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Background of Hitler

Background of Hitler. Conditions and Methods. Germany Background. Germany as a single, unified state was created in 1871 Prussia had been its largest state Power was wielded by the Kaiser (emperor) There was an elected Parliament (Reichstag), but the country was authoritarian

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Background of Hitler

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  1. Background of Hitler Conditions and Methods

  2. Germany Background • Germany as a single, unified state was created in 1871 • Prussia had been its largest state • Power was wielded by the Kaiser (emperor) • There was an elected Parliament (Reichstag), but the country was authoritarian • Germany underwent rapid industrialization in the late 1800s (even surpassing GB) • Germany had Europe’s largest and best army • Kaiser Wilhelm II (1888-1918) pursued an aggressive foreign policy

  3. Germany Background • WWI • Germany was certainly partially to blame for the militarism, alliance system, imperialism and other causes of WWI • Germany thought WWI would be short by using Schlieffen Plan to defeat France and Russia • But WWI became a war of attrition on all sides • By Sept 1918, German military commanders (including Hindenburg) accepted that Germany could not escape defeat • Germany’s citizens were unable to accept the defeat and turned on the government • Strikes, riots and mutinies broke out

  4. Germany Background • Kaiser Wilhelm II was forced to abdicate on Nov 9, 1918 • Germany was declared a republic, and led by Friedrich Ebert • Germany signed a ceasefire to end WWI • Germany held elections in January 1919 • The main political parties that supported democracy (Social Democratic Party, Democratic Party, Centre Party) received over 70% votes • Weimar Government opened in February – not in Berlin because of the chaos and riots there • The assembly voted in July 1919 to accept the new constitution (Weimar Constitution)

  5. Germany Background • Philipp Scheidemann, from the Social Democratic Party (SPD), was the Chancellor • Weimar government faced serious problems from the beginning: • Anger and resentment over the Versailles Treaty • Diktat • Loss of territory • Reparations • Restricted military • Extremist right and left wing movements opposed democracy and were committed to overthrowing the new Republic

  6. Germany Background • Threats from the LEFT: • Background: • Extreme left-wing socialist movement known as the Sparticists set up the German Communist Party (KPD) • KPD wanted a Bolshevik-style government • KPD contested many elections in the 1920s and consistently received 10-15% of the vote • The KPD and the SPD would not work together (except in the case of the German October, 1923) and made it easier for Hitler to come to power in 1933

  7. Germany Background • The Sparticist Uprising – January 1919 • Staged in Berlin by the Sparticists (left wing Socialists) • Put down by the freikorps (extreme right-wing ex-soldiers) • Sparticist leaders were murdered • Communist Uprising in the Ruhr – March 1920 • Set up their own govt at Essen and in April briefly took over Munich • German army intervened and killed hundreds of communists • “German October” – 1923 • The German Communist Party (KPD) organized strikes and demonstrations, and joined with the Social Democratic Party (SPD) to win control of local governments • Berlin used the army to arrest KPD ministers and dissolve the disturbances

  8. Germany Background • Threats from the RIGHT: • Background: • Many German nationalists never accepted the Weimar Republic because it had accepted the Treaty of Versailles • Many conservative elites (large landowners, big industrialists, senior army officers, judges and civil servants) only sort of, kind of supported the new govt – often they were actually hostile • Many wanted restoration of the monarchy or some authoritarian alternative

  9. Germany Background • The Kapp Putsch – March 1920 • Nationalists Wolfgang Kapp and General von Luttwitz attempted to overthrow the govt • Thousands of unemployed soldiers joined the Freikorps (volunteer units) units to seize control of Berlin • Regular army (Reichswehr) was ordered to attack the former soldiers, but they refused • Trade unions in Berlin went on strike paralyzing the city • After 4 days, Kapp realized he could not succeed and he fled the country

  10. Germany Background • The “White Terror’ – 1920-22 • Many political murders and high level assassinations • Freikorps was mainly responsible • The Beerhall Putsch – November 8, 1923 • Hitler and his para-military Nazi SA took over a govt meeting in Bavaria • The local leader (Kahr) escaped and warned the police and army • Nov 9 the Nazis marched on Munich, but the army was ready and arrested many Nazis • Hitler was tried, convicted and sentenced to 5 years, but only spent 9 months in jail – used trial as a bully pulpit and won over many new supporters • In jail he wrote Mein Kampf and decided to work from within the system rather than against it

