The Beer Hall Putsch

   

    The Great Depression had thrown Germany into economic, political, and social turmoil.  Many Germans were fed up with the Weimar Republic's failure to provide for them and was demanding change.  Around the world governments were faced with the various groups demanding radical change at home.  In Germany some groups were demanding the return of the monarchy, others wanted a communist revolution like in Russia, and a small group of fascists wanted the republic to be replaced.

         The Nazis were originally known as the German Worker's Party.  Hitler became a member of the party in 1919 and quickly emerged as the leader. The party was made up of many veterans of World War I who had grown tired of Weimar's policies.  Under Hitler's leadership the party changed the name to Nationalist Socialist Party or in German:Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP, Nazi for short.  By 1920 the party had grown to include around 3,000 members.

        Hitler realized one thing the movement lacked was a recognizable symbol or flag. In the summer of 1920, Hitler chose the symbol which to this day remains perhaps the most infamous in history, the swastika.

        It was not something Hitler invented, but is found even in the ruins of ancient times. The swastika was originally a symbol of peace.  Hitler had seen it each day as a boy when he attended the Benedictine monastery school in Lambach, Austria. The ancient monastery was decorated with carved stones and woodwork that included several swastikas.

       But when it was placed inside a white circle on a red background, it provided a powerful, instantly recognizable symbol that immediately helped Hitler's party gain popularity.  Hitler described the symbolism involved: "In the red we see the social idea of the movement, in the white the national idea, in the swastika the mission to struggle for the victory of Aryan man and at the same time the victory of the idea of creative work, which is eternally anti-Semitic and will always be anti-Semitic."

In a short period of time, Hitler was able to turn a symbol that for thousands of years stood for peace, into a symbol of hatred and ignorance.

      On November 8, 1923, Hitler and his followers attempted a "putsch" or a coup in the city of Munich.  Hitler's plan called for the capture of three government officials who would be at a Beer Hall in Munich.  A second, larger group of Nazis were to have the barracks in Munich surrender and secure the city. Once he had the officials convinced to help him lead an overthrow of the government he would march from Munich to Weimar and be given control of the nation.  

   Hitler had a machine gun placed outside the beer hall to prevent anyone from getting out, and around 8:30 he stormed into the Beer Hall, fired his pistol into the air and demanded that the hundreds of people gathered inside be silent. "The National Revolution has begun!" Hitler shouted. "...No one may leave the hall. Unless there is immediate quiet I shall have a machine gun posted in the gallery. The Bavarian and Reich governments have been removed and a provisional national government formed. The barracks of the Reichswehr and police are occupied. The Army and the police are marching on the city under the swastika banner!"  The people inside did not know that this was a complete lie looked on in silence. 

        Hitler gathered the three officials and demanded that they join him in declaring a Nazi Revolution and join him in the new government.   The three men refused to speak to the skinny man with the mustache, and blankly stared at him.  Hitler took out his pistol and informed the men that he had four bullets in the chamber, three for them and one for him.  If the revolution did not work, they all would have the same fate.

       The Nazi troopers failed to take over the German barracks in the city.  As time dragged on, Hitler began to realize that his revolution was failing, and failing fast.  He left the Beer Hall to try and convince the soldiers to surrender and join him in revolution, but had no such luck.  When he leaves, the three officials trick the Nazi captures into letting them go, and Hitler returns with no troop support and no hostages. 

   All night Hitler paced trying to figure out his next move.  The next day, at 11:00, Hitler led three thousand of his followers into the streets of Munich to capture city hall.  German police and military had blocked the road by the capital and as the Nazis marched towards the police, violence seemed unavoidable.  Both sides fired at each other, 16 Nazis were killed, and 4 police officers died protecting the city.  Hitler is knocked down and crawls away, escaping serious harm.

After three days of hiding and fear of execution, Hitler is arrested by the authorities.  His glorious Nazi Revolution had only lasted for less than 24 hours.   He is placed on trial and sentenced to five years in prison. 

