TIME PERIOD: 3 lessons (+ expected home work)

TYPE: Individual work / Essay in class

TOPICS: 3 topics 1933-1945

1. The Nazi take-over (1933-1934)

2. The establishment and progress of the Third Reich (1934-1939)

3. Germany during WWII (1939-1945)

PURPOSE: To understand how the DAP/NSDAP could gain support and eventually take over Germany . To also see how the repression grew, what specific features it developed and in the end understand what it was that eventually brought it down.

MATERIAL:
Old Morris (HL) = 286-302
Newest Morris (SL) = 297-327
Traynor = 171-202 / 252-305

NOTES: NAZI TAKE-OVER

• Chancellors and Governments from June 1928 to January 1933;
• Hermann Müller (SPD) 1928 June 28th – 1930 March 27th (Coalition Government – the “Grand Coalition ”; SPD, DDP, Centre, DVP)
• Heinrich von Brüning (Centre) 1930 March 30th – 1932 May 30th (authoritative (or authoritarian) democracy - von Brüning mostly ruled by the use of presidential decree - §48)
• Franz von Papen (Centre right-wing – forced to leave the party two days after he accepted the appointment as Chancellor against the will of the party) 1932 June 1st – November 17th (“cabinet of barons” or “cabinet of monocles”: authoritative (or authoritarian) democracy. All decisions taken by the use of presidential decree - §48)
• Major General Kurt von Schleicher (no party) 1932 December 2nd – 1933 January 28th (authoritative (or authoritarian) democracy. All decisions taken by the use of presidential decree - §48)
• DAP/NSDAP 1919-1933
• The German Workers Party (DAP = Deutsche Arbeiter Partei) was founded in January 1919 by Anton Drexler, a Munich locksmith and Karl Herrer, a reporter. They were from the beginning a local party who wanted to get involved in the politics of Bavaria. The Early DAP/NSDAP was mostly an Army Propaganda Unit (led by an extreme nationalist, supported by a paramilitary private army that was ready and willing to overthrow the State)
• Adolf Hitler was appointed by the army (July 1919) as a Verbindungsmann (police spy) of an Aufklärungskommando (Intelligence Commando) of the Reichswehr to influence other soldiers. He was also instructed to infiltrate the DAP and investigate their behavior. Hitler joined the DAP in 1919. In March 1920 he was discharged from the Army. His former superiors continued to encourage his political engagement within the party. Hitler had a great talent as an orator, and his ability to draw new members, combined with his characteristic ruthlessness, soon made him the dominant figure in this small party.
• 1920 – February: DAP changed their name to NSDAP (Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiter Partei) – the National Socialist German Workers Party. The swastika became a party symbol and they lay out a 25-point party program that included both nationalism:
• Revision of the Versailles Treaty
• The Union of all German speakers into a greater German Reich
• State Control of Propaganda and Press
• The Führerprinzip
• The exclusion of Jews from Citizenship Rights
• and socialism:
• Nationalize Trusts
• Abolish Land Rents
• Restrict Interests on Loans
• Introduce Profit Sharing in the Industry
• Confiscate Profits made by the Industry during the War
• Create a People’s Army based on the SA
• December 1920: NSDAP purchased a weekly newspaper – the Münchener Beobachter (Munich Observer) and made into the Party newspaper – the Völkischer Beobachter (People’s Observer). Secret army funds and a donation from a private person paid for this. Hitler knew the importance of powerfull meetings: In February 1921, Hitler spoke before a crowd of nearly six thousand in Munich. To publicize the meeting, he sent out two truckloads of party supporters to drive around with swastikas, cause a commotion and throw out leaflets, their first use of this tactic…
• 1921 (July 28th): Adolf Hitler became the Party chairman (after some internal power struggle where the old leader Anton Drexler was out manouvred by Hitler). When the party had been first established, it consisted of a Leadership Board elected by the members, which in turn elected a Board Chairman. Hitler soon scrapped this arrangement. He acquired the title Führer ("leader") and, after a series of sharp internal conflicts, it was accepted that the party would be governed by the Führerprinzip ("leader principle"): Hitler was the sole leader of the party and he alone decided its policies and strategy.
• SA – Sturmabteilung founded 1921 ("Brownshirts"/"storm troopers"): In late 1921 Hitler had created a paramilitary group called the Ordnertruppen (a body of ex-soldiers and beer hall brawlers) in order to protect gatherings of the Nazi party from disruptions from Social Democrats and Communists. On November 4th, 1921 the Nazi party held a large public meeting in the Munich Hofbräuhaus. After Hitler had spoken for some time the meeting erupted into a melee in which a small company of Ordnertruppen distinguished itself by thrashing the opposition. The Nazis called this event "Saalschlacht" (meeting hall battle or hall slaughter). After this the organization came to be called the SA. Under their leader Ernst Röhm, the SA grew in importance within the Nazi power structure, initially growing in size to thousands of members.
• Jugenbund (or Jungsturm Adolf Hitler) founded 1922: The Nazi Party created a youth section for young men between the ages of 14 and 18 years. Its successor, the Hitler Youth (Hitlerjugend), remained under SA command until May 1932.
• Hitler had strong support from Party key figures:
• Alfred Rosenberg – the Party Philosopher. Provided a lot of racial theories especially anti-Semitic views
• Ernst Röhm – He formed the ”Storm Troopers” – SA (Stormabteilungen)
• Hermann Göring – A highly decorated fighter pilot from WWI. Introduced Hitler to many important figures in the Bavarian high Society
• Rudolf Hess – A loyal friend who served together with Hitler during WWI
• Julius Streicher – ran a rival right-wing party in northern Bavaria. In 1922 he decided to back Hitler. He brought along the newspaper “Der Stürmer” (an overtly anti-Semitic newspaper with a range of “seedy articles” devoted to sex and violence)
• Max Amann – Became the publishing manager of the Party
• November 8th 1923 – Beer Hall Putsch. NSDAP under the leadership of Adolf Hitler tried to initiate a ”March on Berlin” by capturing the highest officials of Bavaria on a local Beer Hall in Munich. Even though the putsch had open support by one of the old German Commanders from WWI – General Ludendorff, it failed. When around 3000 Nazis marched the day after to the centre of Munich shots were exchanged. 19 men were killed (16 Party Members and 3 Police Men). Hitler fled but was arrested a few days later. In prison he would change the political strategy of the party…
