Use LEFT and RIGHT arrow keys to navigate between flashcards;
Use UP and DOWN arrow keys to flip the card;
H to show hint;
A reads text to speech;
73 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
|
What were the major institutions of the German Empire's constitution? |
- The Kaiser (Emperor) - The Chancellor & the Ministers - The Reichstag (the Imperial Diet) - The Bundesrat (the Federal Council) |
|
|
What was the constitutional nature of the German Empire? |
A federal state made up of smaller states, each with a certain amount of authority. Prussia, being 65% of the Empire's area and 62% of its population, dominated the Imperial system. |
|
|
What were the significant aspects of the role of Kaiser? |
- The head of state; always King of Prussia - Held significant power, particularly as commander-in-chief of the army and in foreign policy. |
|
|
What were the Kaiser's powers over the other institutions? |
- Could appoint and dismiss the Chancellor and Ministers - Could dissolve the Reichstag & presided over the Bundesrat - Commander-in-chief of the Army |
|
|
What was the nature of the position of Chancellor and the ministers? |
- The government was accountable to the Kaiser, not the Reichstag - Tended to be dominated by members of the Prussian aristocracy, the Junkers - The Chancellor presented legislation to Parliament and implemented laws with ministers |
|
|
What were the Reichstag's strengths as a democratic institution? |
- Had a manhood suffrage of those over 25 - Had the power to pass budgets, approving an annual general budget and a five-year military budget - Elections were mandated, limiting the Kaiser's power of dissolution. |
|
|
How was the Reichstag's power limited? |
- It had limited power to initiate legislation, having to focus more on the laws introduced to them by the Chancellor - Reichstag members could not serve in the government - The Chancellor was not accountable to the Diet and could ignore their resolutions - Had no power over the military - Members were not paid, therefore working men could not sit in it |
|
|
What was the composition of the Bundesrat and how did it ensure the federal nature of the Empire? |
- It was made up of 58 members nominated by the state legislatures - Laws had to pass through the Bundesrat to become law - 14 members alone could veto the bill - It was intended to share powers with the Chancellor |
|
|
How was the Bundesrat unfairly devised? |
- Prussia had 17 seats, therefore was able to veto legislation alone - The Prussian Chamber of Deputies, which selected the members, was elected under the "three class franchise" which favoured wealthier voters and thus allowed conservative domination. - This weakened the Bundesrat and neutralised the notion of power sharing with the Chancellor |
|
|
What is the evidence of the unfairness of the Prussian voting system? |
In 1908, 23% of vote to SPD = 7 seats; 16% to DKP = 212 seats |
|
|
Where did the Army stand within the system? |
- It was accountable only to the Kaiser - Designed by Bismark to be a state within a state, acting rather independently |
|
|
Where did the German economy stand in 1914? |
- Rapidly growing; average growth of 4.5% each year since 1890 |
|
|
What was the state of old industries in the early 1900s? |
- Iron production exceeded that of Britain by 4 million tonnes in 1914 - Coal production had come from 80 million tonnes less than Britain in 1871 to only 13 million less in 1914 - German steel industry (dominated by the Krupp Corporation) took advantage of new methods and in 1910, Germany steel production was over double that of Britain's (6 million tonnes v 14 million tonnes) |
|
|
What is an example of the usage of German steel from the period? |
Railway expansion - Prussian railways grew from 5000 km to 37000 km between 1878 - 1914 |
|
|
What proportion of GNP was made up of industry? |
42%, up from 35% |
|
|
What new industries developed in the early 1900s? |
- Artificial dyes: German firms had a monopoly, with 80% of British imports of it coming from Germany - Pharmaceuticals - Engineering: first rigid airship launched in 1900; non-prototypes flying by 1908 - Electrical goods: 107k German workers in electricals by 1907; over 50% of world electrical goods in 1913 - Cars |
|
|
What were the names of companies in the old and new industries? |
- Krupp Corporation (dominant steel producer) - AEG (electrical company) - Siemens & Halske (electrical company) - Badische Anilin und Soda Fabrik (BASF) - artificial dyes |
|
|
What were the urbanisation figures for the early 1900s? |
- 1871: 64% rural, 36% urban - 1900: 46% rural, 54% urban - 1910: 40% rural, 60% urban |
|
|
What were major centres of urbanisation? |
- Breslau, Cologne, Dresden, Hamburg, Leipzig and Munich all had populations over one million. - Berlin's population was greater than 2 million. |
|
|
What was evidence of improved living standards? |