The Weimar Republic 1918-1933

German soldiers returning from World War I came home to a very different Germany.  Gone was the German Empire with colonies in Asia and Africa led by the Kaiser Wilhelm II.  Gone was the industrial Rhineland, as well as the port city of Danzig.  Many came home to find that their homes or businesses had been destroyed in the conflict.  The capital of the German Empire had been the proud city of Berlin; the new government had the capital in the city of Weimar. 

 The new Republic faced an uphill battle of rebuilding a nation that had lost over 1.7 million men in combat, had over 4.2 million men return home wounded.  In addition to the loss of human life, many German farms and factories had been destroyed in the fighting.  Soldiers and civilians lost their jobs and unemployment soared.  The “War Guilt Clause” made it nearly impossible for the German nation to begin rebuilding.  The Treaty of Versailles placed Germany responsible for the War, and had to pay damages to Great Britain, France, and Belgium.

   1919-1923

From 1919-1923, the Republic faced years of crisis.  Many conservative groups in Germany wanted a return to an authoritarian style of government like the old German Empire.  The groups began to blame the Republic for the defeat of Germany during the first World War, claiming that the Republic had allied itself with Jews and Socialist, brining Germany to defeat.  Many veterans of W.W.I joined these groups, fueled by their anger and resentment.

 The Republic’s economy faced a severe depression during this time period as well. Prices for basic goods soared throughout the country.  The Weimar Republic began to print out more money to try and help the German citizens deal with high prices, this proved to be a disaster. The value of the German deutschemark (German currency) before W.W.I was 4.2 to 1 U.S. dollar.  By August 1923, 1 million deutschemarks equaled 1 U.S. dollar. 

  By 1923, the German government was unable to pay the reparations to Britain, France, and Belgium.  As a result the French and the Belgium governments sent in troops to occupy the Ruhr Valley in Germany.  The Ruhr Valley was the industrial center of Germany, home to coal mines, factories, iron deposits, and steel mills.  German workers refused to work for the French or the Belgiums and went on strike.  Fights broke out between the Germans and the French, and some German workers were killed.  The rest of Germany demanded that the French and Belgium troops leave Germany, and protests took place all over the country.

  1924-1929

The United States looked on the crisis in Germany with growing concern.  The last thing that the U.S. wanted was another war in Europe.  Charles Dawes was asked by Britain and the United States to formulate a plan that would bail out the German economy.  The Dawes Plan, had the United States loan Germany money so that the German government could pay off its debts to the Allied nations of Europe.  In addition to this the German economy was going to be restructured and issue a new type of currency.   One the loans were put in place, France and Belgium agreed to withdraw their troops from the Ruhr Valley.

 This eased the economic burden that was placed on Germany.  For the next five years the German economy would grow and the Weimar Republic flourished.  Germany became one of the leading nations in architecture, music, math and science, and fashion.

The Bauhaus style of architecture revolutionized modern buildings in cities across the world.  The type of design was radically different from the previous style of the 19^th century. 

 Arnold Schoenberg was a composer living in Germany.  He developed a new twelve tone technique that influenced an entire generation of composers across the world.  Along with Richard Strauss, Germany was at the center of the  Classical Musical World. 

 

During this period Fritz Lang produces what many consider the first scientific film, Metropolis.  The film painted a dark future where the population of the world had been divided.  Planners and Thinkers live on Earth in luxury, while the workers live underground. 

  In October of 1929, the stock market crashes in America and the U.S. enters what historians call, “The Great Depression.”  As the American economy worsened, banks and businesses began to close.  The American government cancels the Dawes Plan, and the Depression spreads to Germany.

1929-1933

The Depression quickly ended the period of economic growth that Germany had briefly enjoyed.  The numbers of unemployed Germans grows at an alarming rate, from 1.8 million in 1928 to over 6 million in 1932.  As more and more Germans lose their jobs and savings, many blamed the Weimar Republic for failing to provide for them.  The people of Germany felt that the democratic system had failed them and that it would take a strong leader, like the kaiser to bring the country out of the Depression. 

