Why did German revolution of 1918/19 fail - Essay Example

?Why did German revolution of 1918/19 fail? Introduction The German Revolution of 1918/19 or the November revolution was a conflict in Germany seen as the First World War was ending. This war had a significant impact on the country as it ushered in the replacement of the country’s imperial rule to republican rule. This war started in November of 1918 and ended when the Weimar Republic was set up in August of 1919. The causes of the revolution were very much linked to the social tension in Germany during the First World War which later escalated in the days following the war. This war however is considered a failure. This paper shall discuss why the German revolution of 1918-19 failed. This paper will first provide a background of the revolution. The subsequent impact of the war shall then be discussed including the reasons for its failure. This paper is being discussed in order to provide a critical analysis of the German revolution, specifically, the pertinent details which led to its failure. Body The German revolution of November 1918 was caused by the Germany’s defeat during World War I and the initial attacks were launched after the naval mutiny on November 19181. After a few short days, the insurgency escalated in the country and gained more supporters; limited resistance from the old rulers was observed. The insurgents soon gained majority support against the German ruling empire when the working class joined the troops2. Workers and Soldier’s Councils were being established in Germany at that time and these councils soon established political as well as military authority. The Social Democratic Parties became the main runners of the revolution, and together with the Councils became the main political actors of the revolution3. By the 9th of November 1918, the Imperial Chancellor or Prince Max of Baden declared the abdication of their Emperor and subsequently, the prince transferred the office of the Chancellor of the Reich to Friedrich Ebert who headed one of the Social Councils4. At about the same time, Philipp Scheidemann declared the establishment of the republic and within a few hours of the announcement, Karl Liebknecht declared the establishment of a Free Socialist Republic in Germany5. The Social Councils in Germany however were in conflict with each other because the Major Social Democratic Party (MPSD) wanted to establish a constituent national assembly to be secured as soon as possible; on the other hand, the USPD or the Independent Democratic Party of Germany wanted to immediately implement a socialist system based on Soviet ideals6. Due to the various issues which have arisen after the end of the war, the MPSD wanted to establish a cooperation of old power brokers within the Empire. There was however a weak commitment in the parliamentary system and the republic among the police, the judiciary, the military, as well as the civil service7. This limited support made things difficult for the new republic. With all the above hitches however, on November 1918, a Council of People’s Representatives was established and ratified by the provisional general assembly of the Social Councils8. Various policies were secured by this council, including a general election which was to be held on January 1919. The alliance of social councils however collapsed in December of 1918 due to differences in military operations9. Conflicts on the direction of the revolution soon resulted to the Spartacist Revolt as troops of the MPSD launched bloody skirmishes with the other parties and councils. Government forces were supported by the right wing parties. One of these right wing parties – the Freikorp soon had some of the leaders of the KPD assassinated10. Elections for the National Assembly directed the goals of the revolution towards parliamentary rule even as the months that followed saw various confrontations with the leftists. The MPSD became the biggest and strongest party after the elections and soon after, the National Assembly formulated itself in Weimar, voting Friedrich Ebert as the President of the Reich11. The first parliamentary government of the Reich was set into office under the leadership of Philipp Scheidemann which took office on the 12th of February 1919. The other Social Councils soon dissolved their parties by the summer of 191912. Under these conditions, a more dominant parliamentary republic was established in Germany. The failure of the 1918 German Revolution was based on the fact that it was a political, not a social revolution. It impacted mostly on constitutional changes from the Empire to a republic while also ineffectively provided radical democratic shifts in the capitalist socio-economic structures13. The methods of production were not socialised or placed under the control of the workers. In other words, the November Revolution was an ineffectual attempt at a political revolution, and it has failed to effectively question the interlocking and anti-democratic elements of the industrial, judicial, bureaucratic, and military elites who had the power to significantly undermine the ruling authorities14. Anarcho-syndicalist Rudolf Rocker mentions that the failed revolutions placed the blame of the failure on the socialist parties15. He discusses that while the Russian revolution was negatively affected by the dictatorship, Germany’s revolution was affected by its constitution. In either case, socialism was bound by the powerplay of the involved socialist parties16. In both cases, vulnerable people were subjected to violence and capitalism triumphed. This anarchist viewpoint placed the blame on power politics of the socialist groups. Although there was some truth to these arguments, there was still a need to settle the question of why many workers supported the parties, and why they were subsequently abandoned by these parties. In considering the left-wing reasons of the 1918/1919 revolution failure, a historical, psychological, as well as anti-authoritarian analysis seemed to be essential. Under such summary of reasons, Germany was considered to be a state which was servile, one which needed to free itself from its own struggles and from various social disasters17. Ruhle discussed that most of the German proletariats were going against their militant brothers by unquestioningly supporting non-revolutionary organizations and their self-serving leaders18. Ruhler further discussed an understanding of the thousands of people’s frustration as well as the plight of their people19. Ruhle also considers the deep reaction to the wars as illogical because he believed that Germany did not deserve the anger of the activists, instead, it needed the help of these activists. These activists, he argued, were victims of slavery, slavery which has damaged their inner independence and freedom20. They