The depression and rise of the Nazis 1929-1934 Flashcards
Why did the Nazis have little success before 1930
Hitler realised the Nazis could not seize power by force
They had to be voted in through the democratic system but once they were in they could destroy it
Hitler built up their strength by creating youth organisations, a network of local Nazi parties, a Students’ league and other organisations to gain more support
In May 1924 they stood in the elections in the Reichstag for the first time and won 32 seats
In 1928 elections the Nazis only gained 12 seats and had failed to win over the workers as they were more likely to support communists or socialists
Hitler decided to gain support of groups who weren’t doing well such as the peasant farmers and rural population
He said how important the peasants were and saying he would help agriculture if elected
He praised them for being racially pure, living clean and compared them favourably to the dwellers of the corrupt, immoral crime ridden cities
What were the SA and SS and how did they help Nazis
In 1925 Hitler enlarged the SA who were mainly recruited from those who were unemployed and ex servicemen
He also set up the SS who were similar to the SA but were loyal to Hitler and were his elite bodyguards
By 1928 party membership had risen to over 100,000
Why was Hitler able to become Chancellor in 1933
5 key reasons
- Because of the impact of the depression
- Because of the Nazis’ campaign methods
- Because of disillusionment with democracy
- Because of the communist threat
- Because of the actions of a small group of Weimar politicians like Hindenburg and Von Papen
DAINT
Why was Hitler able to become Chancellor in 1933
Impact of depression
MAIN REASON
In 1929 a depression hit the USA - they lost huge amounts of money in the economic crash
To pay off their debts US banks asked German banks to repay the money they had borrowed - this resulted in an economic collapse in Germany and businesses went bust and workers were made unemployed
The depression hit Germany badly because they were dependent on US loans
This was made worse by the fact Germany was still paying reparations and the Weimar Constitution made firm and decisive action by the government to sort out the economic problems very difficult
This made the Nazi message become attractive
They criticised the government’s inability to solve the economic problems and promised strong leadership and decisive action
They promised to get rid of the Treaty of Versailles so Germany’s problems wouldn’t be made worse by reparations
Also promised to solve unemployment by building up the army and rearming
His messaged hadn’t been attractive before as the economy was doing well
In 1930 elections the Nazis got 107 seats
In July 1932 they got 230
In November 1932 they got 196
Why was Hitler able to become Chancellor in 1933
Nazi campaign methods
The campaign methods were modern and effective. They used generalised slogans rather than detailed policies
They promised a return to ‘traditional values’ and blamed the Jews, Communists, Treaty of Versailles and the Weimar politicians for Germany’s problems
Nazi posters and pamphlets were everywhere and their mass rallies impressed people with their enthusiasm and sheer size
At the time there was lots of street violence between Communist gangs + police, in contrast the SA seemed disciplined and ordered - people felt Germany needed this kind of order
Nazis also organised soup kitchens and hostels for the unemployed
Hitler had a charismatic appeal
He used films, radios and mass rallies to get his message across
In 1933 he stood for president and travelled by plane on a hectic tour of rallies over Germany
It increased his profile and gained 13 million votes however he lost to Hindenburg with 19 million
Why was Hitler able to become Chancellor in 1933
Disillusionment with democracy
Dislike of democracy in Germany
Govt, had not been able to solve economic problems of the depression
In 1930 the Chancellor Bruning followed a tough economic policy to save money
He cut govt spending and welfare benefits - the poorest people suffered
The main workers’ party was the SPD they felt Bruning was making people suffer with his hard hitting policies and in protest they pulled out of coalition govt in 1930.