• Trial and imprisonment: Hitler turned the trial against him into a propaganda number against the Weimar Republic. He was sentenced to 5 years in Prison. He served only 13 months at the Landsberg Prison (released in December 1924). In the prison he wrote his famous book ”Mein Kampf” (My Struggle) and he decided to transform NSDAP into an accepted National Party…
• Mein Kampf (released July 15th 1925): This book outlines Hitler’s view of Germany under his leadership, his ideology and his key foreign policies
• Complete dominance of the leaders
• Use of Propaganda
• Race Superiority (”Aryans” – ”Bearers of Culture” – ”Inferior People”)
• Popular Folk Community (Volkgemeinschaft)
• Enemies – Jews and Marxists…
• Lebensraum (Living Space) – in eastern Europe
• German Reich – extension of the Reich to include all German speakers
• Abolish the Versailles Treaty
• Transform NSDAP: NSDAP should transform into a major National Political Party
• NSDAP should contest democratic elections and the destroy democracy with a Legal Revolution after gaining power
• NSDAP divided its organization into different regions (Gaue) all over Germany – especially in the cities
• NSDAP established a leader of each district – the Gauleiter who then had the responsibility to create the districts (Kreis) and the branch groups (Ort)
• Joseph Goebbels, a former sympathizer of Gregor Strasser’s more leftist ideas, became the Gauleiter of Berlin. From 1926 he became a most loyal supporter of Hitler. He created the newspaper “Der Angriff” (The Attack) and developed the propaganda within the party. In 1930 he was appointed chief of Party propaganda
• Special sections for students, teachers, farmers, lawyers, women and youth were established or reorganized. The main organizer behind this efficient organization was Gregor Strasser. The effect shows clearly on the increase of membership: 1925 = 27,000 / 1926 = 49,000 / 1927 = 72,000 / 1928 = 108,000 / 1929 = 178,000 / 1930 = 300,000 / 1932 = 800,000
• The Party participates in the National elections May 1924 (while Hitler was still in prison) for the very first time. They received 32 seats (6.5%). In the December election 1924 the NSDAP had lost more than half of the previous voters. Now they received 14 seats (3.0%) and in the election May 1928 even less people voted for the NSDAP – 12 seats (2.6%). The general explanation for the decline of support in the elections was the relative economical and political stability of the Weimar Republic 1924-1928/1929. NOTE: at the same time the membership in NSDAP grew…
• The SS (Schutz Staffel = protection squad) was set up in 1925 as an elite body of black-shirted personal guard to the Fuhrer. They sworn an absolute obedience to the Fuhrer. It was a very small group from the beginning but they came to be the most influential group within the party after the “Night of the Long Knives” 1934.
• NSDAP was still a divided party. It had a clear right-wing and a left-wing. Hitler relied more and more on the right-wing. The leaders of the left-wing were the brothers Gregor and Otto Strasser. Ernst Röhm and other influential SA leaders supported the left-wing. At a special party meeting 1962 (in Bamberg) it was decided that the party was going to be run according to the Führerprinzip (absolute obedience to the leader) which was a victory for Hitler but it was also established that the old Party Programme (the 25-point programme) from 1920 remained unchanged. This was a victory for the left-wing.
• 1928 – the year before the economical collapse:
• The structure of NSDAP was very effectively organized
• The membership of the NSDAP had increased more than four times since the election in December 1924
• Adolf Hitler’s leadership was very authoritative and secure (except for the challenge of the left-wing under the influence of the Strasser brothers)
• Wall Street Crash 1929: The NSDAP was ready to face the new challenges. They had the amount of members necessary to absorb the rapidly increasing amount of sympathizers and therefore we could see a steep increase in both membership and voters. In the election 1930 (September) NSDAP received 107 seats (18.3% - 6 million votes). The rising numbers of unemployed and continuous problems made NSDAP more than double their amount of voters (and seats) in the election May 1932. In the first election 1932 (July) NSDAP received 230 seats (37.3% – more than 1/3 of the German voters). This is the peak of Nazi success during the Weimar Republic. The NSDAP was now by far the biggest party in Germany. Hitler met with President Hindenburg and he demanded to be made Chancellor – Hindenburg refused.
• Presidential election 1932: Hitler changed his citizenship (he was an Austrian citizen) so he could participate in the election to become Germany’s President March 1932. Hindenburg won the election but Hitler came in second with over 37% of the votes (over 13 million people). This showed the new huge support for the Nazi movement.
• Split left: SPD was the second biggest part with 133 seats and KPD the third biggest with 89 seats, but since they could not cooperate they did not pose a threat against the nearly total dominance of the Nazis.
• Election November 1932: The election in November was a NSDAP setback. The Party received 196 seats (33.1% = -2 million votes). Part of the reason for this decline was big financial deficits which made it impossible to campaign like they had done in July. The financial problems together with the loss of 2 million voters caused a serious internal crisis. The radical left-wing started to put pressure on Hitler to seize power by force. Gregor Strasser accepted to be Vise-Chancellor under Kurt von Schleicher (this was an attempt to attract the majority of NSDAP away from Hitler and the right-wing). When von Schleicher failed Gregor Strasser left NSDAP after he accused Hitler of ruining the movement.
• Hindenburg appoints Hitler Chancellor: It was surprising that President Hindenburg changed his mind about Hitler and appointed him Chancellor even though NSDAP had lost voters and the split within the party was serious. So why did he do it?:
• Lobbing from personal friends and family: The Cologne banker Kurt von Schröder, the old Chancellor Franz von Papen and Hindenburg’s son Oskar von Hindenburg convinced him, against his own judgment...
• NSDAP would be a minority: NSDAP would just receive three out of the eleven Cabinet seats (Ministers) in a national coalition. The other seats were occupied by conservative delegates, some of them followers of von Papen. This would guarantee that Hitler and NSDAP couldn't dominate...
• Franz von Papen – vice-Chancellor: Von Papen had convinced Hindenburg that he could control Hitler. In early February he said to a conservative friend “I have Hindenburg’s confidence. Within two months we will have pushed Hitler so far into a corner that he’ll squeak.”

