The Weimar constitution - The Weimar Republic 1918-1929 - Edexcel - GCSE History Revision - Edexcel - BBC Bitesize (2024)

FAQs

What was the Weimar Constitution GCSE history? ›

The Weimar Constitution was carefully created so that no one person or group could could have too much power through proportional representation and the roles of President, Chancellor and Reichstag. In an emergency or crisis, the President can use Article 48 to rule themselves.

The Weimar Republic, 1918-1929

All adult Germans were able to vote and the system of proportional representation. meant a wide range of views were given a voice in Parliament. There was also an elected President instead of the Kaiser close KaiserGermany's king; Kaiser Wilhelm II..

The Weimar Republic adopted a new constitution , different to that of the previous monarchy . Under the new republic, all adults over the age of twenty could vote. Instead of a monarch, there was a president elected every seven years. The president's power was limited by the Reichstag .

In December 1918, elections were held for a National Assembly tasked with creating a new parliamentary constitution. On February 6, 1919, the National Assembly met in the town of Weimar and formed the Weimar Coalition. They also elected SDP leader Friedrich Ebert as President of the Weimar Republic.

All men and women over the age of 20 were able vote. German citizens were guaranteed freedom of speech and religion. All German citizens were to be equal. German citizens would elect the President and the Reichstag (Parliament).

Weaknesses. Proportional representation - Each party got the same percentage of seats in parliament as the percentage of votes it received in an election. This meant there were lots of small parties in parliament making it difficult to pass laws and led to weak and often short-lived governments.

The Weimar Republic, officially known as the German Reich, was a historical period of Germany from 9 November 1918 to 23 March 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is also referred to, and unofficially proclaimed itself, as the German Republic.

"Weimar Republic" is the name given to the German government between the end of the Imperial period (1918) and the beginning of Nazi Germany (1933). Political turmoil and violence, economic hardship, and also new social freedoms and vibrant artistic movements characterized the complex Weimar period.

Lesson Summary

The Weimar Republic that ruled Germany after World War I until the rise of Nazi Germany in 1933 was faced with the enormous task of simultaneously stabilizing post-war Germany and paying debilitating reparations to its former enemies.

A Bill of Rights - This guaranteed every German citizen freedom of speech and religion, and equality under the law.

What were the successes of the Weimar Constitution? ›

The republic had many democratic strengths. It allowed individual freedoms for everyone. This granted the right to free speech, the right to equality and the right to religion to every German citizen. All adults over the age of twenty could vote.

The Weimar constitution was promulgated formally on August 11, 1919, ending the provisional status of government in Germany that had begun with Scheidemann's proclamation of a republic the previous November. In September the government, judging the situation sufficiently safe in Berlin, returned to the capital.

The structure of the Weimar Republic

At the head of the Republic was the President. The President was elected every 7 years. The President had the power to choose key ministers, such as the Chancellor. Using Article 48, the President could overrule his government and make laws by decree.

In its 14 years in existence, the Weimar Republic faced numerous problems, including hyperinflation, political extremism, and contentious relationships with the victors of the First World War, leading to its collapse during the rise of Adolf Hitler.

The most pervasive cause of Weimar's failure was that too many Germans did not regard it as a legitimate regime. There was a brief interlude between the armistice and the publication of the Versailles terms when a large majority of the population was willing to give the new order a chance.

The Constitution of the German Reich (German: Die Verfassung des Deutschen Reichs), usually known as the Weimar Constitution (Weimarer Verfassung), was the constitution that governed Germany during the Weimar Republic era (1919–1933).

What basic liberties did the constitution grant to the people? The constitution granted freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of association, and freedom of assembly. Germans had the right to form trade unions, and workers were given more rights/ benefits.

The Weimar Republic is the name given to the German government between the end of the Imperial period (1918) and the beginning of Nazi Germany (1933). The Weimar Republic (and period) draws its name from the town of Weimar in central Germany where the constitutional assembly met.

The 1929 German Referendum was an attempt during the Weimar Republic to use popular legislation to annul the agreement in the Young Plan between the German government and the World War I opponents of the German Reich regarding the amount and conditions of reparations payments.