The Treaty of Versailles

       The guns of World War I went silent on November 11, 1918, but the treaty ending the war would be signed until June 28, 1919.   From January 1919, until the end of June, delegates from France, Italy, Great Britain, and the United States began to work on a peace deal that would bring about to the largest conflict the world had ever seen.  Representatives from Germany and Austria were not invited to attend the peace conference that was being held in the palace of Versailles, right outside Paris.

   

      The Allies all brought to Versailles their own agenda, each wanting something from the peace conference.  

The French Prime Minister was George Clemenceau.  George wanted to make sure that Germany would be fully punished for its actions during World War I.  Clemenceau knew that Germany had invaded France in 1871 and again in 1914, he wanted to be sure that Germany would never again be strong enough to threaten the security of France.  He wanted the Germans to be left with no army or navy, and that the Rhineland be given over to the allies so that the Germans could not use their industrial center.  Clemenceau was out for revenge. 

David Lloyd George was the Prime Minister of Great Britain at the time. George was concerned that if France was to have its way, then the French would have an edge in global affairs.  He wanted to be sure that the Germans would be punished, but sought a punishment not as harsh as the one France wanted.  George believed that the British would benefit from the German colonies in Africa as well as Asia.  Germany had been England's number one rival for naval supremacy, so Lloyd wanted to be sure that Germany would never be a threat to the British navy again. 

Woodrow Wilson represented the United States at the conference at Versailles.  Wilson's main objective was that an international organization be created to ensure that there would never again be a conflict like the Great War.  Wilson detailed this in his Fourteen Points, and called for a League of Nations to be created.  Wilson's plans were met with some skepticism back in the United States.

    The German delegate was not invited into the conference hall until the treaty was complete on June 28th.  When he began to read the document he shook with rage.  Germany would be forced to take full responsibility for the war.   This "War Guilt Clause" meant that Germany would be forced to pay reparations to the Allies for all civilian damages that were caused during the conflict.

   Other parts of the treaty included:

1.) German port city of Danzig, and other lands would be given to the new country of Poland.

2.) The industrial center of the Rhineland would be occupied by the French and the British.

3.) The German army was to be limited to 100,000 men.

4.) The new country of Chezhoslavakia would be given some land. 

5.) Germany would give the territory of Alslace and Lorraine back to France

6.) Germany gave the territory of Scheleswig to Denmark

7.) The German navy would be limited to 15,000 men and consist of: 6 battleships, 6 cruisers, 6 destroyers, and 12 torpedo boats.  No submarines!

As news of the humiliating treaty reached Germany, the people responded with widespread protests.  Many Germans felt that their country had been betrayed, but not by the kaiser and the old government, by the new government, The Weimar Republic.  The Republic faced the uphill task of rebuilding a beaten and bitter nation.

M.A.I.N.

  Europe of 1914 and Europe of 1933 were two very different places.  In 1914, Germany, Russia, and Austria-Hungary were all ruled by emperors. By 1933, all of those nations would have different governments and have lost much of their territory.

    Germany was an empire ruled by the Hohenzolleran family.  Kaiser Wilhem II's family had ruled the German kingdom of Prussia since the 1600s, and over time had carved out a German empire by 1871.  Wilhem believed that his kingdom was destined to have the largest empire and most powerful navy in the world.

     The Russian empire stretched across Europe and Asia, the largest nation in the world.  While the largest country, Russia remained one of the poorest, lagging behind other nations in industry and manufacturing.  Russia was ruled by the Romanov family, who had been in power for over 300 years.  Czar Nicholas II would be the last ruler of Romanovs.

     Austria-Hungary was ruled by the Hapsburg family, which had been in power since 1512.   The Hapsburgs were german speaking Austrians that ruled a very diverse empire.  Maygars, Poles, Hungarians, Slavs, Italians,  Albanians, and Croatians were some of the different ethnic groups that lived in the empire.    Each group clamored for their own independent nation.

