Hitler's rise to power

When and where was Hitler born?

1889 in Austria-Hungary

When did Hitler's mother and father die?

Father died 1903

Mother died 1907

When and why did Hitler flee to Munich?

1913 to avoid military service

What did Hitler do from 1914-18?

He fought in the war with the German army

Won the Iron Cross Second Class in 1914 and the First Class in 1918

How did Hitler fell about Germany's defeat?

Angry- he blamed the politicians for surrendering and strongly believed in Dolchstoss (stab in the back theory)

When was Hitler asked to join the DAP (German Workers’ Party)?

1919

What were the main ideas of the DAP?

• Quite socialist - wanted to restrict the profits of companies, classless society but very nationalistic

• Völkish idea - the notion of pure German people

• Right wing

How many members did the DAP have in 1919?

Approx. 50

What topics did Hitler talk about when he became head of recruitment and propaganda?

• Dolchstoss (stab in the back theory)

• His disgust at Treaty of Versailles

• His hatred of Weimar and the November Criminals

• What he saw as the communist-Jewish conspiracy bent on destroying Germany

When did Hitler become leader of the Nazi Party?

1921

What is meant by Führerprinzip?

To have absolutely power and authority in the party and that he was answerable to no one. Means ‘leadership principle’

What changes did Hitler make to the Nazy party when he became leader?

• Made the swastika the emblem of the party

• Introduced SA

What was the role of the SA?

• Was the private army of the party

• Led by Ernst Röhm

• Known as ‘Brownshirts’ due to the colour of their uniform

• Pledged loyalty and obedience to the party

• Between 1921-23 used to disrupt the meetings of the Social Democratic Party and the Communist Party

When and who by was the 25 point programme written?

February 1920 by Hitler and Drexler (the leader then)

What were the key points of the 25 point programme?

1.Unity of all German speaking people.

2.Remove Treaty of Versailles.

4.Only Germans can be citizens. No Jew can be German citizen. 6.Only German citizens can vote, be employed or work in the government.

7.Citizens entitled to job and decent standard of living. If can’t be achieved, foreigners asked to leave to create more jobs. 8.Immigrants not allowed to enter country from now. If arrived after 1914, asked to leave.

13.Government control public industries.

14.Large companies must share profits.

17.Small farmers given own land.

23.German newspapers free from foreign influence.

25. Strong central government with unrestricted authority

How did the role of the SA and Röhm help the Nazi Party grow from 1919-23?

-Harder to ignore Hitler when he had a private army backing him

-He appeared strong when the Weimar Republic appeared weak

-Represented a strong German army when actual army being made weak

-Showed people that Hitler had the ability to follow through on his promises

How did Hitler's appeal help the Nazi Party grow from 1919-23?

-He was charismatic

-Excellent public speaker and drew huge crowds to his Nazi speeches and rallies, this increased the Nazi audience and allowed them to convey their ideas to the masses

-No other party at the time had such a ‘hypnotic’ speaker

-As a result support for the party increased

-Could be referred to as a demagogue - ‘a political leader who seeks support by appealing to the desires and prejudices of ordinary people rather than by using rational arguments’

How did close supporters help the Nazi Party grow from 1919-23?

-As soon as Hitler took leadership in 1921, he surrounded himself with loyal supporters

-He rewarded them with positions of power in the party and many went on to become tom Nazis

-By having loyal supporters, he ensured his position was safe whilst being able to delegate his dirty work to them

-Increased competition within the party with supporters vying for power, which caused the party to escalate it's policies and become more extreme

Who were Hitler's close supporters?

• Ernst Röhm - Commander of SA

• Hermann Göring - took part in Munich Putsch

• Julius Streicher - founder and publisher of an antisemitic newspaper

• Rudolf Hess - joined Nazi party in 1920

How did the role of the Nazi emblem help the Nazi Party grow from 1919-23?

-As a self proclaimed artist, Hitler gave a lot of thought to the Nazi symbol

-Recognised that Nazis needed a memorable emblem, and designed the flag

-The flag and swastika emblem turned Nazis from political party to household brand

-As a result Hitler propelled the popularity stakes and membership rose quickly

What were the causes of the Munich Pustch?

