The Kapp Putsch: Causes, Actors and Consequences

Germany was defeated in World War I. Immediately after, the monarchy was destroyed and the republic was proclaimed. However, this period, which continued until Adolf Hitler came to power in 1933 and was called the Weimar Republic, encountered many serious problems from the beginning. The Kapp Putsch discussed in this paper became one of the most important events threatening the future of the regime in the early years of the Weimar Republic. The no-action the army presented during coup caused mistrust between social democrats, republicans and themselves. On the other hand, the government’s asking people to get firearms and fight against the army caused a symmetrical effect on army towards government. Thus, the trust that was formed after WW1 got distorted and a cold distrust between people and the army emerged. This situation disappointed many democrats who supported the army before as well as army officers who supported republicans before. Although this attempted coup organized by the ultranationalists and militarists failed, it led to significant developments in terms of the consequences. In this paper, the causes, actors and consequences of the Kapp Putsch will be presented and discussed in the light of Turkish and German sources in way to reflect the spirit of the period in which the Kapp Putsch took place.

Keywords

Weimar Republic, Treaty of Versailles, Freikorps, Kapp Putsch