The heir to the Austrian thrown was assassinated in a remote portion of his kingdom.  The group that was responsible for the murder wanted Austria-Hungary to grant independence to that portion of the kingdom.  Austria blamed its neighbor, Serbia and demanded that Serbia give in to a list of demands.  Serbia refused, and Austria declared war.

In the decades leading up to the war, European nations became involved in militarism, alliances, imperialism, and nationalism.  M.A.I.N.   These would be the long term causes of the First World War.

Militarism: the strengthening of a nation's military and the belief that it was the duty of a citizen to fight and die for your nation.  This glorification of of war had many young men join the military to fulfill their duty as a good citizen.  The governments of England, France, and Germany began to increase the size of their armies and navies.  Like little kids with toys, these rulers were looking for an opportunity to use their army.

Alliances: Secret alliances occurred between several nations in Europe.  Austria-Hungary had a "blood bond" with Germany.  A "blank check", that promised unconditional support in a time of war.  Serbia had an alliance with Russia, who viewed the Russian empire as a protective older brother.  France had a secret treaty with Russia to support the Russians if they were ever attacked.  Belgium had support from Britain, that if they were ever attacked then the British would come to their aid. 

Imperialism: empire building.  European nations competed over land in Africa and Asia for colonies that would provide gold, rubber, cotton, tea, and other raw materials.  This led to an increase in tensions as nations grew jealous of other countries' colonies.

Nationalism: the belief that your nation is superior to other nations in the world. The British felt that they were better then the Germans and the French.  The Germans felt that they were superior to other countries, ect...  Imagine if you had a lacrosse team where every athlete felt that they were the best and should be starting.  Nobody would pass the ball, and no plays could be called.  Multiply that tension and you can see how this created a dangerous environment. 

Dark Days of the War

In 1861, General Winfield Scott designed a plan to defeat the Confederate forces.  Scott did not believe that the war could be won quickly, so he designed a plan that would slowly but surely bring an end to the war.   The plan called for a naval blockade of all Southern ports, cutting the South off from money and supplies from Great Britain.  The second part of the plan, had the Union army take over the Mississippi River, isolating Louisiana, Arkansas, and Texas from the rest of the Confederacy. This plan became known as the Anaconda Plan.

      While Scott's plan was being carried out by Lincoln, many had hoped the war would end much quicker.  To achieve that goal, Lincoln wanted the Confederate capital of Richmond to be taken.  Lincoln promoted General George B. McClellan (Little Mac) to command the U.S. military.  McClellan led a large Union force into Northern Virginia hoping to capture Richmond.

    For seven days Robert E. Lee and George B. McClellan engaged in six battles outside Richmond.  The Seven Days Battle may have an unoriginal name but when the week was up, McClellan and his army limped out of northern Virginia back to Washington D.C.  Lincoln then orders General John Pope to try and take Richmond.  Pope is a highly ambitious soldier and takes bold chances on the battlefield. McClellan writes in his journal that Pope would be "trashed. "Pope tells his troops, "let us look before us and not behind.  Success and glory are in the advance."   Little Mac is right.  Pope and his men get badly beaten at the Second Battle of Bull Run.

      As the Union army is being defeated by Robert E. Lee, the popularity of the war in North is fading past.  Lincoln meets with his Secretary of War, Edward Stanton and his Sec. of State William Seward and discuss the situation.  Lincoln wants to issue an proclamation to free the slaves in the Confederate held territory.  Such a proclamation would cause damage to the Southern economy.  Lincoln can not issue the proclamation following an Union defeat.  If he did then it would make the north look desperate to win.  The President needed a victory.

      Victory would arrive courtesy of a box of cigars.  Union troops in Maryland discover battle plans for General Robert E. Lee's forces wrapped in a cigar box.  The Confederate government ordered Lee to head north and try to earn a victory on Union controlled land.  The South hoped that a Confederate victory on Union controlled land would have the U.S. government call for an end to hostilities.   

