Chapter 11 - the appointment of Hitler as Chancellor

Question 1

How Hitler was seen by the establishment in 1932:

Answer 1

• Inexperienced politician
• Upstart Austrian (not German)
• Easy to manipulate as lacking intelligence
• Thug due to the violence of the SA

Question 2

The appointment of Hitler

Answer 2

• On the 30th of January 1933, Adolf Hitler was summoned to the office of the President of the Weimar Republic, Field Marshal Hindenburg
• At this short but momentous meeting, Hitler was invited by Hindenburg to lead a new “government of national concentration”, a coalition government in which the Nazi party would share power with the DNVP and others including Franz von Papen
• When he left the meeting to return to his party headquarters, Hitler had been appointed Chancellor of the new government
• Although Hitler was the leader of the largest party in the Reichstag, Hindenburg, and Papen believed his inexperience meant that he could be easily manipulated by the more experienced politicians in his cabinet
• The process that brought Hitler to power in January 1933 was long and complex
• Hitler and the Nazis won enough votes in the 1932 elections to become the largest party in the Reichstag, but that did not mean Hitler was carried into power on a wave of popular support
• The NSDAP was the largest party in the Reichstag, but it did not have an absolute majority, and a large majority of German voters supported other parties
• Nor did Hitler become chancellor as a result of a Nazi-led political uprising, even though subsequent Nazi propaganda presented it in that way
• Hitler’s appointment involved negotiations and secret deals between many key German political figures, including Hindenburg and his close circle of advisers
• As the historian Alan Bullock wrote, Hitler came to power “as part of a shoddy political deal with the ‘old gang’ whom he had been attacking for months past. Hitler did not seize power, he was jobbed into office by a backstairs intrigue”

Question 3

Key people

Answer 3

• Bruning (chancellor, March 1930 – May 1932)
• Von Papen (chancellor)
• Von Schleicher (chancellor and member of Hindenburg’s inner circle)
• Oskar von Hindenburg (member of Hindenburg’s inner circle)
• Otto Meissner (member of Hindenburg’s inner circle)

Question 4

The fall of Bruning’s government, May 1932

Answer 4

• Bruning’s coalition government was in power from March 1930 until May 1932, despite not having majority support in the Reichstag
• His appointment by Hindenburg had been heavily influenced by Schleicher and he could only remain in office, or indeed pass any new laws, with Hindenburg and Schleicher’s continued support
• Kurt von Schleicher, who had become the key power broker in Weimar politics, was determined to establish a more authoritarian style government in Germany and his first attempt to achieve this was during Bruning’s government, which ruled largely through presidential decree
• In economic policy, Bruning’s priority was to reduce state expenditure by cutting welfare benefits, reducing the number of civil servants, and cutting wages, a policy for which he was dubbed the “Hunger Chancellor”
• Far from improving the economic situation, these measures contributed to the deepening of the depression and, by February 1931, unemployment in Germany exceeded 6 million for the first time
• As unemployment increased, so too did electoral support for the Nazi party and the communist party, and the level of street violence rose
• By the Spring of 1932, there was growing alarm among the middle and upper classes that Germany was descending into chaos and that a communist revolution was a real possibility
• Although Bruning imposed a ban on the SA in April 1932 in an attempt to stop street violence, the political situation continued to deteriorate, and Schleicher withdrew his support
• Schleicher was concerned that the ban on the SA would provoke a Nazi uprising and he also came to the conclusion, after the presidential election, that no government could rule without the support of the Nazi party
• In talks with Schleicher, Hitler refused to join a coalition unless he was appointed Chancellor, something that Schleicher was not willing to concede
• However, Hitler did not agree to oppose a new government, on condition that there would be a new Reichstag election and that the ban on the SA was lifted
• Bruning’s fate as chancellor was sealed
• When Hindenburg, acting on Schleicher’s advice, refused to sign a presidential decree Bruning had submitted, Bruning had no alternative but to resign
• Hindenburg replaced him with Franz von Papen, with Schleicher as Defence Minister in the new cabinet

Question 5

Papen’s government, May – December 1932. The “cabinet of Barons”

Answer 5

• Following the orders of Hindenburg and Schleicher, Papen, in an attempt to establish a “government of national concentration”, constructed his government on a non-party political basis
• The only political party that supported his coalition was the DNVP, which was rewarded with two posts in the cabinet
• All other cabinet positions were filled by men who were not members of the Reichstag, most of whom came from the landowning and industrial elite
• The cabinet therefore had the nickname “cabinet of Barons”
• With limited support in the Reichstag, Papen continued to rule by presidential decree, a situation that suited his authoritarian leanings
• Papen believed that the greatest threat to Germany was a communist revolution and that the Weimar republic had allowed this threat to grow
• Papen was not taken seriously by anyone apart from Hindenburg and supposedly enjoyed the peculiarity of being taken seriously by neither his friends nor his enemies
• Although, as an aristocrat, he looked down on the Nazis, he nevertheless sympathised with many of Hitler’s ideas and saw the Nazis, with their mass popular support, as useful allies in his quest to establish a government of national concentration
• In June 1932, therefore, he lifted the ban on the SA and imposed curbs on the left-wing press
• The result was a new wave of street violence, especially during the Reichstag election campaign of July 1932 which gave Papen an excuse to impose authoritarian rule in Germany’s largest state, Prussia

