﻿Hi guys, and welcome to today's lesson. I'm Mr McNally, and last lesson we looked at how far the German Economy had recovered in the years 1924 to 1929. If you missed that lesson, then please ensure you catch up and watch it as it will provide you with important contextual knowledge for today's lesson. In this lesson, we are going to examine how Germany recovered politically in the years 1924 to 1928. All you will need for today's lesson is a pen and paper, and to remove yourself from any distractions for the duration of the lesson. Please pause the video and take a moment to get yourself ready for the lesson. Perhaps move to a quiet space if possible. Once you are ready, resume the video and let the lesson begin. Today we are going to explore the following topics. A review of Stresemann's economic policies, and the impact of Stresemann's foreign policies. As you can see, there will be several tasks for you to complete throughout the lesson, and there will be pause points for each task so you have the time to work through them. The lesson will also end with an exit quiz which will be based on what you have learned in this lesson. First of all, we are going to start with a brief recap of the previous lesson, which was on the economic recovery of the Weimar Republic. So as you can see, it started really in November 1923, when the Rentenmark became the new German currency. In April 1924, the Dawes Plan was agreed, which provided American loans to German industry. In August 1924, the Rentenmark became the Reichsmark, which was tied to the German gold reserves. And in August 1929, the Young Plan was agreed, which would lower reparation payments. It is now time for a task, read the following statements, and decide whether they are true or false. So 1. The Dawes Plan reduced the Reparation payments to 2 billion. 2. The Dawes Plan provided German industry with 25 billion dollars in loans. 3. The Rentenmark was a new currency used to stop hyperinflation. And 4. The Young Plan reduced the amount of time Germany had to pay the Reparations. Please pause the video and complete the tasks. Once you are finished, resume the video and we will go through the answers. Welcome back, and here's the answers. So number one was false, it was the Young Plan which reduced reparation payments. Question two is true, question three is also true, and question four is false, it actually increased the amount of time. A big well done to those who got the answers correct. We are now going to look at an interpretation about the recovery of the Weimar Republic. Does anybody know what an interpretation is? That's right, an interpretation is a historian's opinion of an event or a period of history. These opinions will be based on a range of research. So first of all, we need to read the interpretation, and we'll do this together. So interpretation one, by historian A. Under Stresemann's guidance, the Weimar Republic flourished economically. Taxes were lowered, and people had more money to spend. The hardships of 1923 became a distant memory. Now let's look at the questions, cause these will help us dissect this interpretation. So question one, what does the interpretation tell you about the recovery of the Weimar Republic? Does it agree that it recovered? In what ways? Did it recover? Was it social, politically, economically? What do you think? The interpretation clearly says the Weimar Republic flourished economically. This means that the economy improved, it got better. Therefore, this interpretation is arguing that the Weimar Republic recovered economically. However, if we look at number two, what evidence does this interpretation provide to back up the fact that the Weimar Republic recovered economically? Can you see any quotations which support that argument? Well if we look carefully, we can see quite a couple, sorry, we can see a few different interpretations here. It mentions that taxes were lowered, therefore people had money to spend, more money to spend, which means the economy improved. It also mentions that the hardships of 1923 were a distant memory. Well if you attended the previous lessons, you should be aware that 1923 was the year of hyperinflation. And now the important bit for question 3, how does this evidence, how does this link to your own knowledge. So what context have you got as to why taxes were lowered? Or what about 1923? What hardships did they face? Well looking at those quotations, taxes were lowered due to the negotiation of the Young Plan, which followed the Reparation payments. 1923 was also the year of hyperinflation, and the new currency, the Rentenmark, added value to the German economy, to the German banknotes which actually meant that hyperinflation ended. So we've got a bit of our own knowledge there which would support the idea that the economy recovered. That's how, that's how you break down an interpretation. We have explained its message, and we have linked that to our own contextual knowledge. So now it's time to look at Stresemann's foreign policies. Between 1924 to 29, Stresemann tried to make Germany a respected international power. One of the first ways he did this was through the Locarno pact in 1925. This was an agreement between Germany, Britain, France, Belgium and Italy. Unlike the Treaty of Versailles, this was agreed with Germany, negotiated as opposed to being imposed on them. It agreed to the following aspects; that Germany agreed to the 1919 land border with France, so the land border agreed in the Treaty of Versailles, Germany, Britain and France agreed to a permanent demilitarisation of the Rheinland, and in return, the allies agreed to discuss German membership to the League of Nations. The League of Nations was an international body set up in the aftermath of world war one, to maintain world peace and solve tensions. The aim of the league was to settle disputes between countries, to prevent future wars from happening. The main powers in the League of Nations where part of the council. This included Britain and France, however America refused to join. The Treaty of Versailles prevented Germany from joining the league, however, after the Locarno Treaty, the major powers discussed Germany's entry to the league. In 1926, Germany joined the council of the League of Nations. This put them on par with Britain and France, when it comes to global politics. In 1927, was the Kellogg-Briand pact. The aim of this was to prevent another international war from breaking out. This act made states promise not to use war as a means of achieving their foreign policy. The fact that Germany were involved in this and agreed to it, showed that Germany was, um, considered a reputable power, and they were firmly involved in the process. Germany was no longer looked down upon. Stresemann's foreign policies, which we just looked at; Locarno Pact, League of Nations, Kellogg-Briand pact, had a number of consequences. Some positive, and some negative. On the positive side, it boosted the prestige of Germany. The people in Germany also started to support the Weimar Republic. If you remember the early years, from 1918 to 1923, a lot of people didn't like the Weimar Republic, they challenged it, however, this isn't the case now, people are active with supporting it. It also gave Germany an influence on a global scale, they are not seen as this outcast anymore, they are part of the global trade agreements. However, on the negative side, it didn't really appease the Weimar republic to the extremist parties, in fact, it actually angered the extremist parties, because what a lot of these agreements actually did, was make sure Germany stuck to the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, such as the land borders stayed the same, if we go back to economic policies, Germany's still paying reparations, so, from that perspective, it seems that Germany was agreeing to things that were already imposed on them, or should I say that's the way the extreme parties tended to see this. It's now time for the next task of the lesson, you can see a number of statements on this slide, you need to match the correct statement to