of
live births
 ● Fewer conceptions
● Pre-1914 population boom arrived in the labor market. Pressure eased in
1930s as smaller numbers born after 1914 reached employment age
● 1925 5 million more people in labor pool than at time of 1907 census
● During decade number of people available for work increased
● Work force up from 32.4 million in 1925 to 33.4 million in 1931
● Higher unemployment likely even without depression as labor force
increased in a diminished population and with lower demand
Paragraph Four: Saving and investment
● 1910-13 investment 15.2 % of NNP at market prices
● 1925-9 it was 11.1%
● After 1930 there was net disinvestment (5.4% of NNP in 1931 & 4.1%
1932)
● Figures may be misleading even in better years of late 20s because more
than 40% of total investment in industry and commerce was inventory
investment as opposed to investment in new plant; there was huge
restocking by business when the inflation period was over
● The cost of investment funds may have been the cause of lower
investment in late 20s
● Long term funds scarce and expensive and interest rates higher than in
Great Britain and USA – it was a reflection of the financial system’s
reaction to post-war inflation in Germany
● Savers lost huge sums – confidence collapsed
● Savings rates fell as a result – Germany had to depend on foreign
investment now
● When flow of foreign capital fell as in 1925 or after 1928, the level of
German economic activity also fell
● Investment problems were not only supply side, and reduced saving after
inflation, lack of funds or even the confidence of German investors
● It would not have mattered if the German economy had been sound
because foreign capital would have filled the gap
Paragraph Five: Problems with foreign investment
● Foreign investors are not always good at making economic choices
because they operate at a distance
● Dependence on foreign capital linked Germany to world trends in a
decade when capital markets were volatile - catastrophic results
● Wall Street speculative boom made German investments seem less
attractive
● If this were the case, external shocks such as the Wall Street Crash, rather
than internal weaknesses that caused the first signs of depression in
Germany in 1928 and 1929
● In 1928 the volume of foreign lending to Germany decreased
 ● Made slight recovery after the Crash had wrecked confidence in the
domestic economy of America, and before international loans halted in
1931
● By 1929 many Americans saw Germany as a poor prospect
● After the Crash American activity in Germany increased but the larger and
reputable houses kept out
● Finance for German business came from the Boston firm of Lee Higginson
and similar houses
● 1930-1 Lee Higginson took main role in funding German government
● When Americans looked at Germany they saw economic instability and
political uncertainty, so investors were skeptical
Paragraph Six: Mis Investment
● Quality and quantity of investment low
● Late 20s much discussion of US methods: assembly line production –
‘Fordismus’, and scientific management – ‘Taylorismus’
● It was believed that rationalization destroyed jobs through new production
methods
● Subordination of people to machines destroyed character
● Reality-extent of technical change was really quite limited
● Only 2 industries embraced decisive change: coal e.g. Ruhr became
almost completely mechanized; automobiles – Ford and General
Motors/Opel built new assembly lines
● Steel changed little in late 20s – most important developments took place
earlier when there was need to economize energy in post-war coal
shortage
● Textiles – hourly productivity was often below pre-war levels. Large-scale
production wasn’t possible in clothing owing to the vagaries of fashion
● Electro-technical industry rationalization meant a cult of big business no
matter what the consequences
● Expansion for prestige even when companies were doing well
● Wanted monopoly and this led to unprofitable investments and acquisitions

Question 11
Did the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand make a general European
war inevitable?

It is important to distinguish between localized Balkan issues and why there was a
wider involvement of the major Powers, and how one led to the other after the
assassination.

