1929-1934: Impact of the Depression and Hitler's Rise to Power

Question 1

What was the Wall Street Crash?

Answer 1

1929 - American stock market crashed and sent the USA into economic depression

Question 2

How did the Wall Street Crash affect Germany?

Answer 2

USA recalled the loans paid to Germany under the Dawes Plan and the Young Plan. Germany could not afford to repay, so the economy collapsed

Question 3

What happened to unemployment in this period?

Answer 3

Rose from 1.4 to 2 million over the winter of 1929-30. By 1933, it had rose to 6.1 million

Question 4

Why did support for extremist parties grow in this period?

Answer 4

Many blamed the Weimar Constitution for the economic collapse

Question 5

Who resigned as Chancellor in March 1930 after his government failed to agree on how best to solve the problems presented by the depression?

Answer 5

Hermann Müller

Question 6

Who replaced Müller as Chancellor?

Answer 6

Heinrich Brüning

Question 7

Why was Brüning considered an ineffective Chancellor?

Answer 7

In July 1930 Chancellor Brüning cut government expenditure, wages and unemployment pay. This added to the spiral of decline and unemployment continued to rise, as well as making those who had lost their jobs even poorer.

Question 8

What did Hindenburg do which weakened the power of the Reichstag and the Weimar Constitution?

Answer 8

Brüning could not get the Reichstag to agree, so President Hindenburg used Article 48 to govern. This undermined democracy, weakened the power of the Reichstag and lowered confidence in the Constitution

Question 9

How did the German people demonstrate their frustration in the elections?

Answer 9

By 1932, parties committed to the destruction of the Weimar Republic (left wing and right wing) held 319 seats out of a total of 608

Question 10

Who did Hitler blame for the troubles faced by Germany?

Answer 10

The Allies, the ‘November Criminals’, Jews, Communists

Question 11

Who did the Nazi’s 25-Point Programme appeal to most?

Answer 11

The unemployed, the elderly, the middle class - those who were most affected by the Depression

Question 12

How did Goebbels appeal to the ordinary German people?

Answer 12

-simplified the main policies so they could be easily understood by everyone - understood the effectiveness of propaganda and used this to gain publicity and support

Question 13

What was the Führer cult?

Answer 13

Portrayed Hitler as Germany’s saviour – the man who would rescue the country from the grip of depression.

Question 14

Who were the SA?

Answer 14

• known as the Brownshirts - ex-soldiers who became the Nazi Party’s army - provided protection for leading Nazis, disrupted political meetings and rallies - played a significant role in Hitler’s rise to power

Question 15

Who were the SS?

Answer 15

• known as the Blackshirts - a splinter group of the SS - led by Heinrich Himmler - Hitler’s personal bodyguards who became the secret police

Question 16

What does the ‘negative cohension’ belief suggest?

Answer 16

People supported the Nazis, not because they shared the same views, but because they shared the same fears and dislikes

Question 17

What happened in April 1932?

Answer 17

Hitler ran for President against Hindenburg and lost

Question 18

How many votes did Hitler gain when he ran for President in 1932?

Answer 18

13 million compared to Hindenburg’s 19 million

Question 19

When did Brüning resign as Chancellor?

Answer 19

May 1932

Question 20

Who replaced Brüning as Chancellor?

Answer 20

Hindenburg appointed Franz Von Papen, a conservative, as his replacement.

Question 21

What was the outcome of the Reichstag elections in July 1932?

Answer 21

The Nazis became the largest single party with 230 seats, but still did not have a majority. Hitler demanded to be made Chancellor but Papen remained.

Question 22

Why did Von Papen call for further elections in November 1932?

Answer 22

He wanted to win a majority in Parliament

Question 23

What happened to the Nazi Party in the November elections?

Answer 23

Nazis lost 34 seats but remained the largest party with 196 seats

Question 24

Who replaced Von Papen when he resigned in December 1932?

Answer 24

Kurt Von Schleicher, an army general

Question 25

How did Von Schleicher try to split the Nazi party?

Answer 25

He asked leading Nazi, Gregor Strasser to be his Vice Chancellor. Hitler forced Strasser to decline.

Question 26

What happened in January 1933?

Answer 26

Von Papen (acting as an advisor) and Hindenburg appointed Hitler as Chancellor and Von Papen as Vice Chancellor

Question 27

Why did they appoint Hitler Chancellor?

Answer 27

They needed someone who had popularity in the Reichstag to restore faith in the constitution - They thought they could control Hitler and limit his authority

Question 28

What were the main factors that led to Hitler being appointed as Chancellor?

Answer 28

His speaking skills, Nazi propaganda, Nazi policies, support from big businesses, the Depression, failure of the Weimar Government, back-room deals between Hindenburg and Von Papen, Treaty of Versailles,

Question 29

What were the main factors that led to Hitler being appointed as Chancellor?

Answer 29

His speaking skills, Nazi propaganda, Nazi policies, support from big businesses, the Depression, failure of the Weimar Government, back-room deals between Hindenburg and Von Papen, Treaty of Versailles, Hitler’s opponents’ underestimation

Question 30

When did the Reichstag Fire occur?

Answer 30

27th February 1933

Question 31

How did the Reichstag Fire further cement Hitler’s power?

Answer 31

• He blamed the Communists for the fire, and Hindenburg granted him special emergency powers to deal with the ‘communist uprising’. - Arrested 4000 Communists, broke up meetings and frightened potential voters

Question 32

What happened in the March 1933 elections?

Answer 32

Nazis, who won 288 seats, and with the support of the Nationalist Party, they formed a majority

Question 33

What was the Enabling Act of 1933?

Answer 33

Gave Hitler the right to make laws without the Reichstag’s approval for four years

Question 34

How did the Enabling Act help Hitler gain power?

Answer 34

It gave Hitler absolute power to make laws - he was able to destroy all opposition to his rule - removed the Reichstag as a source of opposition.

Question 35

How else did Hitler eliminate political opposition in 1933?

Answer 35

-Civil service, law courts and education purged of Nazi opponents -trade unions banned -political parties other than the Nazis were banned - Concordat between the Catholic Church and state

Question 36

When was the Night of the Long Knives?

Answer 36

June 1934

Question 37

What caused the Night of the Long Knives?

Answer 37

The SA was badly disciplined, and under its leader, Ernst Röhm, was a threat to Hitler’s power. The SA and German army came into conflict after Röhm talked of making the SA a second German army

Question 38

What happened on the Night of the Long Knives?

Answer 38

the SS murdered around 400 members of the SA, including Röhm, along with a number of Hitler’s other opponents like the previous Chancellor, von Schleicher.

Question 39

What impact did the Night of the Long Knives have?

Answer 39

This destroyed all opposition to Hitler within the Nazi Party and gave power to the SS. It also showed the rest of the world what a tyrant Hitler was. This removed any internal Nazi Party opposition to Hitler.

Question 40

When did Hitler become Führer?

Answer 40

19th August 1934 after Hindenburg’s death

Question 41

How did his role as Führer differ from President?

Answer 41

As Führer, he was jointly president, chancellor and head of the army. Members of the armed forces had to swear a personal oath of allegiance not to Germany, but to Hitler.