Hitler seemed to have deliberately operated a dual state and created parallel institutions, which competed with each other for power and the approval of Hitler. This encouraged individuals to crave Hitler’s support rather than challenge his power. However, Hitler often did not interfere in conflicts amongst ministers and would either rely on Hess as a mediator or simply create another parallel super-ministry, which would add more conflict and not solve the problem possibly showing Hitler to be a weak dictator.
In creating this dual state and only spending a limited amount of time on affairs of the state Hitler did allow certain individuals to gain a great deal of power. For example, Bormann would control what proposals Hitler saw and for a minister to get his proposal to Hitler he would have to be in favour with Bormann, putting Bormann in a very influential and controlling position. Therefore, even though Hitler believed himself to be the all-powerful head of the state his power may have just been an illusion, as he did not actually make all of the decisions.
One thing that might account for Hitler’s vast amount of power was the Hitler myth. This was largely spread through the clever use of propaganda and showed Hitler to be a symbol of strength, reliability and success. This myth originated from Hitler seeming to have improved the economy greatly, reducing the unemployment rate and other significant successes. The people of Germany believed Hitler to be a super-being and were swept up in a sense of infatuation for the leader. However, as with the concept of a Voltsgemeinschaft, there was emphasis on the fact that if you were not German, you were not part of the vision. This myth was beneficial for Hitler as it is likely that if something went wrong he would not be blamed. However this myth also made the state very unstable and increasingly radical, as no one was able to challenge the Fuhrer and be the voice of restraint or reason.
It is difficult to say whether the population of Germany were dominated by Hitler himself, the concept of Nazism or simply making Germany great again. After the war, the signing of the treaty of Versailles and the ‘stab in the back’ by the Weimar government, Germany was deeply humiliated and the people may simply have looked at Hitler as being the only way of leading the state to success because a dictatorship is the next best thing to the monarchy which had led Germany so successfully in previous years. Similarly, people may have been committed to the ideology of Nazism, which as time went on, became more controlled by other influential members of the Nazi party rather than Hitler himself, who actually made very few major decisions in the state of Germany after his consolidation of power and the introduction of the dual state.
Another powerful body- the SS/Gestapo/SD complex challenges the ideology of the Hitler state. After the enabling act there was no limit to its power and after another law passed on the 10th Feb 1936 it placed the Gestapo above the law, allowing them to decide what it was themselves. They may have become so powerful because they had the willing support of the people who frequently volunteered information. The Gestapo also became more radicalised over time and used more violent methods of intimidation, which made them a feared force and increased their power. However, there are factors, which challenge their power. The number of them were limited and so there is doubt whether they were influential enough. Most officers were recruited from the police force and so were not actually Nazis and the use of propaganda to create fear suggests an illusion of power.
Although Hitler established his state, the position of Fuhrer and the ideology of the Third Reich, as time went on more individuals such as Bormann, Goering, Goebbels and Himmler and institutions, such as the Gestapo gained increasing power and in effect they controlled the Third Reich. As Hitler spent a minimal amount of time a day reading select papers he cannot have been up to date on his state and had a full understanding of ongoing issues suggesting weak dictatorship. In addition to whether Hitler was in control the structuralist vs. the intentionalist debate must be considered. I think that to a certain extent Hitler did have a plan of how to gain power in Germany and I do not think that it was simply luck that the Nazi’s became so powerful. Hitler was clever not to get his party associated with the Weimar government by refusing to take up office unless it was chancellor and therefore did not get blamed for their failures. However he was to a certain extent a structuralist in that he took advantage of situations that presented themselves such as using the Reichstag fire to eliminate the main opposition of communism providing doubt as to whether he was indeed a strong dictator. Therefore I believe that even though Hitler had established the Third Reich and put himself in a position of great power, Fuhrer, his grasp on power slowly deteriorated over time with other individuals becoming increasingly prominent in power thus making it more likely to be a Nazi state than a Hitler state.
