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Hitler becomes Fuhrer (Leader) (Why Rohm and the SA were a threat to…
Hitler becomes Fuhrer (Leader)
Why Rohm and the SA were a threat to hitler
Rohm did not like Hitlers policies
-Many of the SA were bitter because they felt undervalued and angry because many were still unemployed
-But they were loyal to Rohm
-The SA was much bigger than the army and the army feared Rohm
-Rohm wanted o replace them
-The leaders of the Schutzstaffel (SS) wanted to reduce the size of the SA in order to increase their power
-The SS was set up by Hitler in 1925 to act as his bodyguards -They appeared menacing in their black uniforms
The Night of the Long Knives
-Hitler decided he wanted to rid himself of the threat of Rohm&SA
-Did this by inviting Rohm and 100 SA leaders to a meeting in the town of Bad Wiesse on 30 June 1934
-It was a ruse- Leaders arrived they were arrested by the SS, taken to Munich and were shot
-After the arrests, Von Papen's staff were arrested and his home surrounded.
-Von Papen was no longer able to watch what Hitler was up to
-More killing occurred including death of Von Schleicher
Death of Hindenburg
-President Hindenburg was the only person senior to Hitler
-August 1934 he died
-Within hours, a Law Concerning the Head of State merged the offices of Chancellor and President to create a new office for Fuhrer (Leader)
-Hitler used propaganda to ensure that he looked all-powerful
-The 'Heil Hitler' salute made people swear loyalty to him personally
-He was portrayed as having superhuman, heroic qualities
Army oath of Allegiance
-The day Hindenburg died, Hitler announced the army should sear an oath of allegiance to him, not Germany
A Police State
(A police state is when a government uses the police to control everyone's lives. The Nazis used the SS, SD and the Gestapo to do this)
-Anyone the Nazis were suspicious of could disappear either killed or taken to concentration camps
Policing
-Hitler set up his own security forces as he realised not all the existing German police supported him.
-These forces were run by the Nazi Party, not by the government
-Main weapon was fear
SS (Protection Squad)
-Set up by Heinrich Himmler in 1925
-Led by Himmler
-Wore black uniforms
-Controlled all Germany's police and security forces
-Acted outside the law
-Members had to marry 'Racially pure' wives
-Ran the concentration camps
SD (Security Service)
-Set up by Heinrich Himmler in 1931
-Led by Reynhard Heydrich
-Wore uniforms
-Spied on all opponents of the Nazi Party, at home and aboad
Gestapo (Secret State Police)
-Set up by Hermann Goering in 1933
-Led by Reynhard Heydrich
-Wore plain clothes
-Spied on people
-Prosecuted people for speaking out against the Nazis
-Sent people to concentration camps and used torture
The Legal System
-Hitler controlled the legal system so that meant it was very difficult for anyone to oppose him
-Did this by controlling the judges
-All judges had to belong to National Socialist League for the Maintenance of the Law
-All judges had to favour the Nazi party in any decision
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He also did this by controlling the law courts
-He abolished trial by jury- only judges were able to decide whether someone was innocent or guilty
-He set up a People's court to hear all treason cases. Trials were held in secret and judges were hand-picked
Concentration camps up to 1939
-First camp was built at Dachau in 1933 to house the growing number of people arrested
-Were built in isolated areas so no one could see what was going on
-Inmates were made up of:
-political prisoners
-undesirables- Prostitutes, homos and minority groups like jews
-Inmates were treated very badly and forced to do hard labour
Policies towards the churches
(The churches were potentially a threat to his power, Hitler needed to control the churches influence)
Nazi Beliefs
-Hitler as all-powerful leader
-Aryan racial superiority
-War, military discipline and violence important
-Dominance of the strong over the weak
Christian Beliefs
-God as the ultimate authority
-Everyone equal in the eyes of God
-Peace is what everyone should strive for
-The strong should look after the weak
The Catholic Church
Hitler worried that the catholic church would oppose him because Catholics:
-Were loyal to pope
-Usually supported the Catholic Centre party
-Sent their children to Catholic schools and the Catholic Youth Organisation
The protestant church
-2 protestant churches were formed during the 1930s
The Reich Church
-Founded in 1933
-Made up of about 2000 protestant churches
-Supported the Nazis
-Led by Ludwig Muller
-had some members that wore Nazi uniform and called themselves German Christians
The Confessional Church
-Founded in 1934
-Made up of about 6000 protestant churches
-Opposed the Nazis
-Led by Martin Neimoller
-Repressed by the nazis
The Concordat
-July 1933, Hitler agreed with the pope in a Concordat that Catholics were free to worship and run their own schools in return for staying out of the politics
Hitler broke his promise:
-Priests opposing the Nazis were harassed or sent to concentration camps
-Catholic schools had to remove christian symbols and later closed
-Catholic youth organisations were banned
1937
Pope spoke out against Hitler in his statement as 'with burning anxiety' which criticised Nazi policies
Propaganda and Censorship
-Hitler wanted to use propaganda and censorship to create a generation of people loyal to the Nazi regime and its values
-Goebbels played a central role as Nazi minister of Enlightenment
-Master of spreading Nazi ideas in un/subtle way
-Essentially controlled newspapers, the radio, book publishing, film and arts
Methods of Censorship
-Public burning of books by Jewish writers or others who disagreed with Nazi views
-Radio producers, playwrights, filmmakers and newspapers were told what to say
-Newspapers opposing the Nazis were closed
-Only radios that couldn't receive foreign stations were made
The Reich Chamber of Culture
-Set up in 1933 -Overseen by Goebbels
-Monitored all aspects of culture and made sure they were consistent with Nazi ideas
-Nazis wanted grand and classical architecture, particularly the work of Albert Speer; Artist to be members of the Reich Chamber of Visual Arts; To listen to traditional German composers like Beethoven and Bach