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The Weimar Government And The Causes Of The Weimar Republic

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While war reparations rocked the Weimar Republic, debt wracked the farmers in the French Republic, leading to dissent and disillusionment amongst the citizens. In this period of instability, the inability of the republics to propose legislation without dissent opened way for new leaders taking advantage of the situation, promising a more unified and better society.
With the fall of major monarchies, both France and Germany strived to create representative governments that listened to the needs of the people. However, that did not work out as intended, with the government focusing more on the upper class rather than the peasants that made up the majority of the fledgling republic’s population. For example, the Constitution of 1793, advocated by Maximilien Robespierre, granted universal suffrage for men. Even with the increased rights for the people, the government did not ratify legislation that appealed to the majority of the population, the peasants. Instead, legislation that abolished property requirements for farmers, de-christianized society, and created a republic calendar did not appeal to the farmers swimming in debt with a lack of food on the table (Tocqueville). As a result, the new republic enabled the common people to voice out against them, rather than for them. After a few centuries, the Weimar Republic faced a similar situation. With much of the country disillusioned after their loss in World War I, the citizens looked towards the new Weimar Republic for a

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