Question 6

Imposition of authoritarian rule in Prussia

Answer 6

• One of the most serious incidents of political violence occurred in the Altona suburb of Hamburg on July 17th, 1932
• This was the scene of a large SA march, which was confronted by several hundred communists
• The police panicked and opened fire on the communists, killing 18 and injuring over 100
• Although the deaths were caused by police violence, Papen blamed the SPD-led state government for the breakdown of law and order
• He used this as an excuse to dismiss the government and imposed an authoritarian rule and appointed himself as Reich Commissioner in charge of Prussia
• Papen used the army to impose order in Berlin and also purged the civil service in Prussia of SPD supporters
• Although Papen had the support of Hindenburg, his actions nevertheless went far beyond his constitutional powers
• The SPD, however, did not try to organise resistance to this blatant assault on the democratic constitution

Question 7

July 1932 election

Answer 7

• One of the terms of the agreement between Hitler and Schleicher was that there should be a new Reichstag election
• This was held at the end of July
• Most moderate parties, with the exception of the centre, suffered losses in the July 1932 election as Germany’s political life had become even more polarised compared with the previous election in September 1930
• The DVP and the State Party (DDP), in particular, experienced a loss of support and were reduced to the ranks of fringe parties
• The DNVP also suffered heavy losses as the Nazis established themselves as the main party of the right
• The Nazis succeeded in attracting large numbers of middle-class voters, many of whom had never participated in elections before and many of them unemployed
• They did not, however, succeed in winning voters from the SPD or KPD, nor were they able to attract catholic voters away from the centre party
• Despite their success, some Nazis were aware that they were reaching the limits of their appeal in an open election
• As Goebbels wrote in his diary, “we have won a tiny bit. We won’t get an absolute majority in this way. Something must happen. The time for opposition is over. Now deeds”
• Nevertheless, after winning 230 seats (37.3% of votes), Hitler was now in an even stronger position in his dealings with Papen and Schleicher
• After the election, Papen invited Hitler to join his government, but Hitler still refused
• Again, he would only participate in a coalition government if he were the chancellor
• He also felt free to break his agreement with Schleicher and attack Papen’s government
• Indeed, the Nazis joined with other parties, even the communists, to debate a vote of no confidence in Papen’s government, which was passed by the massive majority of 512 votes to 42
• Papen’s position had weakened, and he was forced to ask Hindenburg to dissolve the Reichstag and call a new election in November

Question 8

November 1932 election

Answer 8

• The most striking outcome of the November 1932 election was the loss of support for the Nazi Party
• Although they remained the largest party in the Reichstag, they lost 2 million votes and 34 seats in the Reichstag, winning 33.1% of votes with 196 seats
• It appeared that Nazi support had peaked in July and was now in decline
• Part of the explanation for this was that many middle-class voters had been alienated (isolated) by Hitler’s attacks on Papen and by his refusal to join a coalition if he could not lead it
• These middle-class voters returned to the DVP and DNVP, both of which saw a modest revival in their electoral support
• The fact that the Nazis had supported a communist-led transport strike in Berlin during the election campaign also damaged the party in the eyes of middle-class voters, who were terrified of a communist revolution
• Moreover, 3 election campaigns in the space of 8 months had exhausted Nazi funds
• Hitler appeared to have lost his chance to take power by legal means
• The centre parties suffered losses, whilst the communists made significant gains

Question 9

The end of Papen’s government

Answer 9

• Overall, the biggest loser in the November 1932 election was Papen, even though he was not a candidate
• His government faced a hostile Reichstag majority, and he was beginning to lose credibility in the eyes of the army
• Papen considered banning the Nazis and the communists and using the army to enforce an authoritarian style of government, which would bypass the Reichstag all together
• However, when Schleicher informed Papen that the army would not support him, he had no alternative but to resign

