Occupation of the Ruhr Leads to Hyper-Inflation in the Weimar Republic

The economic crisis, prompted by war damage and the burden of compensation, sent the German economy into a severe inflationary spiral. In an effort to force the Germans to pay reparations, France invaded the Ruhr region of Germany on 11 January 1923. As a result, the mark plunged to one ten-thousandth of its original value; by the autumn of that year, inflation peaked as the mark plummeted to one-trillionth of its original value.