Nazi Rise to Power

Yr 12 IB History

The Rise of Hitler and the Nazis

Analyse the methods used and the conditions which helped in the rise to power of one ruler (i.e. Hitler) of a single-party state.

Hitler’s rise to power, culminating in the establishment of his dictatorship in July 1933, were a direct result of the conditions of the period, and linked with the methods and policies he adopted as the leader of the Nazi Party, and then as Chancellor from January 1933. In terms of the economy, the Great Depression in 1929 emulated Hitler and the Nazis’ rule, as voters looked to the extremes for a solution to the deteriorating Weimar Republic system. Secondly, the propaganda machine that Goebbels implemented upon the German people, both during the Depression and the months before the March 1933 election. Finally, the legal revolution that he led the Republic through once he became Chancellor until the full creation of his dictatorship was reality was the final step in Hitler’s rise to power of the head of the Nazi party, and in turn, Germany.

Ultimately, Hitler would not have become the ruler of Germany, had it not been for the Great Depression in 1929. The insecurity of the people, along with the instability of the system they were governed by, resulted in the rise of the Nazi Party to the largest in the Reichstag by July 1932, with 230 seats. In essence, the Depression spelt doom for the Weimar Republic. To be perfectly honest, there is not much the Weimar could have done differently, given the predicament they were in. The US called back all its loans made after the war, and the result was economic chaos worldwide. However, it is worst felt in the Weimar Republic, who was unable to radical changes without severe ramifications for the people. Thus, the German people turned away from the system, and searched for the extreme parties like the Nazis and the Communists. Hitler worked out how to play the people, and targeted the workers and the middle class, the two groups of society who had lost the most as a result of the economic crisis. This was the condition that led to Hitler’s recognition as a force to be reckoned with, but it was the methods of propaganda that Hitler and Goebbels used that brought in the votes.

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Propaganda was an efficient tool that the Nazis used frequently, be it during the Depression, or in the lead up to the March 1933 elections. The styles of propaganda that Goebbels and Hitler used to persuade the people in both situations were modern, effective and utilized the resources at their discretion. During the period of 1929-1933, the party launched successful campaigns surrounding Hitler, expressing him as the man who would end the troubles of Germany. Hitler’s presidential election campaign of 1932 was a huge win for the party, despite Hitler losing to Hindenburg 19 million votes to 13 million votes, as Hitler was able to use the press around him to bring his message to millions of potential voters. During this period, Hitler and Goebbels illustrated the policy of negative cohesion, where in the German people supported the Nazis not for their views and policies, but rather because they had common fears and dislikes, like the November Criminals or the Communists. The largest aspect of the Weimar that the citizens were unhappy about at this time was quite evidently the democratic process, with elections being called on a frequent basis, and the politicians unable to deal with the issues of the Depression. Hitler provided an alternative, and through the media, he promised work, freedom and bread to the people of Germany, while claiming that the politicians were using corruption, lies and terror to maintain their government. The propaganda techniques used in the prelude to March 1933 were quite different to those of the Depression years, due to the availability of more resources. For example, Goebbels once wrote in his diary “The struggle is a light one now, since we are able to employ all the means of the State. Radio and Press are at our disposal.” In the weeks before the election, on 27 February to be exact, the Reichstag was burnt down, with a young Communist, van der Lubbe, arrested. This gave Hitler and Goebbels the ammunition they needed to remove the Communists from the election race. The next day, the Decree for the Protection of People and State was drawn up and signed, which in essence meant that many civil and political rights were suspended indefinitely, with the position of central government strengthened. Meanwhile, Hitler openly claimed this was part of the Communist coup, and many hundreds of the Nazis’ political opponents were arrested in the week leading up to the election. So by placing the blame on other parties, and strengthening his own position, Hitler was on the way to setting up his dictatorship, and he did so through a legal revolution.

To orchestrate his regime, Hitler needed to work with the Weimar system, and destroy it from the inside. The first of these significant changes was the Enabling Act, which was passed on the 24th March 1933. This law allowed Hitler to pass decrees without the President’s involvement, and made him a legal dictator. However, the results of the March 1933 had left him in an awkward position since the Nazi party had only increased their percentage of seats in the Reichstag from 33.1% to 43.9%. Hitler needed a two-thirds majority to pass his Enabling Act, and to do so, he needed to make allies with the Nationalists and the Catholic Party. The 52 seats he gained from the Nationalists came a short time after the March 5 election, as a result of some form of back-room deal run by Hitler, based on “You need us, and we need you.” However, this only gave him a slight majority, and only power to make rules not affecting the Weimar Constitution. On the 23rd March, Hitler promised in a speech he made to the Reichstag that he would respect the rights of the Catholic Church, and uphold the moral and religious values of the Catholic Church. The Church’s Party subsequently conned themselves into believing Hitler’s words, and gave Hitler their full support. When the bill was voted on, Hitler gained the majority he needed, with an overwhelming 444 to 94 votes. The only significant party to vote against the Bill had been the Social Democratic Party, since the Communists had been banned just two days earlier. In the consequent months following the passing of the Enabling Act, Hitler used his newly acquired power in a series of changes to German society. He purged the Civil Service administration of ‘aliens’ such as Jews and Nazi opponents. He banned all trade unions, setting up the German Labour Front. But most significantly, he passed a law on July 14 1933 that made Germany the one-party state he desired – the Law against the Formation of New Parties. However, this was quite a non-event, since in effect the major parties had already been banned or had adopted a policy of self-co-ordination. (i.e. look towards an autocratic rule like Hitler wanted) The two parties that would object to this, the Communists and the Socialists had already been banned, the Communists after the Reichstag Fire, the Socialists on June 22. So in essence, by July 1933 Hitler had risen to power of the Nazi Party, and established a system in which he was the sole ruler of a single-party state.

This analysis of how and why Hitler rose to power as the head of the Nazi Party, and later as a dictator of Germany, has shown that the economic position that the Great Depression had exposed Hitler to the German people as a solution to their problem. From there, Hitler imposed clever propaganda techniques upon the voters, convincing them that he was the one to vote for. Finally, the legal revolution that he implemented after becoming Chancellor in January 1933 led the way to him becoming an ultimate dictator.

Word Count: 1310

Stuart Hinchliffe Yr 12 IB History - -