On the 9th of November 1918, amidst the agony of the military defeat of World War I and Social Revolution, Chancellor Prince Max von Baden declared that the Emperor of Germany, Kaiser Wilhelm II, had abdicated- “The Kaiser and King has decided to renounce the throne.”. Ensuing the abdication of the Kaiser, the Social Democrats of the Reichstag assumed control of the government, proclaiming the Republic in an effort to restore Germany- “The old and rotten, the monarchy has collapsed. The new may live. Long live the German Republic!”. Little did they know, a mere fourteen years later in 1933, the Weimar Republic would collapse under Adolf Hitler’s rising National Socialist German Workers’ (Nazi) Party. Leading up to this, was the political and economic instability experienced during this period. This included key issues such as fundamental flaws in the constitution and political system, various uprisings led by opposing groups, hyper-inflation and the Wall Street Crash of 1929.
When the Weimar Republic was formed in Germany, it essentially went from being the least democratic nation in Europe to one of the …show more content…
The Weimar Constitution gave a disproportionate amount of power to the President under Article 48, allowing the President to rule by emergency decree powers in order to protect the Republic from crises initiated by its opponents. Clearly, this allowed for Presidential powers to be used and abused. From 1930 to 1932, Chancellor Bruning governed through the use of these emergency powers becoming somewhat of a dictator and utilising an ever-increasing amount of these presidential decrees thus setting a precedent for a non-democratic government. Ironically, these powers which were designed to protect democracy would become a loophole allowing Hitler and his Nazi Party to overthrow the Weimar Republic in
When the Weimar Republic was formed in Germany, it essentially went from being the least democratic nation in Europe to one of the …show more content…
The Weimar Constitution gave a disproportionate amount of power to the President under Article 48, allowing the President to rule by emergency decree powers in order to protect the Republic from crises initiated by its opponents. Clearly, this allowed for Presidential powers to be used and abused. From 1930 to 1932, Chancellor Bruning governed through the use of these emergency powers becoming somewhat of a dictator and utilising an ever-increasing amount of these presidential decrees thus setting a precedent for a non-democratic government. Ironically, these powers which were designed to protect democracy would become a loophole allowing Hitler and his Nazi Party to overthrow the Weimar Republic in