the correct pact. For example, point one, about the land borders of 1919 being agreed with France, that was a term of the Locarno Pact. Can you match the rest, to the correct type of foreign policy. Please pause the video and complete the task, once you are finished, resume the video, and we will go through the answers. Welcome back, and here are the answers. So the Locarno pact was number one, about the agreeing the land borders with France, it was signed in 1925 so point five, and it also agreed to permanently demilitarise the Rheinland. So one four and five are all terms of the Locarno Pact. Point two, about giving Germany a position on the council, point three, it was an international body to discuss problems, and point eight, it was agreed in 1926, are all related to the League of Nations. And point six and seven, so an agreement for war not to be used for foreign policy aims, and seven, it was an agreement between Germany and 61 other nations, They are part of the Kellogg-Briand pact. Well done to those who got those answers correct. So now you can see the economic recovery of the Weimar Republic across 1923 to 29. Now you can also see the political recovery as well. You should know that there were quite a lot of positive changes in Germany, in these years. For the final task of the lesson, you are going to answer some questions based on this interpretation, in the same way you did at the start of this lesson. Here's the interpretation you will need to read, and we will read that together. So interpretation two, historian B. It was Stresemann's diplomatic skill, which oversaw the biggest recovery for the Weimar Republic. His negotiations with the major world powers made Germany a respectable nation. Germany were no longer excluded from international treaties. For the final task of the lesson, I would like you to answer the following interpretation questions, use the lesson worksheet to help you. So question one, what does interpretation two tell you about the recovery of the Weimar Republic? Question two, how did Stresemann help make Germany a 'respectable nation'?. Question three, how was Germany no longer excluded from international treaties? And four, and the challenge question, do you agree with interpretation one from the start of the lesson, or interpretation two the most. Explain your answer. And there's a nice writing frame for you to use here, to really argue the point. Please pause the video and answer the questions, once you are finished, resume the video, and we will go through the answers. Welcome back. So lets look at question one, what does interpretation two tell you about the recovery of the Weimar Republic? For a possible answer, interpretation two tells me that the recovery of the Weimar Republic was due to their success in foreign policy. So a nice straightforward sentence which answers the question. A stronger answer might look like, interpretation two suggests that the recovery of the Weimar Republic was down to Stresemann's success in foreign policy. This is due to Germany's agreeing to the Locarno pact and Kellogg-Briand pact, showing that Germany was no longer excluded from international decisions. So again, a bit more detail there, giving specific examples of how Germany were included in foreign policy. Well done for getting those answers correct. Question two, how did Stresemann help make Germany a respectable nation? So a possible answer could be; Stresemann helped make Germany a respectable nation by agreeing to the Kellogg-Briand pact. A stronger answer, could include by joining the Kellogg-Briand pact, Germany agreed with 62 other countries not to use war for foreign policy aims. This made them a respectable nation as they were involved in negotiations as opposed to being dictated to. Big well done to those who got that answer correct. Question three, how were Germany no longer excluded from international treaties? So a possible answer; Germany were no longer excluded from international treaties as they were members of the League of Nations. Quite a straightforward answer there, but a stronger answer is; Germany were a council member of the League of Nations. This allowed them to make important international decisions, alongside Britain and France. This shows that Germany were no longer excluded from international treaties. So again, both answers have the same point about Germany being members of the League of Nations, but you will see in the stronger answer, it's talking about Germany being a council member, it's saying that their alongside Britain and France, and it's showing that they're no longer excluded, so a lot more depth there. Well done to those who got the answer correct. And the challenge question. This one was based on your own opinion, so you could argue either way for this answer. So do you agree with interpretation one, or two the most? And just a quick recap, interpretation one was saying that the Weimar Republic recovered economically, and interpretation two was arguing that the Weimar Republic recovered politically. So we've got two different ways in how they recovered. Both are correct, but this is down to you to think about, do you think it recovered more economically, or more politically. So here's what a good answer would look like. I agree with interpretation one more than interpretation two as it was more important for the Weimar Republic to improve their economy than foreign relations. They managed to lower taxes due to the Young Plan, reducing the amount of Reparations they had to repay. This meant that the German people had more money to spend and their quality of life improved. This stopped the extremist groups from becoming popular as the majority of people were happy with the Weimar republic's handling of the economy. So in this answer you can see that it's arguing that the economy is the most important aspect of the country, its saying that the fact that it recovered, got more support for the Weimar Republic. However, if you wanted to argue the opposite, and argue that interpretation two was more important, then here's an alternative answer. So I agree with interpretation two more than interpretation one as it was more important for the Weimar Republic to improve their reputation on an international level, than improve their economy. They managed to stop being excluded from international treaties and agreements by joining the League of Nations in 1926. This made them respected again, which would've meant more countries wanted to trade and work with Germany. Furthermore, this helped the country move on from the legacy of world war one, which was a constant reminder of Germany's failure. So again, two possible answers here, which are both correct. It's about arguing your side of the argument, which one do you agree with. And what you will notice both answers do, they give examples. For example, in this answer it's talking about the League of Nations, it's talking about international treaties, and saying how if Germany's respected countries will trade and work with them. Whereas if I go back to the previous answer, it's giving the example of the Young Plan, and lowering taxes, and an increase of employment. So what you really need to do in these answers, if you've provided evidence and explained it, you will get good marks in this answer. Well done. So how did Stresemann help develop the Weimar Republic? Firstly, he helped improve the economy, by making a new currency, and negotiating American loans, which were used to kickstart the German industry. Secondly, he looked at ways to recover Germany's political standing. The Locarno Pact showed that countries were willing to be diplomatic towards Germany, in addition, when Germany joined the council of the League of Nations, it made them a respectable country, who are now actively involved in global politics. The Kellogg-Briand pact also showed that countries were treating Germany as an equal as opposed to looking down on them as the Treaty of Versailles did. Well done for attending this lesson, the next lesson will look at whether 1920s Germany, was a golden age. I look forward to seeing you then.

