Abstract
During the war, his estrangement from Bethmann-Hollweg and the emperor deepened over the question of the Prussian franchise reform. Since conservative rule and military victory were, for Westarp, closely intertwined, he supported a victorious peace, considered negotiations to be a sign of weakness, and strongly advocated German dominance over Belgium, which he, as an inveterate foe of England, viewed as critical for the unfettered survival of the Reich. The DNVP, which included white-collar unions, initially struck him as not sufficiently elitist, but, when its leaders reached out to the hardworking and able Westarp, he joined the party in 1920 as a Reichstag deputy, rose to the position of parliamentary faction leader in February 1925, and assumed the party chairmanship in 1926. Since he had given up his position in Berlin's administrative court in 1920, he had little alternative to immersing himself again in party politics, dependent as he was on his remuneration as a Reichstag deputy. Once the German Nationals formed part of the governing coalition, however, Westarp steadfastly (though vainly) tried to preserve the DNVP's participation, despite vehement opposition of its right wing to the Locarno Treaty and despite pressure to leave the coalition.
