Germany 1918-1923

Ebert immediately signed and armistice with the allies so the war was over.

Ebert also announced that german people had freedom of speech, freedom of workship and better working conditions during his goverment

By January of 1919 Germany had their first free elections

In February Kurt Eisner, Ebert ally, was murdered by political opponents

Early 1919 Spartacist (communist party) launched their bid for power and they set up soviets in many town

In May, because of the murder of Eisner, communists seized the opportunity to declare a soviet republic in Barvaria, led by Eisner which now was dead, but Freikorps(anti communist soldiers) moved in to crush revolt

In May, Germany had another problem which was the Treaty of Versailles and Germany lost

-10 percent of its land
-all overseas colonies
-12,5 percent of their population

Moreover they had less military power, the army was reduced to 100.000 they couldn´t have airforce and their navy was reduced in adittion they had to pay reparations

In April was announced that germany had to pay 6600 millions of pounds of reparations

By the end of the yaer Germany only paid 50 millions

In January, because of not paying the reparations, French and Belgian troops entered the Ruhr and took what was owed to them in the form of raw materials and goods.This, wasn´t illegally because they weren´t paying reparations that the Treaty of Versailles said

In August a new goverment under Gustav Stresemann took over

In November Adolf Hitler attempted to a rebellion in Munich

In 1920 there were more communist agitations in Ruhr industrial area so police, army, and freikorps clashed with communists again

In March of 1920 Wolfgang Kapp led 5000 freikorps to berlin in a rebellion, the army refused to fire at freikorps which looked that the goverment was doomed but the ebert goverment was saved by industrial workers

In the summer Walther Rathenau, Ebert´s foreign minister, was murdered

Nothing was paid for reparations