Weimar Constitution

Main Features of the Constitution
1. The President was voted for every 7 years
  1. President was the chief of the armed forces
    1. In an emergency the president could ignore the Reichstag and make new laws. (Article 48)
      1. The Reichstag and the president could choose the Chancellor but the President could also dismiss the chancellor
        The chancellor would propose laws and the Reichstag would then vote on the laws.
        Bill of Rights - This constitution guaranteed every German these 4 things.
        1. Freedom of speech
        3.Freedom to meet
        2. Freedom of press
        4. Freedom from arrest without a good excuse
        Each party got a member for every 60,000 votes it got. This is called - Proportional Representation.
        The voters - • Vote for Reichstag every 4 years • All men + women over 20
Strengths of the Constitution
1. • All Germans had equal rights, including the right to vote.
2. •Proportional Representation made sure parties had the same percentage of seats in parliament as they did in the election
3. • Provided a strong leader to keep control over the country in an emergency
4. • Each state had it's own elected assembly to represent local interests
Weaknesses of the constitution
1. • Proportional Representation can create coalitions in the Reichstag
2. • The President could make new laws without the Reichstag
3. President could do whatever he liked with the armed forces.
4. People could say whatever they liked because of the Bill of Rights.

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Weimar Constitution

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	Created by Harry Matthews over 8 years ago