Immediate problems facing the Weimar Republic

Essay by KeirHigh School, 10th gradeA-, February 2006

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The Weimar republic was a democratic government in Germany created shortly after the first Great War (1919). It was named after the city in which the constitution was first created. This new government was meant to be the best solution for the Germans, but it was a failure because of the inefficiency of the constitution, various rebellions and the invasion- Inflation crisis in 1923.

The first problem faced by the Weimar republic was its inefficient constitution. First of all, the Article 48 of the constitution stated that the President had the power to appoint members of the Reichstag for only the sake of emergency. Frederic Ebert, the first president rarely used the power of this article, but his successor, Paul Von Hindenburg, abused this power and constantly changed the members of the Reichstag. This made the whole point of democracy useless, because it made the President look like a dictator.

Another problem with the constitution was the fact that State leaders had too much power, making them ignore the Government; the Right- wing army too wasn't controlled by the government, and all this proved how weak the governmental system was.

Another major problem is the various rebellions occurring in Germany at the time. In 1919, two communist leaders, Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Leibknecht, with a communist rebel group, The Spartacists, attempted an army revolution in Berlin, known as the Spartacist Revolt (left wing). This rebellion was no success because of the intervention of the Freikorps; the ex- soldiers form the First World War. The two leaders were murdered. Communist Workers councils took over Bavaria with the intention of making it an independent nation. Then came the Kapp Putsh ("putsh", attempt on taking power illegally) which aimed in creating a military dictatorship (right wing), but because of a general strike by...