        With Lee's plans, McClellan knows where the Confederate forces are heading.  The two armies meet near Antietam Creek in Maryland.  The fighting lasts for several hours and both sides suffer heavy casualties.  In one day of fighting 12,500 Union soldiers and 13,700 Confederate troops would die.  Lee knew that his army was badly beaten and needed to return to Virginia for supplies and rest.  McClellan was given the opportunity to peruse Robert E. Lee but hesitates.  McClellan's hesitation would lead to his dismissal by Abraham Lincoln who ordered that Little Mac, "destroy the rebel army is possible." 

    Antietam remains the bloodiest day in American history.  From this battle though, Lincoln has the victory that he needs to issue the Emancipation Proclamation.  This document inspires slaves to flee their owners when they hear that a Union army is nearby, giving hope to millions.  

Election of 1860 to Bull Run

This political cartoon appeared in 1861 criticizing the Presidency of James Buchanan.  The cartoon shows the symbol of the U.S. , an eagle looking proud and distinguished in 1857, the year Buchanan would take office.  By 1861, the year he was to leave the eagle is in tatters, a shadow of its former self.    

     Buchanan, Democrat from Pennsylvania, is considered by most historians as being the worst President of the United States.  His critics point out that he made many compromises to Southern States while in office and looked the other way during the Dred Scott Case and Bleeding Kansas.  His own party would be in shambles over the issue of slavery and choose not to nominate him for re-election when his term expired.  

  The election of 1860, is one of the most crucial turning points in U.S. history.  The outcome would lead to the dissolution of the Union and change the course of history.  

The Democratic Party was in shambles in 1860.  During the National Convention in Charleston South Carolina the Democrats failed to nominate a candidate to run for office.  Fights broke out in the meeting hall and many Southern leaders call on a protest of the Convention.  The Democratic leaders decided to halt the nomination process and to meet again in two weeks in Baltimore.  Several delegates refused to attend the second convention and nominated John C. Breckinridge to be the Democratic Nominee for President.    When the Convention ended in Baltimore, Stepehn F. Douglas from Illinois was chosen to run for President.  The Democrats had two candidates running for President, Douglas from the North and Breckinridge from the South.  

    The Republican Convention took place in Chicago and was much more unified then the Democrats.  William Seward the Senator from New York seemed to be the front runner to earn the nomination for President.  However, many Republicans felt that he was too strongly opposed to slavery and that might lose him some votes in the border states.  On the third ballot, Abraham Lincoln from Illinois was chosen to be the Republican nominee for President because of his moderate stance on slavery.

   A third party ran on the ballot for President.  John Bell from Tennessee ran on the Constitutional Union Party ticket.  Bell was for slavery and hoped to keep the Union together.

Douglas became the first Presidential Candidate to campaign across the nation.  He spoke in both the North and South, trying to appeal to Americans to keep the nation together.  Although he knew that he would not gain many votes in the South, he hoped to reach out to those who lived in Southern cities and to immigrant groups.  

The Democrats hoped to block Lincoln from gaining enough votes in the Electoral College so the vote would be decided by the House of Representatives which was controlled by the Democrats.  

   Despite the fact that Lincoln did not appear on the ballot on some states he won both the popular vote and the electoral college.  Douglas was second in the popular vote but only won the state of Missouri.  Both Breckinridge and Bell did well in the South, but neither gained enough votes in the electoral college to challenge Lincoln.  If Lincoln ran against only one other candidate then the Democrats would have had a stronger chance of defeating him.  

 

The cartoon shows Lincoln stooping Breckinridge and Douglas from getting into the White House.  The old guy in the window is Buchanan being pulled out by John Bell.  

On December 20, 1860, the legislature of South Carolina voted to dissolve the union between South Carolina and other states.  By February 1, 1861, Mississippi, Florida, Georgia, Texas, and Louisiana had also voted to leave the Union.   Buchanan said that the states did not have the right to leave but the Federal Government did not have the power to make states return.   Federal arsenals, forts, post offices, and mints were being seized throughout the South by the newly formed Confederate States of America.  