This meant Bruning could not get any of his laws passed and had to rely on Hindenburg using emergency powers under article 48
To try and get more support Bruning and Hindenburg called new elections in 1930 however it didn’t help
This made people sure democracy didn’t work and that they needed a strong leader
The govt was unable to act decisively and unemployment reached 6 million and the average German’s income had fallen by 40% since 1929
Why was Hitler able to become Chancellor in 1933
The Communist threat
ASs economic crisis got worse Communist support rose
Communists fought street battles with police and tried to break up opposition party meeting
On the streets the Nazi SA met Communist violence with their own violence
Middle class business owners and industrialists feared Communisms being introduced in Germany because they stood to lose everything if the Communists were successful in the elections This was because the Communists were promising to take over all private businesses which would then be owned by state
Why was Hitler able to become Chancellor in 1933
The actions of a small group of Weimar politicians like Hindenburg and Von Papen
After the Reichstag elections iof July 1932 the Nazis were the largest party with 230 seats
Hitler demanded the post of Chancellor but Hindenburg refused and allowed Von Papen to remain as Chancellor
Hindenburg then used his emergency powers to pass laws that Papen hoped would solve the economic crisis
But Von Papen had little support in the Reichstag and called another election - November 1932
The NAzis came out as the largest party again but came out with less seats than before (196)
Hindenburg again refused to make Hitler Chancellor
In January 1933 Hindenburg met with industrialists, army leaders and politicians
30 January they offered Hitler the post of Chancellor because they needed a Chancellor who had support in the Reichstag to be able to get laws passed
They also felt they could control Hitler as there would only be a few Nazis in cabinet, mostly filled with conservatives
Hitler would be there to get support in the Reichstag for Conservative policies and to control Communists
Hitler ended up as Chancellor not because it was the will of the people but through behind the scenes deals by German aristocrats and bankers
How did Hitler consolidate his power between 1933 and 1934
3 main ways
- The Reichstag fire 27th February 1933 and the use of emergency powers
- The Enabling Act 23rd March 1933
- The Night of the Long Knives 30 June 1934
Why did Hitler need to call for an election in March 1933 and how did they try to persuade the Germany people
Hitler was Chancellor but he didn’t have full power he lead a coalition govt in which only 3 of 12 Cabinet ministers were Nazis
He needed to hold an election so the Nazis could hold sufficient seats as a majority govt for them to rule on their own
Their tactic for the support of Germans was to stress the threat of Communists
He banned Communist meeting
HIs election campaign mirrored previous campaigns through the use of speeches, rallies, street fighting
Hitler had control of the resources of the state media and control of the streets
How did Hitler consolidate his power between 1933 and 1934
Reichstag fire and use of emergency powers
On February 27th 1933 the Reichstag burned down - Hitler was delighted
There was evidence of what he had been saying for years - That Communists were trying to seize power by violent revolution and had to be stopped
He publicly blamed the Communists (Van der Lubbe) and said the fire was the beginning of a Communist uprising
He demanded special emergency powers to deal with the situation
The Nazis used these powers to arrest 4000 leading Communists, to stop his political opponents from holding meetings and to frighten voters
The Reichstag Fire was v convenient for the Nazis and many Historians + Germans at the time felt that the Nazis started the fire themselves
The fire gave Hitler the opportunity to take action against his opponents
How did Hitler consolidate his power between 1933 and 1934
Enabling act
On 23rd March the Reichstag passed the enabling act allowing Hitler to make laws without the Reichstag for 4 years
This would make him a dictator
Hitler had the majority he needed but to make sure he got his way he surrounded the building with the SA to intimidate those who wanted to vote against the law
After March 1933 Hitler used his powers to turn Germany into a Totalitarian state
It became a country where the state had total control over all aspects of its citizens’ lives
In July 1933 he passed the law for the Establishment of Parties which stated that the Nazi party was the only political party in Germany
Parties other than the Nazi party were banned
Democracy in Germany was dead
How did Hitler consolidate his power between 1933 and 1934
Night of the Long Knives
Hitler had to choose between the SA and the army - he made his choice and acted ruthlessly turning his backs on his most loyal supporters
On the night of 29th to 30th June 1934 squads of SS (Hitler’s elite bodyguards) broke into the homes of Rohm and the other leading SA and arrested them
Hitler accused Rohm of plotting to overthrow and murder him
Over the weekend Rohm and 400 others were murdered
Hitler also silenced critics of Nazism like former Chancellor von Schleicher
Hitler’s propaganda machine managed to convince many people that the Rohm and the SA leaders were a real threat to Germany
Hindenburg went as far as to thanks Hitler for ‘nipping treason in the bud’
The army said it was v satisfied with the way the SA had been put down
After this the SA remained a paramilitary organisation but was subordinate to the SS and never had much power again
How much opposition was there to the Nazi regime and how effectively did the Nazis deal with their political opposition
Hitler was concerned with opposition from outside the party as well as opposition from within
The SA had been loyal servants of the Nazi party since they were set up by Hitler in 1921 but once Hitler was in power they were a problem
The SA had expected to get well paid jobs in the govt for their loyalty
The leader of the SA Rohm wanted Hitler to merge the SA with the Reichwehr
Hitler did not allow this
The SA had proved itself useful when fighting Communists in the 1920s but now they had a bad reputation as being badly disciplined thugs
Hitler was suspicious of Rohm as he was a very popular leader and potential rival for power
Rohm commanded the SA which was 4 million men strong by power
Hitler needed to eliminate the potential threat to his position as leader (Knight of the Long Knives)
Some SA leaders had left wing views which would offend the big businesses that had funded Hitler’s election campaigns up to 1933
What did the Death of President Hindenburg cause
Hindenburg died on the 2nd of August 1934 a few weeks after the Night of the Long Knives
Hitler decided that Germany no longer needed a President
The post would be combined with that of the Chancellor and Hitler would be known as fuhrer of Germany
On the 2nd of August the entire German army swore an oath of personal loyalty to Hitler
It seemed that as far as the Nazis were concerned Hitler was Germany
The army agreed to stay out of politics and to serve Hitler
In return Hitler spent vast amounts of money on rearmament, brought back conscription and made plans to make Germany a great military power again
