World War 1

1914-1918
-

Germany & Austria Hungary Germany was called in for military

support by Austria Hungary
Germany declared war on two fronts as a distraction France and Russia
France, Russia and Britain became common allies
World War 1 was declared as soon as Britain, France and Russia got
involved
Russia pulled out from World War 1 in Feb 1918
o Due to political and social unrest in their homeland
France suffered the most followed by Britain in losses
Britain requested the US to intervene
US intervene through providing support
o War resources (Food, medical aid etc.)
Germany surrendered in 11 November 1918

1919-1920

Treaty Of Versailles
-

Paris Peace Conference 1919

Big 3 Britain, France and US
o France wanted to ensure that Germans got extremely
punished
o US was not in favour of extreme punishment; wanted to
maintain peace and stability in the region
o Britain was initially sitting on the fence but agreed on
punishment for Germany
Russia was not included as it was undergoing political revolution and
had become a communist state.

Treaty Of Versailles <Terms>

-

War reparations 6.6 billion pounds

War Guilt Clause Germany had to accept the blame and full
responsibility for the war
Demilitarisation
o Disallowed to have navy and air force
o Minimal ground troops
o Demilitarised
Rhineland
- Spartacists
Rebellion took place on 5th January 1919.
Territorial reductions
of Alsace
to France,
Britain took
o loss
It was
againstLorraine
the Weimar
Government
over German territories in Africa
-

Hitler joins the German workers party as a spy

12th January 1920 Hitler changes the name of the German workers
party to National Socialists Working German Party
12th February 1920 Hitler announces his 25 points
o 25 points did not accept the terms of TOV
o Encouraged equal rights for only Germans and others were
referred to as foreigners or aliens.
12th March 1920 Kapp Putsch
o 5-day revolution in Berlin
o Led by Wolf Gang Kapp and a group of friekorps to seize
Germany
o They also announced that a new right-wing nationalists
government was being established

1923-1929

Gustav Stresemann: became the Chancellor in 1923

o Dawes plan 1924 / Young plan 1929
Both plans were signed with the USA to allow
Germany to have more time to pay reparations to the
allies
Hitler did not agree with the Dawes plan as it did not
get rid of the reparations that Germany had to pay
He also did not like the idea of foreigners controlling
Germanys economy
o Managed to solve Germanys hyperinflation problem by
replacing the currency with the new Renten mark
o Stresemann died of heart-attack in 1929
People started to look to other political leaders whom
they felt could lead Germany
The Munich Putsch ( 12 November 1923)
o Also known as the beerhall putsch
o Hitlers attempt to take over the Weimar government and bring
in right-winged nationalists
o For this, Hitler was sentenced to 5 years in jail
He wrote his book Meinkempf

The Great Depression (Wall Street Crash)

-

1929

Germanys economic recovery was dependant on the loans from the

USA
When Wall Street crashed, so did the German economy
The USA recalled their loans from Germany
o Many businesses in Germany closed down, causing
widespread unemployment
The Germans blamed the Weimar government for their economic
hardship
o People started to support other parties such as the Nazi and
communist party who promised to solve the nations problems
o In 1928 elections, the communists won more votes than the
Nazi party