• Adolf Hitler had been appointed German Chancellor on the 30th of January 1933. He was the head of a coalition government where the Nazis were the minority. Franz von Papen was convinced that he and the other conservatives in the government would be able to control Hitler and the other two Nazis (Wilhelm Frick; Minister of Interior and Hermann Göring; Minister without Portfolio). Just like Brüning and von Papen had done before him Hitler called for fresh elections. They were going to be held at 5 March 1933. This final ”democratic election campaign” was violent. Big business donated about 3 million marks to finance the Nazi election campaign. At the same time the Communist Party meetings were banned and the election rallies of the Social Democrats were broken up by the SA. They also disrupted the meetings of the Catholic Centre Party. 50 anti-Nazis and 18 Nazis were killed in street clashes during the campaign period. Hitler was convinced that he would win a landslide victory with absolute majority (2/3 of the seats). Meanwhile he prepared for the election by using his new power to better the ”odds”;
• February 4th 1933: Decree against press and meetings... The government released a Decree against newspapers and meetings that ”abused or treated with contempt institutions, bureaus or leading officials of state” or broadcasted ”false information”. The new decree was deliberately vague...
• February 1933: SA leaders take over the Prussian police forces… As the Minister of Interior in Prussia Göring was responsible for the police forces. He made an unofficial purge list of Police Officers and Government Officials. In Prussia key Police Chiefs were replaced by SA leaders...
• REICHSTAG FIRE (February 27th 1933): There are different theories about who or what started the fire in the German Reichstag;
• 1. The fire was planned by Göring and Göbbels with the approval of Hitler; the fire was started by the SA who then set up van der Lubbe as a scapegoat; the motive was to use the fire as ”proof” that the Communists were planning an uprising. Therefore the Nazis could clamp down on them before the election in March.
• 2. The fire was started by the Communist Party as part of an armed uprising; the fire was started by several people including van der Lubbe; the Nazi leadership were taken by surprise but then quickly set about containing the Communist uprising.
• 3. Van der Lubbe acted on his own; he did not meet anyone else in the Reichstag and the fire was not part of a wider Communist plot; however the Nazi leadership were so alarmed that they imagined the Communists were trying to overthrow the Government
• Though the important question was not ”who started it?” but rather ”the political use made of it by the Nazis!”
• EMERGENCY DECREE (February 28th 1933): The day after the fire the government introduced an emergency decree ”Emergency Laws for the Protection of People and State”. This authorized the government to take charge of law, order and security when the situation demanded it; and order death or imprisonment for a series of political offenses.
• March 1st 1933: The first law against the independence of the Federal States (Länder). The little power they had was to a high degree passed towards the central government.
• March 5th 1933: Election. The election was a disappointment for NSDAP. They expected a landslide victory and receiving absolute majority in the Reichstag (2/3 majority was necessary to change the constitution. NSDAP received 43.9%). NSDAP got support from the German National People’s Party and together they held the majority of the Reichstag with 16 seats. Since Hitler couldn’t win the majority through a democratic election he started to create an ”Enabling Bill” that would transfer full powers to the Chancellor the next coming 4 years...
• DAY OF POTSDAM (March 21st): To prepare for the passing of the Enabling Act Göbbels arranged a grandiose ceremony to celebrate the opening of the Reichstag. In the presence of President Hindenburg, the Crown Prince (the son of Wilhelm II) and many of the army’s leading generals Hitler aligned National Socialism with the forces of the old Germany. Two days later the new Reichstag met to consider the Enabling Bill...
• ENABLING BILL (23rd 1933): When the Reichstag met the Communist deputies (who were not already in prison) were refused admittance. SA surrounded the building and intimidated the deputies of other parties, especially SPD... The Nazis needed 2/3 majority to pass the bill. In a speech inside the Reichstag Hitler promised to respect the rights of the Catholic Church and uphold religious and moral values. In the end only SPD voted against the proposition and the Enabling Bill was passed by 444 to 94 votes. Within a few weeks Hitler had legally dismantled the Weimar constitution. The way was now open for him to create a one-party state!
  

