Uploaded March 2025 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
A quick look at the question of whether the conditions of the Treaty of Versailles doomed the Weimar Republic. See the full video and full explanation at youtube.com/watch?v=rIJeTSmIwyA
#GCSEHistory #GCSERevision #WeimarGermany
Sources can be found in the full-length video.
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A quick look at the question of whether the conditions of the Treaty of Versailles doomed the Weimar Republic. See the full video and full explanation at youtube.com/watch?v=rIJeTSmIwyA
#GCSEHistory #GCSERevision #WeimarGermany
Sources can be found in the full-length video.
Social Media
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/alonglongtimeago.bsky.social || @alonglongtimeago.bsky.social
Patreon: patreon.com/alonglongtimeago
Insta: instagram.com/alonglongtimeago || @alonglongtimeago

![1880s: The Rise of Socialism & Anarchism (& Bloody Sunday, 1887) | Crime & Punishment
Economic depression in Europe in the 1870s gave way to the rise of two important movements: Socialism and Anarchism. On the 13th of November 1887, the tension caused by, socialism particularly, peaked in an event which became known as Bloody Sunday. So heres a little video on a relatively short topic in the Whitechapel, 1888, Jack the Ripper murders, case study, from the Crime and Punishment through Time unit from Edexcel GCSE history.
Revision Notes:
- Social and economic problems (depression) across Europe lead to many revolutionary movements
- There was much tension around anarchism
- Many bombings and outrages committed or supposedly committed by anarchists were exaggerated
Bloody Sunday:
- Took place in London on 13 November 1887
- A socialist march against unemployment and coercion in Ireland, demanding the release of MP William O’Brien, was attacked by the Metropolitan Police and the British army
- The demonstration was organised by the SDF (Social Democratic Federation) and the Irish National league
- [Omitted word*] clashes took place between the police and demonstrators, many armed with iron bars, knives, pokers and gas pipes
- A contemporary report noted that 400 were arrested and 75 persons were badly injured, including many police, two policemen being stabbed and one protester bayonetted.
This video is a revision resource for the Crime and Punishment Through Time module of the new Pearson Edexcel 2016 History GCSE (9-1), though may be compatible with other specs from different exam boards.
FOR FULL VERSIONS OF THE NOTES FOR THIS AND OTHER CRIME & PUNISHMENT VIDEOS, FOLLOW THIS LINK: https://quizlet.com/_58irn6 1880s: The Rise of Socialism & Anarchism (& Bloody Sunday, 1887) | Crime & Punishment](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/d2Cz-Q6SNAs/mqdefault.jpg)


![1923-29: Stresemanns Strategy | GCSE History Revision | Weimar & Nazi Germany
Its 1923, hyperinflation is rampant in Weimar Germany and support for extremists is rapidly growing. The Weimar government need to do something or they risk being overthrown in a violent revolution. Luckily for the government, Gustav Stresemann, a leading German politician, steps up to the mark.
#GCSEHistory #GCSERevision #WeimarGermany
PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/alonglongtimeago
*** Useful resources ***
Quizlet Flashcards: https://quizlet.com/_6cnt50
Practice exam-style questions:
Explain why support for moderate parties increased between 1923 and 1929. (12 marks)
LINK FOR OTHER QUESTIONS (INCLUDING SOURCE & INTERPRETATIONS QUESTIONS): https://quizlet.com/_6cqa3d
Revision Notes:
- Aug 1923, Ebert appointed Gustav Stresemann as his new chancellor and foreign secretary
- Nov 1923, Stresemann resigned as chancellor but remained foreign secretary
- Stresemann hoped that stabilising the economy and regaining respect for Germany in foreign affairs would make Germans feel more content about the Weimar Republic
- This, he hoped, would increase support for moderate parties, whilst reducing support for extremists
REASONS FOR ECONOMIC RECOVERY:
Rentenmark:
- Nov 1923, Stresemann set up a new state-owned bank, called the Rentenbank
- This bank issued a new currency: the Rentenmark
- The supply of Rentenmark notes was strictly limited and their value was tied to the price of gold
- The Rentenmark was backed by German industrial plants and agricultural land
- This meant the Rentenmark had real value
- Aug 1924, the control of the new currency was given to the Reichsbank, a newly-independent, national bank.
