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Creation of dictatorship 1933-34 (Part 1) (Enabaling act (Was a new law…
Creation of dictatorship 1933-34
(Part 1)
Reichstag Fire (1933)
Occurred 30th January 1933
Burned down a few days before election
Assumed to be Marinus Van der Lubbe
It supposedly helped the Nazis
Created the Reichstag Fire Decree
Nazis could excuse thet Germany was under attack and action was needed to be taken
Created a state of emergency. This created a situation in which the Nazis could take strong action against political opponents
New emergency law created by Hindenburg under Article 48
This also suspended civil liberties and this took away peoples right to free speech and as a result the Nazis could arrest political opponents without having a trial
Allows attacks on communists
Hitler persuaded Hindenburg to let the Nazis go after the communists
HItler was able to use the police and the SA troopers against the communists
In the following days before the election, 4000 communists are arrested, beaten or murdered
Discredits the communists
Reichstag fire was mainly blamed on the communists
This meant that people in Germany were unlikely to support the communists at the election in March 1933
There was also a feeling that Germany was under attack from the communists so this made the middle class more likely to vote for the Nazis because they were the only party to stop the communists
Enabaling act
Was a new law proposed by Hitler in March 1933
This law would suspend the normal Weimar Constitution
This law would give Hitler total control for the next 4 years
Hitler would not need support of the Reichstag to pass new laws
Hitler was able to get the Enabling act passed. The Catholic Centre Party was persuaded to back the Enabling act because HItler had promised them that Traditional Catholic freedoms would be protected and the youth movement would stay in place
The communists were all imprisoned or banned form the Reichstag and their votes did not count
Hitler was also backed by the Nationalist party because they feared the threat of communism
Impact of the Enabling Act
Most historians see this as the end of the Weimar Republic and the end of Weimar democracy
By August 1934, Hitler was a dictator and no one could challenge Hitler
Co-ordination of the workplace (May 1933)
Abolition of trade unions
Enabling act made all trade unions illegal. Nazis created a new organisation the DAF or German Labour Font
DAF stated there
would be no strikes, all wages will be set by the DAF and anyone arguing with them could be sent to a concentration camp
Co-ordination of national government (July 1933)
Ban on all other political parties
Law against the Formation of Parties made it illegal to be a member or set up any political party
This meant Germany was now a one party state
An election in November 1933 saw Nazis receive 95.2% of the votes
Co-ordination of local government (January 1934)
Abolition of the state parliaments
State parliaments refused to accept laws made by Reichstag
Hitler replaced the state parliaments with a system of Reich Governors and these Governors were Nazis and took instructions directly from Hitler