Development of the Nazi Party 1924-1929

• After Munich Putsch Hitler was arrested
• At his trial he used his charismatic charm to convey his nationalistic view as a rhetoric
• Helped Nazis appeal to many classes
• Hitler was given a lenient prison service in Landsburg Castle of 5 years- only served 8 months
• Landsburg Castle was seen as luxurious as Hitler had his own servant- Rudolf Hess
• Hitler wrote Mein Kampf outlining his ideas for the Nazi Party

• Upon release, Hitler realised the only way for Nazis to succeed was through legal means
• This would allow Nazis to succeed in elections
• To create a party structure, Nazis utilised democratic process and abandoned revolutionary techniques
• Ideas and strategies were a gateway that effectively allowed for greater Nazi structure

• By 1925, Nazis focussed on re-organising the party
• Membership increased from 108,000 by 1928 under Gregor Strasser
• Germany was then divided up into 35 electoral districts which reflected upon electoral geogrpahy of Republic's use of PR
• Each district had a Gauleiter who created further districts and branch groups
• Re-organisation superimposed overall Nazi Party structure and was seen as effective and efficient

• 1926 Bamberg Party Conference held
• Gave Hitler more of a connection to Party and gave him more support to re-establish his supremacy
• At conference both Gregor and Otto Strasser were sidelined- not see as a priority according to Hitler
• Goebbels was placed in a more prominent position- he was very good with propaganda as he created the newspaper Der Angriff which was popular
• Hitler took the opportunity to sideline the Strassers and promote Goebbels in order to give the party more strength and place Hitler in the position of Fuhrerprinzip

1928 Elections

• Not good for Nazis- only got 2.8% of vote gaining 12 seats

1929 Elections

• Made significant gains