1923: Hyperinflation | GCSE History | Weimar Germany

It’s 1923 and a goods shortage means that prices are rising like crazy.

#GCSEHistory​ #GCSERevision​ #WeimarGermany​

***---Useful resources---***

Revision Notes:
Inflation and hyperinflation
- goods shortages in early 1923 meant that prices went up - this is called inflation
- people had to pay more money to get what they needed
- government decisions made things worse
- the gov needed money to pay their debts but unemployment and failing factories meant they were getting less tax money
- 1919-23 gov income was a quarter of what was needed
- the gov resorted to printing more money
- 1923 gove had 300 paper mills and 2000 printing shops dedicated to printing more bank notes
- initially it made it easier to pay reparations
- but it made inflation worse
- vicious circle: prices rose more, more money printed, caused prices to rise again
- by 1923 prices where huge
- this extreme inflation is called hyperinflation
- price of a loaf of bread: 1919 1 mark, 1922, 100 marks, 1923 200 000 billion marks

the effects of hyperinflation

1) Normal Living became impossible
- printing presses couldn’t produce enough money
- people had to pin money to letters because stamps were useless
- they had to carry bundles of money in baskets and even wheelbarrows
- many workers were paid twice a day so they could rush out and buy goods before prices rose even more
- some shops refused to take money at all, asking for payment in kind (swapping goods)
- some people raided shops because they couldn’t afford food

2) Everyone suffered from shortages
- german marks became worthless for importing goods
- 1918 buying £1 worth of foreign goods cost 20 marks, by nov 1923, £1 worth of foreign goods cost 20 billion marks
- foreign suppliers refused to accept german marks for goods so imports dried up and shortages of food and other goods got worse for everyone

3) People with savings were hit hardest
- those with money in bank accounts, insurance policies or pensions had their saved money become worthless
- thus the middle classes were the worst affected

There were people who benefited from inflation
- people who had loans or took them out found that the value of the money they owed went down, e.g. some big businessmen borrowed money and profited because the value of their debts went down
- other people hoarded goods and then sold them for a large profit as prices went up
- foreign visitors also benefited, as the value of their own currency rose against the german mark, so they could buy much more with their money
- german people bitterly resented people who made money out of their suffering

the damage done
- after august 1923 a new chancellor gustav stresemann found solutions to some of the problems of 1923
- by this point however the political and economic turmoil from 1918 to 1923 had done its damage
- the WR was shown to be weak, it had been rescued by the freikorps in 1919 and workers striked in 1920, government forces had killed thousands of germans in order to stay in power
- all germans had suffered. most blamed the WR for their suffering, the middle classes which would normally be the bedrock of the republic suffered most
- extremist parties with private armies hostile to the republic had gained in strength

HOW I MODERATE COMMENTS

SOURCES:
John Child, 'Edexcel GCSE (9-1) History Weimar and Nazi Germany, 1918-1939 (EDEXCEL GCSE HISTORY (9-1))' (Pearson, 2016) [ISBN: 9781292127347], pp. 23-24
It's a GCSE textbook, please don't use it for any serious academic writing!

***---Social Media---***

[Alonglongtimeago]

🚨CORRECTIONS 🚨:
✔︎ None so far! :)

Spotted a mistake in the video?
If you think you’ve spotted a mistake, leave a polite comment saying what you think is wrong and linking a legitimate source. I’ll check and if you’re right then I’ll add the correction to this pinned comment. :)
✘ I do not engage with corrections comments which are written rudely
✘ If you leave an essay full of corrections, I won’t check it because I have other, better things to do

[MahouKat]

I've been here since GCSEs, but even at in final year of A-Levels these videos are super helpful for summarising everything. Thanks for making these! :)

[kuromie]

I got a 9 in my GCSE History, and thank you so much, your videos really helped me all through last year.

[schrodingersmoose]

Did the Weimar Republic think they found a real life infinite money glitch? The scale of the hyperinflation seems so ridiculous. Awesome video!

[abdullahmalik-kheil]

Love your videos!! So helpful, fast and effective🤝

[asnasheik]

Thanks so much for this video. I finally understood this topic. I have gcse this year. Your a big help!!!

[Yuri-and-stickworld]

Gurl, UR VOICE IS AMAZING 😭😭😭
(is it just me or voices when u have a cold sound so good-)

[StorytimeBeaming]

100 years later we are now going through the same thing.

[imogengibbs]

Honestly your videos make revising so much easier and interesting thank you

[laurencesimpson]

Brilliant video. Please keep them coming.

[sampanda]

Thank you so much! I have to write a letter of complaint to the Weimar Republic for history and its due tomorrow, so you just saved me so much time by putting so many useful things inside this video!

[slbtqhd]

I aced my january mocks on the Weimar republic thanks to your help. Fantastic content :)

[Alonglongtimeago]

How much do you think hyperinflation set back public confidence in the Weimar Republic? Share your opinion and why :)

[kwm]

A long, long time ago’s videos are easy to understand which are some good materials for me to revise and remember those accidents, Thank you rlly much:)

[realitycheckreally]

When a central bank increase the currency supply this is an inflation. Price rises are symptoms of inflation.

[holamellamo]

thank you your history videos are so helpful, thanks to you I got a 9 in my mock!

[fabianfrenz]

I don’t think it’s fully correct to say that inflation is when prices go up. You can have a shortage in a certain good causing prices to rise without having an inflation. I think it’s more accurate to say that inflation is an increase in the total supply of currency.

[richarddoherty]

Re mistake in video - it is 100% wrong! Inflation is a consequence of money printing and NOT the other way around. Print twice as much money and it is only worth half as much etc.

[cemerkonak]

100 years loop begun for globe i think. Thank you for your effective effort.

[MidoriNoKishi]

As a history fan, I was just searching for videos about the Weimar Republic and found this one. The art style is really nice! And nice video and explanations overall. XD
+1 like and sub