Free People's State of Württemberg


The Free People's State of Württemberg was a state in Württemberg, Germany, during the Weimar Republic and Nazi Germany.

1918 revolution

With the German revolution near the end of World War I, the Kingdom of Württemberg was transformed from a monarchy to a democratic republic without bloodshed; its borders and internal administration remained unchanged. King William II of Württemberg abdicated on 30 November 1918. Following the introduction of its new constitution and the Weimar Constitution in 1919, Württemberg was re-established as a member state of the German Reich.
In comparison to the political turmoil that plagued Weimar Germany, political development in Württemberg was driven by continuity and stability. The three legislative periods of the Württemberg parliament from 1920 to 1932 each ran the full prescribed length of four years, unlike at the 1919-1933 Chancellors of Germany at the federal level. The social democrats lost their influence in Württemberg early in the state's history, with conservative coalitions forming government from 1924 to 1933. Despite the many financial crises that affected Germany during the 1920s and 1930s, the economic development of Württemberg proceeded better than in many other German states and its capital Stuttgart became a regional centre of finance and culture.

1933–1952

With the Nazi seizure of federal power in 1933 and the following elimination of all non-Nazi organisations, Württemberg and all other German states were abolished, in spirit if not in law. It was merged briefly into the "gau" of Württemberg-Hohenzollern. After World War II, Württemberg was split between the US and French Allied Occupation Zones in Germany and became parts of two new states: Württemberg-Baden and a smaller Württemberg-Hohenzollern run by the French. These two states were merged with Baden in 1952 to form the modern German state of Baden-Württemberg.
The former Free People's State coat of arms was used by the Porsche family as inspiration to create the logo of Porsche company.