The Events and Failure of the Munich Putsch, November 1923
The Munich Putsch, sometimes called the Beer Hall Putsch, was Hitler's attempt to seize power in Bavaria by force in November 1923, at the height of the crisis caused by the occupation of the Ruhr and hyperinflation. On the evening of 8 November 1923, Hitler and armed SA members burst into a beer hall in Munich where local Bavarian leaders were holding a meeting, forced them at gunpoint to declare support for a new national government, and gained the public backing of the respected First World War general Erich Ludendorff. Overnight, however, the Bavarian leaders withdrew their forced support and alerted the police and army. On 9 November 1923, Hitler, Ludendorff and around two thousand Nazi supporters marched through Munich towards the centre of the city, intending to seize control, but were confronted by armed police near the Feldherrnhalle monument. Shots were fired, killing several marchers and police officers, and the putsch collapsed within minutes. Hitler was arrested days later and charged with treason.
Before you start
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Method
- Learn the context precisely: the putsch took place in November 1923, during the crisis caused by the French and Belgian occupation of the Ruhr and the catastrophic hyperinflation this helped trigger, a moment of unusual weakness for the Weimar government.
- Learn the sequence of events across the two days: on the evening of 8 November 1923, Hitler and armed SA members interrupted a meeting at a Munich beer hall and forced local Bavarian leaders, at gunpoint, to declare support; on 9 November, Hitler and his supporters marched through Munich but were stopped by armed police near the Feldherrnhalle.
- Learn the name of the respected general who publicly backed Hitler: Erich Ludendorff, a well-known First World War military leader, whose support gave the plot some credibility.
- Learn precisely why the putsch failed: the Bavarian leaders withdrew their forced declaration of support overnight and alerted the authorities, and when the march reached the Feldherrnhalle on 9 November, armed police opened fire, killing several marchers and officers and scattering the rest.
- Learn the immediate outcome: Hitler was arrested within days and charged with treason, a serious crime that could have ended his political career entirely.
- For a 4-mark 'give two things you can infer' question, look for what a source reveals about either the putsch's planning and methods or the reasons it collapsed so quickly.
- For a 12-mark 'explain why' question, treat the Bavarian leaders' withdrawal of support and the readiness of the police and army as separate, linked reasons for the putsch's failure, rather than describing events as a single narrative.
Worked example
Explain why the Munich Putsch of November 1923 failed.
- Identify the plot's central weakness: Hitler's plan depended on the Bavarian leaders he had forced to declare support at gunpoint on 8 November genuinely staying loyal to the new arrangement overnight.
- Explain the withdrawal of support with detail: once released, the Bavarian leaders immediately reversed their forced declaration and alerted the police and army, removing the local political backing the plot needed to succeed.
- Explain the military and police response with detail: when Hitler, Ludendorff and around two thousand supporters marched through Munich on 9 November, they were confronted by armed police near the Feldherrnhalle, who opened fire rather than joining the march.
- Explain the immediate collapse with detail: several marchers and police officers were killed in the shooting, and the march scattered within minutes, showing the plotters had badly overestimated how much support they could rely on from the army and police.
- Conclude by linking these points: the putsch failed because it depended on forced, rather than genuine, support from local authorities, and because the wider army and police chose loyalty to the existing government over Hitler's attempted seizure of power.
Practice questions
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Q1What is another common name for the Munich Putsch of November 1923?Show answer
Answer: The Beer Hall Putsch.
Q2On what date did Hitler and armed SA members interrupt the meeting at the Munich beer hall?Show answer
Answer: The evening of 8 November 1923.
Q3Which respected First World War general publicly backed Hitler during the putsch?Show answer
Answer: Erich Ludendorff.
Q4On what date did the march through Munich take place, and where was it stopped?Show answer
Answer: 9 November 1923, near the Feldherrnhalle monument.
Q5Why did the local Bavarian leaders' initial declaration of support fail to help Hitler?Show answer
Answer: Because it had been forced from them at gunpoint, and they withdrew it overnight and alerted the police and army instead.
Q6What happened to Hitler shortly after the putsch collapsed?Show answer
Answer: He was arrested and charged with treason.
Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a GCSE History exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
Study Source A. Source A: from the account of a Munich resident who witnessed events on the evening of 8 November 1923. 'Armed men in Nazi uniforms surrounded the beer hall where the meeting was taking place, and I heard shouting inside as Hitler forced his way to the front. Within the hour, word spread through the crowd outside that the Bavarian leaders had been made to promise their support for a new government, though many in the street seemed unsure what to make of the news.' Give two things you can infer from Source A about the Munich Putsch. Complete the table below. Inference 1: Detail in the source that tells you this: Inference 2: Detail in the source that tells you this:
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Explain why the Munich Putsch of November 1923 failed.
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Study Sources B and C. Source B: a Munich police report on the events of 9 November 1923. 'A column of approximately two thousand armed and unarmed men, led by Hitler and General Ludendorff, marched from the beer hall towards the city centre. When ordered to disperse near the Feldherrnhalle, the marchers did not comply. Officers opened fire; several marchers and two police officers were killed.' Source C: from a later account by a Nazi supporter present at the march, published after 1933. 'We marched proudly, certain the army and the people would join us. When the shooting began, sixteen of our bravest comrades fell as martyrs for the movement, their sacrifice remembered forever in the history of the National Socialist struggle.' How useful are Sources B and C for an enquiry into the events of the Munich Putsch in November 1923? Explain your answer using Sources B and C and your contextual knowledge.
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