Lim 2
International Baccalaureate
Historical Investigation
To what extent did the Golden Twenties stand as an obstacle for Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party to come to power?
Word Count: 1944
Do-Yup Lim
002751-007
Contents
- Plan of the Investigation 3
- Summary of Evidence 3-4
- Evaluation of Sources 4-5
- Analysis 5-6
- Conclusion 6
- List of Sources 7
Appendix 8
A. Plan of the Investigation
After World War I had come to an end, the Weimar Republic was set up in Germany to fill in her political hole. Although many claim that the party was doomed to fail from the start, there was a period of significant recovery in terms of politics, economy, diplomacy and culture called the Golden Twenties. This period took place during the mid late 1920’s under the leadership of Gustav Stresemann, who took measures to alter the agreements made during the Treaty of Versailles and alleviate Germany’s economic downturn and societal conditions. Meanwhile, there were radical parties in Germany that opposed the Weimar government and sought to take over such as the Nazi Party led by Adolf Hitler. Their popularity depended heavily on the weaknesses of the current government and the dissatisfying conditions normal citizens were living through. This investigation will assess the impact of the Golden Twenties, also known as the Stresemann Years in Germany, on Nazi popularity and rise to power. In order to do so, the achievements made and contrasting views during this era are analyzed. The two sources that have been evaluated for their origins, purposes, values and limitations are a popular textbook that covers the key developments of the Nazi Party under Hitler’s leadership and a book that gives a description of the course of human history through the changes in society.
B. Summary of Evidence
When the Weimar Republic first came to power, it had already been posed with a multitude of problems due to the costs and consequences of World War I, which inevitably made the party unpopular. The party also could not gain a majority in the Reichstag due to the system of proportional representation, which made it impossible for laws to be made, furthering public discontent and attempted revolutions from both leftist and rightist factions. The Treaty of Versailles demanded Germany to pay reparations of £6600 million which she could not possibly afford to pay, given her economic state (Walsh 142). As a result, the French marched into the industrial sites of the Ruhr valley to try force Germany for payments, but the German workers “responded by general strikes and passive resistance”, which led to massive unemployment (Palmer, Colton, and Kramer 771). Meanwhile, the government printed more money in order to pay the workers, causing hyperinflation. “Over 2,000 printing presses worked 24 hours a day to produce bills”, and by November 1923 “the mark was 4,200,000,000,000” to the dollar” (Tomkinson 95).
To combat Germany’s fragile position, Gustav Stresemann took action. He organized a coalition amongst the pro-democratic parties of the Reichstag, which formed a government that could finally enact laws (BBC, Date Unknown). He then burnt all the worthless paper money and established a new currency called the Rentemark, which solved the issue of hyperinflation, thus taking a step towards stabilizing the economy. In addition, through the negotiations with American Vice-President Charles Dawes in 1924, Stresemann was able to not only receive a loan of $200 million from the U.S., but also cut down war reparations as well as increasing the time span it would be paid over, through the Dawes Plan (Clare, 2002/2010). Soon, Germany was experiencing prosperity as her industry got back on its feet and started to pay back reparations, while unemployment declined by the day. As historian David Williamson states, “The political and economic environment was also unfavorable to the revival of the extreme Right since, with the stabilization of the acceptance of the Dawes Plan, the Weimar Republic seemed well on the way to recovery” (Williamson 14). In 1928, Hermann Müller, leader of Germany’s Social Democrats, even said, “Our economy is sound, our system of social welfare is sound, and you will see that the Communists as well as the Nazis will be absorbed by the traditional parties” (Harman 465).
In diplomatic terms, Germany joined the League of Nations in 1926, which improved her image on the international stage by gaining respect as a peace-loving nation. A year before, Stresemann signed the Locarno Treaty, in which Germany agreed to the borders with France and Belgium and “accepted that the Rhineland would remain a demilitarized zone”, showing herself as more peace-loving than she had ever appeared to be (Walsh 240). During the Stresemann Years, elections showed that the Nazi Party, the NSDAP, lost a considerable amount of support: “elections in 1928 returned a Social Democratic coalition government, while Hilter’s Nazis only received just over 2 percent of the poll and the Communists 10.6 percent” (Harman 465). Even politics was stabilizing in Germany, making it seem as if radical parties were no longer a threat to the Weimar Republic.
There was also a boom in German culture as films, architecture, modern art, science, music, and literature made new accomplishments. For the German cinema, Marlene Dietrich made her debut and became one of the “greatest international stars” while Fritz Lang became one of the “most celebrated directors” (Walsh 146). The Bauhaus style was initiated in architecture which was popular for its non-traditional elements. In addition, “great film companies made German cinema one of the most notable in the world”, with Fritz Lang leading the way (Tonge, 2011).
C. Evaluation of Source
McDonough, Frank. Hitler and the Rise of the Nazi Party. Great Britain: Pearson Education Limited, 2003. Print.
The main objective of this book, the audience being students, is to provide a detailed analysis of how the Nazi Party came to power and what contributions Adolf Hitler had made, while examining the key characteristics of Hitler and Nazism. By mainly focusing on how Hitler and the Nazi Party came to power, the topics of the book are detailed and thoroughly examined which certainly adds value for historians to study how and why Hitler blew life into the Nazi Party. In addition, this source is valuable in determining how Hitler would have viewed the situation during the Golden Twenties, which can be used to compare views of the impact of the Golden Twenties on the Nazi Party. Yet, there does seem to be the presence of a bias in the way that it presents very little failures or difficulties that Hitler had faced compared to his successes and achievements. Furthermore, this is only the first edition which may make the information more biased or less accurate. On the other hand, the book presents many primary documents which are useful for historians to utilize when interpreting Hitler’s motives and thoughts. However, the scope of the documents is another limitation as most of the sources originate from people who were in alliance with Hitler.
