Collapse of the Weimar Republic: Political Economy and Crisis

by David Abraham

Analysing the conflicts within and between organised industrial and agricultural forces in Germany as well as those between capital and labour, the author shows how these conflicts made it impossible for a coherent political force to emerge to hold the democratic republic together and how, after a period of costly cooperation with labour, and faced with unacceptable alternatives, Germany's elites found unity in a dictatorship that removed the working class from politics and obliged the dominant classes to abdicate all but their economic interests.

Genres: History, Germany

352 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1981

Reviews

[Keith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know that this book has been trashed by many academics for some errors and inaccuracies regarding primary sources. That being said, I think the author's thesis is sound, and he makes some interesting points about mass support for various political parties and how the various fractions of capital contributed the political difficulties of the Weimar Republic. The first chapter and last chapter are the best parts of the book. The authors two prefaces in the second edition are also worth a read. The case studies in between are less useful, in my opinion. Having read this book, I am interested in looking at some of the other arguments and research the author has cited.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

https://www.nytimes.com/1984/12/23/ar...