Catastrophe in the Weimar Republic: Hyperinflation & Poverty

Lauren Hudson 
Week Six - The Weimar Republic 

In the wake of defeat in the grueling four-year First World War, Germany was bound to the Treaty of Versailles—a treaty that would slowly contribute to the major economic crisis that would hit Germany in the early 1920’s.

The Treaty of Versailles was an allegiance between Germany and the Allied Powers who had fought in the First World War. This treaty was designed to punish Germany for their wartime actions and had several stipulations that were intended to cater to the needs of the Allied Powers: reassignment of German boundaries, massive reduction of German armed forces, and the payment of reparations from Germany to the Allied Powers. Specifically, Part VIII of the treaty required that Germany repay the allies for their wartime losses—to which Germany agreed.

Upon this commitment, the country of Germany quickly found themselves in turmoil after failing to make these payments in the year 1922, as there was no more funding left to complete the action. The Weimar government found themselves printing more currency to pay the French, which in turn brought on an ultimate economic hyperinflation crisis to the country that intensified over a period of merely months, peaking in 1923.

This massive crisis can be interpreted through Weimar period photography, which highlights the intensity of devastation brought onto the German people. The value of the German mark exponentially imploded, and prices for simple everyday items—such as bread—ran to cost over 2 million marks in late 1923. By the fall months of 1923, the mark cost more to print than it was worth. The mark in turn became more valuable for the material itself than the intended currency value. 

Left: Man sweeps currency notes into drainage hole in street.
Right: Woman uses currency as fire fuel. 

This is shown through the photography of this period as shown in these images. These images depict residents of Germany using piles of marks for various purposes, all different from the intended purpose of currency. The mark was absolutely worthless to the working-class citizens of Germany, with some treating the notes as street trash, fire fuel, or even shape-shifting it into a form of attire.

Severe hyperinflation caused massive devastation among the German population, with starvation, poverty, homelessness, and poor health becoming common themes of German families.

It was not uncommon to find film and theater productions that made a mockery of the German government and expressed the frustration of the people for a government that put them into such a predicament.

Rapid industrialization was also effective at this time, although unemployment rose as business owners could not afford to support living wages, and the people therefore suffered. The reading "The Weimar Republic: Origins and Orientations" emphasized the heavy influence of industrialization in this period of post-war Germany.

A predominant film called "Metropolis" was also released in 1927 by director Fritz Lang. This science-fiction film depicted a futuristic, prosperous city existing in a utopia above an underworld populated by mistreated workers. This film served as a strong statement piece regarding class tensions in this time brought on by heightened economic stress. This film closely correlates with similar ideas of artists of the time, as demonstrated by the artwork observed in the class discussion depicting higher class citizens on a platform overlooking working-class citizens.

Link to Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=on2H8Qt5fgA

In summary, various photographs, artwork, and films were created to depict the internal societal and economic struggles that plagued Germany during the period of the Weimar Republic.
These struggles would later lead to a political collapse that would enable the Nazi party to rise to power.



Sources:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5088405/When-cash-worthless-Germany-World-War.html
https://knowyourmeme.com/photos/947960-nazism
https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-i/treaty-of-versailles-1
https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/commandingheights/shared/minitext/ess_germanhyperinflation.html