Weimar Republic - Overview

Weimar Republic:
1919-1933
Even though it was obvious that Germany could not have won the war, a legend was created and spread amongst the German people that the undefeated German army had been stabbed in the back by the democrats (the November criminals).
In July 1919, the new democratic constitution was passed with a 23 majority. When it was officially proclaimed in August, Germany became a parliamentary democracy. The fact that Germany was now a democracy was not taken into account at the Versailles peace conference. The victors basically dictated the treaty and decided that Germany was responsible for WW1.
In November 1923, General Ludendorff aided by Adolf Hitler and his private army the “storm troopers” staged the beer hole putsch. Ludendorff, who had demanded an immediate armistice in 1918, now called the democratic government traders. The putsch was put down by the army and police. Hitler was found hiding and arrested. Hitler was sentenced to only 5 years imprisonment. Ludendorff, the “war hero” was set free. It was while Hitler was in prison that he wrote down his philosophical and political ideas in his book “Mein Kampf”.
The Reichstag election on the 14th of September 1930 saw the breakthrough of the Nazi party. The Nazis representation in the Reichstag increased from 12-107 members. They were now the republics 2nd largest party. Escalating unemployment fuelled the rise of the extremist parties. In October 1931, the German national party and the Nazi party formed a right-wing coalition. The parties became more like enemies.
To secure the authority of the state, the government banned Hitler’s private armies the SA and SS. Hitler didn’t have enough power to stage a putsch but he was still a loose cannon.
Hitler stepped up the fight against the democracy from election to election. There were two in 1932. On the 16th of January 1933, the Nazi’s scored a landslide in the country Lipper election. Hitler seemed unstoppable.
On January 30th 1933, president Hindenburg appointed Adolf Hitler as chancellor of the German Reich.