Establishing a Dictatorship (1933-34) Flashcards
List 8 obstacles that stopped Hitler from having absolute power as soon as he became chancellor.
- Civil rights stopped the Nazis from intimidating their opponents
- Germany had a federal system of government, so the national government was limited in power
- Other political parties
- Trade unions
- The press could criticise the government
- Hindenburg
- The army, especially since it was suspicious of the SA
- Radicals within the Nazi party
What made up the ‘legal revolution’?
- The Reichstag Fire
- The March 1933 elections
- The Day of Potsdam
- The Enabling Act
When did the Reichstag fire happen?
- Late February 1933
What caused the Reichstag fire?
- It is still disputed whether it was started by van der Lubbe, a Dutch communist, or the Nazis, who used him as a scapegoat
What 2 things did the Nazis do in response to the Reichstag fire?
- They instructed the police to raid the offices of the KPD, and 4000 of them were arrested
- Hitler persuaded Hindenburg to declare a state of emergency, which then allowed Hitler to pass decrees
What decree did Hitler pass in February 1933, and what 3 things did it contain?
- The Reichstag Fire Decree
- It suspended individual rights and the freedom of the press
- The government could now imprison people without charging them with a specific crime
- The government was also given the power to enforce law and order in the states, undermining the state governments (some of these were power bases for rival political parties)
What did Hitler do after the Reichstag fire?
- He convinced Hindenburg to hold elections in early March
Why did Hitler want to hold elections so early? Give 2 details.
- Hitler wanted to win more seats to control the Reichstag
- The coalition between the Nazis and nationalists controlled around 40% of the seats
- Hitler needed 50% support to pass laws, and a two-thirds majority to change the constitution
What 4 actions did the Nazis take to ensure they won a greater proportion of the seats in the March 1933 elections?
- Hitler used his emergency powers to arrest opponents
- The SA terrorised the Nazis’ political opponents- 69 people were killed during the campaign
- They used their growing control of the media to spread the idea that the KPD was planning a revolution
- Hitler waited until after the elections to ban the KPD to split left-wing support between the SPD and KPD
What were the results of the March 1933 elections?
- The Nazis won 44% of the seats
- The Nazis had over 50% with the combined seats from the DNVP (52), but this still wasn’t two-thirds
- Hitler used his emergency powers to ban the KPD from taking their 81 seats
Other than the lack of a two-thirds majority, what other issue did the March 1933 elections cause the Nazis?
- Hindenburg was concerned by the use of violence by the SA up until the election
What 2 things did Hitler do to assuage Hindenburg’s fears?
- Hitler instructed his followers to stop the violence 5 days after the election
- The Day of Potsdam
What was the Day of Potsdam? Give 4 details.
- The opening of the Reichstag by Hindenburg and Hitler
- Hitler showed Hindenburg respect and deference throughout the service
- Hindenburg was in full military uniform (representing old Germany) while Hitler was wearing a frock coat and top hat (representing new Germany to appeal to the middle classes)
- This ceremony showed that Hitler was accepted by the old government, and it made the Nazis look respectable to both deputies in the Reichstag and the general public
What did Hitler do after the elections? Give 2 details about it.
- He put forward an Enabling Act
- This would give him dictatorial powers as he would be able to pass laws without the Reichstag
- However, as his plans required changing the constitution, he needed a two-thirds majority in the Reichstag to support this
What 5 things did Hitler do in order to pass the Enabling Act?
- All 81 KPD deputies were not allowed to enter the Kroll Opera House (where the debate was being held)
- 26 SPD deputies were also not allowed to enter
- Hitler promised to respect the rights of the Catholic Church to win the support of the ZP
- The SA surrounded the chamber to intimidate deputies
- Hitler convinced the deputies that the law was only temporary as it was intended to last for 4 years
How many voted in favour of and against the Enabling Act?
- 444 in favour
- 94 against- all of the SPD
When was the Enabling Act passed?
- Late March 1933