   

In Charleston Harbor Fort Sumter stood as a Union presence in the deep South.  Major John Anderson the commander of the fort grew concerned that he would not have enough food and supplies to withstand an attack.  He encouraged President Lincoln to send relief as soon as possible.  Before relief could arrive, the South struck first, attacking Fort Sumter with a 30 hour around the clock bombardment.  Anderson surrenders suffering only one casualty, a horse.  Charleston Harbor was now open to allow ships to export cotton, the most valuable crop of the South.

Lincoln hoped for a quick end to the war.  He ordered General Irvin McDowell to lead an attack on the Confederate capital of Richmond, located less than 100 miles from Washington D.C.  McDowell complains that his army is neither disciplined nor prepared for the assault.  The Union army is embarrassed by 35,000 Confederate troops who are able to withstand the Union attacks at Bull Run.  For many this was a sign that the war between the North and the South would be a long and bloody ordeal.  

Dred Scott Decision

Dred Scott was born a slave in Virginia around 1799.  In 1830, Scott and his master moved to Missouri, which was a slave state.  Four years later, a surgeon in the U.S. army named Dr. John Emerson bough Scott and moved him to the free state of Illinois.  In 1836, Scott and Emerson moved to the Wisconsin Terriory.  In 1838, Emerson moved back to Missouri where he would die in 1843.  In his will, Emerson left all his possessions including Scott to his widow.  In 1846, Scott asked Mrs. Emerson if he could work for his freedom. According to Scott she refused.

     Scott sued Mrs. Emerson and argued that he was being held illegally because he had become a free man as soon as he had lived in a free state.  He claimed that he was taken to a slave state against his will.  Many slaves had sued their owners in this way and won their freedom in the past.  In 1847, Emerson won in the Missouri Circuit Court because Scott's lawyers failed to prove that she was holding Scott as a slave.  Scott's lawyers successfully argued for a new trial.

   Dred Scott became the most famous slave in the United States and his case would make it all the way to the Supreme Court.   The issue of Scott's freedom became overshadowed by the question of whether the national government could pass a law regarding slavery.  Scott's lawyers based their argument on the fact that since Scott had been living in territory that the federal government had declared slave free, he was no longer a slave.  

      Many people in the South felt that the U.S. government had no right to declare a law about slavery in a territory but the people of that territory had the right to do that.  Since Scott was legally property, the U.S. government had no right to take him from his owners.   Some lawyers felt that Scott had no legal right to a trial since he was not a citizen of the United States. 

   The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in 1857 was Roger Taney.  Taney was a slave holder from Maryland that had been serving as Chief Justice since 1837.  Taney felt that this was an opportunity to put to rest the issue of slavery.  He was faced with three main questions to answer: 1.) Is Dred Scott free?  2.) Can a former slave or any African-American become a U.S. citizen?

  and finally, 3.) Does the Federal Government have the authority to declare laws about slavery. 

     Taney delivered the decision himself to the lawyers for both sides.  The Supreme Court declared that Dred Scott had no legitimate claim to his freedom and that he was to be returned to his owners.  According to the Supreme Court the U.S. government had no authority to declare any laws on slavey (it was not mentioned in the Constitution). On the issue of whether a descendent of a slave could ever become a citizen or not, the court said "the language used in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution shows that neither the class of persons imported as slaves nor their descendants free or not...were acknowledged as part of the people, nor intended to be included in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution."

      With a few simple words, Roger Taney was able to deny citizenship to hundreds of thousands of free African Americans and further divide the nation on the issue of slavery.  Since only states were allowed to pass laws on the issue of slavery, the Missouri Compromise was now considered UnConstitutional.  Slavery could technically be able to spread in parts of the nation where it had once been forbidden.  Many Northern politicians saw this as another example of the South being given special privileges. 

   

   Dred Scott would eventually be granted freedom by a different owner.  He died in St. Louis after working as a hotel porter.  Roger Taney would become one of the most reviled Justices ever to serve in the Supreme Court.  He would remain in office until his death in 1864.  Congress refused to have a statue of him paced in the Supreme Court building because of his role in the Dred Scott case.