Hitler's Rise to Power

Question 1

How did Hitler come into politics?

Answer 1

• The Nazi’s began as the German Workers party led by Anton Drexler
• Hitler joined the party in 1919 when he was still in the army
• Drexler recognised he had a talent as a passionate and skilled speaker and crowds would gather to hear him speak
• He was soon relied upon to attract new party members and was put in charge of propaganda
• In 1920 the party was rebranded as the National Socialist German Workers Party (the Nazi party)

Question 2

What Was the Nazi Party 25 Point Programme?

Answer 2

The Nazi Party published a 25 point programme in 1920 to promote their policies. Examples of the points included:
* Abolish the Treaty of Versailles
* The union of all Germans in a Greater Germany
* Rebuild the German Armed Forces
* Only Germans (people with German blood) can be classed as citizens, Jews cannot be citizens
* Nationalise industries
* Increase pensions for the elderly
* A strong central Government

Question 3

Who were the SA and what were there role?

Answer 3

• In 1920, Hitler founded his own party militia (army) called the SA (Storm Troopers)
• The SA were mostly young men, some were former members of the Freikorps
• They dressed in brown and were sometimes known as the Brownshirts
• They were supposed to protect speakers at Nazi meetings, distribute propaganda, disrupt opposition meetings, intimidate rival political groups and beat up Communists.

Question 4

What was the Munich Beer Hall Putsch?

Answer 4

• The Munich Beer Hall Putsch was an armed uprising led my Hitler on the 8th-9th November 1923
• He planned to establish a dictatorship in the Bavarian city of Munich, with the ultimate aim of overthrowing the Weimar Republic
• It was the last in a series of uprisings which threatened the Weimar Republic between 1919-23

Question 5

What were the causes of the Munich Beer Hall Putsch?

Answer 5

• The German people resented the Weimar Republic because they blamed them for Germany’s defeat in WW1. The government were known as the “November Criminals” for signing the Armistice and the Treaty of Versailles
• Hitler was inspired by the actions of Mussolini who had overthrown democracy and set up a dictatorship in 1922 in Italy
• The Nazi Party was strong in Bavaria with 55,000 members by 1923
• The hyperinflation in 1923 had weakened the Weimar Republic si it seemed that it was the perfect time for Hitler to organise the Putsch
• The former Commander in Chief of the German Army during WW1, General Ludendorff gave Hitler his support. He was extremely popular in Germany and had considerable influence with the German Army

Question 6

What were the main events of the Munich Beer Hall Putsch?

Answer 6

• Hitler and his SA took over a political meeting being held by the leaders of the Bavaria Government, Kahr, Bavarian Police, von Seisser, and German Army in Bavaria, von Lossow which was being held in a beer hall
• The three men were forced to agree to Hitler’s plan for a putsch at gunpoint, they were then released
• The Leader of the Bavarian Government, Kahr, went back on his promise (at gunpoint) to Hitler
• The SA took over the local police and army headquarters and Hitler and his supporters marched on the city of Munich
• The police stopped them and opened fire, sixteen members of the Nazi party were killed and Hitler fled, he was arrested on 11th November 1923

Question 7

Why did the Munich Beer Hall Putsch Fail?

Answer 7

• Hitler trusted both Kahr and Lossow and they let him down at the crucial moment. The loyalty of the Bavarian Government to the Weimar Republic had been underestimated
• The Putsch failed to gain the support needed from the Bavarian people. Hitler had miscalculated the mood of the German people who didn’t rise up to support him
• The Putsch failed to gain the support of the Army, they remained loyal to the Weimar Government

Question 8

What were the short-term consequences of the Munich Beer Hall Putsch?

Answer 8

• Hitler was put on trial for treason but used it as a propaganda exercise, gaining publicity for both himself and the Nazi Party. He was sentenced to five years but only served nine months. Ludendorff was acquitted
• The Nazi Party was banned and Hitler was forbidden to speak in public until 1927

Question 9

What were the long-term consequences of the Munich Beer Hall Putsch?

Answer 9

• Hitler used his trial as a political rally. His ranting against the Weimar Government gained a lot of media coverage which helped to raise his profile
• He served only 9 months in prison (which was a comfortable castle), during which time we wrote “Mein Kampf” (My Struggle), a propaganda book setting out Nazi beliefs. Millions of German’s read it and Hitler’s ideas became very well known
• The trial showed Hitler had sympathisers within the judiciary
• Hitler realised that he would never come to power by revolution and that he would have to use democratic means. He reorganised the Nazi party to enable it to take part in elections

Question 10

Why did the Nazi Party have little success before 1930?

Answer 10

• The failure of the Munich Putsch led to the imprisonment of the Party leader (Hitler) for high treason which put people off supporting them
• The Nazi Party had been banned for a short time after the Munich Putsch and could not campaign and build up support
• Many people hated the violence of the SA who had gained a reputation of being thugs
• People were content with the Weimar Government as economic, political and international conditions were improving. The German people could see little point switching to an extreme right-wing party
• The Party failed to gain the support of the workers who remained strong supporters of the Social Democrats (SPD). Those workers with radical views supported the communists

Question 11

How did Hitler Restructure the Nazi Party to deliver Electoral Success?