were victims of betrayal from leaders. Ruhle declared that the proletariat had to go through hunger and slavery as well as capitalist exploitation. With Germany’s conversion into fascism, Ruhle discusse that even if the bad instincts and vices would become rampant, these vices would soon become learning points and periods of political awakening21. Other Marxists have come to other conclusions on the issue. Luxemberg discusses the German working class and their shame and denial of their social responsibilities during the war years22. The November revolution led to the downfall of the imperial government, not to new policies and principles. Even the soldiers and work councils often did not understand why they were doing what they were doing. Nevertheless, the hopes of the people were on the workers who were fighting the cause as they were able to establish revolutionary actions against the traitorous actions of the social-democratic leaders23. As these workers failed to fight the cause during the course of the revolution, it was projected that Germany would relapse into new wars, famine, and disease24. These trends have become apparent in recent years, and on an even larger scale, but back then, from 1918/19, it was hovering as a threat to the cause of the revolution. Based on an analysis of the actions of the players and stakeholders of the 1918/19 German Revolution, psychological independence, self-confidence and political awareness of the participants were not adequately developed to enable the success of the counter-revolutionary Social-Democratic party politics25. The Social-Democratic politics and not the politics of the revolutionary masses seemed to be a more accurate representation of the mass consciousness during the revolutionary period. Years after the revolution, Rudolf Rocker changed his views about putting the blame on the Social-Democratic leaders and then placed his support with Ruhle26. He declared that it was illogical to blame the Social-Democratic leaders for the failed revolution as the people themselves could not establish a socialist society following the authoritarian training and regime they have been used to. Economist Mattick also considered the German Revolution as an expression of the working class’ desire to end the war, not so much for changing the society27. He believed that a great number of the population did not exactly desire for a new society; instead, they wanted to restore a more benevolent form of liberal capitalism which was not dominated by the military and by imperialistic elements. Other Marxists like Karl Korsch declared that the 1918/19 events indicated a cultural gap between the ideal conditions and the actual awareness of the people28. The chance to shift to socialism was not achieved because the psychological status for a successful transition was very much lacking. Moreover, there was no firm and ideal general belief and support in the viability of the socialist system alongside clear steps and procedures on how it would be achieved29. The objective conditions were there to set up the socialist reform and government. However, the more important conditions including subjective will, self-confidence, and the determination to try something new were lacking30. And these lacking elements eventually made all the difference in the success of the revolution and the establishment of the socialist government. Ernst Bloch also discussed that the 1918/19 German Revolution was very much like Germany’s 1840s era where there was a small generation found, one which desired improved goals for their country, and one which created ideal conditions for a revolution31. This small generation however was coupled with limited subjective elements which did not amount to a strong and successful revolution. Conclusion On the outside, Germany seemed to secure a democratic revolution during the 1918/19 revolution. A constitutional convention secured a constitution which declared a government ruled by the popular sovereign; a bill of rights was also eventually secured, including other rights appropriated to the people regardless of gender. The issue was that the constitution did not reflect what was actually happening in Germany. The government of Ebert did not have popular support from the German leftists and in his desire to establish order and overpower communism, he also secured anti-democratic forces in both the military and in its government bureaucracy in order get through any attempts at reform. The Weimar Constitution which was a very ideal constitution was imposed on a crumbling Imperial community; and there were no structural changes made in such society. In its essence, there was actually no revolution of 1918/19. No political changes at the top of the political leadership – only that the emperor was replaced by a president – and a constitution was set in place to guide the new regime. And yet, the foundations of democracy – social, institutional, and psychological conditions still remained. The original power movers were still in positions of power within the bureaucracy, the academe, the military, and the judiciary. The army was still a dominant force and they were needed to maintain order and to secure the eastern front. In effect, they stayed very much in power. The landowners were still very much needed in order to help support the basic needs of the people and as such, they had to retain their estates. The returning troops needed work and therefore the government had to retain the industrial owners and businessmen. As a result, the same families and businessmen remained in control of the industries, the banks, the farms, and all in all, the so-called new republic. Under these conditions, the 1918/19 German revolution was a major failure. Bibliography P Broue, The German Revolution 1917-1923, Brisbane, Haymarket Books, 2006, p. 2 R Coper, Failure of a Revolution Germany in 1918-1919, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1955, p. 56 C Harman, The Lost Revolution: Germany 1918-1923, Brisbane, Bookmarks, 2008, p. 3 K Korsch and D Kellner, Karl Korsch: revolutionary theory, Sydney, Routledge, 1977, p. 73 P Lach-Newinsky, Roots of Fascism: Failure of the German Revolution 1918, Z Communications, 2010, retrieved 25 May 2012 R Lutz, The German Revolution, 1918-1919, Berlin, CUP Archive, 2009, p. 13 P Mattick, Marxism, Last Refuge of the Bourgeoisie?, London, ME Sharpe, 1983, p. 45 R. Rocker, Nationalism and Culture, London, London, Black Rose Books, 1997, p. 16 A Ryder, The German Revolution Of 1918: A Study of German Socialism in War and Revolt, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, p. 12 V Serge, Witness to the German Revolution, London, Haymarket Books, 2011, p. 43. R Watt, The Kings Depart: The Tragedy of Germany - Versailles and the German Revolution, Sydney, Simon and Schuster 1968, p. 5   Read More