A New Republic

A new democratic German republic, known as the Weimar Republic, came into being. After some success it was hit by hyperinflation and other serious economic problems.

Right wing nationalist elements under a variety of movements, but most notably the Nazi Party of Adolf Hitler, sought to blame Germany's "humiliating" status on the harshness of the post-war settlement, on the weakness of democratic government, and on the Jews, whom it claimed possessed a financial stranglehold on Germany.

Hitler was appointed Reichskanzler (Chancellor) on January 30, 1933, by the aged President von Hindenburg.

Hitler's government exercised much of its power through the special emergency powers possessed by the President under the constitution.

Economic and Social Distress.  During World War I, without access to American capital, the Kaisers government attempted to pay for the war by printing large amounts of currency. This began an inflationary spiral that would continue for five years.

Germany's defeat affected its currency even more, and inflation continued. By 1923, one dollar, which had been worth about four marks before the war, was worth over four trillion paper marks. Wheelbarrows of bills would be needed to buy a loaf of bread. Individuals and businesses that held their savings in banks or maintained fixed bud gets were devastated. Those individuals and businesses that were in debt paid off their debt quickly with the inflated money. The implementation of the Rentenbank and the Rentenmark, along with U.S. Dawes Plan for reparations payments stabilized the currency and encouraged renewed industrial development by 1925.

Germany and the Great Depression of 1929.

Soon after the depression of 1929 struck highly industrialized Germany, six million people were unemployed. The depression brought about the rise of the hard left and right parties at the expense of the center. This economic and social roller coaster ride made many Germans believe that the Versailles treaty caused all the vicissitudes that confronted them and this view played into the hands of the Nazis. Both the Nazis and the communists gained seats in the Reichstag in the elections of 1930 and 1932.

The Ascendancy of the National Socialists.  The Nazi, or National Socialist party was formally known as the National Socialist German Workers' Party, which originated in 1920.

A. Adolph Hitler. Adolph Hitler was born in Austria in 1889. Orphaned at an early age, he drifted to Vienna where he developed a deep hatred for Jews, whom he blamed for his failure to gain either a higher education or recognition as an artist.

1. He moved to Bavaria two years before the beginning of World War I. There he joined the German army.

2. Discharged from the army, he returned to Bavaria where he became one of the first members of what eventually became the Nazi party.

3. "Nazi" is a combination of the first syllable of the German word, national, and the second syllable of the German word for socialist, sozialistische.

B. The Beer-Hall Putsch. As mentioned above, the Nazis tried a coup detat in Munich in 1923, which was immediately crushed. Hitler received a lenient and light prison term.

1. While in comfortable prison surroundings, which included use of a secretary, Hitler composed Mien Kemp (My Battle or Struggle), which together with Got fried Feeders Program of the National Socialist German Workers' Party (1920), and Alfred Rosenberg's Myth of the Twentieth Century , became the ideological bases of the Nazi party.

The Nazi Theories. The Nazis' theories were centered on outrageous race theories and distortions of history. Nazi ideology was so ridiculous on the surface that most did not believe it could catch on with the public until it was too late to do anything about it.

One of the basic elements of Nazi ideology was the belief in the German master race (herrenvolk). Germans were believed to be the master race that had accomplished every major greatness in world history. Nazi ideology believed that it was the destiny of the master race to rule the world; non-Germans (untermenschen) were fit only to be slaves of the herrenvolk. They would be subjugated, destroyed or displaced to make "living space" (lebensraum) for the master race.

Another important ideological tenet of the Nazis claimed that Germany was surrounded by hostile states (Russia, Poland, France, etc.) controlled by Untermenchen trying to destroy Germany and the herrenvolk.

The Nazis also had a perverted concept of popular sovereignty and the general will which emphasized the leader principle (the Führer princip). The Leader (der Führer) governed the German people by a mystical connection to its general will. Every German was supposed to be absolutely loyal to the Nazi party and its Leader.

Virulent anti-Semitism was the most well-known and diabolical element of Nazism. Up until Nazism Jews were probably better off in Germany than in any other country in the world except the United States. The Jews provided the Nazis with a scapegoat; everything wrong with the world was the fault of the Jews. Germans who resented Jewish competition in business and professional life supported the Nazis' bid for power.

Hitler shifted the Nazi ideology around to meet temporary political expedients. When Germany and Japan were allied during World War II, for example, Hitler described the Japanese as "honorary Aryans."

The Nazi Program. In the early 1930's, the Nazis developed a political based upon:

a. Anti-Communism; b. Anti-Semitism; c. Revision of the Versailles Treaty;

d. Renegotiation of war reparations payments; e. The recovery of Germany's lands and colonies.

The Nazi Tactics and Appeal.

1. Hitler was a clever demagogue who knew how to play on the emotions of desperate and proud Germans caught in the depression.

2. The Nazis general political tactic was to promise changes that would appeal to the greatest number of people; while asking Germans to follow unquestioningly. They used the Versailles Treaty and the Jews as scapegoats for Germans plight.

The Nazis come to Power. With the elections of July 1932, the Nazis became a plurality in the Reichstag with 230 seats. They were the largest political party, but they did not hold a majority of the seats in the Reichstag, and were having difficulty putting together a coalition.

Hitler was appointed as a Chancellor. On January 30, 1933, President von Hindenberg appointed Hitler chancellor.

-The coalition government composed of Nazis and conservative nationalists and militarists.

-Like their Italian counterparts, many German politicians mistakenly believed that exigencies of coalition government would mitigate the extremism of the Nazis.

-Like Mussolini, Hitler did not moderate in power; indeed he became a dictator much faster than his Italian counterpart.

-As chancellor, Hitler would not compromise with his coalition and the Reichstag at large; hence he received a vote of no confidence. The Reichstag was paralyzed, and new elections were ordered for March 5, 1933.

-The Elections of 1933 and the Reichstag Fire. During the election the Reichstag building was set on fire in an act of terror. Hitler and the Nazis claimed that it was the work of Communists, but evidence exists that the Nazis set it themselves to propel themselves into power.

-The Nazis persuaded President Von Hindenberg to issue state of siege decrees that suspended freedom of speech and freedom of the press.

-The presidential decrees silenced Nazi opponents, and the Nazi Party and its organs used rallies, demonstrations, and storm trooper attacks to assure a Nazi victory

-The Nazis still only won 44% of the votes. Their most pliable coalition partners won 8% of the vote. The new Nazi-nationalist government had a majority but not the two-thirds majority necessary to amend the constitution.

-The Enabling Act. Hitler was able to persuade the Catholic Center Party to support the Nazis with a promise to negotiate a concordat with the Papacy, like Mussolini did, if the Catholics would vote for the Enabling Act.

-The Enabling Act (passed 23 March 1933) gave Hitlers government dictatorial powers until April 1, 1937.

-Only 94 members of the Reichstag opposed the Enabling Act, and these were all Socialists and Social Democrats.

-After the Death of Von Hindenberg in 1934, Hitler was than able to obtain the power to change the constitution by decree. Thus Germany became a totalitarian dictatorship under a party founded upon racism, militarism and aggression

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