Year 10 History worksheet and exam questions featuring the Papiermark exchange rate table and the Deutsche Zeitung extract provide a formal assessment of early Weimar challenges.
Formal open-answer exam-style questions — including source materials or data tables where relevant — with a detailed mark scheme.
Subject: History | Year: 10
Name: _________________________ Class/Set: ____________ Date: ____________
Q1 Identify one military restriction placed on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles. [1 mark]
Q2 Describe two features of the Weimar Constitution that led to political instability between 1919 and 1923. [4 marks]
⇨ The data provided in the table below shows the exchange rate between the German Papiermark and the US Dollar during the peak of the economic crisis in 1923.
| Month (1923) | Marks per 1 US Dollar |
|---|---|
| January | 17,972 |
| July | 353,412 |
| August | 4,620,455 |
| September | 98,860,000 |
| October | 25,260,000,000 |
| November | 4,200,000,000,000 |
Q3 Using the table provided, calculate the approximate increase in the number of Marks required to buy one US Dollar between July and November 1923 and explain how this affected German workers. [4 marks]
⇨ The following extract is taken from a contemporary account describing the activities of the Freikorps during the Spartacist Uprising in Berlin, January 1919.
"The streets were a battlefield. The Spartacists had seized the newspaper offices and called for a general strike, hoping to topple the new government before it could even begin. President Ebert had little choice but to turn to us. We were soldiers with no war left to fight, but we still had our weapons and our hatred for the Bolsheviks. We cleared the buildings floor by floor. By the time the 'Red' threat was neutralised, the leaders Liebknecht and Luxemburg were dead, and the Republic was saved, though it had been baptised in blood."
Q4 Explain why the Weimar Government was forced to rely on the Freikorps to end the Spartacist Uprising. [6 marks]
⇨ The following source is an extract from a German nationalist newspaper, Deutsche Zeitung, published on the day the Treaty of Versailles was signed, 28 June 1919.
"The disgraceful Treaty is being signed today. Do not forget it! We will never stop until we win back everything we have lost. The German people will move forward again to regain their place among the nations. Then, there will be vengeance for the shame of 1919. Today, the Republic has signed its own death warrant by submitting to this Diktat. The 'November Criminals' have betrayed the frontline soldiers who were never defeated on the battlefield."
Q5 Analyse the reasons why many Germans viewed the Treaty of Versailles as a 'Diktat' and a betrayal of the army. [8 marks]
Q6 Evaluate the extent to which the Weimar Republic had overcome its challenges by the end of 1923. [12 marks]
Total Marks: _______ / 35
Key Content Points / Arguments (Correction Checklist):
Model Answer: "The German army was limited to a maximum of 100,000 soldiers."
Key Content Points / Arguments (Correction Checklist):
Model Answer: "One feature was Proportional Representation, which meant many small parties gained seats, making it hard to form a stable majority. Another feature was Article 48, which allowed the President to rule by decree in an emergency, undermining parliamentary democracy."
Key Content Points / Arguments (Correction Checklist):
Model Answer: "The exchange rate rose from 353,412 Marks in July to 4,200,000,000,000 Marks by November. This hyperinflation meant workers' wages became worthless almost instantly. Many had to be paid twice a day and rush to the shops before prices rose again, causing widespread poverty and starvation."
Key Content Points / Arguments (Correction Checklist):
Model Answer: "The government relied on the Freikorps because the regular army was too weak and small to stop the Spartacists. Ebert made a deal with the army (the Ebert-Groener Pact) to ensure the Republic's survival. The Freikorps were motivated by a hatred of Communism and provided the brutal force necessary to crush the uprising when the police could not."
Key Content Points / Arguments (Correction Checklist):
Model Answer: "Germans called it a 'Diktat' because they were excluded from the negotiations and forced to sign under threat of invasion. The source highlights the 'November Criminals,' a term used by nationalists to describe the politicians who signed the Armistice. They believed in the 'Stab in the Back' myth—that the army was still capable of fighting but was betrayed by strikes and revolution at home. The loss of land and Article 231 (War Guilt) reinforced this sense of humiliation and betrayal."
Key Content Points / Arguments (Correction Checklist):
Model Answer: "By the end of 1923, the Republic had survived its most dangerous year, but it was not fully stable. Stresemann’s introduction of the Rentenmark ended hyperinflation, and the failure of Hitler’s Munich Putsch showed that the government could withstand armed threats. However, the middle class never forgave the government for losing their savings. While the economy began to stabilise, the 'November Criminals' narrative and the humiliation of the Ruhr occupation remained powerful tools for extremists. Therefore, the Republic had overcome the immediate threat of collapse, but the underlying political resentment was left unresolved."
Developing mastery through exam questions on Weimar instability requires moving beyond simple recall to nuanced causal analysis of the 1919-1923 period. By incorporating the Papiermark exchange rate table for quantitative analysis alongside the Deutsche Zeitung extract, this resource forces pupils to synthesise disparate data points into coherent historical arguments. The structural progression from low-tariff identification to high-tariff evaluation reduces cognitive overload by anchoring complex concepts in concrete evidence first. This scaffolded approach facilitates the critical AO1 to AO2 and AO3 transition, ensuring Year 10 learners can justify judgements on the Republic's survival with disciplinary precision.
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