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Why was Hitler able to dominate Germany by 1934 - Coggle Diagram
Why was Hitler able to dominate Germany by 1934
Adolf Hitler (1889-1919)
He served in 1914 in the German Army and received an Iron Cross with distinction
He found it hard to accept the Treaty of Versailles and armistice
During this time he developed a hate of Jews and foreigners
At 16 he left school to become a painter and did not succeed and between 1909-14 he lived on the streets of Vienna
He despised the Weimar democracy and looked back on the Kaiser
he got on badly with his father but well with his mother
After the war Hitler stayed working for the army and spied on extremist groups, this is how he came across the German workers party in 1919
Born in Austria in 1889
Hitler and the Nazis
The Nazis began as the German Worker's Party, led by Anton Drexler. Within months of Hitler joining he was put in charge of propaganda. In 1920 they announced there 25 point programme and was renamed as the Nazi party
25 Point Programme main points
large industries and businesses to be nationalised
Generous old age pension
only 'true' Germans to be allowed to live in Germany, no Jews or their business
a strong central government
union of Germany and Austria
The abolition of the Treaty of Versailles
In 1921 Hitler removed Drexler as leader. Hitler's energy, commitment and public speaking was attracting attention
Hitler had a clear and simple appeal. He stirred nationalist passions. He provided scapegoats through Jews, Communists and the November criminals
His meetings were so successful that opponents tried to disrupt them so he set up the SA also known as stormtroopers or brownshirts, in 1921. They were hired thugs and protected Hitler's meetings as well as disrupting other parties
The Munich Putsch 1923
By 1923 the NAzis were a minority party but Hitler had a high profile. In November1923 he believed he could topple the Weimar government. The government was preoccupied with the economic crisis. Streseman had just called of passive resistance in the Ruhr. On November 8th Hitker hijacked a local government of Bavaria. he was joined by old hero Ludendorff
Nazi stormtroopers, many of them under the command of Ernst Röhm, began taking over official buildings. The next day Weimar Police rounded ups the SA and in an exchange 16 NAzis were killed. The rebellion went to shit and Hitler escaped in a car while Ludendorff stayed to face armed police. Hitler gambled and miscalculated his failed revolution
The aftermath of the Munich Putsch
It was a disaster, he had miscalculated the mood of the German people and he had been humiliated. Other people had not supported him and he and other leading Nazi's were arrested
However, from a longer-term point of view, the Putsch was less of a disaster. At Hitler's trial he gained enormous publicity for himself and his ideas, his every word was published in newspapers
Hitler impressed judges so much that he and his accomplices got off lightly. Ludendorff was freed and Hitler was given only 5 years in prison, even though guidelines said treasonists should be given life. Hitler only served 9 months and was in comfort in Landsberg Castle. This showed Hitler had support and sympathy from important figures and because of links Ludendorff he gained attention from the army
The Nazis in the wilderness 1924-29
Hitler used his time in prison to write Mein Kampf (my struggle) which clarified and presented ideas about Germany's future
Mein Kampf main points
Armed force: Hitler believed that war and struggle were an essential part of the development of a healthy Aryan race
Living space, Lebensraum: Germany needed to expand as its people were hemmed in. This expansion would be mainly at the expense of Russia and Poland
Racism: The Aryans (white Europeans) were the master race and everyone else was inferior, especially Jews
The Fürher: Debate and democratic discussion produced weakness. Strength lay in total loyalty to the Fürher
National socialism: this stood for loyalty to Germany, racial purity, equality and state control of the economy
In prison he came to the conclusion that the Nazis would not be able to secure power by force, they would have to use democracy to gain power
Their candidates stood for the first time in the Reichstag elections in May 1924 and won 32 seats. Encouraged by this he created a network of Nazi parties called the Hitler youth and similar organisations
As soon as he was released. Hitler set about rebuilding the Nazi party by building youth organisations as he saw the Communists doing similar sorts of things.
