The Weimar Government

Aims: Examine the strengths and weaknesses of the Weimar Constitution. Identify the main political parties in Weimar Germany.

The Weimar Constitution After the January elections, the new government led by Frederich Ebert met in the town of Weimar on the 11 th February The first task of the new government was to draw up a constitution – a set of rules which outlined how the country would be run. The new constitution made the Weimar Republic one of the most democratic countries in the world. Some even called it a ‘perfect constitution’.

Strengths of the New Constitution Men and women over 20 had the right to vote. Elections for the Reichstag were held every four years. The Head of State was the President who was elected by the people. The Chancellor (Prime Minister) was responsible for the day-to-day running of the country. He need to have the support of half the politicians in the Reichstag to pass laws. The Reichstag was elected using Proportional Representation – if a party got 10% of the vote they would get 10% of the seats.

Weaknesses of the New Constitution Article 48 gave the President emergency powers to rule on his own in an ‘emergency’. PR allowed lots of small parties to win seats in the Reichstag. Since no party had an overall majority coalition governments had to be formed (two or more parties). Coalition governments often broke down because of disagreements. This made it difficult for the Chancellor to make decisions and pass laws.

The Weimar Constitution It’s important to remember the German people had no real experience of democracy. They had been used to strong leadership under the Kaiser. Some groups disliked democracy e.g. army, judges, civil service. They tried to undermine the new government at every opportunity.

Group Discussion What do you think was the biggest strength of the new constitution? What do you think was the biggest weakness of the new constitution?

Political Parties in the Weimar Republic This often led to disagreements and made it difficult for coalition governments to make decisions and pass laws. This undermined the Weimar Government and made democracy look weak. German Reichstag Left WingCentreRight Wing There were many different political parties in the Reichstag who had their own ideas about how the country should be run.

Politics in the Weimar Republic In politics there are always people from both the left and right wing who are EXTREMISTS. This means they have extreme political views about how a country should be run and they are willing to go to ANY lengths to achieve their goals.

Politics in the Weimar Republic Right Wing Nationalists Hated the Treaty of Versailles. Wanted Germany to become a powerful country with a strong leader. They blamed the Socialists for ending the war and signing the Treaty of Versailles. Many people believed they would try to get rid of democracy and turn Germany into a dictatorship

Politics in the Weimar Republic Left Wing Communists Believe that everyone should be equal and share in the country’s wealth. The German revolution in November 1918 had not gone far enough and Germany should be run by workers and soldier’s councils. The rich were suspicious of Communists because they feared they would try to take away their wealth.