-French invasion of the Ruhr, many people furious that the Weimar Republic eventually called off passive resistance

-Hitler hated the Weimar Republic

-Hitler believed people would support him not Weimar

-Hitler won the support of General Ludendorff, an extremely popular figure

-Hitler took inspiration from Mussolini

-Growth of Nazi Party especially in Bavaria

What were the events of the Munich Putsch?

-On the 8th of November 1923

-Hitler + 600 Nazis seized Beer hall

-He took the Bavarian leaders to a room to try and gain their support but they refused

-Leaders taken to seperate room and held at gunpoint so they agreed to support him

-People in beer hall were restless so Hitler won their support with a speech

-Hitler left and Ludendorff in charge

-Leaders let go and notified police and revoked their support

-Hitler and Nazis marched through Munich with 2000 rifles but no match for police who were well armed

-16 Nazis and 4 police officers died

What were the names of the 3 Bavarian leaders?

• Kahr

• Lesson

• Seisser

What happened after the Munich Putsch?

-Hitler was arrested on 11th November and Nazi Party banned

-Ludendorff also arrested

-Both tried for treason, trial started February 1924 and lasted 1 month

-Hitler became famous as sympathetic judges allowed him to make long speeches where he promoted his political ideas and attacked Weimar

-1st April 1924 - Hitler found guilty of treason but given minimum sentence - 5 years. Ludendorff not charged

-Hitler only served 9 months in Lansberg prison and he was allowed visitors, receive mail and access what books he wanted

What was the importance of the Munich Putsch?

-Wrote Mein Kampf

-Able to reflect on Putsch and future in politics

-Realised that if he was going to seize power, he had to do so through democracy

-Became known nationally

What happened to the Nazi Party when Hitler was in prison?

-Survived secretly

-Replacement leader, Alfred Rosenburg had few leadership qualities and the party split into rival groups

When was the Nazi Party reinstated?

February 1924 - after Hitler's release from prison, he persuaded the president of Bavaria to lift the ban

What changes did Hitler make to the party's structure?

-Created party branches called Gaue (Gau singule), each led by a Gauleiter

-Hitler made sure only his closest associates helped run the party from Munich

-Gauleiters and Hitler's supporters pushed the idea of the Fuhrer

When was the Bamberg party conference?

1926

What happened at the Bamberg party conference?

-Possible rivals to Hitler's leadership won over - Gregor Strasser and Josef Goebbles

-Strasser made propaganda leader

-Goebbles made Gauleiter of Berlin

-Opponents removed e.g Ernst Röhm forced to resign as Hitler concerned that SA was violent and wasn't guaranteed that Röhm would follow orders. New leader was Franz Pfeffer von Salomon

-Hitler created SS - own bodyguard

-Set up Hitler Youth to rival other youth groups

When and why was point 17 of the 25 point programme altered?

-Changed to say that privately owned land would only be confiscated if it was owned by a jew

-Before 1928, Hitler had tried to win the support of urban voters but he decided that rural voters should be targeted. Thus came at a time when farmers began to experience economic problems and find Nazism appealing

What is the evidence for progress from 1924-1928?

-Party had 27,000 members in 1925 but exceeded 100,000 by the end of 1928

-It was a nationwide party that had begun to attract all classes

What is the evidence for a lack of progress from 1924-28?

Nazis only won 12 seats in parliament in 1928 elections, after having 32 in 1924

What changes happened in the late 1920s?

-Hitler began to target peasants as a key electoral group

-Replaced Strasser as head of propaganda with Josef Goebbles

What happened during the lean years?

-1924-28

-The party lost support but it was reorganised by Hitler

Why did support for the Nazis increase after 1929?

-Oct 1929-Wall Street Crash, USA wanted loans back from Germany

-Wall Street Crash-fall in value of stocks and shares

-Germany couldn't send loans back as they had loanded them to German businesses.

What percentage of the votes did the Social Democrats (SPD) after the may 1928 election?

29.8% (153 seats)

What percentage of the votes did the Nazi party after the may 1928 election?

2.6% (12 seats)

Who became Chancellor in May 1928 and who did he form a coalition with?

-Leader of the Social Democrats, Muller appointed by President Hindenburg

-Forms a coalition government with the Centre party

When was the Wall Street Crash and how did it affect Germany?

-October 1929 - the stocks/shares market in USA collapsed

-international trade contacts and German exports fell

-Gustav Streseman also dies which adds to the crisis

What was unemployment like in July 1929?