Hitler's henchmen
Ernst Röhm
Background: served as a captain of the German army in WWI and received the iron cross for bravery. Joined Nazis In 1919 and took part in the Munich Putsch leading 2000 men to march on the War ministry. He left the Nazis in 1925 for a role in Bolivia but returned after Hitler made him lead the SA in the depression
Importance: Was a violent man who hated Jews and communists. Organised the SA into a powerful paramilitary force and won the loyalty of its members. By 1931 the SA was over 1 million. SA members marched, sang, held parades. After the walll street crash, Rohm stirred trouble to make the government look weak and make Germans fear a communist revelution
Joesph Goebbls
Background: Joined the Party in1924 after taking an interest in Hitler during his Much Putsch trial. He supported Hitler when it looked like the Nazi party could break in to factions in 1926. As Gauleiters of Berlin he drew large crowds when he spoke. He was elected in 1928 and 1930 the Nazi Party in Berlin was second in size only to the party in Munich
Importance: He was in charge of Nazi propaganda during the depression and targeted different groups in Germany by using the Fürher myth. He used posters rallies and the Nazi newspaper, peoples observer to promise jobs for the unemployed, crush communism and appeal to middle class industrialists and to protect the racial purity of the peasant farmers
Heinrich Himmler
Background: did not fight in the war and failed to make a successful career in the military as a young man. In 1923 he joined the Nazi party and took part in the Munich Putsch as a part of Ernst Rohm's SA. In 1925 he joined the SS (then part of the SA) which were the personal body guards for Hitler. He persuaded Hitler to separate the SA and SS in 1927 and by 1929 was made head of the SS and by 1933 it had over 50000 members
Importance: his SS were loyal to Hitler who sometimes doubted the SA. They were well trained and were the Nazi elite, they had to prove their Aryan heritage up to 1800. The intelligence service SD was used to root out opponents and threats to the Nazis and was led by Himmler's deputy Reinhard Heydrich
Hermann Goering
Background: Was a WWI pilot ace and received a Blue Max medal for his 22 victories in the air he joined the Nazis in 1922 and was shot in the groin during the Munich Putsch. He became addicted to morphine in order to cope with the pain. He was elected to the Reichstag in 1928, In 1932 when the Nazis were the largest party he Reichstag President
Importance: He was an early supporter of Hitler and was born into an aristocratic family with ties to many wealthy German people, especially in the military. His background served the Nazis well when they needed funds. His aviation background helped Hitler as they could build a new airforce
Rudolf Hess
Background: After serving in the war he joined the Nazi party in 1920 and allegedly introduced the idea of Lebensraum. Joined the SA in 1921 and took part in the Munich Putsch. Was imprisoned with Hitler and helped him write Mein Kampf. He was a close friend and helped increase the size of the SA and election campaigns
Importance: Hess was trusted by Hitler and was his private secretary so had access to him at all times. All official ideas passed over his desk. He often gave the opening speech at the Nuremberg Rallies by introducing Hitler. Hess was loyal to Hitler and was given the honour of Deputy Fürher when Hitler was appointed Chancellor of Germany in 1933
A change of strategy
Strengthen the SA: In 1925 Hitler enlarged the SA. About 55% of the SA came from the ranks of the unemployed. Many were ex-servicemen from the war. HE also set up a new group called the SS. The SS were similar to the SA but were fanatically loyal to Hitler. Membership of the party was over 100000 by 1928
Spread the message: Hitler appointed Gobbles as propaganda minister and he was highly efficient at spreading the Nazi message. He and Hitler believed that the best way to reach 'the masses' was by appealing to their feelings not rational argument. He produced posters, leaflets, films and radio broadcasts; he organised rallies such as the annual Nuremberg rally; he set up photo opps and leading party members were trained on how to deliver speeches
Target the farmers
Unlike Britain, Germany still had a large rural population that lived and worked off of the land, about 35% of the entire population. They were not sharing the Weimar's economic prosperity. The Nazis promised to help agriculture if they were elected. They praised the peasants as racially pure Germans. NAzi propaganda also said that peasant life was better than crime ridden cities which they blamed on Jews
Other groups in society were doing better so the Nazis gained more support from the peasant farmers in Northern Germany and middle-class shopkeepers and small business people in small country towns
However, no breakthrough: Despite the shifting policies and priorities, there was no electoral breakthrough for the NAzis. Even after all their hard work in 1928 they ware a still a frince minority party who had the support of less than 3% of the population. They were the smallest party with fewer seats then then the Communists. The prosperity of the Stresemann in foreign policy made Germans uninterested in extreme policies
Depression and the rise of the Nazis
In 1929 the American stock market crashed and the USA went into an economic depression. In very short time countries around the world began to feel the effects of the depression. Germany was badly affected due to the Americans recalling loans. Businesses went bankrupt, workers were laid off and unemployment rocketed. And Germany still had to pay reparations from the TOV. The Weimar constitution made decisive action hard to achieve
Hitler's ideas for Nazis to take advantage
Kick out the TOV due to mounting reparations
Germany needs to be a strong leader due to the Weimar government being indecisive
Let the unemployed join the army build Germany's armaments and be used for public works like road building
In the 1930 elections the Nazi's got 107 seats and in November 1930 they had 200. They were now the biggest single party.
