After 1918 the new government in Germany faced many challenges.

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme (Oct/Nov 2022). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

1. [1] (a) The Spartacists wanted Germany to have a communist revolution like the Russian Revolution.
2. [1] (a) The Spartacists wanted a communist-style government.
3. [1] (a) The Spartacists wanted Germany to be ruled by soviets.
4. [1] (a) They wanted to overthrow Ebert's moderate government/the Weimar government.
5. [1] (a) They wanted to abolish central government.
6. [1] (a) They wanted the working classes to control society.
7. [1] (a) They wanted to abolish democracy.
8. [1] (a) They wanted to nationalise businesses.
9. [1] (a) They wanted wealth spread more equally.
10. [1] (b) The government had to leave Berlin.
11. [1] (b) The government was forced to flee to Dresden.
12. [1] (b) Ebert called for a general strike.
13. [1] (b) The workers supported the government.
14. [1] (b) The government survived the threat.
15. [1] (b) The army did not try to stop the Freikorps.
16. [1] (b) Those who organised the putsch were not punished.
17. [1] (b) It demonstrated opposition to Weimar.
18. [5] (b) The Kapp Putsch was important for the government because it showed that the government could survive threats against it. When the putsch was launched the government appealed to the workers in Berlin for help. In response, they organised a general strike and this brought transport to a halt. This meant the putsch collapsed and the government survived.
19. [1] (c) Proportional representation led to coalition governments.
20. [1] (c) PR led to instability.
21. [1] (c) PR led to many small parties.
22. [1] (c) PR led to a lack of decisive action.
23. [1] (c) PR led to a rise of extremist parties.
24. [1] (c) It was difficult to form a strong government.
25. [1] (c) Article 48 undermined democracy.
26. [1] (c) The President could rule by decree.
27. [1] (c) The President decided what was a state of emergency.
28. [1] (c) Article 48 meant leaders could be a dictator for an unknown period of time.
29. [1] (c) Hitler used Article 48 to give his dictatorship legality.
30. [5] (c) Proportional representation was a weakness in the Weimar Constitution because it meant that there were many small parties in the Reichstag. Each small party had a few seats but it was difficult for one party to gain a majority. This meant governments were coalitions made up of several parties who often did not agree with one another. This led to frequent disagreements and more elections.
31. [5] (c) Article 48 was a more serious weakness because it gave too much power to the President. It allowed him to override the democratically elected government and make laws by decree. This undermined the parliamentary system and was used with more frequency after the start of the depression in 1929.
32. [10] (c) Explanation of both sides (Level 4, 7-9 marks) with evaluation of 'how far' (Level 5, 10 marks).