Research Task:
- Why was Germany hit the hardest during the depression?
- What Germany had to agree to by signing the Treaty of Versailles?
- How was NZ affected by the depression?
Why was Germany hit the hardest during the depression?
The Great Depression was particularly severe in Germany, which had enjoyed five years of artificial prosperity, propped up by American loans and goodwill. Unemployment hit millions of Germans, as companies shut down or downsized.
In 1929 as the Wall Street crash led to a worldwide depression. Germany suffered more than any other nation as a result of the recall of US loans which caused its economy to collapse.
What Germany had to agree to by signing the Treaty of Versailles?
The German government had agreed to sign the Treaty of Versailles in June 1919 to make peace. Enemies of the government used the Treaty to claim that it had stabbed Germany in the back by ending the war.
Reactions to the Treaty in Germany were very negative. There were also the humiliating terms, which made Germany accepted blame for the war, limit their armed forces and pay reparations.
How was NZ affected by the depression?
For New Zealand, as for most of the world outside Russia, the great depression of the early 1930s was the most shattering economic experience ever recorded. Exports fell by 45 per cent in two years, national income 40 per cent in three.
