Weimar Republic
German Reich | |||||||||
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| 1918–1933 | |||||||||
Flag
(1919–1933) Coat of arms
(1928–1933) | |||||||||
| Motto: Einigkeit und Recht und Freiheit ("Unity and Justice and Freedom") | |||||||||
| Anthem: Das Lied der Deutschen "The Song of the Germans" (from 1922) | |||||||||
| Capital and largest city | Berlin 52°31′N 13°23′E / 52.517°N 13.383°E | ||||||||
| Official languages | German | ||||||||
| Common languages | Unofficial: | ||||||||
| Religion | 1925 census:
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| Demonym(s) | German | ||||||||
| Government | Federal semi-presidential republic
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| President | |||||||||
• 1919–1925 | Friedrich Ebert | ||||||||
• 1925–1933 | Paul von Hindenburg | ||||||||
| Chancellor | |||||||||
• 1918 (first) | Friedrich Ebert | ||||||||
• 1933 (last) | Adolf Hitler | ||||||||
| Legislature | Bicameral | ||||||||
| Reichsrat (de facto) | |||||||||
| Reichstag | |||||||||
| Historical era | Interwar period | ||||||||
• Established | 9 November 1918 | ||||||||
| 11 August 1919 | |||||||||
• Admitted to the League of Nations | 8 September 1926 | ||||||||
• Rule by decree begins | 29 March 1930 | ||||||||
| 30 January 1933 | |||||||||
| 27 February 1933 | |||||||||
| 23 March 1933 | |||||||||
| Area | |||||||||
| 1925 | 468,787 km2 (181,000 sq mi) | ||||||||
| Population | |||||||||
• 1925 | 62,411,000 | ||||||||
• Density | 133.129/km2 (344.8/sq mi) | ||||||||
| Currency |
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| Today part of | |||||||||
The coat of arms of the Weimar Republic shown above is the version used after 1928, which replaced that shown in the "Flag and coat of arms" section. The flag of Nazi Germany shown above is the version introduced after the fall of the Weimar Republic in 1933 and used until 1935, when it was replaced by the swastika flag, similar, but not the same as the flag of the Nazi Party that had already been used since 1933 as a mandatory party flag along with the tricolour national flag (see also: Flag of Nazi Germany). | |||||||||
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| History of Germany |
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The Weimar Republic, officially known as the German Reich, was the German state from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional republic for the first time in history; hence it is also referred to, and unofficially proclaimed itself, as the German Republic. The period's informal name is derived from the city of Weimar, which hosted the constituent assembly that established its government. In English, the republic was usually simply called "Germany", with "Weimar Republic" (a term introduced by Adolf Hitler in 1929) not commonly used until the 1930s. The Weimar Republic had a semi-presidential system.
Toward the end of the First World War (1914–1918), Germany was exhausted and sued for peace in desperate circumstances. Awareness of imminent defeat sparked a revolution, the abdication of Kaiser Wilhelm II, the proclamation of the Weimar Republic on 9 November 1918, and formal cessation of hostilities with the Allies by the Armistice of 11 November 1918.
In its initial years, grave problems beset the Republic, such as hyperinflation and political extremism, including political murders and two attempted coups d'état by contending paramilitaries; internationally, it suffered isolation, reduced diplomatic standing and contentious relationships with the great powers. By 1924, a great deal of monetary and political stability was restored, and the republic enjoyed relative prosperity for the next five years; this period, sometimes known as the Golden Twenties, was characterized by significant cultural flourishing, social progress, and gradual improvement in foreign relations. Under the Locarno Treaties of 1925, Germany moved toward normalizing relations with its neighbors, recognizing most territorial changes under the 1919 Treaty of Versailles and committing never to go to war. The following year, it joined the League of Nations, which marked its reintegration into the international community. Nevertheless, especially on the political right, there remained strong and widespread resentment against the treaty and those who had signed and supported it.
The Great Depression of October 1929 severely impacted Germany's tenuous progress; high unemployment and subsequent social and political unrest led to the collapse of Chancellor Hermann Müller's grand coalition and the beginning of the presidential cabinets. From March 1930 onwards, President Paul von Hindenburg used emergency powers to back Chancellors Heinrich Brüning, Franz von Papen and General Kurt von Schleicher. The Great Depression, exacerbated by Brüning's policy of deflation, led to a surge in unemployment. On 30 January 1933, Hindenburg appointed Adolf Hitler as Chancellor to head a coalition government; his Nazi Party held two out of ten cabinet seats. Von Papen, as Vice-Chancellor and Hindenburg's confidant, was to serve as the éminence grise who would keep Hitler under control; these intentions severely underestimated Hitler's political abilities. By the end of March 1933, the Reichstag Fire Decree and the Enabling Act of 1933 were used in the perceived state of emergency to effectively grant the new Chancellor broad power to act outside parliamentary control. Hitler promptly used these powers to thwart constitutional governance and suspend civil liberties, which brought about the swift collapse of democracy at the federal and state level, and the creation of a one-party dictatorship under his leadership.
Until the end of World War II in Europe in 1945, the Nazis governed Germany under the pretense that all the extraordinary measures and laws they implemented were constitutional; notably, there was never an attempt to replace or substantially amend the Weimar Constitution. Nevertheless, Hitler's seizure of power (Machtergreifung) had effectively ended the republic, replacing its constitutional framework with Führerprinzip, the principle that "the Führer's word is above all written law".