HISTORY 322 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Dawes Plan, German Rentenmark, Hyperinflation
Republic Without Republicans: The Golden Years
● Outline -
● Political stabilization
● Austerity measures and the forsaken people
● The middle classes
● The golden age
● Out of the shit-soup: From Hyperinflation to Stability
● Politics of Non-Fulfillment:
● Versailles continues to cast its shadow over the republic
● Growing inflation and shortages shape everyday life
● The connections seemed all to evident
● August 1923: hyperinflation
○ Allies thik that Geras are purposely creatig iflatio → leads to frech occupation
●
● Gustav Stresemann:
● Chancellor DVP aug 1923-nov 1923
○ Transactions inflate so quickly that you cannot safely calculate prices
○ Article 28 allows him to make decisions
■ Executive order
● Creates Rentenmark - only currency that is created
● Restores faith in the economy -- allows industry and govt. To restore
order
○ Foreign minister 1923
■ Recognizes borders of Germany
■ Evacuation of french troops from Rhineland
■ Germany enters the leauge of nations
■ Become members of the international community
● Erasing shame of war
● Impeccable nationalism view
○ Thought that these views could lead to stability
● Need to fulfill Versailles treaty
○ Only other alternative would be allied occupying Germany
■ Circumstances required these actions
●
● Stabilizing the currency:
● Charles Dawes and Owen Young in Berlin, 1924
● Dawes Plan 1924
○ Key to stabilizing economy
○ Agreement w US and German Creditors and Recipients of Reparations
○ Agree to loan money to Germany so they can make the payments
■ Making european economies dependent on the economy
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Document Summary
Out of the shit-soup: from hyperinflation to stability. Versailles continues to cast its shadow over the republic. Growing inflation and shortages shape everyday life. Allies thi(cid:374)k that ger(cid:373)a(cid:374)s are purposely creati(cid:374)g i(cid:374)flatio(cid:374) leads to fre(cid:374)ch occupation. Transactions inflate so quickly that you cannot safely calculate prices. Article 28 allows him to make decisions. Creates rentenmark - only currency that is created. Restores faith in the economy -- allows industry and govt. Thought that these views could lead to stability. Only other alternative would be allied occupying germany. Charles dawes and owen young in berlin, 1924. Agreement w us and german creditors and recipients of reparations. Agree to loan money to germany so they can make the payments. Making european economies dependent on the economy. Germans had hoped it would make them an exporting economy -- didn"t end up happening. Co(cid:374)stricted eco(cid:374)o(cid:373)ic gro(cid:449)th (cid:894)circulatio(cid:374) of (cid:373)o(cid:374)ey(cid:895) fear that go(cid:448)er(cid:374)ed economic policy = panic about inflation.
