Why The Nazi's Achieved Power in 1933

Why The Nazi's Achieved Power in 1933

1. The Impact of the Treaty of Versailles

   • Resentment towards Gov for signing into such a humiliating contract
     • Germans forced to live with and follow the terms of the Treaty following their defeat in ww1 - if they resisted, they ran the risk of another war erupting
     • Germans believed they had been 'stabbed in the back' by the 'November criminals'
     • Government had no other option but to sign into TOV and were given only a month to do so
   • June 28th, 1919
   • German army faced collapse
   • Loss of Territory
     • The Saar Coalfields were given to France for 15 years due to the German destruction of the French coalfields during their 1918 retreat.
       • Serious blow to German economy and loss of natural resources
     • Loss of land to Belgium, Denmarck and Poland - all of Germany's colonies were taken away from her control and given to her former enemies.

2. The Appeal of The Nazi Party and Hitler's Leadership

   • By 1930 the Nazis had 108 seats in the Reichstag
   • The Economic Crash was the catalyst that transformed the apeal of the Nazis.
     • "it was the Great Depression that put the wind in Hitler's sails." - AJP Taylor
     • American Banks demanded the return of Loans they had made to Germany following the Wall Street Crash
       • Unemployment in Germany rocketed after the returns and economic crash and German citizens were desperate for a saviour to help them out in their economic chaos.
   • Although Hitler's Beer Hall Putsch at Munich failed, his actions gained a great deal of support and publicity for the Nazi Party
     • While in prison, Hitler decided that in order to gain power, he would campaign for power legally and destroy the system he desipsed so much.

3. Flaws in the Constitution

   • The Spartacists (or KPD) tried to start a revolution to create a new communist Germany in 1919
     • Spartacist ring was defeated with great brutality by an aliiance between the new socialist Gov and gangs of ex-soldiers called Freikorps.
       • 10 years later the hatred felt by the communists towards the SPD for destroying the ring prevented the left wing from uniting against Hitler in Elections
   • Equally hated by Right-wing
     • Kapp Putsch supported by German Officers and Right also included many professionals whose early careers had been spent within the imperial Germant of the Kaiser
       • They were very unlikely to support the new democracy when a crisis arose in the early 1930s
   • Blamed for Weakening German Politics
     • Weimar meant to be fair to all - but new voting system produced a series of short-lived, indecisive Governments
       • Gave Representation in the Reichstag to minority parties such as the Nazi's whose main aim was to destroy the new Republic
   • Blamed for Confusion within the new democratic system
     • Confusion about the voting system and power of the President increased discontent
       • The System allowed small, extremist parties to gain some representation in the Reichstag. Article 48 gave the President the power to rule in an emergency without needing approval.

4. The Use of Propoganda and the SA

   • By 1930, Nationalist Groups led by Alfred Hugenberg saw the Nazis as a possible rute to power
   • Hitler was happy to use Hugenberg - owner of most of Germany's new Cinema industry and hundreds of local Newspapers - to gain more support for the Nazis
     • Hitler saw his friendship with Hugenberg as a way of becoming a 'nationally-known figure very quickly in a pre-television age'
   • As unemployment rose towards 6Million, Nazi posters claimed 'Hitler - Our Last Hope'.
     • Rallies began to spread throughout Germany which were in support of the Nazi Party
   • Many Germans approved of the SA (a Nazi parliamentary group) attacking communists.
     • it appeared to many that the Nazis were a strong, positive force, especially when compared to the weak and divided political parties of the Weimer Republic

5. Economic Crisis

   • Germany were to pay £100million per year for 66years as part of the TOV terms
     • This was virtually impossible for Germany to afford as they now lacked resources and land
     • Severely weakened the German Economy
   • The 1923 Hyperinflation resulted in the economy's dramatic collapse and the German Marck became worthless
     • In Nov 1923, $1 = 4,420 MILLION marcks
     • M/C families lost everything they had gained over the years and those on fixed incomes (e.g. pensions) were unable to survive financially.
     • It appeared that the Government were doing little to ease the 1923 crisis and many german citizens would never forgive the Weimer Republic for this.
       • Hitler's Beer Hall Putsch brought a great deal of publicity to the Nazi Party and support for them grew largely