1923

1923 was one of the most remarkable years of modern European history. In January, France and Belgium militarily occupied Germany`s economic heartland, the Ruhr: triggering a series of crises that almost spiralled out of control. Hyperinflation plunged millions into poverty. The search for scapegoats empowered political extremes. Hitler`s populism ascended to national prominence. Communists, Nazis, separatists all thought that they could use the crises to destroy democracy.None succeeded. 1923 was the year of Hitler`s first victory ` and his first defeat. Fanning the flames of instability, anti-government and antisemitic sentiment, the Nazis` abortive yet pivotal putsch in a Munich beer hall failed when they were abandoned by their likeminded conservative allies.Drawing on previously unseen sources, Mark Jones weaves together a thrilling and resonant narrative of German lives in this turbulent time. Tracing Hitler`s rise, we see how political pragmatism and international cooperation eventually steered the nation away from total insurrection. A decade later, when Weimar democracy eventually succumbed to tyranny, the warnings from 1923 ` rising of nationalist rhetoric, fragile European consensus, and underestimation the of the enemies of liberalism ` became only too apparent.