2. Rise of Hitler and the Nazis

Página 1

Original Name: German Worker's Paety

- led by Anton Dresder

1919 Hitler joined the party

- 1921 Hitler became the leader

- renamed as National Socialist German Worker's Party = Nazis

1919 Hitler joined the German Workers Party. In 1920 name changes to NSDAP and adopted the 25 point programme (nationalist and anti semitic) Hitler became leader in 1921 and adopted the swastika emblem. Hitler then set up the SA (brownshirts) as private "army"

25 Point Programme:

- abolition of the Treaty of Versailles

- union of Germany and Austria

- only 'true' Germans to be allowed to live in Germany = no Jews (in particular)

- generous provision for old age pensioners

- strong central government in Germany

- large industries and businesses = nationalised

Circumstances in Germany:

- Ruhr Occupation

- passive resistance called off

- hyperinflation

- Bavarian government attempted revolution failed

Events:

- hijacked local meeting

- declared revolution

- started taking over official buildings

- Kahr informed Weimar

- army showed up and beat them

Hitler sent to jail few days after

WHy did the army not fight with Hitler?

- weimar let them get rid of left-wing governments

- they were right wing (so was Hitler)

- they were more willing to fight for Weimar

Hi

Hitler's Trial:

- became known as a hero

- wrote Mein Kampf

- was let out in 9 months

- known by public

- banned from speaking

- golden years

Germany was relying on loans from USA to stimulate economy

DUN DUN DUN GREAT DEPRESSION

- asked Germany to pay back money it had borrowed = economic collapse

- businesses = bankrupt

- major unemployment

- extremist parties were attractive to voters as things were going badly

- Nazis had scapegoats for everything:

- Allies

- Treaty

- November Criminals

- Jews

Impressions:

- Nazis represented law and order

- Communists were constantly fighting police, SA fought for police

- people thought Germany needed discipline and order -- Nazis

Propaganda:

- posters and speeches everywhere

- very flexible = when people didn't like a policy they dropped it

- generalized everything = hard to tell what their policies were but knew a general positive impression

- solutions for unemployment

Breakthrough election of 107 votes in 1930

- Hitler ran for president (was defeated) = raised profile and support

- very strong public speaker

-

- people supported them because they hated the same things = negative cohesion

- shared fears and dislikes

Hindenburg used article 48 to pass laws

- was seen as old and out of his prime

- not positively seen in country

- Social Democrats resigned from Reichstag in protest of cutting unemployment benefit

COMMUNIST THREAT:

- support was rising

- broke up meetings

- SA fought them in the streets

- industrialists were afraid of communists nationalizing = donated to Nazi Party

- everyone was afraid of Communism because of Russia

- communist farming scared farmers

- Nazis promised to help them

- Nazis would take Germany back to old-fashioned values == appealing to nationalists

- people hated the Weimar system = support for Hitler

1932-33

260 votes = largest party

Hitler wants to be Chancellor

Hindenburg appoints von Papen (no support but wanted to create a right-wing coalition government with the support of the Nazis and other right wing parties in the Reichstag)

von Schleicher wants to be chancellor

gets appointed

von papen agrees to work with Hitler

von Schleicher resigns ( lack of majority)

von Papen persuades Hindenburg that Hitler can be controlled

Hitler = Chancellor

von Papen didn't have enough support = new election but Hitler got less votes (still biggest party)

Hindenburg and von Papen thought they could control Hitler

- keeping conservatives in the Cabinet

- less Nazis in the cabinet

THEY WERE WRONGGG

Factors that helped him become Chancellor

Nazi Strengths:

- Hitler's speaking skills

- Propaganda campaigns

- violent treatment of opposition

- criticisms of Weimar Government

- Nazi policies

- support from big businesses

Weaknesses of Weimar Republic:

- failure to deal with Depression

- failure to co-operate with one another

= attitudes of Germans to democratic parties

- scheming of Hindenburg and von Papen

- impact of depression (unemployment problem)

- treaty of versailles

- memories of 1923 issues

Change in tactics:

enter the reichstag instead of attempting revolution

Causes

Strengths of Nazi Party:

- 55,000 members

- strong army (who threatened to not let him control them if he didn't give them anything to do)

- thought he would get support from Bavarian politicians

- inspired by Mussolini's march on Rome

Weaknesses of Weimar Republic:

- hyperinflation = weak economy

- calling off passive resistance = discontent

-

Results of the Munich Putsch The Munich Putsch was a failure. As a result:

The Nazi party was banned, and Hitler was prevented from speaking in public until 1927.

Hitler went to prison, where he wrote 'Mein Kampf'. Millions of Germans read it, and Hitler's ideas became very well-known.

Hitler decided that he would never come to power by revolution; he realised that he would have to use constitutional means, so he organised:

the Hitler Youth

propaganda campaigns

mergers with other right-wing parties

local branches of the party, which tried to get Nazis elected to the Reichstag

the SS as his personal bodyguard, which was set up in 1925 It was this strategy of gaining power legitimately that eventually brought him to power.

Election of 31st July 1932

Nazis (NSDAP): 230 seats and 37.3% of the vote.

Election 6th November 1932

Nazis (NSDAP): 196 seats and 33.1% of the vote.

Election 5th March 1933

Nazis (NSDAP): 288 seats and 43.91% of the vote.

Hitler and the German Worker's Party

Munich Putsch

Impact of Wall Street Crash

Hitler becomes Chancellor

Votes Progression