# Canonical recap data for Weimar Republic Established (1919)
# Source: https://recap.at/1919/weimar-republic-established
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: weimar-republic-established
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/1919/weimar-republic-established"
title: Weimar Republic Established
aliases:
- Weimar Republic
- German Republic
- Weimar era
- 1918–1933
subtitle: Weimar Republic Established
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 1919-01-01
datePrecision: year
year: 1919
decade: 1910
country:
name: Germany
slug: germany
summaryShort: The Weimar Republic was a historical period of the German state from 9 November 1918 to 23 March 1933, during which it was a constitutional republic for the first time in history. The state was officially named the German Reich; but was more commonly referred to, and unofficially proclaimed itself, as the German Republ
summaryLong: |-
  The Weimar Republic was a historical period of the German state from 9 November 1918 to 23 March 1933, during which it was a constitutional republic for the first time in history. The state was officially named the German Reich; but was more commonly referred to, and unofficially proclaimed itself, as the German Republic. The period's informal name is derived from the city of Weimar,
  where the republic's constituent assembly took place. In English, the republic was usually simply called "Germany", with "Weimar Republic" not commonly used until the 1930s. The Weimar Republic had a semi-presidential system.
lede: Germany's imperial government collapsed on November 9, 1918, as World War I ended in defeat. In its place rose the Weimar Republic, a democratic system that lasted until 1933-Germany's first attempt at representative government, born from military catastrophe and constitutional ambition rather than popular revolution.
heroImageUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/21/Flag_of_Germany_%283-2%29.svg/1280px-Flag_of_Germany_%283-2%29.svg.png"
heroImageCredit: Wikipedia · "Weimar Republic"
importance: 50
sourceConfidence: 75
keyFacts:
- label: Duration
  value: November 9, 1918 to March 23, 1933 (14 years, 4 months)
- label: Founding document
  value: Weimar Constitution, August 11, 1919
- label: First president
  value: Friedrich Ebert (SPD), elected February 11, 1919
- label: Capital city
  value: Weimar, Thuringia (Berlin served as seat of government)
- label: Electoral system
  value: Proportional representation with 5% threshold
- label: Parliamentary chambers
  value: Reichstag (parliament) and Reichsrat (federal council)
- label: Number of governments
  value: 16 separate cabinets, 1919–1933
- label: Final chancellor
  value: Adolf Hitler, appointed January 30, 1933
timeline:
- date: 1918-11-09
  title: German Revolution begins
  description: Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicates; socialist uprisings spread across Germany. Friedrich Ebert becomes chancellor of a new provisional government.
- date: 1919-01-19
  title: National Assembly elections
  description: First democratic elections in German history. SPD (Social Democrats) win 37.9% of votes; assembly convenes in Weimar rather than Berlin due to ongoing unrest.
- date: 1919-02-11
  title: Friedrich Ebert elected president
  description: National Assembly votes Ebert into office as head of state under the new constitutional framework.
- date: 1919-06-28
  title: Treaty of Versailles signed
  description: Germany signs peace treaty ending WWI. Terms include reparations, territorial losses, and military restrictions that fuel long-term resentment and economic hardship.
- date: 1919-08-11
  title: Weimar Constitution ratified
  description: New constitution takes effect, establishing a parliamentary republic with a directly elected president and proportional representation voting system.
- date: 1923-01-11
  title: French occupation of Ruhr Valley
  description: France and Belgium occupy Germany's industrial heartland over reparation defaults. Triggers hyperinflation crisis and deepens political instability.
- date: 1923-11-08
  title: Beer Hall Putsch fails
  description: Adolf Hitler and Nazi Party attempt armed coup in Munich. Revolt crushed within hours; Hitler arrested and imprisoned, but gains notoriety from trial.
- date: 1925-04-26
  title: Paul von Hindenburg elected president
  description: Retired field marshal defeats left-wing candidate Wilhelm Marx. Hindenburg's election signals rightward political shift and weakens democratic commitments.
- date: 1929-10-29
  title: Wall Street Crash
  description: US stock market collapse triggers global economic depression. Germany, dependent on American loans, faces immediate credit freeze and mass unemployment.
- date: 1930-09-14
  title: Nazi electoral breakthrough
  description: "Reichstag elections: Nazi Party jumps from 2.6% (1928) to 18.3%, becoming second-largest party. Economic crisis radicalizes electorate."
- date: 1932-07-31
  title: July 1932 Reichstag elections
  description: Nazis reach peak support at 37.3% of votes. No single party commands majority; coalition-building fails repeatedly, paralyzing government.
