The Weimar Republic, established in 1919 under the Treaty of Versailles, came to power in a climate of social, political and economic disarray. From the outset the German people were deeply resentful and distrustful of a government, who, having signed the treaty and accepting the clauses contained within, had apparently robbed Germany of its right to victory, stripped it of its military prowess, virtually given away its territories and plunged the country into serious debt by agreeing to pay reparations to the allies. This, together with the sheer cost of the war and the added problem of the millions of demobilised and disillusioned soldiers returning from the front to a country beset with high unemployment and inflation, led to a wave of armed riots and political assassinations. By January 1923 the crisis had come to a head. Frustrated at Germany's inability to meet the demand for reparation payments, France and Belgium ordered their troops to enter the industrial

The pessimists also argue that the political situation remained uncertain and unstable. The Versailles Treaty had left many people still feeling deeply distrustful and resentful of the Weimar Republic. Consequently, street violence and animosity continued unabated. Within the government itself both the left and the right remained suspicious of each other's motives and this weakened coalitions. In fact between 1924 and 1928 there were six governments, only one of which managed to last for twenty-one months. Frustrated and disappointed with the Republic's inability to form a strong majority government, many Germans began to call for authoritarian leadership. According to the pessimists, the election of Hindenburg as president in 1925, who was openly critical of the Republic and democracy, provided a focus for these sections of society and for right-wing ambitions. In their view, this paved the way for the Nazis who managed to gain a foothold in the Reichstag in 1928, albeit small, which provided them with a platform for publicity and respectability from which they built.

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Approximate Word count = 1651
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)