THE GERMAN REPUBLIC The National Assembly met at Weimar on Feb. 6, 1919, and elected Friedrich Ebert as president of the Republic. He was to govern through a ministry responsible to the Assembly. The dis cussion of the Constitution occupied several months. It was finally promulgated on Aug. 11. The new German State, which kept the old traditional name of the Deutsches Reich, although it was now transformed from an empire into a republic, was still to be on a federal basis. The proposal of Secretary of State Preuss to make Germany into a single State, abolishing the distinction be tween the old separate States and dividing the whole country up afresh into provinces, was rejected. The powers of the Reich were extended in some respects; it was given complete control of taxa tion, and the right to lay down the guiding principles for educa tion and church affairs. The head of the Government was to be a president elected for a period of seven years by the whole nation ; he was to be assisted by a federal ministry, the members of which were to be obliged to resign if they ceased to enjoy the confidence of parliament. The Reichstag was to continue to consist of a single chamber, and the suffrage was to be the same as that which had been adopted for the elections to the National Assembly. A Reiclisrat was set up to provide representation for the individual States, but it was not similar to the old Bundesrat, since it was only to have an advisory voice. Provision was made for a plebiscite to be taken in certain cases.
In drawing up the Constitution an endeavour was made to embody in a new form those elements which seemed to have worked satisfactorily in the history of other States which had adopted the republican form of government. The Constitution included clauses allowing for the possibility of the formation of new German States or the amalgamation of States which already existed. Up to the year 1933 these clauses were only applied in three cases. Saxe-Weimar, Saxe-Gotha, Saxe-Altenburg, the two Principalities of Reuss and the two Principalities of Schwarzburg combined to form the Free State of Thuringia; Saxe-Coburg united with Bavaria, and (in 1929) Waldeck with Prussia. The electoral system was changed : proportional representation and voting by lists were adopted, the object being to ensure that parlia ment reflected the state of opinion in the nation as accurately as possible. As however no electoral list was admitted unless it was drawn up by a political party, the effect of the system was enor mously to increase the influence of the party organizations on the election results, and in practice to limit the freedom of choice of the elector. Another consequence was to favour the formation of a large number of minor parties, since each one could be sure of gaining a few seats under the new electoral system.
Although the new Constitution of Germany had many defects, it represented a great step forward towards more satisfactory con ditions in Germany. Since the revolution there had been no gen erally recognised political order sanctioned by law, whereas the life of the country could now resume a regular course.
In addition, the left bank of the Rhine was to be occupied by Allied troops for from 5 to 15 years, and the Saar Basin to be administered by the League of Nations for 15 years, after which a plebiscite was to be taken. The amount which Germany was to pay by way of reparations was to be fixed in 1921. A pro visional payment of 20 milliard marks in gold was to be made between 1919 and 1921. Germany also undertook to make pay ments in kind, consisting of ships, cattle, coal and railway rolling stock, which were to be written off against reparation payments at a rate to be fixed by the Reparation Commission. Germany was in future to maintain a standing army consisting of not more than soldiers and 15,000 sailors, and was not to reintroduce compulsory military service. It was only to manufacture arms and munitions to the amount required by an army of this size. All fortresses up to a line so km. east of the Rhine were to be de molished, and the fleet to be reduced to 6 battleships, 6 small cruisers, 12 destroyers and 12 torpedo boats. If it is remembered that all the Germans in foreign countries who had lost property owing to the war received no compensation, and that Germany had to give the victorious countries most favoured nation treat ment in commerce for a period of five years, it will be possible to form an idea of the immense economic burdens which were laid on a country already impoverished by the war. The worst feature of the situation was that the amount to be paid by way of reparations was not fixed, but was to be settled in the future in accordance with Germany's capacity to pay. The reason given for the severity of these conditions was that Germany had deliber ately brought about a terrible war in order to increase its own power. This assertion is now recognized by the great majority of those who have studied the history of the events which led up to the war as being quite unfounded.
In the circumstances which prevailed at the time, there seemed nothing else to be done than to accept the conditions which were forced upon Germany, though they were only accepted under pro test. If they had been refused, the Allied troops would at once have crossed the Rhine, and now that the old army had been disbanded, Germany would have been entirely defenceless. On June 23 a majority of the National Assembly accepted the Treaty of Peace, and it was signed at Versailles on June 28.
