Lack of Revolutionary Mass Power in Deutschland

I think probably one of the most arguable reasons why Germany was not a successful democracy in the first half of the 20th century is probably due to the lack of any revolutions by the masses demanding more individual liberties. The common man, the peasant, always knew where his or her place was in the German social hierarchy. What scholars argue implies that the traditional way of life was held more strongly in the German society especially among small farmers and landlords than in France and Great Britain.

The second arguable reason why Germany never developed a democratic culture was mostly Germans were content with the rulers who ruled with an iron fist. Bismarck is probably the best example. He was not a democratic by no means, he initiated the Kulterkampf, divided the liberal party thus weakening the liberal movement, and cracking down on Social Democrats. The French were not satisfied with King Louis the XVI, they no longer felt that the king was absolute and equal to God, and the British forced King John to sign the Magna Carta. way back in 1215; Magna Carta proved to be one of the first documents that was enforced to keep a check on an absolute ruler.

It leads to my third arguable point, when the Great Depression affected the world in 1929, Germans looked towards the Fascists, the Nazis to alleviate their misery since historically all the problems regarding the economy, religion, and political crisis have been handled by larger than life unelected rulers. In 1933, the majority of the German population elected the Nazis to power who dangerously usurped power from the Reichstag and began a totalitarian regime.