  11. What was wrong with the Weimar Constitution? • Background: • All men and women over 20 could vote • Reichstag had great power • Ministers were accountable to Reichstag rather than the President • Weaknesses: • Voting system was proportional representation • Small parties could get seats in govt – factionalism slows govt – no party could get a majority • 1919-23 saw 8 different coalition governments • Very instable

  12. What was wrong with the Weimar Constitution? • Weaknesses • Article 48 of Constitution gave President extensive emergency powers • Could suspend civil liberties in emergencies • Hindenburg used this frequently to bypass the stalemates in the Reichstag 1930-32 • Hindenburg also used it in 1933 after the Reichstag Fire: • Hitler was then able to arrest many communist and socialist opponents and close down their newspapers • This was an important step toward his creation of a single party state

  13. Economic Problems 1919-23 • High unemployment and low industrial output • WWI soldiers couldn’t find work • Destruction from WWI • Germany lost valuable resources from TofV • Poland and France both received mineral rich land from Germany for 15 years • Inflation was serious since start of WWI • Government continued to print more money to make it even worse • Reparations added to the situation • 1914: 20 marks = 1 £ 1923: 16,000,000,000,000 = 1 £

  14. Hyper-Inflation of 1923 • January 1923 Germany failed to pay reparations • France and Belgium sent 60,000 troops into the Ruhr • German workers in the region strike – passive resistance • Clashes killed about 150 Germans • French seal Ruhr off from the rest of Germany • Ruhr produced 80% of Germany’s steel and 70% of its coal • Devastating impact on Germany’s economy • German unemployment went from 2% to 23%

  15. Hyper-Inflation of 1923 • Stresemann became chancellor in Aug 1923: • Led a brief coalition in government • Brought in Schacht (banker) to help with currency crisis • Ordered Ruhr workers to cooperate with the French • Resumed reparations payments • Introduced new currency (Rentenmark) • 1 rentenmark = 10,000,000,000,000 marks • 1924 Rentenmark was replaced with Reichsmark which continued until 1945

  16. Effects of Hyper-Inflation • Many in the middle class who lost their savings in hyper-inflation were permanently alienated from Weimar Republic • Germany had a shortage of domestic business investment – needed for future increases in GDP • Germany was increasingly dependent on loans from USA (Dawes Plan). The Dawes Plan helped the situation in 1924-28, but when the economy in US tumbled in 1929, the US called back many of its loans compounding the bad situation in Germany

  17. The Good Years 1924-29 • Some historians believe the prosperity would not have lasted in Germany even without the Great Depression • Some historians believe the issues in the US really caused the collapse of the German economy in 1929

  18. Evidence of Progress 1924-29 • Economic • Dawes Plan inserted needed $ into economy • By 1928, industry exceeded its 1913 numbers • Foreign exports increased 40% from 1925-29 • Social • Workers’ wages rose 21% in 1927-28 alone, making them the highest paid in Europe • Government spending on health, education and social services was huge • 1913 – 37% of govt spending • 1932 – 68% of govt spending • New universities in Hamburg and Cologne • Unemployment insurance issued for 17 million workers in 1927

  19. Evidence of Progress 1924-29 • Cultural • Germany (esp. Berlin) became a vibrant cultural center • Architecture – Bauhaus design movement • Literature – Thomas Mann, Nobel Prize 1929 • Political • There were no further attempts to seize power by the extreme Left or Right • 1928 elections – both KPD (Communists) and DNVP (Nationalists) lost seats (KPD 62 to 54 seats, DNVP 95 to 73). Nazis only have 12 seats

  20. Evidence of Progress 1924-29 • Political cont. • Moderate parties made huge gains – Social Democrats (SPD) from 100 to 153 seats • 1928 – 1930, Grand Coalition of SPD (Social Democrats) DDP (Democratic Party) DVP (People’s Party) and ZP (Center Party) have over 60% of seats in Reichstag • Hindenburg’s election in 1925 as President was a stabilizing factor as he was seen as a “Kaiser-substitute”

