German revolution of 1918

The **November Revolution** () refers to the wave of unrest and political transformation in Germany from late 1918 into 1919 that ended the German Empire and led to the founding of the Weimar Republic. Sparked by the Kiel mutiny and mass strikes, it brought the abdication of Wilhelm II on 9 November 1918 and competing declarations of a republic. Subsequent months saw armed clashes, including the Spartacist uprising in Berlin and the short-lived Bavarian Soviet Republic.

## Background

- Crisis of late World War I: military stalemate, shortages, and loss of confidence.
- Growth of workers’ and soldiers’ councils inspired by wartime discontent and socialist ideas.
- Political split within the German socialist movement (SPD/USPD).

## Outbreak: Kiel mutiny and the November days (October–November 1918)

- 29–30 October: Sailors at Kiel refuse orders; arrests trigger mass protest.
- Early November: Councils spread to major cities; general strikes.
- 9 November: Abdication of the Kaiser; Scheidemann proclaims a “German Republic”; minutes later Liebknecht proclaims a “Free Socialist Republic.”

## Transition of power and Armistice

- Council of People’s Representatives (Ebert–Scheidemann) forms; armistice signed 11 November 1918.
- Ebert–Groener pact aligns government with army command to restore order.

## Escalation and factional conflict (December 1918–January 1919)

- USPD ministers resign; radicalization within Berlin councils.
- January 1919 Spartacist uprising crushed by government troops and Freikorps; killings of Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht.

## Elections and new constitutional order

- 19 January 1919: Elections to the Weimar National Assembly; SPD-center coalition wins a working majority.
- Weimar Constitution promulgated 11 August 1919.

## Regional revolutions and counterrevolutions

- Bavarian Soviet Republic (April–May 1919) declared and suppressed.
- Unrest in the Ruhr, Bremen, and elsewhere; continuing strikes and putsch attempts.

## Aftermath and legacy

- Establishment of a parliamentary republic amid persistent polarization; rise of paramilitaries (Freikorps) and culture of political violence.
- Long-term debates over “betrayal” vs. “realism” in SPD leadership; memory politics in the Weimar era and beyond.

## See also

- German Revolution of 1918–1919
- Kiel mutiny
- Spartacist uprising
- Weimar Republic
- Freikorps

## External links

- Media related to the German Revolution of 1918–1919 at Wikimedia Commons
- Link to digitized primary sources (add).

## Infobox (civil conflict)

- **title**: November Revolution
- **partof**: the aftermath of World War I and the fall of monarchies in Europe
- **date**: 29 October 1918 – 11 August 1919
- **place**: German Empire → Weimar Republic
- **result**: Abdication of Wilhelm II, German Emperor, Wilhelm II; end of the German Empire; proclamation of the Weimar Republic; armistice and demobilization
- **status**: Revolution succeeded; continued unrest incl. Spartacist uprising, Spartacist Uprising and Bavarian Soviet Republic
- **combatant1**: Revolutionary sailors, soldiers, and workers' councils (Kiel mutiny, Kiel, Berlin, etc.); socialist parties (notably Social Democratic Party of Germany, SPD and Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany, USPD); various left groups
- **combatant2**: Imperial and later provisional government forces; loyalist military units; Freikorps; conservative elements
- **commander1**: Friedrich Ebert; Philipp Scheidemann; Karl Liebknecht; Rosa Luxemburg
- **commander2**: Wilhelm Groener; Gustav Noske; various Freikorps leaders
- **strength1**: Unknown; mass councils and strike committees
- **strength2**: Government troops; Freikorps units
- **casualties1**: Unknown
- **casualties2**: Unknown
- **casualties3**: Thousands killed and wounded in street fighting; executions of revolutionaries