Answer 11

• To achieve national electoral success, Hitler recognised that he would need a different kind of Nazi party. The new structure was,
  o Hitler
  o The SS
  o Leadership Corp
  o The SA
  o Party membership
  o Hitler Youth
• Josef Goebbels started experimenting with new ways of sharing the Nazi Party message. Posters started to show Hitler as a strong leader, speeches were arranged in public places and rallies were held to capture people’s enthusiasm
• They focussed on the working class and discovered that anti-Jewish messaging had the most appeal so they increased their anti-Jewish propaganda
• Despite growing their membership the Nazi Party was actually losing where it mattered, in the Reichstag where their electoral performance was very poor

Question 12

What was the Bamburg Conference?

Answer 12

• Hitler called a special Nazi Party conference on the 14th February 1926 at Bamburg
• This conference was in response tension between the Northern and Southern sections of the party. While Hitler had been in prison, disagreements had broken out between the two sections
• The Northern section was keen to emphasise the Socialist elements of the 25 point programme to attract workers
• The Southern Section was more interested in Nationalist and Racist policies in order to attract the middle classes and farmers
• The outcomes of the conference were:
  o Hitler insisted that policies that could be pointed as Communist such as taking land from rich people would not be pursued
  o The conference did re-confirm the 25 Point Programme with its socialist ideas as the party’s policies
  o Hitler established the Fuhrerprinzip or “Leader Principle”, the idea that the party’s leader was in absolute control and all members must follow his directions. No dissent from this was expected or tolerated

Question 13

How did the Great Depression help Hitler become Chancellor by 1933?

Answer 13

• The Wall Street Crash in October 1929 brought about a global economic depression. Germany was most exposed and affected as American banks called in their loans at very short notice. Many German businesses went bankrupt
• This resulted in a huge rise in unemployment, by 1930 unemployment was 4 million and by 1932 this had increased to 6 million. By the time Hitler came to power, 1 in 3 German’s was unemployed and industrial production had halved
• The rise in unemployment significantly raised government expenditure on unemployment payments
• The German people began to lose faith in democracy and looked to extreme parties on both the Left (The Communists) and the Right (the Nazi’s) for quick and simple solutions

Question 14

How did the appeal of the Nazi’s help Hitler become Chancellor by 1933?

Answer 14

• Hitler and the Nazi’s promised to get people back to work and provide food
• The 25 Point Programme had broad appeal for people across the country from all walks of life
• They gained support from all sections of German society including powerful industrialists who were afraid of the Communist threat
• They also offered a strong response to the rising communists and a promise to return Germany to its pre-war standing and power

Question 15

How did the fear of Communists help Hitler become Chancellor by 1933?

Answer 15

• In the 1930 elections the Communists gained 77 seats and there was a fear of a communist revolution
• This worried many industrialists who thought the communists would take their wealth away. To combat this, they gave money to Hitler and the Nazi’s to stop the Communists gaining more seats
• The SA and SS gave the Nazi’s an impression of discipline and order

Question 16

How did political unrest help Hitler become Chancellor by 1933?

Answer 16

• Germany was thrown into economic chaos as a result of the Great Depression and the requirement to repay loans to the USA
• President Hindenburg ruled by decree (the force of law)
• There were five governments between 1929-32, each in power for only a few months
• As mainstream politicians failed to address the problems Germany faced, people began to look at alternatives such as the Nazi’s who had radical solutions to solve their problems

Question 17

How did long term issues help Hitler become Chancellor by 1933?

Answer 17

• Germany had too much reliance on loans from the USA as a result of the Treaties signed in the 1920’s
• This showed the German people the damage the Treaty of Versailles had had on their country and resentment grew
• The Nazi’s offered a return to traditional values, away from the cultural experimentation of the 1920’ and uniting behind one leader

Question 18

How did propaganda help Hitler become Chancellor by 1933?

Answer 18

Goebbels introduced new campaigning methods to increase the Nazi share of the vote. These included:
* The Nazi’s relied on general slogans rather than detailed policies
* They repeatedly accused the Jews, the Communists and the Weimar Government of causing the current difficulties
* Posters and leaflets were widely distributed and displayed
* Large rallies were held where people could hear directly the powerful speeches from Hitler. He travelled by plane paid for by industrialists all over Germany
* The Nazi’s provided soup kitchens and hostels for the unemployed
* Film, radio and records brought the Nazi message to everybody

Question 19

What was the chain of events that led to Hitler becoming Chancellor between 1932-33?

Answer 19

• Chancellors in the period 1929-33 were normally weak because proportional representation made it hard for political parties to gain a majority, therefore the Chancellor found it difficult to control the Reichstag
• By 1932, President Hindenburg had used Article 48 to pass almost every law undermining democracy
• In April 1932 Hitler stood against Hindenburg in the Presidential election. Hitler came second to Hindenburg who won 53% of the vote versus 37% for Hitler
• In May 1932 Brűning resigned as Chancellor. Hindenburg appointed Von Papen a conservative as his replacement
• In July 1932 Reichstag elections the Nazi’s become the largest party with 230 seats. Hitler demands to be made Chancellor but Von Papen remained
• In November 1932, Reichstag elections are called by Von Papen to try to win a majority. The Nazi’s lose 34 seats but remain the largest party with 196 seats
• In December 1932 Von Papen resigns and Hidenburg appoints Von Schleicher as Chancellor but he resigned within a month
• In January 1933 Hindenburg and Von Papen met secretly with Industrialists, the Army and politicians. They surprisingly turned to Hitler and appointed him Chancellor with Von Papen as his Deputy
• The Nazi’s had got into power legally and democratically. Hindenburg and Von Papen thought they could control Hitler and get him to do what they wanted