WORLD HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -Germany was already suffering from high levels of inflation due to the effects of the war and the increasing government debt. ‘Passive resistance’ meant that whilst the workers were on strike fewer industrial goods were being produced, which weakened the economy still further.

Detailed explanation-2: -Hyperinflation affected the German Papiermark, the currency of the Weimar Republic, between 1921 and 1923, primarily in 1923. It caused considerable internal political instability in the country, the occupation of the Ruhr by France and Belgium, and misery for the general populace.

Detailed explanation-3: -The Weimar government was still in a position to get a grip on the economy; instead, it chose to print yet more money in order to pay the reparation debt. By July 1922 prices had risen by some 700 percent, and hyperinflation had arrived. The government had to print million-mark notes, then billion-mark notes.

Detailed explanation-4: -To fix this problem and pay the striking Ruhr workers, the government again printed more money. This led to hyperinflation . By the autumn of 1923 a loaf of bread cost 200, 000, 000, 000 marks. Workers paid by the hour found their wages were worthless, because prices had risen since they began their shifts.

Detailed explanation-5: -The hyperinflation crisis of 1922-23 was caused in large part by the Weimar government printing banknotes to pay striking workers in the occupied Ruhr. 2. By mid-1923, the printing of these banknotes, which were not backed by gold, was causing a rapid increase in both prices and wages.

Detailed explanation-6: -Overall the occupation of the Ruhr caused huge problems for Germany. Much of the country’s raw materials were located there and now this was in the control of the French. A key consequence of the occupation was a rise in prices (inflation) due to shortages of goods and raw materials.