In this lesson students will examine the political recovery of the Weimar Republic. It will explore the impact of the Locarno Pact, Germany joining the League of Nations and the Kellogg-Briand Pact, and how this enhanced Germany's international reputation.

History

Y11 History

Key Stage 4

Year 11

How did Germany improve their international relations, 1924-29?

Weimar and Nazi Germany, 1919-1939

UNIT

The German Reich, 1871-1918

The Russian Revolution, 1917

How democratic was the Weimar Constitution?

Why did the German people feel stabbed in the back?

Why was there a rise in political extremism in Germany after WW1?

Why was 1923 known as a year of crisis?

How did Germany recover its economy in the years 1924-29?

Were the 1920s a golden age for all Germans?

How far had the Weimar Republic recovered by 1929?

Why was the year 1929 a significant turning point for Germany?

The early development of the Nazi Party: what did Hitler believe in?

Who were the SA and what was their role?

What was the Munich Putsch?

What were the consequences of the Munich Putsch?

What were the Nazi Party strategies during the lean years?

Why were the Nazi Party so successful after 1929?

How did political developments in 1932 result in Hitler becoming Chancellor in January 1933?

Why was Hitler ‘invited’ into power?

How did the Nazis remove political opposition?

How did Hitler consolidate power by 1934?

How far did the Nazi party create a police state?

How far did the Nazi party control the state through propaganda?

How much resistance existed in Nazi Germany before 1939?

What were Nazi attitudes and policies towards women?

How successful were Nazi policies towards women?

Why were young people so important to the Nazi Party?

Why was controlling education so important to the Nazi party?

How successful were Nazi policies at reducing unemployment?

How far did the lives of German workers improve after 1933?

How did the Nazi party view and portray minorities in society?

How did the persecution of the Jews escalate after 1933?

Who was the leader of the SA?

How many years was the president of the Weimar Republic elected for?

How old did men and women have to be to in order to vote in the Weimar Republic?

What is a coalition government?

Which of the following was not a military term of the Treaty of Versailles?

What is the stab-in-the-back theory also known as?

What was the name of the territory that the French invaded in 1923?

Who became chancellor and foreign secretary of Germany in 1923?

What was the name of the currency introduced to Germany in 1923 which was tied to the value of gold?

Which of the following art movements is based on art showing a realistic view of the world, including poverty?

What year was the Wall Street Crash?

Who was the head of the Weimar Republic?

Which three men took part in the presidential election of 1932?

When was Hitler appointed as German Chancellor?

What political ideology did Russia follow after 1917?

Which leading Nazi was responsible for censorship and propaganda in Germany?

Which of these was  an expectation of BOTH boys and girls within Nazi youth groups?

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Lesson overview: How did Germany improve their international relations, 1924-29?

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32 lessons in Weimar and Nazi Germany, 1919-1939: