Weimar Republic faced many problems right since its birth.
- The Republic was forced to sign a humiliating treaty of Versailles. Germans held the Weimar Republic responsible for not only the defeat in the war but also the disgrace at Versailles. It carried the burden of war guilt and national humiliation.
- The Republic was financially crippled by being forced to pay war compensations.
- The German Government's economic reforms in 1923 lead to unimaginable inflation with disastrous consequences for many sections of the population. The Great Economic Depression worsened the situation. Big businessman, middle class people, workers, peasants all were badly affected. Economic crisis leads to political radicalisation.
- The Weimar Constitution had some inherent defects which made it unstable and vulnerable to dictatorship.
- One was proportional representation which made achievement of a majority by any one-party a near impossible task.
- Another defect was article 48, which gave the President the powers to impose emergency, suspend Civil Rights and Rule by Decree. All these provisions led to instability in Germany.
