Hitler's Germany 1929-1939

• 27th February 1933 The Riechstag (German Parliment) was burnded down.
• Dutch Communist Marinus Van Der Lubbe was cught with matches and fire-lighting equipment.
• Hitler used this as an excuse to arrest many of his Communist opponents in preperation for his election campaign in 1933.
  
• Van Der Lubbe was executed.
  
• Many claimed that the Nazis had set it up. 

Key: Important dates, important names and important information.

• Riechstag Fire Decree passed which suspended personal rights and freedom.
• Political Prisons could be held indefinitely in 'protective custody' 
• 23rd March 1933 Reichstag posses the Enabling Act.
• Enabling Act gave the Chancellor (at the time Adolf Hitler) dictatorial power over Germany.
• Communist head's shaved, tortured, beaten,m etc by **.
• Dachon was established as a concentration camp for political prisoners.
  

Key: Key phrases, Important information, important dates, Important names.

• President Hindenburg disliked the Nazi Party so he refused to make Hitler Chancellor despite the fact that after the July 1932 elects the Nazi Party were the largest in the Reichstag. 
• Instead he appointed Von Papen, the leader of the Centre party, as Chancellor.
  
• However the army despised Von Papen so Hindenburg was forced to back down but still did not appoint Hitler as Chancellor.
• In December 1932 he asked Von Scleicher, one of Hindenburg's advisers,  to become Chancellor.
• Von Schleicher failed to get support from the Reichstag and resigned 8 weeks after he was appointed.
  
• On 30th January 1933 Hindenburg appointed Hitler to become Chancellor. 
• Hindenburg persuaded Hitler to accept Von Papen as Vice Chancellor and out Von Papen's supporters into the Government. 
• Hindenburg expected Von Papen to be able to control Hitler.
• Hitler called another election immediately because he wanted to get full control of the Reichstag and make the Nazi Party the majority Party.

Key: Key phrases, Important information, important dates, Important names.

• The Nazi Party promised jobs for the unemployed, help for employers to increase their profit, help for farmers and shop keepers and promised Germany would be great again.
• Only Jews and Communists were blamed for all of Germany's problems and were left out of the Nazis' plans. 
• The Nazis were well organised, disciplined and portrayed Hitler as a strong leader.
• Mass rallies enabled Hitler to speak to thousands at one time.
• Joseph Goebbelswas in charge of propaganda and ran a 'Hitler over Germany' campaign which involved flying Hitler from one rally to another. 
• The SA played an important role. They beat up opponents (especially Communists ) and smashed up election meetings. They made it very difficult for Communists to run a free election campaign.
  
• In contrast the Social Democrats and other parries who supported the Weimar government had little offer next to the strong Nazi Party.

Key: Key phrases, Important information, important dates, Important names.

• In 1930 the Nazi's won 107 seats in the Reichstag
• In July 1932 it increased to 230 seats.
• However this fell to 196 seats in November but remained the largest single party in the Reichstag.
• In the presidential elections in April 1932 Hitler stood against Hindenburg.
• Hindenburg won with 19 million votes against Hitler's 13 million.
• Unlike the Munich putsch(attempt to seize power) the Nazis used the democratic process to win power.
• By the summer of 1932 Hitler was in the position to demand that he should be come chancellor of Germany.

Key: Key phrases, Important information, important dates, Important names.

• Woman had the vote = more fair/equal
• All men and women over 20yrs old could vote for Reichstag members = more votes, more fair.
• Proportional Representation guaranteed each party was given seats based on the number of votes they won = A more favoured party was given more seats, democratic, preferred government.
• The chancellor had the support of the majority of the Reichstag = The Reichstag would be happy with the chancellor, avoids dictatorship.
• The president was elected by the people = Most citizens were happy with the president, democracy.
• Germans were given the right to free speech, to travel freely, and hold political meetings and they had freedom of religion =  Citizens more happy Which results in trust and support for the current Government.

Key: the subject, the consequence.