- Measures were taken to combat overcrowding, such as improved sanitation in Hamburg to combat the cholera in the late 1800s - Proportion of Prussian taxpayers earning less than 900 marks a year fell from 75% to 52% - Development of transport both helped industry and allowed suburb dwelling, reducing overcrowding - Increase in number of 'white collar workers' to 3.3 million by 1907 |
|
|
What was evidence of poor living standards in the early 1900s? |
- 200k men a year accommodates by the Berlin Homeless Shelter Association post 1900
- Unemployment fluctuated greatly; one third of workers found themselves unemployed at some point between 1900 - 1914 - mostly affected the unskilled working class |
|
|
What were the strengths of German agriculture? |
- Agriculture was protected by Bismark's Tariff Law, protecting the Junker landlords and the peasant workers. - The growth in population (56m to 65m between 1900-10) increased demand for food and thus agricultural prices - New chemicals and machines aided efficiency of agricultural production. |
|
|
What were the weaknesses of German agriculture? |
- Refrigeration ships allowed perishable imports from the US which were cheaper even with import and tariff costs - Estates became more costly, debts rose and sales of estates thus became v common - Urbanisation (promise of better life in cities) led to migration of farm workers, leading to a need for landlords to employ foreign workers (half a million foreign workers working on German farms before WW1) |
|
|
What evidence is there of a growing socialist movement among the workers? |
- Over 3 million people were members of trade unions in 1913
- 400k workers went on strike at some point in 1913 over pay or conditions
- Example of a strike: 1909 Mansfeld Copper Strike - workers went on strike because 50 coworkers had been fired for 'socialist agitation' |
|
|
What is the evidence of the political rise of the left in the period? |
- The SPD went from 56 seats from the 1898 election, to 81 in 1903, 43 in 1907 and 110 in 1912 (28% of the vote) - The 1912 election made the SPD the largest party in the Reichstag - Also the largest socialist party in Eruope, with 720k members in 1910 |
|
|
What was the major ideological divide within the SPD and who were the key figures in that divide? |
- August Bebel's revolutionary Marxist platform - Eduard Bernstein's revisionist platform |
|
|
What were the key elements of Bebel's platform? |
- Working legally to achieve collective ownership of the means of production - Non-collaboration with the 'bourgeois' parties - The idea that revolution was inevitable |
|
|
What were the key elements of Bernstein's platform? |
- Rejection of Marx's idea of a crisis of capitalism - Gradual improvement through parliamentary reform - Collaboration with other parties when appropriate |
|
|
What was the overall stance of the SPD across the period? |
- 1901: denunciations of Bernstein at the Lübeck Conference by leftists including Rosa Luxembourg and Karl Liebknecht - The Party tended to follow a middle ground until after 1907, when it became more reformist |
|
|
How was the SPD perceived? |
The established elites continued to view the Party as revolutionary. |
|
|
What were the major right-wing political parties in Germany? Where did their main support come from and what did they stand for? |
- German Conservative Party (DKP) - supported by the Junkers and other Prussian landed interests; authoritarian and supported nationalist foreign policy; had some anti-Semitic elements - Free Conservative Party (FKP) - supported by industrialist and business interests from across Germany; similar to the DKP, big on Bismark and protectionism |
|
|
Excluding the SPD, what were the major liberal parties, who supported them and what did they stand for? |
- National Liberal Party (NLP) - represented the industrial and Protestant middle class; believed in a strong nation state with a liberal constitution; became more like the DKP over time - Liberal Progressives - represented the middle class; favoured parliamentary government - Centre Party (DZP) - represented Catholics and non-Socialist workers; anti-Prussia and anti-Bismark; normally worked with the right but could side with the SPD; held the balance of power in the Reichstag |
|
|
What other forces existed in the political system? What did they stand for? |
Pressure groups; most were right wing, seeking to preserve the influence of the elites |
|
|
What were the main nationalist pressure groups? |
- The German Colonial League: supported the acquisition of German colonies; sometimes even took over running colonies eg German South West Africa - The Pan-German League: supported both imperial expansion and dominance of Europe; had support within the Reichstag, mostly from the NLP (60 deputies were members in 1914) - The Navy League: campaigned for naval expansion; very popular - membership of over 1 million |
|
|
What were the main economic pressure groups? |
- The Central Association of German Industrialists: pro-business pressure group that campaigned for, among other things, protectionism; considered the most powerful German PG; in the 1912 election, spent 1 million marks on 120 Reichstag candidates - The Agrarian League: Junker led pressure group campaigning for protection of agriculture; also nationalist and anti-Semitic; linked with DKP; popular - 1/3 million members by 1914 |