• ABOLITION OF THE FEDERAL STATES (April 1933): By two different laws the Nazi-dominated state governments enacted legislation without reference to the provisional parliaments (Landtage) and the second one created 18 Reichstatthälter (Reich governors) often the local party Gauleiters, with full powers. By this act Hitler dissolved 17 state governments (diets). The only exception was the one in Prussia which was already in Nazi hands. In January 1934 the Landtage were abolished and the federal governments and governors were strictly subordinated to the Ministry of Interior. This meant that the federal principle of government was dead...
• April 7th 1933: The Law of the Restoration of the Professional Civil Service. This law enabled the government to dismiss any civil servants who were ”unsuitable” or not of ”Aryan descent”. The civil service was to be purged of Jews and political opponents.
• April 7th 1933: The Law on the Admission to the Practice of Law. This law restricted Jews from joining the legal profession.
• DESTRUCTION OF THE TRADE UNIONS (May 1-2 1933): At Göbbels initiative Hitler declared May 1st the Day of National Labor, a paid national holiday. The next day the Nazis occupied union offices throughout the country. Key union officials were arrested and taken to labor camps. The Nazis announced that henceforth there would be only one union - the German Labor Front (DAF - Deutscher Arbeitsfront). The Nazis’ act of force took place without any legal sanction...
• DISSOLUTION OF THE POLITICAL PARTIES (June-July 1933): The Communist Party was already more or less dissolved after the Reichstag Fire. At the 22nd of June 1933 SPD was banned. The German National People’s Party followed at the 29th of June. On July 5th the Centre Party dissolved itself. On 14th of July a new law was passed that declared that the NSDAP was the only legal party in Germany. Any separate political activity would result in imprisonment for up to 3 years...
• Now the NSDAP controlled the political life of Germany. Still they had failed to curtail the role and influence of Christian Churches, the army and the big business. Some parts of the party now wanted to extend the co-operation to these areas. This led to a conflict within the party...
  

