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Through a constructive approach, this essay shows the extent to which the Treaty of Versailles was to blame for the extreme political instability in Weimar Germany. It includes contemporary and primary evidence such as Reichstag speeches, economists opinions and newspapers which examine the political climate during 1919-1933. Accounts, stories, and opinions have all been included in a narrative framework, and conclusions drawn consider general and generational experiences. A study of this issue is crucially important in a modern context. As of 2018, 89 countries have been significantly downgraded in the democracy index since the previous year. Elected leaders such as Viktor Orban of Hungary, Andrzej Duda of Poland, and Juan Guaido of Venezuela, have closed their free press or weaponised it as tool for propaganda. In Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has imprisoned thousands, from academics to journalists, simply for disagreeing with him; Istanbul elections have been annulled simply for producing results Erdogan didnt like. The west has its own threats to democracy, former US president Trump regularly bypassed congress through emergency decrees, heavily criticised and discredited left-wing media later encouraging his supporters to use violence against political opposition, leading to an attempted coup on January 6th 2021 . This global rise in extremists and strongmen has deepened social divisions, diminished the rule of law, and ultimately impoverished the countries it has spread to. The most effective historical paradigm one can draw which showcases the ways a country is led to extremism and the pitfalls fallen democratic states fall to is the study of German political life from 1919-33, which led the rise of Nazism.
As context, by late 1918, Germany would lose World War One. At home, its citizens were suffering greatly, a naval blockade caused severe food shortages, over 293,000 Germans died from starvation and hypothermia in 1918 alone. This combined with the war on two fronts, restricted Germanys ability to trade- the basis of most pre-war economic growth. By 1918 German miners were earning only 60 per cent of their pre-war salaries. The mark lost value and inflation was rapidly becoming a source of worry. In response, by September 1918, the German elite, Generals Hindenburg and Ludendorff, requested that the Kaiser seek armistice. Resultantly, on the 11 November 1918 World War One ended with Germany surrendering. By January the next year, the very fabric of the country had shifted. The Kaiser abdicated leading to the formation of a republic. Meeting in Weimar, a constitution written by lawyer and liberal politician, Hugo Preuss, was drafted. The constitution was agreed upon, August 1919 and the first elections for the new Weimar Republic took place, Friedrich Ebert became Germanys first democratic president. Whilst this was occurring, the victorious Allies met in Versailles to discuss how to punish Germany. 28th June 1919, saw the German government sign a peace settlement aptly named the Treaty of Versailles. The treaty blamed Germany for the war and severely punished her militarily, territorially, and financially.
This dissertation examines the impact of the Treaty, weaknesses of Weimar and economic problems. Historians offer differing opinions on the issue some such as Richard J Evans and Geary disagree that Versailles was an important factor and place importance elsewhere. Conversely, others such as Collier, Pedley, Carr, Keynes and Burleigh emphasise the significance of the Treaty in creating political instability. Overall, this dissertation will show that the Treaty of Versailles had the most significant effect on German political life, outweighing other factors.
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