|
|
What were the major policy challenges for governments in the period? |
- Demands for an aggressive foreign policy - Demands from liberals for constitutional reform (often dealt with through dividing liberal groups on different issues) - Demands from socialists for social reform - These had to be satisfied while preserving the power of the elites |
|
|
What was the Kaiser's personal style of rule and outlook on politics? |
- The Kaiser favoured a system of personal rule and would appoint aristocratic ministers who furthered his conservative aims - Militarism was a key element of Wilhelm's personal politics |
|
|
Who were the main Chancellors of the period? |
- Prince Bernhard von Bülow (1900 - 1909)
- Theobald von Bethmann-Hollweg (1909 - 1917) |
|
|
What were Bülow's three 'politiks'? |
- Sammlungspolitik - uniting the major parties behind a nationalist agenda against the SPD - Weltpolitik - the nationalistic and colonialist policies through which Bülow sought to create Sammlungspolitik - Flottenpolitik - a policy to expand the Imperial German Navy to rival that of Britain |
|
|
What was Bülow's relationship with the Kaiser like? |
He outwardly supported him however did work against him at times. |
|
|
What is an example of Bülow going against the Kaiser? |
The 1902 Tariff Law, which reinstated Chancellor Caprivi's tariffs from the 1800s. (Also a really good example of the influence of the Agrarian League.) |
|
|
How did Wilhelm respond to Bülow's challenges? |
Reasserted his authority through ministerial appointments in 1905/6. |
|
|
How did Bülow seek to appease the Socialists? |
Passed a variety of social reforms: - 1900 expansion of compulsory accident insurance - 1903 Sickness Insurance Law expanded support for ill workers - 1908 law to restrict child labour (no employment of under 13s, 6hr day for 13/14 yr olds & 10hr day for 14-16 year olds) |
|
|
How did Flottenpolitik progress under Bülow? |
- 1900 Second Naval Law ordered 38 new battleships over 20 years; major reason for leap in steel production - 1906 Third Naval Law passed in response to the launch of HMS Dreadnought; ordered the production of 6 battle-cruisers and the widening of the Kiel Canal to allow dreadnought-type ships to access the sea |
|
|
What was the significance of the Naval Laws in terms of the policy making procedure? |
It was considered a good example of synthesis because of the role of pressure from the Naval League |
|
|
What was the significance of the 1903 election? |
- There was a shift toward the anti-tariff SPD, despite Bülow's initial social reforms. - The balance of power fell on the DZP. |
|
|
What was the early coalition that was built up in the very early 1900s? |
The Blue-Black Bloc of conservatives and the DZP |
|
|
What was the source of the division of the Blue-Black Block? |
The 1904 Herero Uprising - a revolt by the indigenous Herero people in German South West Africa
The colonial government then pursued a genocidal policy against the Herero (population fell from 800k to 15k in 1911). |
|
|
Who objected to the handling of the Herero Uprising? |
The majority of DZP deputies were appalled by the management of the colonies |
|
|
What were the two main issues raised by the Herero affair? |
- The lack of accountability of the colonial service - The lack of parliamentary control over colonial expenditure (the genocide had cost 456m marks by 1906, equal to the cost of 12 dreadnoughts). |
|
|
How did the tensions over the Herero issue manifest themselves? |
The 1906 budgetary crisis - The DZP joined the anti-colonial SPD in voting down the government's colonial budget. |
|
|
What was the result of the 1906 crisis? |
The Kaiser dissolved the Reichstag and triggered the 'Hottentot election' of 1907 |
|
|
What happened in the 1907 election? |
- The election was fought on the issue of nationalism - Bülow engaged in fearmongering over a SPD-DZP coalition - The SPD lost nearly half their seats - The people narrowly elected a conservative majority of the Bülow Bloc |
|
|
What does the 1906-7 Crisis show? |
- The Reichstag trying to control the government - Tensions between leftist Reichstag members and the conservative government - The Kaiser's power of dissolution - Public support for brutal imperialism |
|
|
How successful was the Bülow Bloc? |
- It held together for a while, but was undermined by fiscal issues such as the need to finance military spending - It broke up when Bülow proposed tax increases, with the conservatives siding with the DZP against the measures |
|
|
What spelled the end of Bülow's chancellorship? |
The 1908 Daily Telegraph Affair, where the Reichstag criticised the Kaiser for remarks published in the Daily Telegraph implying he made foreign policy alone.
The Kaiser assured he would not make such remarks in future however blamed Bülow for not censoring the interview and being too supportive of the Reichstag.
