The Timeline of the Weimar Republic lists in chronological order the major events of the
Weimar Republic, beginning with the final month of the
German Empire and ending with the Nazi
Enabling Act of 1933 that concentrated all power in the hands of
Adolf Hitler. A second chronological section lists important cultural, scientific and commercial events during the Weimar era.
23 October: In a diplomatic note, President Wilson implies that in order for an armistice to be negotiated,
Emperor Wilhelm II must be stripped of power and Germany become more democratic.[3]
November 28: Emperor Wilhelm II formally
abdicates.[12]
November 30: The Council of People's Deputies announces elections for a
constituent national assembly that will write a constitution for the new republic.[13]
6 February: The first meeting of the National Assembly takes place in
Weimar, the city associated with
Goethe and
Schiller that will give the new republic its informal name. Berlin is considered too politically unstable to be the meeting place.[22]
11 February: The Weimar National Assembly elects
Friedrich Ebert of the SPD as president of Germany.[23]
13 February: President Friedrich Ebert appoints
Philipp Scheidemann of the SPD minister president (similar to chancellor).[24]
3–13 March: In the
Berlin March Battles, supporters of the Communist Party of Germany expand a general strike into an armed uprising intended to set up a council republic. The revolt is put down by government and Freikorps troops.[26]
16 June: The German government receives an ultimatum from the
Allied Powers demanding that they accept the
Treaty of Versailles or risk being invaded.[29]
20 June: After Minister President Philipp Scheidemann refuses to accept the Treaty of Versailles, he and
his cabinet step down.[30] On the following day,
Gustav Bauer, also of the SPD, takes Scheidemann's place.[31]
23 June: Confronted with another Allied ultimatum, the Weimar National Assembly approves the Treaty of Versailles with no conditions.[29]
28 June: The Treaty of Versailles is formally approved in the
Hall of Mirrors.[28]
13–17 March: The
Kapp Putsch, an attempt by a group of right-wing extremists to take power in Berlin, forces the government to flee the city but then quickly fails.[38]
13 March–12 April: An
uprising of workers in the Ruhr industrial district leads to battles with
Freikorps and regular troops in a failed attempt to set up a council republic. Other workers' uprisings take place across central Germany.[39]
11 July: In the
East Prussian plebiscite, voters in parts of
West Prussia and
East Prussia return large majorities in favour of remaining with Germany rather than becoming part of
Poland (92.4 percent and 97.9 percent respectively).[41]
1 October: Germany completes its withdrawal from the demilitarized zone stretching 50 kilometres east of the Rhine as required by the
Treaty of Versailles.[43]
1921
24–29 January: The Paris Conference establishes
German reparations obligations at 226 billion gold marks.[44]
1–7 March: At the London Conference on reparations, Germany refuses to accept the terms of the Paris Conference and walks out.[44]
8 March: French troops occupy
Ruhrort,
Duisburg and
Düsseldorf in response to the German walkout at the London Conference.[44]
20 March: The
Upper Silesia plebiscite is held to determine whether the ethnically mixed region will stay part of Germany or join
Poland. Sixty percent of the vote favours Germany.[45]
3 May: In the
Third Silesian Uprising, Polish irregulars reacting to the outcome of the Upper Silesia plebiscite of 20 March begin an armed uprising to force union with Poland. The
League of Nations resolves the issue by dividing the region between Germany and Poland on 15 May 1922.[45]
16 April: Germany and Russia sign the
Treaty of Rapallo that mutually renounces all territorial and financial claims and normalizes relations between the two countries.[50]
18 July: The
Law for the Protection of the Republic, written in response to the assassination of Walther Rathenau, is approved by the
Reichstag. It allows the banning anti-republican printed material, gatherings and associations.[52]
2 January: In a sign of growing inflation, it costs 7,525 marks to buy one U.S. dollar.[54]
11 January: The
Occupation of the Ruhr by French and Belgian troops begins after Germany is declared to be in default on its
reparations payments. Two days later the German government reacts with a call for passive resistance.[55]
1 July: It costs 160,400 marks to buy one U.S. dollar.[56]
26 September: The German government ends passive resistance.[57]
27 September:
Gustav Ritter von Kahr is declared General State Commissioner for
Bavaria with executive power. In response, Berlin declares a nationwide state of emergency.[58]
1 October: The
Küstrin Putsch, a failed attempt by the
Black Reichswehr to overthrow the Weimar Republic, takes place in Küstrin, on the border with
Poland.[59]
28 February: President
Friedrich Ebert ends the state of emergency that he had declared on 27 September 1923. It remains in effect only in
Bavaria.[63]
20 December: Adolf Hitler is released from prison after being pardoned by the Bavarian Supreme Court. He had served less than 8 months of his 5-year sentence for his part in the Beer Hall Putsch.[69]
14 July: French and Belgian troops start their evacuation of the
Ruhr, marking the beginning of the end of the
occupation of the Ruhr that had begun on 11 January 1923.[72]
1 December: The
Treaty of Locarno, which guaranteed Germany's western border but allowed for negotiations on the eastern, is formally ratified.[73]
1926
24 April: Germany and the
Soviet Union sign the
Treaty of Berlin, which guarantees Germany's neutrality in any war between the Soviet Union and a third country.[74]
12 May: The
Luther government falls as a result of its support for a modified imperial flag for use at the Republic's foreign missions.[75]Wilhelm Marx of the
Centre Party again becomes chancellor.[31]
20 June: A popular
referendum to expropriate the property of the former German princes without compensation fails due to low voter turnout.[76]
10 September: Germany is admitted to the
League of Nations with a permanent seat on its council.[77]
1 May: In the May Day Blutmai (Blood May), the Berlin police try to prevent
Communist Party of Germany demonstrators from marching into the city centre. About 30 are killed and 200 hurt.[84]
7 June: The
Young Plan proposes reducing Germany's total reparations payments to 121 billion Reichsmarks, with the final payment due in 1988.[85]
16–18 July: After the Reichstag rejects Chancellor Brüning's budget bill, he enacts it by
emergency decree, then dissolves the Reichstag when they vote to rescind his decree.[92]
20 July: In the
Prussian coup d'état, President Hindenburg appoints Chancellor Papen Reich commissar of
Prussia. Papen ousts the democratically elected Prussian government, which was led by the
Social Democrats.[105]
12 September: The Reichstag is again dissolved.[107]
6 November: In the
second Reichstag election of the year, the Nazis, Social Democrats, and Communists are again the top three vote winners, although the Nazi's share dropped by 4%.[108]
23 March: The
Enabling Act of 1933 passes the Reichstag. It gives the chancellor and cabinet the power to write and enforce laws without the involvement of the Reichstag or the German president. It essentially marked the end of the Weimar Republic.[113]
Timeline of the Weimar Republic (Note: click on "Gesamte Ereignisse ansehen" to see the full details for an individual month. The site is otherwise in English.)
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^Kolb, Eberhard (2010). Die Weimarer Republik (in German) (7 ed.). Munich: DeGruyter. pp. 50–51.
^Büttner, Ursula (2008). Weimar. Die überforderte Republik [Weimar. The Overstrained Republic 1918–1933] (in German). Stuttgart: Klett-Cotta. p. 779.
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^Winkler, Heinrich-August (1993). Weimar 1918–1933. Die Geschichte der ersten deutschen Demokratie [Weimar. The History of the First German Democracy 1918–1933] (in German). Munich: C.H. Beck. p. 209.
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