The 25 point program was very attractive to the venerable, middle class, unemployed and elderly. Hitler gave them scapegoats like Jews, the allies and November Criminals. These messages weren't new but the democratic government could now not control the people
Why did the Nazis succeed in elections
Negative Cohesion
Gordon Craig invented the theory that meant people supported the Nazis, as they hated the same things
Disillusionment with democracy
People were unhappy with democracy in Germany. When the depression got bad Chancellor Bruning cut public spending. He urged Germans to make sacrifices. He called new elections in 1930. This was a disastrous decision as it gave the Naxis the opportunity to exploit the discontent in Germany. The were 6 million unemployed and the average income had fallen by 40%
Nazi campaigning
The NAzi's greatest campaigning asset was HItler. He was a powerful speaker. Hitler ran for president in 1932. Despite his defeat the campaign raised his profile. He was using films radio and records. He travelled on rallies and tours all over Germany. He seemed a dynamic man of the moment, with modern ideas. He was able to appear as a man of the people and someone who understood their problems
The Nazis relied in generalised slogans, uniting the people, going back to traditional values. There were not clear about these policies which it hard to criticise them. If they were criticised about a specific policy they would likely drop it. Like when industrialists hated there policy to nationalise industry they dropped it. The Nazis blamed minorities for Germany's problems and hated democracy, blaming it for the economic crisis
Nazi posters, pamphlets could be found anywhere. Rallies impressed people with their sheer size, energy, enthusiasm
They backed campaigns with practical action. They organised soup kitchens and had hostels for unemployed
The Communist threat
As the crisis deepened, communist support increased. The Nazis used this to their advantage as many Germans hated communism.
There was frequent conflict between communists and police. Groups of unruly unemployed gathered on street corners. In contrast the SA and SS looked to be disciplined. Many people thought the country needed this kind of order and many unemployed signed up for the SA in order to be involved in the Nazi Party
Business leaders feared communists because they would nationalise their companies. They were concerned that the trade unions were to strong. They felt the Nazis would combat these threats and donated money to Nazi campaigns
Farmers were alarmed by the Communists. In the USSR, the communist government had taken over the land. Millions of peasants had been killed or improsoned in the process. In contrast, the NAzis promised to help Germany's desperate farmers
Decadence
As for modern decadent Weimar culture, the Nazis could count on those who fault that traditional German values were under threat. The Nazis promised to restore these
Weak Opposition
The SDP made a mistake thinking that the Germans would not fall for these vague promises and accusations. They all failed to work with other parties, particularly the Communists. But Ebert's crushing of the Communists in 1919-20 left too many bitter memories and the Nazis exploited their poor decision making among their opponents
The Result
Nazi support skyrocketed. E.g. In Neidenburg in East Prussia Nazi support rose from 2.3% to over 25% in 1931, even though no local Nazi Party and Hitler never went there. W.S. Allen said that many Germans, especially middle class Germans, who supported Hitler in villages towns and cities across Germany. In rural communities the Nazis gained many votes from those who shared there views about decadent cities
How did Hitler become chancellor
July 1932: After the Reichstag elections in July the Nazis were the largest party (230 seats) but did not have an overall majority. Hitler demanded the post of Chancellor Franz Von Paper. However, Hindenburg was suspicious of Hitler and refused he then used emergency powers to pass the measures that von Paper was soon in trouble. He had virtually no support in the Reichstag and so called yet another election
November 1932: in the elections the Nazis again were the largest party, although their share of the vote fell. Hitler regarded the election as a disaster. He had lost more than 2 million votes as well as as 38 seats in the Reichstag. The signs were that the Hitler tide had turned. The Nazis began to run out of funds. Hitler is said to have threatened suicide.