Many people in Germany blamed President Wilson, by whose mediation the armistice had been concluded, because they said that he had not kept his promise to bring about a peace on the basis of his Fourteen Points. They considered that the handing over of a considerable number of Germans to foreign countries was quite contrary to the principle of self-determination, and that the payments required of Germany moreover went far be yond compensation to the civil population of the occupied terri tories for damage suffered. Practically the only one of Wilson's aims which was realised was the creation of a League of Nations. Since even this consisted at first only of the victorious Powers and some of the smaller neutral States, it was felt in Germany that there could be no guarantee of the impartiality of its decisions. (See VERSAILLES, TREATY OF ; and PARIS, CONFERENCE OF. ) Foreign Relations Since 1919.—The new boundaries of Germany had yet to be determined by the taking of plebiscites in certain areas. A plebiscite held in Schleswig in Feb. and March 1920 gave the towns of Hedersleben, Apenrade and Tondern and the island of Alsen to Denmark, Flensburg remain ing German. In East and West Prussia, a plebiscite held on July 11, 1920 resulted in a large majority for Germany in the disputed areas, Allenstein and Marienwerder. Nevertheless, in accordance with the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, the ma jority of West Prussia, though largely inhabited by Germans, was handed over to Poland, to provide communication with the sea. This "Polish corridor" completely cut off East Prussia from the rest of Germany. In Upper Silesia, a plebiscite taken on March 20, 1921 gave 707,000 votes for Germany and 479,00o for Poland. On this showing, the whole territory, being economi cally indivisible, should have remained German, but the Poles raised a violent protest and organised a revolt in the districts in which the majority of the population was Polish. France sup ported the Polish claims, and the Supreme Council of the Allies decided to refer the matter to the League of Nations for settle ment. The award was published on Oct. 20, 1921. Poland re ceived the districts of Pless, Rybnik, Kattowitz and Konigshiitte, and a number of adjacent areas in which the population was principally Polish. Germany had to accept the award, in spite of the serious economic blow sustained by the loss of the coal fields.
At the same time, the French made unsuccessful attempts to in duce the population of the Rhineland to set up an independent State under French protection; Bavaria was also incited to secede from Germany. Under the pretext that Germany had not loyally carried out her undertakings as regards disarmament and repara tions payments, the French temporarily occupied Frankfurt, Hom burg, Hanau and Darmstadt in April 192o; in May 1921 they occupied Dusseldorf, Duisburg, Ruhrort, Muhlheim and Ober hausen, and in Jan. 1923 the whole territory of the Ruhr. Their attempts to separate these districts from Germany failed on account of the resolute attitude of the population.
The assessment of reparations presented enormous difficulties. According to the peace terms, the amount was to be fixed definitely in 1921. At a conference in Brussels in Dec. 192o, the Allies demanded 269,00o million gold marks, to be paid in 42 annual instalments. The German representatives rejected this demand as impossible of fulfilment. The Allies did not accept the German counter-proposals, and the question remained com pletely in suspense; it was merely laid down that Germany should pay certain sums during the next few years. On Oct. 20, 1921, an agreement was concluded at Wiesbaden to the effect that these payments should be made partly in cash and partly in materials for the restoration of the devastated areas. Pay ments had to be reduced or postponed repeatedly, on account of the financial situation in Germany, and in July 1922 a mora torium was obtained only by giving the Allied Powers the right of scrutiny over all German financial measures so long as it lasted. It gradually became clear that a final settlement would never be reached in this manner. As a result of the occupation of the Ruhr, serious differences of opinion had arisen between France and England on the subject of future relations with Germany, and the Allies finally decided to convene a conference of experts to estimate Germany's capacity to pay. The chairman of this international committee was Charles Dawes, an American financier. His proposal, known as the "Dawes Plan," was ac cepted by the Allies and by Germany, after long negotiations, in the summer of 1924. (See REPARATIONS AND DAWES PLAN) The German State railways were made over to a company, which had to issue 1 i,000 million gold marks of first mortgage bonds for reparations. A large share of the indirect taxes was also pledged as security for the reparations payments. The payments were to begin with i,000 million gold marks in the first year, rising to 2,50o million in 1928. No attempt was made to de termine the total amount to be paid by Germany. This settle ment, though incomplete, provided a definite basis for calculating the German payments during the next few years, and the French were obliged to evacuate the Ruhr in July 1925.