- The currency was renamed the Reichsmark and was backed by Germany’s gold reserves
- This allowed people to trust German money again and brought an end to hyperinflation
The Dawes Plan, 1924:
- Charles G Dawes was an American Banker, asked by the allies to resolve Germany’s non-payment of reparations
- Apr 1924, Stresemann agreed to the Dawes Plan
- Reparations were temporarily reduced to £50 million per year
- US banks gave loans to German industry
- US banks gave loans of $25 billion between 1924 and 1930
- Stresemann had called off passive resistance to the French occupation of the Ruhr, resultantly, the French agreed to leave
- The German economy began to recover, benefitting workers and the middle-class
- Industrial output doubled between 1923 and 1928
- Employment, trade and income from taxation increased
- The German people were reassured & the Republic strengthened
- Extremists were furious at Germany agreeing to pay reparations again
- The economic recovery of Germany now depended upon American loans
The Young Plan, 1929:
- Plan put forward by a committee, headed by American Banker, Owen Young
- The reparations debt was reduced from £6.6 billion to £2 billion
- Germany was given a further 59 years to pay off the debt
- Annual payments were still £50 million a year
- The debt now stretched out until 1988
- Lower reparations meant lower taxes for the German people
- This meant public spending power was released, boosting the economy and therefore employment
- The French agreed to leave the Rhineland in 1930
- 1929, a referendum saw 35 million Germans in favour of the Young Plan (around 85% of voters)
RECOVERY IN FOREIGN RELATIONS
The Locarno Pact, 1925:
- 1st Dec 1925, a treaty was signed between Germany, Britain, France, Italy and Belgium
- It was agreed on equal terms with Germany, rather than imposed
- Germany accepted its new, 1919, border with France and France promised peace with Germany
- The Rhineland was to be permanently demilitarised
- The five powers agreed to open talks with Germany about joining the league of nations
- It made war in Europe less likely, thus Stresemann won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1926
- Germany was treated as an equal, which boosted German confidence in moderate parties and the Weimar government
FOR FULL NOTES FOLLOW LINK: https://quizlet.com/_59lgnv
IMAGE ATTRIBUTIONS
Thumbnail:
Blick vom Casino Hohensyburg by qwesy qwesy, licensed under CC-BY 3.0
Source: https://web.archive.org/web/20161020110929/http://www.panoramio.com/photo/57186081
Licence: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/?ref=ccsearch&atype=rich
Authors Page: https://web.archive.org/web/20161020110931/http://www.panoramio.com/user/596286?with_photo_id=57186081
This image has had been grey-scaled, blurred and had the contrast adjusted
SOURCES:
John Child, Edexcel GCSE (9-1) History Weimar and Nazi Germany, 1918-1939 (EDEXCEL GCSE HISTORY (9-1)) (Pearson, 2016) [ISBN: 9781292127347]
Its a GCSE textbook, please dont use it for any serious academic writing!
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https://www.facebook.com/alongtimeagoYT/ 1923-29: Stresemanns Strategy | GCSE History Revision | Weimar & Nazi Germany](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/gYc8fX527PQ/mqdefault.jpg)
![The German New Woman, 1918-1933 | GCSE History | Weimar Germany
It’s the 1920s and for many women, especially young, unmarried, working ones, living in big cities, the times are brining greater financial independence. Combined with more open attitudes, and having grown up through the war, meaning many are also used to greater social independence, there develops something of a new type of women.
#GCSEHistory #GCSERevision #WeimarGermany
PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/alonglongtimeago
*Useful resources*
Practice exam-style questions on Weimar: https://quizlet.com/_6cqa3d
Quizlet Flashcards: Coming at some point
Revision Notes: Also coming at some point
*SOURCES*
FOOTNOTES:
[1] A. J. Lotka, ‘Modern Trends in the Birth Rate’ in _The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science_ 188 (Sage Publications, 1936), pp. 2-3.