  21. Evidence of Progress 1924-29 • Germany’s International Situation • Gustav Stresemann (leader of German People’s Party) wanted what was best for Germany • Even if this meant accepting terms of Treaty of Ver. • He was briefly Chancellor in 1923 • Then became Foreign Minister until his death in 1929 • Policies were unpopular with the Nationalists but he made Germany accepted again diplomatically and even won the Nobel Peace Prize in for trying to improve Franco-German relations)

  22. Stresemann’s Achievements • Negotiated the withdrawal of French and Belgians from Ruhr in 1924 • Helped negotiate Dawes Plan in 1924 • Stresemann’s suggestion of recognizing and guaranteeing Western Europe’s frontiers was finalized into Locarno Pact of 1925 • Germany was allowed in League of Nations 1926 • Negotiated a partial withdrawal of the Rhineland by the Allies in 1928 • Negotiated the Young Plan in 1929 which reduced the total reparations bill by almost two-thirds • When he died he was negotiating the final withdrawal of the Allied troops from Rhineland which happened in 1930

  23. Problems Under Stresemann • Economic • Germany was heavily reliant on US loans • Unemployment never went below 1.3 million and was up to 1.9 million by 1929 Crash • Agriculture was way behind industrial recovery in 1920s (tough competition from American and Canadian efficiency) • Social • Farm workers’ wages were only just over half the national average in 1929

  24. Problems Under Stresemann • Political • German Nationalist Party (DNVP) opposed the Young Plan because it implied Germany still accepted war guilt. DNVP moved further to the right as a result • Center Party also moved to the right • “Grand Coalition” was unstable as it tried to negotiate with a range of parties from right of center to left. In 1930 it collapsed after the SPD argued with its Center Party coalition partners over how to respond to the Great Depression

  25. The Nazi Party and Hitler • Hitler born 1889 in Austria • Wanted to be an architect but applications to school were rejected in Vienna • Sold scenic paintings to earn a living • Became interested in writings of racist authors (like Lanz von Liebenfels) • Began to believe that Germans were superior to other nationalities of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (mainly Slavs) and the rest of the world • Hitler resented the wealth of the rich Jewish businessmen of Vienna

  26. The Nazi Party and Hitler • Hitler also noted that many leading Socialists and Communists were Jews • Hitler believed that Darwinism (evolution of species and survival of the fittest) could be applied to human societies • Hitler was a German Nationalist and welcomed WWI • He enlisted in the German army rather than Austro-Hungarian since he was living in Munich

  27. The Nazi Party and Hitler • Many Germans, including Hitler, were surprised by WWI loss in 1918 • Felt that Germany had been betrayed by the communists and the Social Democrats and that the “November criminals” were to blame for Germany’s loss • January 1919 Anton Drexler set up German Workers’ Party (DAP) to join working class and nationalists • Hitler was put in charge of recruitment and propaganda in September 1919 • 1920 he took over as party leader and produced the 25 Point Program (combined nationalist and socialist demands, a “guide book” for Nazis) • 1921 Hitler set up the Sturmabteilung (storm-troopers, or SA)

  28. The Nazi Party and Hitler • SA was originally used to protect party meetings, and made up of former Freikorps • Propaganda and symbolism was valuable and swastika was adopted, along with raised-arm salute • Party was renamed National Socialist German Workers Party (NSDAP) in 1921 • Hitler and Nazis aimed to seize power by force, modeled on Mussolini’s March on Rome in Oct 1922 • Led to the Munich Putsch (Beer Hall Putsch) which failed and Hitler sentenced to jail

  29. What did Hitler learn from the failed Beer Hall Putsch? • He changed his tactics – used legal method rather than revolution • Party needed to broaden appeal beyond working-class. He moved away from socialist ideas in the 25 Points toward more nationalist elements of the middle-class • SA were reorganized and given greater responsibility over propaganda • Founded SS (Shutzstaffel – bodyguards) and the Hitler youth in 1926

  30. The Wall Street Crash of 1929 • Effect on German Economy: • US investors withdrew money from Germany • German businesses went bankrupt and banks collapsed • Unemployment soared • Late 1920s – just under 2 million • 1930 – 3.5 million • 1931 – 4.4 million • 1932 – 6 million • Prices fell – lower profit margins forced more businesses to go bankrupt • Value of German exports fell more than 50%

