Appeal of Nazism and Communism

Question 1

Where did the core support for the Nazis come from?

Answer 1

lower middle class, Mittelstand. support among white-collar workers, small shopkeepers, independent craftsmen increased after Wall Street Crash. main gains among broader middle class and farmers. 27% of Nazi supporters were manual labourers.

Question 2

With farmer, what percentage of the vote did the Nazis gain in one NW district?

Answer 2

68%. in geographical terms, Nazis were the strongest in the Protestant north, east and centre of Germany. less successful in Catholic south and east.

Question 3

Why did the Nazis secure middle-class support?

Answer 3

they were worried about the perceived threat of a communist revolution (was exaggerated; only had 17% of the vote) and were disillusioned with established middle-class parties like DVP and DNVP.

Question 4

When did Hindenburg’s office as President end?

Answer 4

1932. reluctant to stand for election again but he was persuaded to do so. He fell short of the 50% needed for victory in the first ballot. triggered a second ballot in which Duesterberg wasn’t a candidate. Hitler rented an aeroplane and flew all over Germany presenting hi,seld as a saviour.

Question 5

At the end of the 1932 presidential election, what was the Nazi outcome?

Answer 5

37% of the vote. Hindenburg won with 53%. over the course of the

Question 6

What did the Nazi ideology consist of?

Answer 6

1) power of the will
2) struggle and war
3) racial community
4) national socialism
5) fuhrerprinzip
6) agressive nationalism
7) anti-Semitism

Question 7

What was the power of will?

Answer 7

Hitler and the Nazi movement presented as being a force for change in Germany. “If one has realised a truth, that truth is valueless so long as there is lacking the indomitable will to turn this realisation into action” (Hitler, 1922). propaganda claimed that power, strength and determination to succeed were qualities personified by Hitler. image of discipline and unity.

Question 8

How did struggle and war fit into the ideology?

Answer 8

Hitler defined his outlook in terms of struggle and claimed scientific justification for his view that struggle and conflict between races was part of the natural order of things. he believed war would reconstruct German society and create a new German Reich through conquest and the subjugation of other races. propaganda glorified military virtues of courage, loyalty and self-sacrifice.

Question 9

What was included in Hitler’s racial community?

Answer 9

The Volksgemeinschaft. advocated a state based on a racial community wherein only Aryans could be citizens of the state. all others were to be denied the rights of citizenship and its benefits. no social classes and all Germans would have equal chance to find their own levell in society. work together for good of the community. aimed for a cultural and social revolution. create a ‘new man’ and a ‘new woman’. awareness of importance of thier race, strength of character and willingness to follow leadership. backwards. return to a romanticised, mythical German past. before pollution of ‘alien blood’. based on ‘blood and soil’ aimed at farmers and peasants.

Question 10

What was part of the national socialism aspect of the ideology?

Answer 10

adopted ‘Socialism’ to gain working class support and differentiate themselves from the socialism of the KPD. points laid out in Twenty Five Point Programme were economically radial and similar to many of the anti-capitalist policies of the communists and socialists. called for the confiscation of war profts, nationalism of large monopoly companies and confiscation of land from large estates without compensation to landowners. modification of message according to audience he addressed. after 1920, he sought support of wealthy businessmen such as Hugenberg and Thyssen. socialism and Volksgemeinschaft were the same for Hitler.

Question 11

What did the Fuhrerprinzip outline?

Answer 11

Hitler wanted to destroy WR as it was weak, ineffective and alien to Germany’s traditions. parliamentary democracy encouraged growth of communism. “Democracy is fundamentally not German; it is Jewish” (1922). one party state run on basis of Fuhrerprinzip. basis on which Nazi party had been run since 1925.

Question 12

What did Hitler’s aggressive nationalism include?

Answer 12

3 aims:-
- reverse humiliation of ToV. instrument of “unlimited blackmail and shameful humiliation”
- establish a ‘Greater German Reich’ wherein all Germans would live within borders of the state
- secure Germany its Lebensraum to settle its people and provide it with food and raw materials needed to sustain it as a great power.
Hitler didn’t just want to restore Germany to its borders of 1914 but to expand the territory of the Reich. war of conquest to secure Germany’s Lebensraum in the east.

Question 13

What was included in the Anti-Semitism part of the ideology?

Answer 13

Hitler saw the Jews as responsible for all of Germany’s ills. Jews represented as greedy, cunning and motivated by selfish motives. ‘a parasite in the body of other nations’. held to be responsible for the evils of capitalism and growth of communism. held responsible for Germany’s defeat in WW1, ToV and Germany’s decline as a great power. Hitler regarded communism as a Jewish creed that had undermined the political and social cohesion of Germay and should be eradicated.

Question 14

What were the qualities that Hitler possessed?

Answer 14

great charisma and oratical skill. hypnotic effect. knew how to play on people’s emotions and fears and convince them that he had the answers. opportunist who could tailor his message to his audience.

Question 15

How did the Nazis use Anti-semitism in their electoral success?

Answer 15

1) used Jews as a scapegoat
2) Nazi speakers would openly encourage hostility against Jews in the whole speech.
3) SA chanted ‘Juda Verrecke’ (‘Down with the Jews)
4) likely that only a small minority of these new voters had anti-Semitism as a main motive to vote for Nazis.

Question 16

How was propaganda used in Nazis electoral support?

Answer 16

Nazis were skilled in propaganda. Joseph Goebbls, Reich Propaganda Chief, from 1928 was a master of the medium. ability to travel by air and car to make speeches in all the main cities in Germany. had their own newspapers. published posters and leaflets, put on film shows and staged rallies. powerful statement about Nazi strength. targeted different groups in the population and adapted Nazi message to particular target audience.

Question 17

How did communism appeal to the Germans?

Answer 17

1) membership increased from 117,000 in 1929 to 360,000 in 1932
2) 2 million votes in Reichstag between 1928 and July 1932.
3) significant and growing force in German political life. concentrated on building a strong presence in factories and workshops.
4) set up committees of the unemployed, staged hunger marches and agitated against benefit cuts.
5) Red Front Fighters League of the KPD was engaged in frequent battles with the SA and police.

Question 18

What were the strengths of communism?

Answer 18

1) propaganda helped attract membership, especially though posters and in speeches of Thalmann.
2) emphasised class struggle and smashing of capitalist system. ‘Bread and Freedom’
3) posters which emphasised the the KPD’s links with the USSR and its belief in internationalism.
4) projected an image which would appeal to its committed followers and to many of those whose situation had become desperate as a result of the depression.
5) KPD had considerable strength.

Question 19

What were the weaknesses of communism?

Answer 19

1) KPD never came close to launching a successful revolution
2) more than 50% of its new members in 1932 left within a few months.
3) failed to attract support outside the main industrial areas and had very limited appeal amongst women
4) KPD short of money, as members were unemployed.