Foreign relations |
Germany became more acceptable abroad:
~ It signed the Locarno Treaties in 1925
~ It joined the League of Nations and became a council member in 1926
~ It signed the Young Plan in 1929 and the Allies withdrew from the Rhineland |
Germany still wanted to recover land lost in the east to Poland |
Political issues |
Increased political stability:
~ Longer and more stable coalitions were formed
~ Better co-operation between middle -class parties and the Social Democrats
~ Declining support for parties opposed to the Weimar Republic (e.g. Communists and Nazis) |
~ Election of Hindenburg (who happily criticised the Republic) as President in 1925 showed that the public still did not view the Republic favourably
~ No single party ever won a majority of seats in the Reichstag, so all Governments had to be coalitions, which easily broke up in times of crisis |
The Economy |
A major economic recovery from the hyper-inflation of 1923:
~ The Dawes Plan gave 800 million marks to invest in industry
~ Production overtook 1914 levels in 1928, and exports rose sharply |
Major problems still existed:
~ Unemployment continued to fluctuate and was higher in 1928 than in 1923
~ Farm incomes and farmworkers wages fell
~ Extremes of wealth and poverty existed
~ Employers and Trades Unions disagreed strongly about taxes and benefits
~ Most importantly the economy was massively dependent on US loans which could end at any time, especially if there was a crisis in the USA |