Why the Weimar Republic was
weakened by the depression
1. In October 1929 the American
economy went bankrupt. This was
called the Wall Street Crash. America
recalled all of their foreign loans.
2. Many German businesses were forced to
close. They depended hugely on loans from the
US. Taxes increased to pay for unemployment.
3. Many German workers and farmers lost
their jobs. By 1932 there were 6 million
unemployed people. The government cut
unemployment benefit to save money
4. Unemployment affected the young. By the end of
1932 half of Germans aged 16 to 30 were
unemployed or could not find jobs.
Most Germans blamed the Weimar Republic for
allowing the German economy to become too
dependent on US loans. The government could not
deal with the worst effects of the depression.
1. The Weimar Constitution encouraged
weak coalitions that could not provide
solutions to major problems
2. Germany lacked a strong leader to
reduce the worst effects of the depression
3. From 1930, Germnay
ceased to be a democracy
People cared less about
the Reichstag as it was not
solving any problems
4. Votes for extremist
parties increased
5. Coalition parties did not get along.
They had disagreements
6. Bruning's government made unpopular
policies. They decided to increase taxes