Authoritarian States - Hitler and Nazi Germany

based on my class notes and the study and revision guide from Hodder Education.

Outcomes of the Treaty of Versailles on Germany (5)

Outcomes of the Treaty of Versailles on Germany (5)

1. DE had to pay reparations.

2. The acceptance of Article 231, which meant DE took full responsibility for starting the war.

3. DE armed forces were reduced —> no submarines or air force, army of 100,000 men.

4. Germany colonies in Africa and Asia were confiscated.

5. Loss of territory in Europe (Poland, France)

1919

1. Spartacist Uprising - January 1919, far left group tries to overthrow the government.

2. Establishment of the Weimar Republic.

Major Political Parties

1. Social Democratic Party (SPD) - socialist party, Friedrich Ebert was a member (president from 1918-1925)

2. National Socialist German Workers’ Party (NSDAP) - Originally DAP, reformed by Hitler into NSDAP in 1920.

3. Communist Party (KPD) - Spartacists belonged here, gained support during the depression.

Weakness of the political system (3)

1. Article 48 which gave the president the right to use emergency powers.

2. Proportional Representation in the Reichstag - it was difficult to create majority governments, coalitions were more likely.

3. Political instability in early years (Spartacist uprising in Jan 1919, Kapp Putsch in March 1920)

Economic factors (4)

1. Reparations were set at 6.6 billion pounds. Germany couldn’t pay, FR invaded the Ruhr —> hyperinflation in 1923.

2. Golden Years of Weimar led to some prosperity through improvement of international relations and taking out loans.

3. The Wall Street Crash in 1929 led to the recalling of American loans in DE, which made the economy suffer.

4. Depression —> unemployment rose from 1.7 mln in 1929 to 8 mln in 1933.

Munich Putsch

• November 1923

• Hitler tries to take advantage of hyperinflation to get power through organizing an uprising. In 1922, Mussolini succeeded at this in Rome.

• This Putsch failed, Hitler got put in Landberg prison.

• He never tried gaining power through force again, instead he began catering to voters.

SA & SS

SA - led by Ernst Rohm. A paramilitary force.

SS - led by Heinrich Himmler.

NSDAP

1. Originally DAP, created by Anton Dexler.

2. Hitler was supposed to spy on them for the government but instead he joined in April 1920.

3. Attracted ex-soldiers and members of the Freikorps (volunteer demobilized soldiers), conservative middle class workers etc.

25-Point Programme

• announced in 1920, basis for Nazi ideology.

• DE nationalism, anti-Semitism, anti-communism, anti treaty of versailles

Nazi Ideology

1. Mein Kampf being Hitler’s ideological manifesto, he wrote it in prison.

2. Anti-Semitism, anti-communism, racial superiority of Aryans and traditional roles within society.

3. Lebensraum - Germans need more living space and they need to be united in one country.

4. Autarky - economic self-sufficiency.

5. Strong leadership is important, anti-democracy as democracy led to problems in DE.

Coalition governments

1. In March 1930, Muller’s Grand Coalition collapes, Bruning becomes chancellor.

2. in June 1932, Bruning is replaced by Franz von Papen.

3. In July 1932, Nazis won 230 Reichstag seats, becoming the largest party. None of the chancellors had the government backing them.

4. In 1932, Hitler ran for president and lost with Hindenburg.

5. In December 1932, Kurt von Schleicher becomes chancellor.

6. In January 1933, Hitler was appointed chancellor, because von Papen and Hindenburg thought they could control him.

Hitler’s consolidation and maintenance of power (3 steps)

1. The Reichstag Fire.

2. The Enabling Act

3. The Night of the Long Knives and the death of Hindenburg.

Step 1. The Reichstag Fire

1. February 1933.

2. The Reichstag Fire was set on fire.

3. A Dutch communist gets blamed, convicted and executed.

4. The Nazis used this as a way to get rid of Commies, a lot were arrested and banned from organizing meetings.

Step 2. The Enabling Act

1. In March 1933 Nazis got 43.91% of the votes but not the majority so they formed a coalition with DNVP.

2. The Enabling Act (March 1933) allowed Hitler to pass anything without consulting with the Reichstag.

3. This led to banning other political parties in the next coming months.

4. Gleischschaltung - a coordination process which made sure all German institutions conformed to Nazi ideals.

5. The Concordat was signed in July 1933 —> The Catholic Church would be protected in DE if they ceased political activity.

Step 3. The Night of the Long Knives and the death of Hindenburg.

1. Night of the Long Knives (30/06/1934-02/07/1934) - purge of any source of opposition in the Nazi party as well as those who opposed Hitler in the past.

   1. THOSE WHO DIED:

      1. Ernst Rohm - the head of the SA. He was accused of planning a coup against Hitler. SA was disbanded.

      2. Gregor Strasser, Kurt von Schleicher.

2. In August, Hindenburg dies. Hitler merges president and chancellor into one office - the Fuhrer. The army swore their loyalty to him, which was important.

Use of force in the consolidation of power (SS)

1. SS set up the concentration camps, which held those who opposed Nazis.

2. SS became the national police force in 1936 under Heinrich Himmler.

   1. Gestapo - a branch of SS, a secret police force. It relied on ordinary people ratting on others.

Political opposition

1. Being in opposition was hard because Nazis did everything to weaken the opposition.

2. SPD and KPD members were put in concentration camps.

3. Trade unions were removed - workers couldn’t organize strikes.

Opposition from the army

1. Kreisau Circle - high ranking military officers and members of the old aristocracy. They were broken up by the Gestapo in 1943.

