The first economic crisis erupted as a result of the reparation payments set out in the Treaty of Versailles. As Germany accepted the blame for the outbreak of World War One in the treaty, it was forced to pay financial compensation to the allies. The final figure was set at £6,600 million, to be paid in annual instalments. By 1923, the payments were putting an enormous strain on the German economy, and the second instalment was not paid. This led the French to run out of patience, as they too had reparations to pay, and in January 1923, French and Belgian troops entered the Ruhr to take what was owed to them in the form of raw materials. The Ruhr Crisis had disastrous consequences for the German economy. The halt in agricultural production in Germany’s most important region caused the German currency to collapse. As the country had no goods to trade, the Government began to simply print money. They paid off their reparation payments to the sum of £2,200 in worthless marks. As the currency was worthless, hyperinflation soon spread across Germany. The effects of hyperinflation were felt throughout the class system, as wages and savings became worthless. The extent of the hyperinflation is illustrated by the fact that in 1918 the cost of a loaf of bread was 0.63 marks, but climbed dramatically to 201,000,000,000 marks by the end of 1923.
Whether the reparation payments were solely responsible for the hyperinflation is irrelevant, as the people of the time viewed the economic devastation they found themselves in as a product of the reparation payments, and therefore the Weimar politicians who had signed the treaty were to blame for the social and economic problems they were inflicted with. Thus, the hyperinflation which occurred in 1923 helped the Nazi’s party rise to prominence as it dealt another blow to the public’s already shaken confidence in the existing government and made them increasingly more likely to search for another party to support.
In 1929, a second economic disaster occurred, the American Stock Market crashed, spiralling the United States into economic depression. Within a very short space of time countries around the world began to feel the devastation of the depression. In Germany the results were catastrophic, resulting in the collapse of the German economy. Germany was strongly affected as it depended upon the Dawes plan for loans from the USA to help repay the reparations set by the Treaty of Versailles. Alan Bullock describes the depression’s effects in ‘Hitler and Stalin’: “In the early 1930s, millions of German men and women felt like the survivors of an earthquake starting to put their homes together again, only to see the fragile network of their lives cracking and crumbling around them a second time.” The Depression created unprecedented levels of unemployment; by 1932 the total reached 6,000,000. The depression also produced “cuts in salaries and wages, and a dramatic rise in the number of bankruptcies.”
The Depression was vital in increasing support for the Nazis. It “took the Depression to convert a trickle of middle class support into a flood.” As more and more people became increasingly more desperate they became more ready to listen to Hitler. The devastating effects of the Great Depression dealt the final blow to the public’s confidence in the democratic Weimar Republic, and persuaded masses of Germans to support other parties in the hope they would be able to resolve existing and prevent further economic problems.
Another factor that decreased the support of the existing system and helped increase support for the Nazi Party, were the weaknesses of the Weimar Republic. In ‘Hitler and Nazi Germany,’ Stephen J. Lee argues: “The rise of Hitler depended directly on the vulnerability of the Weimar Republic.” There were practical difficulties arising out of the constitution. Proportional representation, a system in which parliamentary seats are allocated on the basis of an overall number of votes for each party, produced a multiplicity of political parties, encouraged splinter groups and made coalition governments inevitable. From 1929 to 1933, there were 21 different coalition governments, all of which contained no single dominant party. Political instability became a permanent feature of the Weimar regime as no party could command an overall majority in the Reichstag. It was impossible for the Republic to solve any of the country’s serious problems, as the various political groups had different ideas of what should be done, and were unprepared to compromise.
The economic problems which played a crucial role in the loss of support for the regime may not have proved so problematic if the Weimar politicians had resolved the problems and kept the people’s faith in the regime. Thus, the weaknesses the of Weimar Republic helped lead the German people to search for an alternative party to support. The failure of the country’s first democracy led the people to look towards extremist political groups, like the Nazis and Communists, who could command strong leadership and bring an end to the severe problems which the Weimar Republic had created and failed to resolve.
The weaknesses of the Weimar Republic were contrasted by the strengths of the Nazi Party. Although the other factors mentioned in this essay played a part in the rise of the NSDAP, they only led the German people to feel dissatisfied with the existing government and support another party, the factor that persuaded the people that they should support the NSDAP were the party’s strengths.
The NSDAP’s major strength was its formulation of its political programme to have mass appeal. The Nazi party offered attractive solutions when the Weimar Republic was at its most ineffective. Its twenty-five point programme offered solutions to the country’s most serious problems. Stephen J. Lee argues: “Hitler was able to appeal directly to each class and sector within this electorate by making specific pledges calculated to it individually.” Programmes for the working classes proved extremely effective, this is illustrated by the fact that over 40% of Nazi Party membership came from the working class. To the working classes the NSDAP promised to reduce unemployment. The upper classes also supported the party: “Landowners, businessmen, and industrialists saw in Hitler the prospects of safety from the threat of communism and socialism on the left.” The NSDAP asserted it was the only party possessing enough strength to oppose the communist threat, and therefore, the only party who could prevent the upper classes losing their wealth, which would occur if a communist revolution took place and businesses were nationalised.
In addition, the party also “used several more general policies as a means of cutting through class differences.” The most important of these was a response to the depleted national pride created by Treaty of Versailles, their “promise to return a divide nation the lost sense of its own greatness and power”
Laurence Rees argues another “popular way of explaining the Nazi’s rise to power is through the character of Hitler.” Hitler, NSDAP leader, possessed extraordinary oratorical abilities. He conveyed the party’s political ideas with such emotional force that the German public were compelled to listen. Therefore, although the NSDAP’s political ideas had the potential to appeal to the masses, they may have gone unnoticed if it wasn’t for Hitler’s oratorical skills.
In conclusion, The 1929 crash and its consequences did play a major part in persuading people to support the NSDAP, but it was not the only factor; it was a culmination of many factors that elevated the NSDAP from a small, insignificant party to the largest in the Reichstag.
1636 WORDS
Bibliography:
William L. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of The Third Reich, London 1998.
Laurence Rees, The Nazis A Warning From History, London 1998.
Alan Bullock, Hitler and Stalin – Parallel Lives, London 1991.
Rainer Zitelmann, Hitler – The Politics of Seduction, London 1999.
Stephen J. Lee, Hitler and Nazi Germany, London 1998.
Figure from BBC website (www.bbc.co.uk)
Figure from BBC website (www.bbc.co.uk)
Laurence Rees – ‘The Nazis – A Warning From History’
Figures from BBC website (www.bbc.co.uk)
Alan Bullock – ‘Hitler And Stalin – Parallel Lives’
William L. Shirer- ‘The Rise and Fall of The Third Reich’
Stephen J. Lee – ‘Hitler And Nazi Germany’
Stephen J. Rees – ‘Hitler And Nazi Germany’
Stephen J. Rees – ‘Hitler And Nazi Germany’
Figure from Stephen J. Rees – ‘Hitler And Nazi Germany’
Rainer Zitelmann – ‘Hitler – The Politics of Seduction’
Stephen J. Rees – ‘Hitler And Nazi Germany’
Alan Bullock – ‘Hitler And Stalin – ‘Parallel Lives’
Laurence Rees – ‘The Nazis - A Warning From History’
