A Rapid Rise and Sudden Fall

〰〰**Weimar Germany〰〰 

〰〰A Rapid Rise and Sudden Fall**〰〰

**1919–1933 | The Golden Era**

 **Art & Literature**

* Expressionist theater, Dada performances, Bertolt Brecht’s plays

  * Fritz Lang’s groundbreaking films

 **Science & Medicine**

•  Albert Einstein reshaping physics
•  Emil Kraepelin advancing psychiatry
•  Innovative treatments emerging from Berlin labs

 **Women’s Rights**

•   1919: Women’s suffrage enshrined in the Weimar Constitution
•   ~90 % female voter turnout in the 1920s
•  Women elected to the Reichstag
•  LGBTQ Activism

•   Magnus Hirschfeld’s Institute for Sexual Science publishing landmark research
•   Das 3. Geschlecht* and other periodicals giving voice to trans and non-binary people
•   Thriving gay bars, clubs, and cultural salons

**Early 1932 | Fringe Party, Growing Threat**

•  **Nazi Party Vote Share**: 30.1 % (July 1932), briefly the largest faction but still under 40 %
•  **1932 Presidential Runoff**: Hitler loses to Hindenburg, signaling limited mainstream support

**February 27, 1933 | Reichstag Fire**

•  Parliament building burns under mysterious circumstances
•  **Fire Decree** signed within hours:

•   Suspends free speech, assembly, due process
•   Targets Communists, silences opposition overnight

 **March 23, 1933 | Enabling Act**

•  Passed under SA intimidation and KPD deputies barred
•  Grants Hitler’s cabinet power to legislate without the Reichstag for four years
• **Result**: Constitutional checks erased; Germany becomes a one-party dictatorship

 **June 24, 1945 | Soviet Victory Parade**

•  **40,000 troops** and **1,850 vehicles** march on Red Square to celebrate Nazi Germany’s defeat
•  Established the pattern for annual **May 9** Victory Day parades in Russia
•  A show of state power and reminder of wartime triumph

. 

✴Key Takeaways✴

• A flourishing democracy—celebrated worldwide for art, science, social progress—collapsed in **just four weeks**.
• An extremist leader, initially viewed as fringe and “not smart enough,” exploited emergency decrees to bypass all legal safeguards.
• Once civil liberties are suspended, even a vibrant society can lose its freedoms almost overnight.

> *History’s warning: progress and rights demand constant vigilance—and cannot be taken for granted.*

Historical Timeline Infographic in Beige Vintage Hand Drawn Style by K.Rea