G The Nazi Totalitarian State 1933 - 1939 Flashcards
Hitler’s stages in taking control of Germany
1-4
- Became Chancellor
- Used the power of Chancellor to ensure a majority in elections
- Used huge support to pass the Enabling Act
- Renewed the Enabling Act in 1937 ending the Weimar Republic.
How was a Totalitarian State created between March 1933 and August 1934
- May 1933 : Trade Unions were banned. Offices were broken into and officials arrested.
- May - July 1933 : Political Parties were banned. Communist and Social Democratic newspapers were also destroyed.
- By 1934… Local government had been organised to make sure that Nazi governors ran every region of Germany.
- 30th June 1934 : The Night of the Long Knives. Hitler heard that Rohm, the leader of the SA, was planning to rival his leadership - so he killed him and other SA members.
The different ways (5) that control was kept in Nazi Germany
1) Fear
2) The demand of absolute loyalty to Hitler. A “Cult of the Fuhrer” was created around him.
3) Propaganda
4) The banning of ideas
5) A strong Police State
Why did Hitler turn on the SA?
- Hitler believed that their leader, Ernst Rohm, was a threat. - Rohm had merged an army veterans group with the SA. These men were more loyal to Rohm and believed Hitler undervalued them.
- Rohm was also very critical of Hitler’s policies. He thought Hitler was too close to rich businessmen and Rohm wanted to see more socialist government action.
- He wanted to do more to help the working class. Rohm was more Socialist in his thinking, whereas Hitler was more nationalist in his leading, so Rohm was a rival with different ideas.
Night of the Long Knives - 30th June 1934
Hitler arranged a meeting with Rohm and 100 SA leaders at a hotel. When they arrived they were arrested, imprisoned and shot.
Night of the Long Knives - 1st July 1934
Rohm was killed in his prison cell after refusing to kill himself.
Night of the Long Knives - What happened to Von Papen?
Von Papen was placed under house arrest after complaining of what was happening to another member of the Nazi high command, Goering. His phone was cut off. A signal was sent that he was powerless.
Night of the Long Knives - What was the result of the killings?
The SS became more important than the broken up SA and the German army were forced to swear loyalty to Hitler and no one else.
Why was the police state set up in Germany?
Set up to ensure the total control of the German population.
The SS
Expanded from Hitler’s private army to 240,000 men. The SS had different “branches” outline below (SD, Gestapo) .
The SD
The SD were a security force that kept index cards on anyone thought to oppose the Nazis.
Gestapo
They existed to identify any and all critics of the Nazi Party. They spied on people, tapped phones and used informants to identify suspects. In 1939 alone, 160,000 people were arrested.
Concentration camps
People were placed in these when suspected of being opponents of the Nazis. The first camp was opened at Dachau in 1933.
How the judges were controlled…
All judges had to be members of the Nazi Party.
How the law courts were controlled…
Courts became the people’s courts meaning that fair trials were suspended and sometime Hitler imposed sentences himself.