December 1932: Hindenburg again refused to appoint Hitler as Chancellor. He chose Kurt von Shleicher, one of von Papen's rivals, and his close advisor but within a month he was forced to resign. By this time it was clear the Weimar government was not working. The balanced system of proportional representation meant no party could have control. Hindneburg was 84 and was struggling due to relying on army leaders and the rich. Hindenburg had already overthrown the principles of democracy by using emergency powers. If he was to rescue democracy he needed a supported chancellor
January 1933: Hindenburg appointed Hitler. Hindenburg and von Paper met secretly with his supporters and they offered Hitler the post of Chancellor, they were confident that they could limit Hitler's influence and resist his extremist demands. The idea was the policies would be made by the conservative cabinet, which was filled with conservatives like von Paper. Hitler would be there to get support in the Reichstag. So Hitler needed up as chancellor, a deal cut behind the scenes by German aristocrats. Hindenburg and von Paper thought they could control Hitler, which they couldn't
Hitler consolidates his position
The Enabling Act
In the election the NAzis won their largest ever share of the votes and with the support of the smaller Nationalist party, Hitler had a majority, Using the SA and SS, he then intimidated the Reichstag into passing the enabling act, which allowed them to pass laws with out the Reichstag. Only the SDP voted against him. After the election the Communists were banned and the CCP (Catholic Centre Party) decided to support the Nazis then be banned. In return they kept Catholic schools. The enabling act made Hitler a dictator. There was nothing Hindenburg could do
Even now Hitler was not secure he had seen how the Civil Service, the judiciary, the army and other important groups had undermined the Weimar Republic. So he set a policy to consolidate power
30 Janury 1933 Hitler appointed Chancellor, Goering minister of interior
17 Feb Goering ordered local police forces to cooperate with the SS and SA
27 February: Reichstag fire. Arrest 4000 Communists and other opponents on the same night
28th February: Emergency decree issued by Hindenburg and police arrest suspects and hold without trial. Hitler takes over regional governments
5th March: Reichstag elections governments used control of radio and police to intimidate opponents Nazi election slogan was battle against Marxism Won 43.9% of the vote
13th March: Goebbels appointed head of Ministry for Propaganda. Took control of all media
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The Night of the Long Knives
Within a year any opponents of the NAzis had either left Germany or been taken to concentration camps run by the SS. Other political parties were banned
Hitler was not entirely secure, however. Leading officers were suspocios of the SA and Ernst Rohm. The SA was badly disciplined;ined and Rohm was power hungry. Rohm caused chaos with his 4 million men. Hindenburg once threatened to enforce martial law if they were not controlled. Hitler was suspicious of Rohm and feared that Rohm's control over the SA men made him a dangerous rival
Hitler chose between the army and the SA. The SS men broke into the homes of the Rohm and other leading SA leaders and arrested them Hitler accused Rohm of plotting an overthrow and assassination of Hitler. Rohm and perhaps 400 others were executed. These included von Shleicher
Hindenburg thanked Hitler for his determined action the army was satisfied a well with the events of the weeekend
The SA was not disbanded, it was still a paramilitary organisation but was a subordinate if the SS. Many members of the SA were absorbed by the army and the SS
The Reichstag fire
Once he was chancellor he called another election in March 1933 to get a majority Ne used the same tactics as before but now had the stab media. On the 27th February there was a fire that burnt the Reichstag down and Gitler blamed Communists and declared special emergency powers to deal with the situation and was given them. The nazis used these powers to arrest communists, disrupt meetings and frighten voters
They have been many theories about what caused the fire, work of a madman. Communist plot. Germans at the time thought the Nazis started the fire themselves
The army oath
Hindenburg died on 2nd August 1934 at the age of 86. Hitler used the enabling act to pass a law that abolished the position of President. This meant Hitler was now Germany's head of state. Hindenburg's death had removed the last obstacle to Hitler's absolute control over Germany. hitler was no Further und Reichskanzler, Leader and Chancellor of the Reich.
On the day that Hindenburg died the army swore an oath to Hitler as Furher of Germany
The army agreed to stay out of politics and to serve Hitler. In return Hitler spent vast amounts on rearmament and brought back conscription and made plans to make Germany a great military power again