Stood at an all time low of 1,251,000

What was unemployment like in January 1930?

It rose to 3,218,000

Who became Chancellor after Muller, and how many votes did he have?

In March 1930, Heinrich Bruning became Chancellor despite only having 12% of the votes/ 62 seats

How did Bruning propose balancing the budget?

-Reducing wages for civil servants by 2.5%

-Reducing spending on unemployment benefits, public work schemes, pensions and housing

-Raising taxes

What was unemployment like in July 1930?

Still high at 2,765,000

How many voted did the Nazi, Centre and Social Democrats parties in the September 1930 elections?

-Centre Party (ZP), led by Bruning won 11.8%

-Social Democrats won 24.5%

-Nazi Party won 18.3%

How did the use of Article 48 affect democracy?

It undermined it - Bruning was becoming increasingly reliant on other parties and President Hindenburg to rule, leading to the increased use of Article 48

What was unemployment like in January 1931?

Rose to 4,887,000

Who was reappointed as leader of the SA and how many members did it have in January 1931?

-Ernst Röhm reappointed

-100,000 members

What happened as a result of the financial crisis from Jan-Dec 1931?

-Many banks closed

-Foreign investors withdrew their money, worsening the economic situation, reducing chances of recovery

How much had civil servants pay reduced by in December 1931?

23%

What was unemployment like in 1932?

Rose to 6,042,000

What party did the Nazis develop close links to (by 1932) and how did this benefit them?

-National party (DNVP)

-The leader, Alfred Hugenburg, owned many newspapers and he allowed Hitler to use his newspapers to promote Nazi policies and attack Bruning

How many votes did Hindenburg, Hitler and Ernst Thalman (communist party) win in the March 1932 Presidential elections?

-Hindenburg- 49.6%

-Hitler - 30.1%

-Thalman - 13.1%

When did Bruning resign as Chancellor?

-May 1932

Why was Bruning nicknamed the ‘Hunger Chancellor’?

For causing economic misery with his budget cuts and tax rises

How much of the vote did the Nazis win in the July 1932 elections?

37.4% making them the largest party in the Reichstag

How much of the vote did the Nazis and Communists win in the November 1932 elections?

-Nazis-33.1%, still largest party

-Communist party, led by Ernst Thalmann won 16.9%

What was unemployment like in December 1932?

Began to fall, 5,773,000

How many members did the SA have in December 1932?

170,000

How did the Great Depression lead to increased support for the Nazis?

-He was able to appeal to all classes of society by changing his messages based on his audience

-He blamed Communists and Jews which gave people a scapegoat

-Therefore people began to turn to Hitler to solve the problems which led to increased support for the Nazis

-He used propaganda to make him seen like a strong leader when the Weimar Republic seem weak which led to people supporting the Nazis

Describe the role of Goebbles and propaganda

-Increased support through propaganda

-Included mass rallies, putting up posters in prominent places, displaying banners, so Nazis appeared everywhere

-He knew how to manipulate large audiences

-Nazi message was simple and frequently repeated

-By early 1930s, Nazis owned 120 daily or weekly newspapers

-As Germany descended into political chaos, Goebbles presented Nazi Party in local, regional, national and presidential elections

How did the role of Goebbles lead to increased support?

-Goebbles able to promote Hitler and present him as a strong leader by blaming Germany's problems on the Government

-This led to people losing belief in Government and supporting the Nazi Party

-Goebbles used a simple message which could be understood by many people, this meant that Hitler gained support from a wide range of people

Describe the Presidential election 1932

-Hitler used aeroplane to speak to as many as 5 cities in a day

-Goebbles ensured there were mass rallies

-Hindenburg failed by a slight margin to win more than 50% of votes in the election so there needed to be a second round

-Hindenburg did not campaign but Hitler used propaganda

-Hitler was successful in winning a large number of votes in each round but Hindenburg had most votes

Describe Nazi promises

-Work and bread - food and jobs

-Restoring a strong Germany

-Deal with Communists

-Remove Treaty of Versailles

-Farmers keep land unless they are a Jew

-Restore army

-Strong army

Describe the role of Hitler/ his charisma

-He used speeches to appeal to people to help increase the membership of the party

-He used the 25 point programme to appear law abiding and democratic

-Offered something to all groups in society

-Changed his points to appeal to different members of society

-Created a philosophy which all could comprehend

How did the appeal of the Nazis (Role of Hitler, Nazi promises, Presidential elections) lead to increased support for them?

