Strengths and weaknesses of the Weimar government and the collapse of democracy

The Weimar Republic and Constitution provided Germans with a voting system based on fairness. In addition to suffrage of both men and women above 20 years old, the constitution also allowed a number of political parties to exist and run the country. The president and the Reichstag were both elected by the people, while the chancellor was appointed by the parliament. However, these notable achievements were overshadowed by its inability to address socio-political weaknesses, which later contributed to its collapse.

1. Political conflict Clashes between the Social Democrats, who set up the parliamentary system, and the Communist Party. In addition, monarchist groups were also against the Republic.

2. Lack of leadership Many parties had different aims, which made it difficult to unite and govern as one. In addition, President Ebert was not a popular leader.

3. Weak Constitution Article 48 granted the president the power to make quick decisions in the form of decrees in times of emergencies, which allowed dictatorship to develop. Moreover, election by a proportional representation made the passage of laws by small parties difficult.

4. Political spectrum During Weimar Germany, political parties gained considerable power, especially those who dominated parliament. The concept of left-wing and right-wing politics emerged.

Left wing

The left wing of the Weimar Republic was composed of the Communists (KPD) and Social Democrats (SPD). They were strong supporters of taxation, welfare programmes, labour unions and equality for women. Unlike the right, they were less militaristic and anti-semitic. However, the KPD believed in the republic, while the SPD favoured Russian communism.

Right wing

The right wing was comprised of the German Nationalist Party (DNVP) and National Socialist Party (NSDAP-Nazi) who were extremely nationalistic and believed in the capability of a large army. They also favoured industrialism controlled by large estates. Moreover, they supported the role of religion and the traditional role of women.

Centre

The Democratic Party (DDP), Catholic Centre Party (Z) and the People's Party (DVP) composed the Centre. Unlike the left and right wing, the Centre was mostly moderate. Amidst the diversity of the Centre, they strongly protected the interests of Germany's Catholic population.

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The parties' sides were then identified by initials on their seats.

INITIAL	GERMAN	ENGLISH TRANSLATION
D	Deutsche	German
D	Demokratische	Democratic
S	Sozialistische	Socialist
Z	Zentrum	Centre
K	Kommunistische	Communist

Historians agreed that the collapse of the Weimar Republic was caused by many factors. In addition to a weak government and constitution, a myriad of problems weakened German democracy.

The failure of the republic was brought by internal and external political and economic forces. The the complexity of problems, both short-term and long-term, caused the demise of the republic and later on rise of Adolf Hitler and Nazism. Many regarded the consequences of the First World War as the root cause of German instability.

Factors for the collapse of the Weimar Republic

• Impact of the Treaty of Versailles, including reparation burdens
• 'Stab in the back' myth
• Weak Weimar Constitution, including the electoral system
• Ideas of militarism and nationalism, including the Reichswehr and the Freikorps
• Political oppositions from the Communist Party, German Nationalist People's Party and the Nazis (NSDAP)
• Impact of the Great Depression, particularly unemployment

'Stab in the back' myth

Many believed that conspiracy theories greatly contributed to the downfall of the Weimar Republic. One of the most notorious was the Dolchstosslegende or 'stab in the back' myth. It stated that the German defeat in WWI was brought by socialists, liberals and Jews in the civilian government. It was not brought by the military.

• As a result, the German public resented the civilian government, specifically the SPD.
• Despite the backward status of the military, they also believed that Germany could have won the war.
• Lastly, this myth allowed military figures such as Paul von Hindenburg to be regarded as heroes, despite the failures in 1918.

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