This change came as a huge shock to many Germans, which resulted in a widespread view of nationalism that desired to restore the 'old guard' and regain pride in their nation. Furthermore, Germany's economy relied heavily on its militaristic strength, and the shortages created by the Treaty of Versailles, weakened the economy and rendered it unable to support the nation's structural shift into a democracy. This therefore shows how the negative, nationalistic attitudes expressed toward the inherently unstable democracy had a significant impact on the collapse of the new government.
Further affecting the failure of German democracy was the implementation of the Reparations Bill. The London Payments Plan set by The Allies required Germany to pay twenty thousand billion gold marks in addition to 26% of its annual exports revenue. This caused further economic instability as Germany's loss of territories was already causing massive fluctuations to the unstable economy, making it impossible to repay the Reparations Bill. Moreover, The Allies refused to grant Germany the time required to recover from the Great War, when the nation stated that it was not possible for them to complete the reparations by 1924. This caused great economic instability in Germany, rendering them unprepared to establish a democratic republic whilst also enforcing the notion of 'Smachfrieden' (shameful peace), which lead to the nationalistic hatred that sparked the eventual downfall of the Weimar Republic.
As a result of Germany's failure in repaying the Reparations Bill, the nation also failed to supply the coal and timber ordered by the Treaty of Versailles. In January 1923, 60,000 French and Belgian troops invaded Germany;s heartland, the Ruhr, in order to 'claim this payment'. This invasion provoked nationalistic views of the German people, resulting in public outrage. This renewed sense of nationalism further instilled hatred against the new republic under the 'Dolchstosslegende myth'.