In order to bring about a permanent improvement in the relations between Germany and France, England proposed a guarantee pact in respect of Germany's western frontier. After prolonged negotiations, a conference was held at Locarno (q.v.), where the proposed pact was concluded on Oct. 16, 1925. Ger many voluntarily re-affirmed the renunciation of Alsace-Lorraine in favour of France, and undertook not to attempt any alteration of the frontiers by violent means. The inviolability of the new frontiers between Germany, France and Belgium was guaranteed by the signatory Powers, which included England and Italy. Special treaties of arbitration were drawn up for the regulation by pacific means of any differences which might arise. The first tangible result of the Pact of Locarno was the evacuation of the northern third of the Rhineland, including Cologne, by the French and British troops in Dec. 1925. According to the Treaty of Versailles, this zone should have been evacuated two years earlier, but the French had hitherto interposed delays. Another result was the entry of Germany into the League of Nations, with a permanent seat on the Council (Sept. 1o, 1926).
In the meantime, Germany had also resumed relations with Russia. By the Treaty of Rapallo, signed on April 17, 1922, Germany definitely recognised the Soviet Republic, and agreed to a reciprocal renunciation of all claims to war indemnities. On April 24, 1926, this treaty was supplemented by a Treaty of Friendship and Neutrality, modelled on the Pact of Locarno, providing for the amicable adjustment of future disputes. Ger many's economic relations with other nations were restored by commercial treaties with England, Russia, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and a number of smaller States. She thus gradually re gained a position in the European world corresponding to her size and importance. At the Assembly of the League of Nations at Geneva, Sept. 1927, Stresemann demanded that since Germany was already completely disarmed, the other Powers should likewise make a serious effort towards disarmament. The negotiations on this point never reached any satisfactory conclusion. On the other hand, he was successful in obtaining a promise from France that the number of the troops of occupation still in the Rhineland should be reduced by ten thousand men ; this was carried out in October. The suggestion made by America, of an international pact for the renunciation of war received a warm welcome in Ger many, and Stresemann went to Paris in person in the summer of 1928 to sign the pact for Germany.
A clear indication of the political excitement and bitterness of the years following the revolution is given by the occurrence of a series of assassinations. Erzberger, the Centre Party Minister of Finance, was murdered on Aug. 29, 1921, and Rathenau, the Democratic Foreign Minister, on June 24, 1922. By emergency legislation passed on June 18, 1922 and the establishment of a special court to deal with political offences, the Government suc ceeded in restoring order and security.
In financial matters, the crucial event was the stabilization of the mark, which was achieved largely through the instrumentality of Schacht, the president of the national bank. On account of the disturbed condition of the country, the enormous reparations payments and the decline of production, the Government had not been able to discover any means of relieving the acute shortage of specie except by a progressive increase in the issue of notes. As a result of this inflation, the value of the paper money was constantly falling. In the course of time, the de preciation became so rapid that financial calculations were ren dered impossible. On Nov. 15, 1923, a dollar was worth 21 billion marks. It was finally decided to establish a special bank of issue, the notes of which were guaranteed by the leading personalities in the economic life of the country. At the same time, the printing of paper money by the State was entirely suspended. The new notes were temporarily the only currency in use. When they were generally accepted at their face value in international trade, they were replaced by a new State issue at par. The return to a normal currency paved the way for the recovery of German trade, though the depreciation of the old paper money dealt a blow to small and middling incomes which was felt for many years.
Relations between employers and workers. which had been very strained immediately after the war and the Revolution, under the influence of the current of Communism emanating from Russia, gradually became more satisfactory. A noticeable improvement soon resulted from the introduction of workers' representation in the larger undertakings, the establishment of the National Economic Council in June 192o, and the develop ment of arbitration procedure in wage disputes.
In the political sphere, complexity of party divisions continued to be the principal obstacle to progress. The constitution pro vided that the ministry must possess the confidence of a majority in parliament. It was practically impossible for any single party to obtain a majority, and, whenever a new Government was formed, a coalition of different groups had to be arranged by negotiations between the leaders of the largest parties. Being made up of heterogeneous elements, the coalition was generally short-lived. The Government formed by Bauer as chancellor in June 1919 consisted of six Socialists and four Catholics, and was increased in October by the inclusion of three Democrats. This distribution was maintained in the Government formed by H. Muller in March 192o. In June 192o, Fehrenbach, the leader of the Catholic Party, became chancellor. His ministry consisted of five Catholics, three Democrats and three members of the German People's Party. He was succeeded in May 1921 by another member of the same Party, Wirth. Wirth's Government was made up at first of four Catholics, four Democrats and three Socialists, and after Oct. 1921 of four Catholics, three Demo crats and four Socialists. In Nov. 1922, Cuno, a member of the People's Party, became Chancellor. His ministry contained three members of the People's Party, three Democrats and two Catholics. In Aug. 1923, the "grand coalition" was temporarily achieved; the Government comprised two members of the People's Party, two Catholics, two Democrats and four Socialists, with Stresemann as chancellor. In Nov. 1924, it was replaced by a ministry formed by Marx, a member of the Centre (Cath olic) Party, consisting of four Catholics, three Democrats and one representative of the People's Party.