The loss of the Kaiser's confidence and the formal defeat of the budget in 1909 led to his resignation. |
|
|
What did the Daily Telegraph Affair show? |
- The Reichstag and German press were willing to criticise the Kaiser. - The Reichstag could gain concessions from the Kaiser - wasn't totally autocratic - The Kaiser could remove the Chancellor. |
|
|
What reforms did Chancellor Bethmann-Hollweg attempt? |
- 1910: attempted to reform the three tier Prussian voting system; proposals dropped due to opposition - Seizure of Polish-owned land for redistribution to German peasants; pleased conservatives - 1911: Imperial Insurance Code introduced to extend previous workers' insurance laws - 1911 Alsace-Lorraine Constitution to make it a more integrates part of Germany |
|
|
What was the result of the 1912 election? |
- The SPD polled at 4.25m votes, gaining 110 deputies - largest party in the Reichstag (helped by an alliance with the Progressive Liberals) - Philip Schiedemann of the SPD became Reichstag Vice-President - However, few parties wanted to work with them. |
|
|
What surprising move did the SPD make after the 1912 election? |
Voting for the 1913 Army Law which expanded the military - They didn't want to appear non-patriotic and were okay with the money being raised by a direct property tax. |
|
|
What was the major political incident of the pre-war Bethmann-Hollweg government? |
The 1913 Zabern Affair |
|
|
What was the background to the Zabern Affair? |
- Alsace-Lorraine = v distinct from the rest of Germany; a spoil of war from the French - French spoken as a minority language - 1911 - granted a constitution and other stately aspects by Bethmann-Hollweg as a means to bring it closer |
|
|
What was the trigger of the Zabern Affair? |
- A local military officer in Zabern made derogatory remarks about French-speaking locals - The Governor of Alsace-Lorraine requested he be transferred elsewhere but the local military commander refused. |
|
|
How did events in Zabern develop? |
- The military officer was jeered in public in the town and civilians were arrested in response. - Tensions began to escalate in this way. - A military court dismissed a case of assault of a shoemaker against the officer despite evidence clearly showing that he was the culprit. |
|
|
How did the Kaiser respond to events in Zabern? |
- Refused to meet with Alsace-Lorraine's Governor despite him being his representative. - Agreed with the local commander's version of events and sent reinforcements to the town. - Seeing it as a military matter, forbade the Chancellor from telling the Reichstag that an investigation was under way. |
|
|
How did the Reichstag respond to the Zabern Affair? |
- SPD, DZP and Progressive Liberal deputies questioned the Chancellor over the issue.
- B-H simply defended the military so the Reichstag passed a motion of no confidence 193 to 54 (which was ignored) |
|
|
What was the public reaction to the Affair? |
SPD-inspired protests in Zabern were broken up when the Kaiser send the offending regiments on maneuvers. |
|
|
What did the Zabern Affair show? |
- The Army were very independent of civil authorities and were supported by the Kaiser - The Reichstag could not hold the Chancellor to account, only the Kaiser could. - The Kaiser and military could ignore the Reichstag. - The tensions between the different parts of the system, especially the Reichstag and the army. |
|
|
What were some of the reasons for the limited constitutional reform in the period? |
- Constituency boundaries, the same since 1871, favoured the Conservatives and the Liberals - All parties, even the SPD (as shown by a 1907 speech by leader Gustav Noske) were bound by patriotism to the Kaiser and Fatherland - less willing to argue for reform - Parties closely represented the interests of those who voted for them and were not very willing to cooperate on reform |
|
|
What were some different interpretations of the Second Reich's political system?
|
- Hans-Ulrich Wehler: dominated by conservative forces and unable to change with the economic modernisation - Christopher Clark: system too fluid and Kaiser too erratic to be personal rule - liberal elements stronger than thought - Geoff Eley + David Blackburn: both comment on scale of participation and change from above vs from before |
|
|
FOR REVIEW: What was evidence of Germany as an autocracy of the Kaiser? (4 points) |
- Kaiser could appoint Chancellors (1909) and ministers (1905-6) and dissolve the Reichstag (1906) - Ministers not accountable to the Reichstag but the Kaiser (Bethmann-Hollweg vote, 1913) - The army was accountable only to the Kaiser (Zabern Affair, 1913) - The country followed the Kaiser's agenda (Weltpolitik) |
|
|
FOR REVIEW: What evidence is there that Germany was dominated by a conservative elite? (4 points) |
- The state followed the elites' agenda in various areas (eg colonial policy & 1906 Naval Law) - Conservative pressure groups (eg AL & CAGI) has success in lobbying (eg 1902 Tariff Law) - Conservatives dominated the Bundesrat - Prussian elites dominated the government structures |
|
|
FOR REVIEW: What was evidence of democracy and liberalism in Germany? (7 points in concise notes) |
- Manhood suffrage - Reichstag could reject legislation (1906) - Reichstag became more assertive (1906, Daily Telegraph & Bethmann-Hollweg NCV) - Elites had to respond to pressure for social reform - Press criticised the Kaiser (Daily Telegraph '08) - Participation (unions, PGs and women) - Loads of interests represented (Catholics/DZP, workers/SPD, farmers/AL) |