[2] G. V. Glass, G. C. Tiao and T. O. Maguire, ‘The 1900 Revision of German Divorce Laws: Analysis of Data as a Time-Series Quasi-Experiment’ in _Law & Society Review_ 5.4 (Wiley, 1971), p. 542; H. Engelhardt, H. Trappe and J. Dronkers, _Differences in Family Policy and the Intergenerational Transmission of Divorce: A Comparison between the former East and West Germany_ (Max-Planck-Institut, 2002), p. 34.
[3] M. Stibbe, _Germany, 1914-1933: Politics, Society and Culture_ (Routledge, 2010), p.141.
[4] Kerry Wallach, ‘Visual Weimar: The Iconography of Social and Political Identities’, in Rossol & Ziemann (eds), _The Oxford Handbook of the Weimar Republic_ (OUP, 2022), p. 527; Stibbe, ‘Germany’, p. 140.
[5] Ute Planert, ‘Weimar Bodies: Gender, Sexuality, and Reproduction’, in Rossol & Ziemann (eds), _The Oxford Handbook of the Weimar Republic_ (OUP, 2022), p. 379.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
John Child, _Edexcel GCSE (9-1) History Weimar and Nazi Germany, 1918-1939 (EDEXCEL GCSE HISTORY (9-1))_ (Pearson, 2016), p. 35.*
Henriette Engelhardt, Heike Trappe and Jaap Dronkers, _Differences in Family Policy and the Intergenerational Transmission of Divorce: A Comparison between the former East and West Germany_ (Max-Planck-Institut, 2002).
Gene V. Glass, George C. Tiao and Thomas O. Maguire, ‘The 1900 Revision of German Divorce Laws: Analysis of Data as a Time-Series Quasi-Experiment’ in _Law & Society Review_ 5.4 (Wiley, 1971).
Alfred J. Lotka, ‘Modern Trends in the Birth Rate’ in _The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science_ 188 (Sage Publications, 1936).
Nadine Rossol and Benjamin Ziemann (eds), _The Oxford Handbook of the Weimar Republic_ (Oxford University Press, 2022).**
Matthew Stibbe, ‘Germany, 1914-1933: Politics, Society and Culture’ (Routledge, 2010) - this book is a great alternative to the GCSE textbook if you want a historically rigorous overview of Weimar Germany! It also covers the debate over the existence of the New Woman relatively clearly.
Cornelie Usborne, The New Woman and generational conflict: perceptions of young womens sexual mores in the Weimar Republic in Mark Roseman, Generations in Conflict Youth Revolt and Generation Formation in Germany 1770–1968 (Cambridge University Press, 1995).
*I rely on an official GCSE textbook heavily for the purpose of making sure that what I’m teaching falls in line with the GCSE curriculum, the problem with this, however, is that this official GCSE textbook is a very questionable source, which fails to cite its sources, contains numerous errors and outdated interpretations of the history. It very much does not hold up to academic standards and should not be used for anything other than GCSE revision.
**Benjamin says read his book: https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-oxford-handbook-of-the-weimar-republic-9780198845775?cc=nl&lang=en& He is a cool guy (and even gave feedback on this script!) so I think you should too.
*Social Media*
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*IMAGE ATTRIBUTIONS*
Thumbnail
Cafe Central [https://www.flickr.com/photos/96346885@N04/47575508682] by a.canvas.of.light [https://www.flickr.com/photos/96346885@N04], licensed under CC BY 2.0 [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/?ref=openverse].
0:05
“Das Reichstagsgebäude - The Reichstag building - Berlin” [https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=53930183] by Jens Cederskjold [https://web.archive.org/web/20161014223309/http://www.panoramio.com/user/1513503?with_photo_id=35238209], licensed under CC BY 3.0 [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en].
0:34
Same as thumbnail.
3:36
Still from ‘Berlin – Die Sinfonie der Großstadt’ by Walter Ruttmann (1927), which is in the Public Domain
4:37
Still from ‘Berlin – Die Sinfonie der Großstadt’ by Walter Ruttmann (1927), which is in the Public Domain
HOW I MODERATE COMMENTS
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rZlHq9GKg7B8Vsv3k-2P74BfrmS5pFbhHRwoGjSCyzs/edit The German New Woman, 1918-1933 | GCSE History | Weimar Germany](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/hSR3yehNYSk/mqdefault.jpg)