Question 10

The role of backstairs intrigue

Hindenburg’s inner circle

Question 11

The role of backstairs intrigue

Hindenburg’s inner circle

Answer 11

• Throughout the complicated twists and turns of the political situation in 1932, a small group of men who made up President Paul von Hindenburg’s inner circle of advisers were involved in all key decisions
• It was this group which advised Hindenburg on the appointment of Chancellors and signing of presidential decrees
• Chief among these was Kurt von Schleicher who, since 1926, had been the political head of the army
• Indeed, since 1929, he had been the head of the Ministerial office, whose function was to represent the army in its dealings with the government
• Schleicher had been instrumental in persuading Hindenburg to withdraw his support from Bruning in May 1932 and appoint Papen in his place
• Then, in November 1932, Schleicher was deeply involved in the downfall of Papen, since Papen had proved to be far too independent-minded (only uses his own ideas) for Schleicher’s liking
• Schleicher was ambitious, quick-witted and addicted to behind-the-scenes intrigue (plotting)
• As a conservative, he worked for the restoration of authoritarian rule in Germany but, as a pragmatist, he recognised tht this could not be achieved through a straightforward return to the past
• The rise of the Nazis had transformed German politics
• Schleicher aimed for an alliance between the forces of old conservatism and the Nazis who, with their popular support, would legitimise an authoritarian regime dominated by old conservatives
• Within Hindenburg’s private office, two other men occupied key positions
• Oskar von Hindenburg, the president’s son, was another army officer with close links to Schleicher
• He controlled access to the president and his opinions were highly valued by his father
• Also in a key position was Dr Otto Meissner, a civil servant who ran the President’s office and acted as a key go-between in negotiations between Hitler and Hindenburg
• Meissner had considerable influence over Hindenburg and helped organise the talks between Papen and Hitler that led to Hitler’s appointment
• Meissner continued to serve the Nazi regime after 1933, in a similar capacity, but with much less power or influence
• Hindenburg regarded Hitler with disdain and viewed the Nazis as noisy, undisciplined rabble
• Hindenburg was, therefore, reluctant to concede Hitler’s demand to be made chancellor without any checks on his freedom of action (restraints on his power)
• After the fall of Papen’s government, however, Hindenburg was running out of options

Question 12

Schleicher’s government, December 1932-January 1933

Answer 12

• After the fall of Papen, Schleicher persuaded President Hindenburg to appoint him as chancellor
• He was reluctant to take this step as he preferred to exercise influence from behind the scenes
• Moreover, this task of constructing a more stable government was filled with difficulty since he had alienated Papen and lost some of Hindenburg’s trust because of the way he conspired against Papen
• Schleicher believed that his best chance of success lay in persuading the Nazis to join a coalition government led by him
• At first, this did not seem an impossible dream
• The Nazis had suffered a setback in the November election and, in state elections in December, their support continued to fall
• They were also virtually bankrupt
• Criticism of Hitler’s tactics to refuse to join a coalition government after several invitations was beginning to surface within the Nazi party itself
• All of this contributed to the impression that Hitler had made mistakes due to his belief that his position was stronger, causing his bargaining position to weaken
• Schleicher, believing that he could put pressure on Hitler by playing on these divisions in the party, opened negotiations with the party’s organisation leader, Gregor Strasser, about joining his government
• Hitler, however, moved quickly to get rid of Strasser and reassert his control over the party
• Schleicher’s bid to win Nazi support for his government had failed
• Schleicher changed his course of action
• He believed that a progressive social policy could win support from trade unions and, through them, gain support in the Reichstag
• With the economic situation at last beginning to improve, he cancelled the cuts in wages and benefits made by Papen in September, considered a large-scale job creation scheme to relieve unemployment and even talked about breaking up some large estates in the East and distributing the land to smaller farmers
• All of this was too much for the industrialists and landowners, who were the backbone of German conservative poltics, and it also failed to attract trade union support
• Schleicher’s last throw of the dice was to ask Hindenburg to suspend the constitution, dissolve the Reichstag, and give him virtually presidential powers
• Hindenburg refused and Schleicher resigned
• Meanwhile, Papen had been involved in negotiations with Hitler over forming a new coalition government
• Although Hitler still insisted on being chancellor in any government he was part of, he was now prepared to consider a coalition
• Alfred Hugenburg, the DNVP leader, indicated that he was prepared to support a Nazi led coalition
• Talks between Hitler, Papen, and Hindenburg’s inner circle (minus Schleicher) led to a deal in which Hitler would form a coalition government with himself as chancellor
• Hindenburg’s doubts about this were laid to rest by assurances from Papen and Oskar von Hindenburg that Hitler would not have a free hand to govern the country as he wished
• Papen would be vice-chancellor and Hugenburg would run the economics and food ministries
• Both Papen and Hindenburg believed that Hitler, who was poorly educated and inexperienced in government, would be easy to control
• Papen went on to say that he thought it was best to form a government in which the conservative and nationalist elements that had supported him were represented together with the Nazis
• He suggested that this new government should, if possible, be led by Hitler and himself together
• Then Hitler made a long speech in which he said that, if he were to be elected Chancellor, Papen’s followers could participate in his (Hitler’s) government as ministers if they were willing to support his policy
• Papen and Hindenburg reached an agreement in principle whereby many of the disagreements between them could be removed and cooperation might be possible
• This meeting was arranged by Meissner after Papen had asked for it on about 10th December 1932
• Before Meissner took this step, he talked to a number of businessmen and informed himself on how the business world viewed a collaboration between the 2 men
• The general desire was to see a strong man come to power in Germany who would form a government that would stay in power for a long time