Paragraph One
● Pre-war years characterized by arms race and Great Power rivalry etc.
 ● But there was widespread anti-war sentiment, spread of international
agencies, and willingness to settle issues by arbitration
● A general war was not assumed to be inevitable, and neither was this the
reaction when news of the assassination broke
Paragraph Two
● Traditional diplomacy had preserved peace since congress of Berlin (1878)
● It localised Balkan Wars
● Austrian ultimatum to Serbia made war between them inevitable; but not a
general war
Paragraph Three
Austria’s Slav problem
● Vienna worried by growth of Slav nationalism
● Certainty that Russia would not accept another humiliation over Balkans e.g.
Bosnia-Herzegovina 1908
● Russia would not allow Austria to crush Serbia
Paragraph Four
Austrian ultimatum to Serbia
● Very severe (details)
● Russia confirmed she would act to prevent Serbia being destroyed
● I.e. Austro-Serb conflict made Austro-Russian conflict possible
● Danger here – rivalry between Triple Entente and Triple Alliance made
general war possible
Paragraph Five
● Such situations not unknown so war not inevitable
● Great Britain suggested an international conference to keep the dispute at a
local level
● Germans made unfavorable response and on 28th July Austria declared war
on Serbia – even this was not irretrievable (Austria not ready for war)
● Kaiser encouraged Austria though – he favored Austrians occupying Belgrade
and then giving diplomacy a final chance
Paragraph Six
Mobilisation:
● Huge continental conscript armies and their timetables meant that once
started were difficult to stop, so military factors then predominated
● The 1870 war showed that the state that lost the mobilization race lost the
war.
Paragraph Seven
● German chancellor Bethmann-Hollweg heard that Great Britain would almost
certainly intervene if Germany and France went to war.
● He was now trying to reverse previous policy and restrain Austria
 ● German Chief of Staff von Moltke heard that Austria was only going to
mobilize in the Balkans but without mobilization against Russia in Poland, the
German army in East Prussia would be overwhelmed and the Schlieffen Plan
compromised. Austria was promised support
● It was recognised that when Russia mobilized war would be impossible to
stop because of the size of her army
● Germany would have to move quickly before the Russian 'steamroller’ got
moving – The German Schlieffen Plan was formed to deal with a war on 2
fronts –France would be dealt a lightning blow and knocked out before Russia
was ready; then the full weight of the German army could be turned east to
defeat Russia.
Paragraph Eight
In conclusion, a general war was not inevitable as a result of the assassination, nor
was it considered to be so. It did become more likely as the July crisis developed
because of the system of alliances and the inflexibility of the mobilization plans –
once military factors were given priority, the slide towards war became irresistible.
Question 12
How significant were the Moroccan Crises of 1905 and 1911?

Paragraph One
● The crises need to be seen in the context of the Entente Cordiale (1904)-
agreed to end Anglo-French colonial rivalry
● France agreed to Great British control in Egypt in return for Morocco
Paragraph Two
The 1905 Crisis:
● Kaiser’s intervention had little to do with economic interests and was more
about the Entente:
● It was made at a time when Russia was in the aftermath of defeat in the
Russo-Japanese War and was in a poor position to help France
● He hoped to expose the weakness of Great Britain’s support for France
The Algeciras Conference
● Called to settle the matter
● All the powers (except Austria) backed France
● Great Britain began defensive military arrangements with France
● This crisis was the real end of Great Britain’s ‘splendid isolation’
Paragraph Three
The Agadir Incident (1911)
● Great Britain and France saw the arrival of the Panther (German warship) as
another challenge to the Entente
● Great Britain alarmed possibility of German naval base so close to Gibraltar
 ● Lloyd George said ‘peace at that price would be a humiliation intolerable for a
great country like ours to endure’ – Berlin took note because Lloyd George
was more well-disposed towards Germany than many of his colleagues
● So – Germany recognised the French position in Morocco in return for the
French Congo
Paragraph Four
● Both crises enhanced Anglo-French relations
● 2nd crisis put spotlight on Anglo-German relations in the years prior to 1914
War
● Talk of war but no particular issue that would warrant it
● Germany wanted a dazzling diplomatic victory
● Great Britain feared an upset of the balance of power if Germany triumphed at
expense of France
● Both sides convinced that a North African colonial dispute would affect the
European balance of power
Paragraph Five
The legacy of the Moroccan problem:
● Intensified Anglo-German suspicion and hostility
● Agadir Crisis ended hope of improved Franco-German relations
● Affected public opinion:
a) In Germany the Pan-German League and Tirpitz used national sense of
humiliation to demand an expansion of the fleet
b) Second Moroccan Crisis led to Italy demanding compensation for French
gains in Morocco – declared war on Turkey (1911) and landed an army in
Tripoli (this encouraged outbreak of First Balkan War)