• The president had the power to appoint and dismiss the Chancellor = if the president appointed a chancellor no one liked the president and Reichstag would be looked at badly. Also if the chancellor was liked and the president dismissed him then the Reichstag would be unhappy.
• The president could suspend democracy and use Article 48 whenever he wanted to = no trust, inequality, undermines the Weimar Government.
• One of the states, Prussia, had an overall majority of representatives in the Reichstrat. This meant Prussia could alone veto (block) and changs the Constitution = too much power in one state.
• Proportional Representation meant that no party ever had an overall majority in the Reichstag. This mean all governments were coalitions (a mixture of several parties) which were often weak and unable to agree = won't be able to agree or make decisions or pass laws easily.
• Proportional Representation also encouraged the growth of extremist parties = extremist ideas put into people's heads. An extremist party will r9se and get seats in the Reichstag.
  

• The Nazis appealed to people = they won the vote by promising to give the German people what they want - Freedom plus their pride back. The Communists became less appealing because of the Reichstag Fire.
• The Social Democratic Party were the Nazis biggest political threat.
• The Nationalist party decided to join the Nazis giving the Nazis more seats.
• The Enabling Law changed the constitution of the German Republic (an Act is when it hasn't been passed yet and a Law is when it has been passed).
• Hitler wanted to remove the remaing 81 communist members from the Reichstag and the SA attacked Social Democrats so they wouldn't turn up for the vote = Hitler won 2/3 of the Riechstag which enabled the Nazis to have all the power.
• The Enabling Law gave Hitler power to pass laws without consulting the Reichstag and without approval of the president.
• November 1933 were a joke because the Nazi Party were the only ones allowed to stand for election.
• The ** and SA threatened and attacked the Social Democrats. They were imprisoned and called "traitors"
• The SA and ** job was basically intimidating any Nazi opposition. 

• June 1933 the Social Democrat Party and other political parties were banned from the Reichstag. 
• Hitler introduced a law against the formation of new parties in July 1933.
• The penalties for breaking this law was severe punishment.
• Trade Unions were abolished and their offices destroyed and those who broke the laws were imprisoned and were killed in concentration camps.
• Hitler strengthened his position in Germany and the Government by making Nazis placed in important positions in the State and Government. All opponents were removed.
• Hitler had gained complete control of Germany and its legal systems. 
• Sometimes innocent people were arrested on suspicion of forming a new party and the Nazis used that as an excuse to arrest people.

Key: Key phrases, Important information, important dates, Important names.

• The SA/Sturmabteuilung/brown shirts were led by the brutal Ernst Rohm.
• Rohm was one of few men Hitler feared.
• The SA were the ones who brought Hitler to power.
• To consolidate his power Hitler needed the support of the a-political (without allegiance to a political party) German army but the Generals could not abide Ernst Rohm and his two-and-a-half million SA.
• Hitler was forced to chose between the people that brought him to power and the people the instrument that could keep him in power.
• Hitler used the **- led by Heinrich Himmler- and assassinated the SA. It was known as The Night of the Long Knives.
• It happened on the 30th June 1934.
• Over 900 SA were murdered.
• Ernst Rohm had been arrested and placed in a cell. He was confronted by his former leader Adolf Hitler.
• Having refused to kill himself, Rohm was denied his final raging demand to have Hitler assassinate him personally. ** men, firing point-blank, killed him. 

Key: Key phrases, Important information, important dates, Important names.

• Hindenburg was the only person with higher authority than Hitler.
• On 2nd August 1934 Hindenburg died aged 87.
• Hitler immedietly declared himself president as well as chancellor and took the title of "Fuhrer" and "Rech Chancellor"
• On the same day the officers and men of the army had to swear an oath of personal loyalty to Hitler.
• The only people with the power to oppose Hitler were supporting him.
• The Nazi control of Germany was now complete.

Key: Key phrases, Important information, important dates, Important names.

• The ** (Schutz Staffel), lead by Heinrich Himmler, were the organization that enforced law and order in Germany.
• The ** were given ultimate power such as searching houses, confiscating property and arresting people without charging then of an offense.
• The Death Head Unit were the branch of ** who ran the Concentration Camps.
• The Gestapo were the Special Secret Police. They had the power to arrest who they wanted. People often reported others to the Gestapo.
• The Gestapo read peoples mail and taped their telephones.
• Ordinary people helped the ** by reporting anyone suspicious or who said anything against the Nazis. Children were encouraged to spy on Nazis.
• People did this to make the Nazis gain trust for them and to have a role of importance
• The old systems of law and order were affected by the Nazis because they were now under Nazi rule (judges being members of the Nazi party etc).

Key: Key phrases, Important information, important dates, Important names.