   1. July Bomb Plot (1944) - attempted assassination of Hitler, which failed.

   2. There were more attemps to kill Hitler though.

Opposition from youth

1. Opposition based on moral grounds or desire for more individual freedom.

2. The White Rose group set up at Munich Uni in 1941. The leaders, Scholl siblings, handed out leaflets etc. They were executed in 1943.

3. Other groups: Edelweiss Pirates, Swing Youth, Navajos. They opposed general authoritarianism and Hitler Youth.

Opposition from religious groups

1. Bishop Galen, Pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

2. Confessional Church was set up by Martin Niemoller. He was executed for this.

3. Perhaps there was so little opposition because the Nazis were nationalist and the Church couldn’t oppose fighting commies…

Propaganda (6)

1. The Ministry of Propaganda was set up in 1933 with Goebbels in charge.

2. Propaganda involved naming outsider groups - gays, Jews, Roma people.

3. A newspaper, Der Stumer, was set up to spread Nazi ideology.

4. Films such as “Triumph of the Will” by Leni Riefenstahl, “The Eternal Jews” or “Suss the Jew”.

5. Reich Broadcasting Corporation was responsible for everything being broadcast. It was also made sure that these signals could be received by everyone, hence the cheap receiver.

6. Censorship was widely used.

Aims of Hitler’s foreign policies

1. Uniting of German people.

2. Overthrow of the Treaty of Versailles.

3. Pursuit of lebensraum.

Early foreign policies, 1933-6

GOAL: Overturn Treaty of Versailles (TOV).

1. DE left League of Nations in 1933.

2. The Saarland got returned to Germany in 1935 as a result of a plebiscite.

3. Rearmament of DE from 1935, breaking TOV.

4. Sending troops to the Rhineland, which was supposed to be a demilitarized zone.

5. The limited response of UK and FR.

Steps to war, 1936-9

GOAL: Reinforce position, expand DE territory and influence.

Hitler sent troops to support Franco in the Spanish Civil War, he allied with Mussolini and Japan (Anti-Commintern Pact was signed in Nov 1936)

1. In 1938, Anschluss of Austria was carried out despite being forbidden by TOV. No fighting took place.

2. Later in 1938, Hitler took Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia. He managed to do it because at the Munich Conference in 1938, UK, FR, ITA voted in favor of his demands.

3. In 1939, Hitler wanted Poland to give him back their land. UK and FR opposed this, war broke out in September.

4. In August 1939, Hitler signed the Nazi-Soviet Pact, which granted him security against an attack from USRR.

Hitler’s economic policies (3)

1. Schacht and the New Plan

   1. Organization of industry - big business and industry had to work together.

   2. Decrease in unemployment - public work schemes, such as building autobahns, schools etc.

   3. In 1934, the National Labor Force (RAD) was set up. This led to decrease in unemployment (only men counted).

   4. New Plan in 1934 was meant to balance export and import, since DE was importing more than exporting.

2. Goring and rearmament

   1. Goring and Schacht didn’t agree on economy, Goring thought arming the country was key.

   2. The Four Year Plan was introduced - expansion of arms manufacturing.

   3. Ersatz goods - swapping imported goods to those made at home. Autarky.

3. Speer and the war economy

   1. Limiting freedoms to support war.

SOCIAL: workers

1. RAD was made, young men were expected to spend at least 6 months there.

2. German Labor Front (DAF) - this country-wide “labor union”.

3. Strength Through Joy programme - rewards for work.

Despite this, workers had many limitations and were controlled.

SOCIAL: Youth & Education

1. The Hitler Youth (since 1939, membership was compulsory)

   1. A paramilitary organization for young boys, focused on using weapons, survival skills.

   2. They were taught to recognize outsiders and be loyal to Nazi ideology.

   3. The League of German Maidens was for girls, they were taught domestic skills.

2. Schools

   1. Important place for indoctrination. Eugenics was taught to promote Aryan supremacy.

   2. Physical exercise was extremely important.

   3. History was rewritten, teachers were controlled.

SOCIAL: women

1. Women were home-makers and were supposed to raise kids.

2. Abortion was illegal —> large families were encouraged. Women were encouraged to have kids out of wedlock which contradicted previous ideology.

   1. Lebensborn - women were supposed to procreate with SS men to create more Aryans.

3. During WWII, women’s position changed slightly to support the war effort. They had to work in factories from 1942 for example.

SOCIAL: minorities

Nazis killed disabled people to “cleanse” the nation. They had Euthanasia centers but the programme ended in 1941 because it was highly controversial.

Treatment of Jews (4)

1. Jews weren’t allowed to work government jobs. This included teachers.

2. The Nuremberg Laws (1935) - Jews couldn’t be German citizens and they couldn’t marry non-Jews.

3. Kristallnacht (1938) - co-ordinated attacks on Jewish houses, shops, businesses and synagogues. Thousands on Jews landed in concentration camps.

4. Wannsee Conference (1942) established that Jews had to be put in labor and prison camps. This started the Holocaust.

Arguments for Hitler being a strong dictator (4)

1. Control of a powerful security system (SS, Gestapo, police)

2. Absolute control over education, ideology, the economy, the army.

3. Lack of opposition from 1934 (one party state, no unions)

4. Extensive propaganda (press, radio, films, censorship)

Arguments for Hitler being a weak dictator (3)

1. People described him as lazy and uninterested in economics.

2. He created a polycratic system, meaning he gave a bunch of different people power over the same area. This caused competition and the pursuit of more radical policies.

3. Nazi programmes were left unfinished (went to war without prep, no war economy until 1942).