• AIMS OF RÖHM AND THE SA: The SA tended to represent the populist, anti-capitalist, left-wing of the Nazi Party. They placed much more emphasis on the socialist elements of the Party program than Hitler ever did. SA had played a vital role in the years of struggle by winning the political battle in the streets. Ernst Röhm, the leader of the SA, and his troops (about two and a half million “committed” Nazis) were disappointed by the limited personal benefits they received when NSDAP took over Germany and they were very critical against the compromises the regime made with the conservative establishment. Röhm and SA called for a second, more radical revolution, against the forces of the old German establishment. Röhm said in an interview early 1934 that the Nazis had “to produce something new” - - - “The generals are a lot of old fogeys. They never had a new idea… I’m the nucleus of the new army…”
• AIMS OF THE ARMY: SA and Röhm’s plan of a second, more radical revolution worried the army who saw their traditional role and status being directly threatened. Hitler needed the support of the army; they could unseat him from his position of power. They were also the only ones that possessed the military skills which were vital to the success of Hitler’s foreign policy aims. In 1934 the problems were more acute since it became apparent that President Hindenburg did not have much longer to live. If Hitler wanted to assume the presidency without any opposition and avoid an election it was necessary to secure the army’s unqualified backing. This could only be done with the elimination of SA and their leaders…
• THE PURGE (June 30th 1934): Although there are now written evidence it is known that Hitler and the army generals met on the battleship Deutschland in April 1934. Two months later President Hindenburg and general von Blomberg gave Hitler a final ultimatum; “Deal strongly with the SA or the army will take over”. On the 30th of June 1934, the “Night of the Long Knives”, Hitler eliminated the SA as a political and military force once for all. Röhm and the main leaders were shot by members of the SS – although the weapons and transport were provided by the army! A few other people were killed during this night; General von Schleicher (former Chancellor) and Gregor Strasser (the leader of the socialist/anti-capitalist wing of the Nazi Party). About 400 people were altogether murdered during the night… Hitler obviously had the support of the army leadership and the President. He also had the support of Göring (in charge of the Gestapo – Geheime Staatspolizei, the “secret police”) and Himmler (who was in charge of the SS). Now SS became a major rival to the army officer class within the hierarchy of the Nazi state!
• DEATH OF HINDENBURG (August 1st 1934): When Hindenburg died on August 1st Hitler was able to merge the offices of Chancellor and President. He now took the official new title of Führer. Now the army had to swear an oath of personal allegiance to him as Supreme Commander of the Armed forces and head of the German state! At a referendum August 19th Hitler was given the power as absolute dictator with 38 million votes against 4.25 million.

