How accurate is it to say that by 1929, Germany was economically strong and politically stable?

By 1929, Germany had had a democratic constitution for nearly a decade and 78% of voters supported pro-Weimar parties. Indeed, the political system seemed at its strongest since its conception after the end of the First World War, with the last attempted coups being the Kapp Putsch in 1920 and before that the Spartacist Uprising in 1919. It is worth noting that even during these times of political crises, neither of these coups had attracted widespread support and thus it was clear by 1929 that the political system could not be removed by force - a clear sign of stability. Furthermore, the Nazis only obtained 2.8% of the vote in the 1928 election and the Grand Coalition in power at the time indicated to many that the political era of fragile coalition building was drawing to a close.

Economically, the Dawes Plan of 1924 meant that the German economy was stable for much of the 1920s, benefitting greatly from foreign loans and investment, principally from the United States. Between 1925 - 30, Germany received 25.5 billion marks from the USA which proved invaluable in ensuring economic stability throughout this period. This economic stability also tangibly benefitted the German people who saw their wages rise every year from 1924-30 and the industrial sector of the economy grew rapidly.

However, these indicators of political and economic stability in the years preceding 1929 may well have been masking deeper structural instabilities which existed within the German political and economic systems. The Grand Coalition was in fact an aberration from a much longer trend of fragile coalitions. The Grand Coalition was only formed in 1928, and from 1923-29 there were 7 governments. Additionally, whilst the Nazis only got 2.8% in 1928, the KPD (Communists) won 10.6% which can be seen as a sign of the rising power of extremist political parties - which is never a sign of political stability. Economically, Germany was doing well in 1929 but it was by no means self-sufficient. That is to say, the German economy was reliant on foreign loans and when these loans were no longer available after the Great Depression, the economy entered a rapid decline. Moreover, unemployment was rising in 1929 and the agricultural sector had been in recession since 1927.

Ultimately, whilst there may have been certain indicators of economic and political stability in Germany in 1929, these signs were masking far deeper structural problems. The political stability of 1929 was undoubtedly an aberration from an otherwise deeply unstable trend, and Germany had not managed to address its fundamental economic weaknesses by 1929. Instead, they remained reliant on foreign debt which proved a catastrophic mistake once the Great Depression hit and Germany entered deep recession. Therefore, it cannot be accurate to say the Germany was economically strong and politically stable in 1929.