The impact of the First World War merely heightened existing social and
political tensions which had divided Germany before 1914.
Paragraph 1 – burgfriede:
During the onset of war, there seemed to bit an air of cooperation amongst
everyone in the political system, united by Nationalism.
A Burgfriede, or political truce, was agreed amongst all the parties.
The mood in Germany is epitomised by the Kaiser, when he said to the Reichstag “I
see no parties any more, only Germans”.
Even the social democrats, who for so long had been viewed as the unpatriotic
enemies of the state, promised their support for a defensive war.
The Burgfriede had lasted well over 2 years during which time the government
faced no real opposition from the public or Reichstag:
All the parties agreed unanimously on the loans to finance the war, even the
SPD.
General social agreement, most people agreed on the cause for the war,
largely helped by the string of early victories.
The Burgfriede is increasingly significant when looking at the political situation
before the war, where there were huge divisions and an inability to get much done:
1912 Reichstag stalemate
Reoccurring collapse of the Reichstag
Debate over tariffs in 1902 – significant SPD opposition.
Failure of the SPD to unite a government with other parties.
There is clearly a degree of political consensus, which was brought about by the
onset of war.
However, it can be claimed that Burgfriede was more about ignoring political
tensions rather than actually resolving them. There still remained fundamental
disagreements about war aims, the SPD had only agreed to a defensive war,
whereas the army and some on the right were fundamentally supportive of
colonialism. The cooperation is fuelled by a short lived string of early victories, and
this unsustainable consensus is exemplified simply by the fact that after 2 years
the burgfriede breaks down and fundamental tensions over war aims arise. Thus it
can be concluded, that although the war seemed to have resolved tensions, it
didn’t, as it was a temporary spell of consensus, and only resulted in a worsening
of pre-existing tensions.
Paragraph 2 – the war brought about whole new social/economic issues.
Opposition to the government and the war came because of the militarily and
socially bleak situation:
- Huge losses – between 1914 and 1918, 13.2 million Germans were
conscripted. Of those conscripted, 2.5 million were killed and 4.15 million
were injured. Weltpolitik was thus a successful policy in terms of holding the
Kaiser Reich together, however, when Germans started to realise the
consequences of war, tensions in society begin to surface.
- The number of civilian deaths from starvation and hypothermia increased
from 121,000 in 1916 to 293,000 in 1918. Turnip winter (failure of the potato
crop) 1916-7 caused by the allied blockade.
The middle classes in particular were damaged by the fact that only 16% of
the war economy was being funded by taxation and the government printed
money inflation damages savings.
political tensions which had divided Germany before 1914.
Paragraph 1 – burgfriede:
During the onset of war, there seemed to bit an air of cooperation amongst
everyone in the political system, united by Nationalism.
A Burgfriede, or political truce, was agreed amongst all the parties.
The mood in Germany is epitomised by the Kaiser, when he said to the Reichstag “I
see no parties any more, only Germans”.
Even the social democrats, who for so long had been viewed as the unpatriotic
enemies of the state, promised their support for a defensive war.
The Burgfriede had lasted well over 2 years during which time the government
faced no real opposition from the public or Reichstag:
All the parties agreed unanimously on the loans to finance the war, even the
SPD.
General social agreement, most people agreed on the cause for the war,
largely helped by the string of early victories.
The Burgfriede is increasingly significant when looking at the political situation
before the war, where there were huge divisions and an inability to get much done:
1912 Reichstag stalemate
Reoccurring collapse of the Reichstag
Debate over tariffs in 1902 – significant SPD opposition.
Failure of the SPD to unite a government with other parties.
There is clearly a degree of political consensus, which was brought about by the
onset of war.
However, it can be claimed that Burgfriede was more about ignoring political
tensions rather than actually resolving them. There still remained fundamental
disagreements about war aims, the SPD had only agreed to a defensive war,
whereas the army and some on the right were fundamentally supportive of
colonialism. The cooperation is fuelled by a short lived string of early victories, and
this unsustainable consensus is exemplified simply by the fact that after 2 years
the burgfriede breaks down and fundamental tensions over war aims arise. Thus it
can be concluded, that although the war seemed to have resolved tensions, it
didn’t, as it was a temporary spell of consensus, and only resulted in a worsening
of pre-existing tensions.
Paragraph 2 – the war brought about whole new social/economic issues.
Opposition to the government and the war came because of the militarily and
socially bleak situation:
- Huge losses – between 1914 and 1918, 13.2 million Germans were
conscripted. Of those conscripted, 2.5 million were killed and 4.15 million
were injured. Weltpolitik was thus a successful policy in terms of holding the
Kaiser Reich together, however, when Germans started to realise the
consequences of war, tensions in society begin to surface.
- The number of civilian deaths from starvation and hypothermia increased
from 121,000 in 1916 to 293,000 in 1918. Turnip winter (failure of the potato
crop) 1916-7 caused by the allied blockade.
The middle classes in particular were damaged by the fact that only 16% of
the war economy was being funded by taxation and the government printed
money inflation damages savings.