- date: 1933-01-30
  title: Adolf Hitler appointed chancellor
  description: President Hindenburg appoints Hitler as chancellor in backroom deal. Republic formally ends March 23, 1933, when Enabling Act passes, granting Hitler dictatorship.
sources:
- url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weimar_Republic"
  title: Weimar Republic
  provider: Wikipedia
related: []
impactStatement: The Weimar Republic redefined German governance for fifteen years, introducing parliamentary democracy, proportional representation, and a written constitution. Its collapse in 1933 and replacement by Nazi dictatorship became a defining historical lesson about democratic fragility under economic stress and political polarization.
categories:
- revolution
taxonomy:
domain: political
eventTypes:
- regime_change
- revolution
- constitutional_reform
canonicalClasses:
- transformation
- governance
- creation
impactRadius: global
velocity: cascading
predictability: emergent
intentionality: coordinated
domainCoupling: multi_domain
lifecycleClass: birth
metaDescription: Germany's democratic republic, 1918–1933. Constitutional reform, political crisis, Nazi rise.
wikidataQid: Q41304
geo:
lat: 52.52
lng: 13.375
place: Germany
significance: 50
comparisonThenNow:
- metric: German GDP per capita
  thenValue: ~2,500 reichsmarks
  thenYear: 1920
  nowValue: ~48,756 euros
  nowYear: 2023
  note: Adjusted for inflation and currency conversion; reflects post-hyperinflation stabilization vs. modern economy
- metric: Unemployment rate
  thenValue: ~9%
  thenYear: 1929
  nowValue: ~2.6%
  nowYear: 2023
  note: Pre-Great Depression; Weimar unemployment reached 30%+ by 1932
- metric: German population
  thenValue: ~59 million
  thenYear: 1920
  nowValue: ~84 million
  nowYear: 2023
- metric: Life expectancy at birth
  thenValue: ~55 years
  thenYear: 1920
  nowValue: ~81 years
  nowYear: 2023
  note: Post-WWI; improved dramatically with modern medicine and stability
- metric: Female voter participation eligibility
  thenValue: Women could vote (from age 20)
  thenYear: 1919
  nowValue: Women could vote (from age 18)
  nowYear: 2023
  note: Weimar introduced universal female suffrage; age lowered in 1970
consequences:
- title: Hyperinflation crisis
  year: 1923
  description: The German currency collapsed, with the exchange rate hitting 4.2 trillion marks to one US dollar by November 1923. The crisis wiped out savings for millions and destabilized the middle class, fueling resentment that would later benefit extremist movements.
- title: Treaty of Locarno signed
  year: 1925
  description: Germany, France, Belgium, Britain, and Italy negotiated mutual security guarantees, temporarily stabilizing Western Europe. Foreign Minister Gustav Stresemann led Germany's diplomatic rehabilitation, earning the republic a brief period of relative prosperity known as the Golden Twenties.
- title: Wall Street Crash and Great Depression
  year: 1929
  description: The October 1929 stock market collapse in the US triggered a global economic downturn. Germany, heavily dependent on American loans since 1924, was hit harder than most nations, with unemployment reaching 6 million by 1932.
- title: Nazi Party electoral breakthrough
  year: 1930
  description: In September elections, Adolf Hitler's NSDAP captured 18.3% of votes, becoming the second-largest party. Economic desperation and resentment of Versailles combined to make extremism mainstream.
- title: Republic dissolved by Hitler
  year: 1933
  description: Following Hitler's appointment as Chancellor on January 30, 1933, the Enabling Act of March 23 effectively ended parliamentary democracy. The Weimar Republic, formally dissolved, gave way to the Third Reich.
culturalContext:
topMusic:
- title: Goldberg Variations (BWV 988)
  artist: Johann Sebastian Bach
  note: Not of the period, but widely performed during Weimar; represented pre-war German cultural continuity
  referenceCard:
  status: ok
  checkedAt: "2026-05-27T09:25:47.309Z"
topFilms:
- title: The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
  year: 1920
  note: German Expressionist masterpiece; defined Weimar's avant-garde visual style
  referenceCard:
  status: ok
  checkedAt: "2026-05-27T09:25:47.309Z"
- title: Nosferatu
  year: 1922
  note: F.W. Murnau's vampire classic; influential horror film of the era
  referenceCard:
  status: ok
  checkedAt: "2026-05-27T09:25:47.309Z"
topTVShows: []
zeitgeistNote: "Weimar culture embodied contradiction: avant-garde experimentation coexisted with economic anxiety. Berlin became Europe's cultural capital, hosting cabarets, jazz clubs, and experimental theater while hyperinflation and political instability eroded social cohesion. Expressionism, Dada, and the Bauhaus (founded 1919) flourished, but cultural pessimism pervaded literature and philosophy. By 1929, the Great Depression amplified the sense of civilizational crisis that would prove fertile ground for authoritarian ideology."
relatedQueries:
- Weimar Republic hyperinflation 1923
- Treaty of Versailles German resentment
- Golden Twenties Berlin culture
- Weimar constitution 1919 features
- NSDAP rise 1930 elections
- Bauhaus design Weimar era
- Weimar cabaret Bertolt Brecht
- German reparations World War I
- Enabling Act 1933 Hitler
- Prussian military Weimar Republic
gallery:
- url: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/21/Flag_of_Germany_%283-2%29.svg/1280px-Flag_of_Germany_%283-2%29.svg.png"
  thumbnailUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/21/Flag_of_Germany_%283-2%29.svg/800px-Flag_of_Germany_%283-2%29.svg.png"
  caption: Weimar Republic
  credit: Wikipedia · "Weimar Republic"
  width: 330
  height: 220
archiveSnapshots:
- url: "https://web.archive.org/web/20260605150955/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weimar_Republic"
  capturedAt: 2026-06-05
  label: Weimar Republic
  originalUrl: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weimar_Republic"