Harman, Chris. A People’s History of the World: From the Stone Age to the New Millennium. London: Verso, 2008. Print.
Like the title of the book suggests, this source covers history from the Stone Ages to the 21st century. Chris Harman explores the changes in society over time through the impact of famous individuals and revolutionary ideas. Concerning the Golden Twenties, the source presents valuable information on how the political atmosphere was changing throughout the world, and how it even created hope for the poorest groups in society. The source’s most valuable aspect is that it covers the impact of certain events, ideas, or eras on the global level, thus useful for historians researching their international significance. Yet, the main limitation lies in the fact that Harman has no primary sources to support his work. In addition, Hermann Müller’s quote in the book has no indication of where it was said, which would have been helpful to evaluate his words. In addition, as the spectrum of the topics is so wide, the book is limited in detail and depth.
D. Analysis
It is evident that the Stresemann Years were years of relative prosperity and stability for Germany. The election statistics, included in the Appendix, illustrate that support for the Weimar Republic or the Social Democrats during the polls from 1924 to 1928 significantly increased, while the NSDAP received minimal votes. Hermann Muller’s statement that the radical parties were of minimal threat due to the economic recovery also clearly shows that at that time, there was hope and confidence for the Weimar Republic to stay in political power, without having to lose significant votes to leftist or rightist parties. Thus, the economic prosperity and improvements in societal conditions brought during the Golden Twenties did decrease Nazi popularity, standing as obstacle for Hitler to come to power. In addition, a well-known American journalist, William Shirer, wrote that “Support for the Nazi Party had grown due to the country's problems of hyperinflation and the French invasion of the Ruhr. By 1928 Nazism appeared to be a dying cause. Now that Germany's outlook was suddenly bright, the Nazi Party was rapidly withering away. One scarcely heard of Hitler or the Nazis except as a joke” (Shirer). He had lived in Germany from 1926 to 1941, which gives high value to his opinion since he has been able to feel the political atmosphere while his time there.
However, Gustav Stresemann shared his opinion in a speech before his death saying, “The economic position is only flourishing on the surface. Germany is in fact dancing on a volcano. If the short-term credits are called in, a large section of our economy would collapse” (Clare, 2002/2010). What this suggests is that Germany’s prosperity was only an impression that the majority of people received, not the reality of the German economy. The fact that Stresemann had said this just before his death allows us to accept it as an honest viewpoint. Meanwhile, Hermann Muller’s statement can be questioned since the source does not tell where it was spoken. If it was spoken to the public, his true opinion might not have been conveyed. In addition, some historians claim that the Golden Twenties served as years of preparation for Hitler and his party. Evidence of this comes through the “sharp increase in membership” “in the period from 1924 to 1929 as the Nazi Party became more nationally based” (McDonough 76). For most of the Stresemann Years, “the party was rebuilt and its essential nature was determined”, allowing it to function effectively in the later years of its own reign (Williamson 15).
Although the Weimar Republic did bring cultural freedom to Germany, there were people who disapproved of the Weimar Culture’s “image of a hedonistic, amoral, and degenerate society” (Tonge, 2011). The rightists in particular were hostile towards the cultural development as “many leading artists associated with the Communist Party” and the Jews were represented strongly in new artistic movements (Tonge, 2011). The increase in hostility would have possibly added further reasons to oppose the Weimar Republic, making them more determined to come to power.
E. Conclusion
It should certainly be recognized that the Golden Twenties in Germany were years when Hitler did not receive much support from the majority of citizens. As Chancellor and Foreign Minister, Gustav Stresemann was able to improve international relations and domestic conditions, bringing hope to the citizens of a stronger Germany, thus swaying their attention away from the Nazi Party.
However, the economic stability was “based on the very shaky foundation of US loans”, which is what eventually brought Germany to a state that allowed Hitler to gain power (McDonough 82).The Stresemann Years helped create an even more chaotic crisis once the Wall Street had crashed and Stresemann had died. In the long run, the Golden Twenties worsened the economic situation of Germany as the Wall Street crashed and businesses went bankrupt, unable to pay back loans to the United States. The American loans backfired on Germany – they solved immediate problems, but created more severe consequences later on. Time-wise, the years of recovery stood as an obstacle for Hitler to gain power, but in terms of determination and ideology, it rather strengthened opposition towards the republic as the Nazi Party hated “Stresemann for paying reparations, waiting their chance to get revenge for the Treaty of Versailles”, and had more time to organize the party (Clare, 2002/2010).
F. List of Sources
Printed Sources
Harman, Chris. A People’s History of the World: From the Stone Age to the New Millennium. London: Verso, 2008. Print.
McDonough, Frank. Hitler and the Rise of the Nazi Party. Great Britain: Pearson Education Limited, 2003. Print.
Palmer, R.R, Joel Colton, and Lloyd Kramer. A History of the Modern World Since 1815. 10th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2007. Print.
Walsh, Ben. GCSE Modern World History. 2nd ed. London: Hodder Murray, 2001. Print.
Williamson, D.G. The Third Reich. 3rd ed. Malaysia: Pearson Education Limited, 2002. Print.
Electronic Sources
BBC. “How did the Weimar Republic survive?”. GCSE Bitesize. 10 Dec. 2010. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/history/mwh/germany/weimarsurviverev1.shtml>. Web.
Clare, John D. Home page. 8 Dec. 2010. <http://www.johndclare.net>. Web.
Tonge, Stephen. “Weimar Germany 1919-1933”. History Home. 12 Dec 2010. <http://www.historyhome.co.uk/europe/weimar.htm#stresemann>. Web.