A Government formed by Luther in Jan. 1925 was the first to contain a Nationalist minister. A comparison of these minis tries shows that it was still impossible to obtain a majority with out the co-operation of the Centre Party. The influence of that large party consequently increased, and showed itself particularly in the regulation of spiritual matters, including the establishment of a Bavarian Concordat with the Catholic Church. Strenuous efforts for the adoption of a similar Concordat for the whole of Germany were finally successful in July 1933. An Education Act which would allow the widest possible scope for the influence of the Church was brought in by the minister of the interior, von Keudell, a member of the Conservative Party, in July 1927, but met with very violent opposition and was rejected.
After the death of Ebert (Feb. 28, 1925), Field-Marshal von Hindenburg was elected president. Hindenburg reconciled differ ences between the political parties on various occasions, but took no prominent part in politics. Luther remained for the time at the head of the Government as chancellor, while Stresemann remained in charge of foreign policy. After the conclusion of the Locarno Pact, a violent dispute broke out between the Government parties. Although the German National members of the Govern ment had given their consent in advance, they were forced by their party to leave the Government. The Conservatives looked on the concessions made by the Government as detrimental to Ger man interests, and also attempted to delay Germany's entry into the League of Nations. On Dec. 5, 1925, they succeeded in forcing the resignation of the Government. Attempts to form a new ministry under the Democrat Dr. Koch proved, however, unsuc cessful, and in Jan. 1926 Luther was again appointed chancellor. Stresemann remained minister for foreign affairs. Neither the Conservatives nor the Social Democrats were represented in the new Government.
During the next months the question of the compensation of the deposed princely houses became acute. A bill was brought in for giving them suitable compensation. The Parties of the Left, however, looked on this as an unjustifiable imposition on the people and requested a plebiscite on the question whether the ex-ruling houses should not be expropriated without compensation. The plebiscite (June 20, 1926) did not give the majority required by the Constitution for this motion, and the compensation bill was then passed by the Reichstag. Shortly before this, however, Luther had enacted an order that the black-white-red commercial ensign should be hoisted on public buildings on certain occasions besides the black-red-gold flag of the Reichstag. Thereupon the Democrat ministers, who considered this an improper concession to Conservative circles, resigned. The Democrats and Social Democrats combined and on May 12, 1926 carried a vote of non confidence which forced Luther to resign. His place was again taken by Marx, one of the leaders of the Centre Party, who had already filled the office of chancellor on two occasions. His cabi net was composed of five Clericals, three members of the German People's Party, three of the Democrats and one of the Bavarian People's Party. In Dec. 1926 the ministry was defeated and resigned; Marx, however, was entrusted with the formation of a new cabinet in which the three members of the Democratic Party were replaced by Conservatives. The Reichstag elections of May 20, 1928 brought a considerable change in the relative strength of the parties. The German National Party, with its allied groups, received 86 seats, the German People's Party 45, the Centre Party with the Bavarian People's Party 78, the Democrats 25, the Social Democrats 153, the Communists 54 and the smaller groups 5o together. The different composition of the Reichstag necessi tated the formation of a new Government. The Social Democrats, as the strongest party, provided the chancellor, in the person of Hermann Muller, together with three other ministers, while the German People's Party and the Democrats each supplied three ministers, the Centre Party one.
The most serious problem of home policy remained that of the relation between the Federal Government and the various States. The States demanded a greater measure of financial autonomy; on the other hand, a strong section of public opinion was in favour of further development of Federal institutions at the expense of the States. In Germany, as in all Capitalist countries, there was great antagonism between the propertied classes and the workers; but the population was also divided by religious differences, and by the conflict between the partisans of national unity and those who favoured the maintenance of the political individuality of different parts of the German federation, a conflict which was a constant feature of German history. These were problems which Adolf Hitler and his National Socialist Party were to solve by their vigorous and ruthless centralizing methods after Jan. (E. X.)