Hitler and the Nazis consolidation and maintenence of power Flashcards
Steps Hitler took to go from Chancellor to Fuhrer
1) Reichstag Fire Decree Feb 1933 –> Propaganda tool, 4000 commies arrested –> Suspended key civil liberties and suppressed political opposition –> Nazi dictatorship
2) Enabling Act Mar 1933 –> was passed with ⅔ of the vote with the support of the Center Party and other conservative groups, granting Hitler’s government the power to enact laws without Reichstag approval for four years –> Effectively dismantled democracy in Germany –> ban on all non-Nazi parties by July 1933.
3) First Gleichschaltung laws –> dissolve Ger state parliaments –> Second Gleichschaltung laws Apr. 1933, Reich governors who answered only to Hitler
4) Death of Pres. Hindenburg in Aug 1934 –> Hitler combined the offices of President and Chancellor, declaring himself Führer of Germany, further solidifying himself as the supreme leader of Germany.
Nature of Opposition
Political Parties: Social Democratic Party and the Communists
Youth Groups: The Edelweiss Pirates and the Swing Youth
Intellectuals and Students: The White Rose Group, formed by students at Munich University
Military and Conservative Elites: July 20 Plot of 1944
Religious groups: from the church
Opposition from the left
The Social Democratic Party (SPD) and the Communist Party of Germany (KPD) were among the earliest to organize against the Nazi regime. However, they were effectively suppressed by the Security Police (Sipo) and other Nazi forces
Opposition from Youth groups
-Resisted Nazi ideology through leaflets, protests and cultural defiance.
Edelweiss Pirates:
These were groups of young people who opposed the Hitler Youth and engaged in acts of defiance, such as distributing anti-Nazi leaflets and helping Jews escape. They were active in several cities across Germany.
Swing Youth:
-Young people who expressed their opposition through their love of American jazz and swing music, which was banned by the Nazis. They also wore distinctive clothing and hairstyles that were seen as rebellious.
Opposition from Intellectuals
The White Rose Movement:
A non-violent resistance group was formed by students at the University of Munich, including Sophie Scholl and her brother Hans. They distributed leaflets criticizing the Nazi regime and its atrocities, calling for passive resistance. The group’s activities were discovered, and its members were arrested and executed in 1943.
Opposition from Military
The Kreisau Circle:
Led by Helmuth James von Moltke, this group consisted of intellectuals and aristocrats who planned a post-Nazi Germany. They were involved in discussions about a new constitution and social reforms but were eventually discovered and executed.
The 20 July Plot:
-Failed assassination attempt on Hitler by a group of military officers led by Claus von Stauffenberg. The plot involved planting a bomb at a meeting in the Wolf’s Lair, but it did not succeed in killing Hitler. The conspirators were executed, and many others were arrested and killed in the aftermath.
Extent of opposition
-While these examples illustrate the diversity of opposition, it’s important to note that resistance was generally fragmented and limited.
-The Nazi regime’s control over media, education, and law enforcement, combined with its propaganda efforts, made it difficult for opposition to gain widespread support.
Hitler’s treatment of opposition
-Responded with extreme brutality
Arrests and Executions: Those caught opposing the regime were often arrested by the Gestapo and either executed or sent to concentration camps.
Propaganda and Surveillance: The regime used propaganda to demonize opponents and maintained a network of informants to monitor and suppress dissent.
Notable concentration and extermination camps
Auschwitz-Birkenau: Located in Poland, it was the largest extermination camp, where over 1.1 million people were killed.
Dachau: Situated in Germany, it was the first concentration camp established by the Nazis in 1933 for political prisoners.
Treblinka: Located in Poland, an extermination camp where between 870,000 and 925,000 people were killed