11. “In order to achieve and retain power a leader of a single-party state needed to be ruthless, blind to human suffering and yet charismatic.” To what extent do you agree with this assertion? (May 2003)
14. In what ways, and for what reasons, did the aims and policies of two or more right wing rulers of single-party states differ? (May 2003)
15. Examine the role of education and/or the arts in two single party states, each chosen from a different region. (May 2003)
11. Compare and contrast the rise to power of two rulers of single-party states. (Nov. 2003)
13. For what reasons, and with what results, were there so many single-party states in the twentieth century? (Nov. 2003)
15. How and why was propaganda used in two single-party states, each chosen from a different region? (Nov. 2003)
11. Analyze the methods used by one single-party state ruler in his successful bid for power. (May 2004)
12. Evaluate the importance of ideology in the policies of two of the following rulers of single-party states: Castro; Hitler; Lenin; Nyerere. (May 2004)
13. Compare and contrast the foreign policies of two rulers of single-party states, each chosen from a different region. (May 2004)
15. Examine the global impact of one ruler of a single-party state. (May 2004)
11. Analyze the methods used and the conditions which helped in the rise to power of one ruler of a single-party state. (May 2005)
12. Evaluate the successes and failures of one ruler of a single-party state. (May 2005)
14. Compare and contrast the influence outside their own countries of Hitler and Mao. (May 2005)
15. Examine the status of women in two single-party states, each chosen from a different region. (May 2005)
11. Account for the ineffectiveness of internal opposition to two rulers of single-party states. (Nov. 2005)
13. With reference to two examples each chosen from a different region, to what extent do you agree with the claim that “ideology was the most important factor in the rise to power of single-party leaders”? (Nov. 2005)
15. Identify the aims of educational and youth policies in two single-party states, and evaluate the extent to which they were achieved. (Nov. 2005)
11. To what extent was the rise to power of either Hitler or Mao due to personal appeal and ability? (May 2006)
12. Compare and contrast the domestic policies of two rulers of single-party states, each chosen from a different region. (May 2006)
14. In what ways, and with what results, was propaganda used by one ruler of a single-party state? (May 2006)
15. Assess the importance of ideology for rulers of twentieth century single-party states. (May 2006)
11. “It was personality and not circumstances that brought rulers of single-party states to power.” To what extent do you agree with this statement? (Nov 2006)
12. Analyze the methods used to maintain power in two single-party states, each chosen from a different region. (Nov. 2006)
14. Compare and contrast the global impact of two of the following: Castro; Hitler; Nasser. (Nov. 2006)
15. In what ways, and for what reasons, were culture and education controlled by rulers of single-party states? (Nov. 2006)
11. Analyze the methods used and the conditions which helped in the rise to power of one ruler of a single-party state. (May 2007)
12. Evaluate the successes and failures of one ruler of a single-party state. (May 2007)
14. Compare and contrast the influence outside their own countries of Hitler and Mao. (May 2007)
15. Examine the status of women in two single-party states, each chosen from a different region. (May 2007)

19. Evaluate Hitler’s social, economic and religious policies between 1933 and 1939. (May 2003)
18. “Hitler’s control and organization of the Nazi State was less effective than is commonly believed.” To what extent do you agree with this statement? (Nov. 2003)
16. Compare and contrast the economic problems faced by two European countries between 1919 and 1939. (May 2004)
18. Compare and contrast totalitarian rule in Hitler’s Germany and Mussolini’s Italy, up to 1939. (May 2005)
18. Analyze the main factors which contributed to Hitler’s rise to power in January 1933. (Nov. 2005)
21. Account for the successes of Nazi Germany in Europe between 1938 and 1942. (Nov. 2005)
19. Compare and contrast the foreign policies of Hitler and Mussolini up to the outbreak of the Second World War. (May 2006)
18. Analyze the reasons for the collapse of the Weimar Republic and the establishment of a Nazi dictatorship in the period 1929 to 1934. (Nov. 2006)
19. Compare and contrast the domestic policies of Hitler and Stalin up to the outbreak of the Second World War. (Nov. 2006)
19. Compare and contrast the foreign policies of Hitler and Stalin in Europe , up to the invasion of Russia in 1941. (May 2007)