-Hitler was a powerful speaker who gave people hope when the Weimar Government didn’t

-As a result many people saw him as a strong leader who could solve Germany's problems

-The Nazi's programme promised solutions for everyone, this led to them gaining support from a wide range of social groups

-Therefore they received more votes as the message appealed to many people

-The election increased people's knowledge. This meant he was seen as a national figure which increased public support

Describe financial support for the Nazis

-1932 - 600,000 copies of the Nazi economic programme were produced and distributed in the July Reichstag election

-Nazi Party received funds from leading industrialised such as Thyssen, Krupp and Bosch as they were terrified of communist threat and growth of trade unions

-By 1932, Nazis began to develop links with the National Party (DNVP). The leader of DNVP, Alfred Hugenburg was a newspaper tycoon, and permitted Nazis to publish articles which attacked Brüning

Why did financial support increase support for the Nazis?

This meant that there was increased support for Hitler because the financial support meant that the Nazis were able to afford to run strong campaigns - printing newspapers and travelling for rallies, which allowed Hitler's ideas to spread

How did long term bitterness increase support for the Nazi Party?

This helped Hitler become Chancellor because Hitler blamed the Weimar Republic for the problems faced by Germany, and the Weimar Republic didn’t deal with Great Depression well, therefore people turned away from the government and supported Hitler instead. Therefore, Hitler's power increased

How did failures of the Weimar Government (Brüning and Muller) lead to increased support for the Nazis?

The economic situation led to people losing hope in the Weimar Government helping to improve the situation. Therefore people lost support in the Weimar Government and began to support the extreme parties, including the Nazis, who promised to improve the situation

Describe fear of comunism

-Middle class feared communist takeover

-In 1923, KPD leader, Ernst Thälmann abandoned goal of immediate revolution and after 1924 contested in Reichstag elections

-Seen as leading party of communist movement outside soviet union and was largest communist party in Europe

-Usually polled more than 10% of the vote and gained 100 deputies in Nov 1932 elections

-Ernst Thälmann took 13.2% of the vote in the Presidential elections

How did fear of communism lead to increased support for the Nazis?

-Key business owners including thyssen and Krupp, supported him as they wanted a strong leader to deal with communism

-Fear of communism was also one of the reasons why President Hindenburg agreed with von Papen's plan to make Hitler Chancellor

-Nazis seen as only party who could deal with them

Describe the role of the SA?

-In his speeches Hitler claimed that parliamentary democracy didn’t work - said only Nazis could provide a strong government

-Used to provide protection for meetings and to disrupt meetings of opponents, especially communist party

-Ernst Röhm leader of SA in 1931 and within a year membership increased from 100,000 to 170,000

-SA and Red Front Fighters from communist party fought which showed German people that he could stamp out the Bolshevic violence and revolution

What happened when Franz von Papen became Chancellor?

-Franz von Papen became Chancellor after Brüning resigned in 1932

-Papen couldn’t secure a majority in the Reichstag and Hitler continued to demand the post of Chancellor

-Papen suggested abolishing Weimar constitution but Kurt von Scheicher (Minister of defense) said that there could be a civil war as a result

-Papen lost Hindenburg's confidence and resigned

Who was Chancellor after Franz von Papen and what was his idea to gain a majority?

-Kurt von Scheicher

-Hoped to attain a majority by forming a Querfront, meaning a ‘cross-front’, where he would bring together different strands from left and right parties

Why did Papen work with Hitler and what was their idea?

-Papen was determined to regain power

-He met Hitler in January 1933 and they agreed that Hitler should lead a Nazi-Nationalist government with Papen as Vice-Chancellor

What did the army, major landowners and leaders of industry think of Hitler and Papen?

They were convinced that Hitler and Papen were saving Germany from Scheicher's plans and a possible communist takeover

How was Papen able to convince Hindenburg that Hitler should be Chancellor?

He said that a coalition government with Hitler as Chancellor would save Germany and bring stability to the country. Papen said that he would be able to control Hitler

When did Hitler become Chancellor of Germany?

30 Jan 1933, he also was leader of largest party