After the Reichstag Fire came the Emergency Decree for the Protection of the Nation and its State. These emergency powers allowed him to suspend all individual and civil liberties, take over all state governments and place all political opponents in ‘Protective Custody.’ This was a very important factor for Hitler and may have all been planned ahead before the Fire of the Reich even took place if the theory of the plot is correct.
Propaganda was a large influence on voters at this time. On 13th of March 1933, Joseph Goebbels was appointed as head of the New Ministry of Propaganda and exercised control of all media. Goebbles changed the minds of everyone with view changing posters, radio shows, cartoons and many others. Propaganda played a large part in the way Nazis gained votes.
The “Law for the Alleviation and Distress of the People and the Reich”, turned all law making power over to Hitler by 441 to 84 votes. A law was set up to restore Professional Civil Service, so administration, courts, schools and universities were purged of ‘alien elements’ such as Jews and political opponents. On the 2nd May, all union offices were seized and all unions were incorporated into German Labour Front.
By the 14th of October 1933 the Reich was already dissolved and most parties such as the KPD and the SPD were already banned many other parties had dissolved themselves. Also, a law was brought up in July so that no new parties will be allowed. From this point on, Germany became a one-party state. Germany virtually belonged only to Hitler and the Nazi party. In the same month, Germany withdrew itself from the League of Nations. In November 1933, the Nazis won 92% of the total vote. This would have mostly been down to the actions Hitler took in the past year to strengthen his power over Germany.
The beginning of 1934 began with the Law for the Reconstruction of the State, which resulted in many state governments being overthrown by severe SA violence which allowed Reich government to provide commissioners. All elected state assemblies were dissolved and Reich governors (who were usually Nazis) were created to run the states.
One of the biggest actions Hitler took to consolidate his power would have been on the 30th of June 1934, the Night of the Long Knives. Mussolini advised Hitler to eliminate his left wing. This was the most dramatic and most significant single event during the establishment of Hitler’s supremacy. The SS shot many of SA leaders and anyone else at the hotel that night who posed as a threat. Now Hitler was in power, he no longer needed these troopers or their radical ideas. Hitler believed that an arch-enemy Röhm, leader of the SA, was plotting to take over the government control. After refusing to kill himself, Röhm was shot by SS soldiers. An estimated 50 SA leaders were killed that night. Hitler proudly defended his actions to the Reichstag and took full responsibility. He said he was defending Germany against a plot by Röhm and the degenerate homosexuals around him.
On the 2nd of August, President Hindenburg died and Hitler became appointed Head of State. On the same day the army take an oath of personal loyalty to Hitler, which describes Hitler as ‘...the Fuhrer of the German nation and people, Supreme Commander of the armed forces...’
During the period January 1933 until August 1934, Hitler took a mixture of radical and more cautious measures. Once in power, nothing prevented Hitler from imposing his ideas on Germany.
