In the March 5 elections the Nazis got their best ever result. Yet despite that, the election still failed to give the Nazis an overall majority. The Nazi party won 288 seats out of a possible 359 seats. What Hitler wanted now, was an “enabling law” which could give him all the power. He could pass new laws without even consulting the Reichstag. And effectively allow him to establish a dictatorship. The Nationalists were prepared to support him in this, but even then Hitler wouldn’t have the two thirds of the votes needed. After he got his enabling act, the Reichstag had in effect voted itself out of existence. It had voted to introduce a Nazi dictatorship.
Now that Hitler had dictorial powers, he proceeded to extend his control further. Hitler banned political parties. This law gave Hitler what he wanted - a ban on the Communists and Socialists taking part in an election campaign. The leaders from both parties were arrested and their newspapers were shut down. To 'keep the peace' and maintain law and order, the roamed the streets beating up those who openly opposed Hitler. Hitler solemnly promised that the laws would only be used for emergencies, but within months Germany's trade unions. Were also banned.
By 1934, there was only one major organisation not under Hitler’s control. And that was the Army. The army leadership were supported by big businesses. The army was totally opposed to being taken over by the SA and was very suspicious of Ernst Rohm. The SA was a group that had about 4,000,000 Nazi storm troopers that wanted to be the official German Army. The real German Army thought that this group was a threat to old military beliefs and ranks. At the time, Hitler had been promising that he would restore German military from the points of the Treaty of Versailles, which limited the Army to 100,000 men. Hitler thought that the SA was a problem that could mess up his future plans for Germany. By early 1934, the SA was no longer useful to Germany. Hitler now was trying to get support from the regular Army generals to try to rebuild Germany.
On 29th of June 1934 Hitler acted. He called a meeting of SA leaders. It was during this meeting that Hitler gave the purge its name: Night of the Long Knives. Hitler claimed that 61 had been executed while 13 had been shot resisting arrest and three had committed suicide.
The Night of the Long Knives was a turning point in the history of Hitler's Germany. The Night of the Long Knives, in June 1934, saw the wiping out of the SA's leadership and others who had angered in the recent past in . Hitler had made it clear that he was the supreme ruler of Germany who had the right to be judge and jury, and had the power to decide whether people lived or died. With elimination of potential threats to his rule, and the death of Hindenburg, Hitler was in firm control.