  31. The Wall Street Crash of 1929 • Impact on German Politics: • Revived violent and unstable politics of 1918-23 • Large-scale street violence • Each political party had its own paramilitary • Nazi SA • Communist Red Front • Extremists grew in number and power • Chancellor Brüning (1930-32) was traditional and cautious • Kept government spending and taxes down • Waited for economy to improve • The unemployed were furious and turned to extremist political parties • 1930 - Nazis won 107 seats, Communists won 89

  32. Nazis Membership Grows • Hitler was looked to as a ‘messiah’ to ‘save’ Germany • As unemployment skyrockets, so does Nazi party membership (Nazis promised job creation) • Weak leadership in government made Hitler look even better (Hitler even got 13 million votes to Hindenburg’s 18 million in April 1932 showing how strong a following he had) • Many were worried about a communist revolution and the 700,000 strong SA seemed to be able to provide security • Appealed to small farmers and peasants struggling under debt and falling food prices (they were promised subsidies)

  33. Nazi Membership Grows • Nazis got support from lower middle-class (teachers, civil servants, etc) fearing they would become unemployed • SA was predominantly working-class, but Nazis had little support from this group overall • Nazis received financial backing from some leading industrialists who were worried about the socialists • Presented an image of dynamism and youth • Campaign tactics were more modern • Mass rallies created sense of belonging

  34. Nazi Membership Grows • Nazi Propaganda (Goebbels) used different messages for different groups • Subsidies to peasants • Law and order and return to traditional values to middle class • Jobs for unemployed • Defense against communist revolution and revival of Germany as great power to conservative nationalists • At the same time promised to unite all Germans • Jews, democratic system, Communists, and WWI victors were provided as scapegoats for Germany’s problems

  35. Nazi Membership Grows • None of this was new, so why were these messages more effective in the 1930s than in the 1920s? • Widespread disillusionment with the Weimar Republic and democratic parties was far greater, as was the scale of Germany’s economic problems • Hitler had created a more respectable image for the Nazis after his release from prison and was therefore able to win more middle class support

  36. Breakdown of Democratic Government (1930-32) • No political party could command a majority in Reichstag • Article 48 of Weimar constitution gave president authority to declare state of emergency and govern by decree without consulting parliament • Hindenburg (President) • Didn’t like the Weimar Republic • Was a Nationalist • Thought the Nazis were thugs, but hated Social Democrats and Communists even more

  37. Breakdown of Democratic Government (1930-32) • 1930 Hindenburg dismissed Chancellor Müller’s government and appointed Brüning (Center Party) to Chancellor • Brüning had little support in Reichstag but was able to rule because of Hindenburg’s use of emergency powers to pass laws • Hindenburg grew tired of having to support Brüning so he replaced him with conservative von Papen (but he had even less support) • Hindenburg agreed to call a general election in July 1932 • Nazis triumphantly won 230 seats in Parliament (largest single party in Parliament, but not yet a majority – still needed to form a coalition)

  38. Breakdown of Democratic Government (1930-32) • Hindenburg asked Hitler to join a coalition, but Hitler refused unless he could be Chancellor • Hindenburg refused (hated Hitler and feared SA) and called a second general election in November 1932 • Nazis lost seats (down to 196) but was still largest single party • Hindenburg fired von Papen for not being able to form a coalition and replaced him with General Kurt von Schleicher

  39. Breakdown of Democratic Government (1930-32) • Nazi morale was low • Lost seats in second election • Low on money from two campaigns • Some in party were becoming impatient and were calling for an armed rising • Von Schleicher tried to take advantage and split the Nazi party by getting support of the ‘left-wing’ Nazis, but this did not work • Hitler quickly reasserted his control over the Nazis

  40. Why was Hitler appointed Chancellor on Jan 30, 1933? • Hindenburg decided it was the only way to achieve a majority coalition • Hindenburg actually didn’t mind offering it to him (he wasn’t worried) since the Nazi’s position was a bit weaker than it had been in November • Only 3 of the 11 Cabinet ministers were Nazi

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