Failed Republics: Weimar Germany— Democracy Undone By Crisis And Extremism

This is part 3 of our Failed Republics series— DWT’s daily look at democracies and republics that once flourished, only to collapse from within. Each case holds lessons for us today, as the U.S. faces its own tests of resilience against a kind of authoritarianism not that far removed from Weimar’s..

The Weimar Republic, born out of defeat, got off to a bad start. Created in 1919 in the ashes of World War I, it was one of the most progressive democracies of its time, with universal suffrage (including women), a bill of rights, and a parliamentary system. But in just 14 years, it collapsed— replaced by the Germany oligarchs with the acquiescence of the German people— by one of the most brutal dictatorships in history.

Crushing reparations from the Treaty of Versailles, combined with political instability, fueled runaway hyperinflation in 1923 and Weimar Germany, still reeling from military defeat and rapid social change, was in a constant state of economic shock and social despair. The middle-class’ life savings evaporated overnight. By the early 1930s, the Great Depression hit Germany hard, pushing unemployment to nearly 30%. The economic despair was very fertile ground for extremists.

The republic’s proportional voting system allowed small extremist parties to gain outsized influence. The Nazis on the far right and Communists on the far left saw democracy not as an end, but as a tool to destroy the system from within. Moderates were squeezed out in a system wracked with political polarization, and coalition governments were born and died paralyzed.

Article 48 of the Weimar Constitution gave the president sweeping emergency powers— meant to be temporary but increasingly used as a governing shortcut. Each use weakened the habit of parliamentary compromise and made authoritarian rule and the erosion of democratic norms feel “normal.”

The Nazis perfected the use of mass rallies, symbols, and scapegoating. Jews, socialists, and other “enemies of the nation” were blamed for Germany’s problems. Lies were repeated so often they began to feel like truth to millions of people— and the press often failed to challenge them. Propaganda and the politics of blame corroded what was left of the Weimar Republic.

In 1933, Adolf Hitler was appointed chancellor. Within months, the Reichstag Fire was exploited to suspend civil liberties. The Enabling Act effectively gave Hitler dictatorial powers, and Weimar’s democracy was gone.

The Weimar Republic shows how economic crisis, political paralysis, and extremist propaganda can hollow out democracy from the inside. Once norms are broken and authoritarian shortcuts become routine, reclaiming a healthy democracy becomes far harder— sometimes impossible. Many here in the U.S. are extremely worried that we’ve already entered into this cycle.

Tomorrow’s Failed Republics installment will explore another democracy that fell to authoritarian rule— proving again that while history never repeats exactly, the warning signs are always there for those willing to see them.