German revolution of 1918–1919
- This article describes the November 1918 revolution in Germany. For other events, see Revolution of 1848 and Fall of the Berlin wall in 1989
The German Revolution (also known as November Revolution) is a series of events that occurred before and after the end of World War I in 1918-1919, culminating in the overthrow of the Kaiser and the establishment of the politically fragile Weimar Republic.
Like the Russian February Revolution, the German Revolution was triggered by the First World War, occurring as military defeat appeared imminent. As in Russia, no single political party led the rebellion, and workers' councils similar to the soviets seized power across the country. However, unlike the Russian Revolution, attempts by communists to carry over the revolution against the monarchy into a revolution against capitalism were ultimately unsuccessful, although their success appeared possible at several points. The events continue to polarise the Left, not least because of the use of the right-wing Freikorps paramilitaries by the Social-Democratic government in order to suppress the far-left Spartacist revolt.
First, anti-monarchist wave (1918)
Like the Russian Revolution, the German Revolution occurred in the context of the disastrous consequences of World War I. The abandonment of power by the Supreme Command under Erich Ludendorff (largely as a result of the wave of strikes and unrest on the home front) triggered a political crisis, leading to the assumption of power by the liberal Prince Max von Baden as representative of the Royal Family. Although the main mass workers' party, the Social-Democratic Party (SPD), participated in the government and its attempts to broker an armistice to end the war, this proved insufficient in preventing rebellion.
The uprising began in Kiel from 29 October - 3 November 1918, when forty thousand sailors and marines of the Kaiserliche Marine took over the port in protest against an order by German Naval Command to engage the Royal Navy, as they considered the attack "suicidal". They had witnessed their officers in drunken revelry toasting the 'Glorious Death Ride of the Fleet' so knew of the order to set sail.
By November 8, workers' and soldiers' councils had seized control of most German cities, laying the foundations for the so-called Räterepublik ("Council Republic"). Kaiser Wilhelm was forced to abdicate on 9 November, effectively ending the German monarchy, although monarchial support continued to run strong, especially in the middle- and upper-classes.
Elections were held for workers' councils across the land. Many workers'councils were very moderate because the local population was not socialistic. For example, Max Weber was part of the workers' council of Heidelberg, and was pleasantly surprised that most members were moderate German liberals.
In a state of panic on 9 November, with the revolutionary movement unfolding beneath the feet of the SPD, Social Democrat Philipp Scheidemann excitedly declared Germany a republic in a speech from the Reichstag. The nominal Chancellor, Friedrich Ebert, was furious, but it proved to be a shrewd move, painting the Social Democrats as more radical than they were.
In a telephone conversation with Wilhelm Groener, the quartermaster of the German Army at Spa, late at night on November 9th, Ebert agreed terms for the Armistice. Groener agreed to sign the Armistice on condition that the Army could return home and crush the rebellion - Ebert agreed. This was the so-called Ebert-Groener pact.
The SPD were catapulted into power as rulers of the new Weimar Republic alongside their more radical counterparts, the Independent Social Democratic Party (USPD), which consisted mostly of former SPD members who had left the party because of its support for the First World War. The alliance was to be temporary. The united front disintegrated in late December 1918 as the USPD left the coalition in protest at perceived SPD compromises with the (capitalist) status quo. Elections in January 1919 didn't lead to a socialist majority in the parliament, althouh the moderate SPD became the largest political party.
Second, anti-capitalist wave (1919)
A second revolutionary wave swept Germany in January 1919, in which the communist revolutionary Spartacist League were prominent. In response, Social-Democratic leader Friedrich Ebert deployed the nationalist militia, the Freikorps, to suppress the uprising. The two most famous victims of this counter-revolutionary operation were the Spartacist leaders Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg, who were killed in Berlin on 15 January 1919. By May 1919, the revolutionary Left were routed.
In Munich, the communist revolution was a temporary success, leading to the Bavarian Soviet. The German army and Freikorps started to besiege the city, while the communists were executing 'class enemies.' Bloody war broke out in the streets and the German army and Freikorps were victorious. Afterwards they retaliated by executing many socialists. Right-wing Munich in particular became afraid of everything socialist. It quickly became the bulwark of the Nazis.
Aftermath
One of the aims of the revolution was to destroy the old institutions which had supported a fanatic expansionistic nationalism. This was unsuccessful. Teachers, big industrials, the bureaucracy, and judges continued to be right-wing. Judges gave lengthy sentences to left-wing radicals, while right-wing radicals received comparatively lesser punishments (Hitler received a one year jail sentence after his failed 1923 coup d'état). Civil war continued in many cities during the 1920s, with the German Communist Party of the Third International attempting further uprisings in 1921 and 1923.
The German Revolution laid the foundations for the Weimar Republic, which ended with the Nazis' ascension to power. It also laid the foundation for Nazism itself, by leading to the formation of the Freikorps, often viewed as Nazism's earliest manifestation.
See also
External links
- An overview of the German Revolution by Gerhard Rempel of Western New England College
- Three texts on the German Revolution written by council communists
- Library of materials on the German Revolution at marxists.org
Further reading
- Broue, Pierre (2006). The German Revolution 1917-1923. Haymarket Books. ISDN 1931859329.
- Harman, Chris (1982). The Lost Revolution: Germany 1918-1923. Bookmarks. ISDN 090622408X.