The Rise of Extremism and the Collapse of Weimar democracy - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

The Rise of Extremism and the Collapse of Weimar democracy

HI290- History of GermanySlide2

The Presidential Election of 1925

Hindenburg as president of the Republic, as painted by Max

Leibermann

, 1927Slide3

The Great Depression

German unemployment (in millions), 1928-35Slide4

Political Consequences of the Great Depression

27 March 1930: collapse of Hermann Müller’s (SPD) Grand Coalition. Heinrich

Brüning

(Centre) appointed Chancellor.

Political deadlock in the Reichstag forced

Brüning to increasingly rely on Emergency Powers to pass legislation.Elections in Sept. 1930 see support for the DDP (now the State Party), DVP and DNVP collapse and people turn to the political extremes – the KPD and the Nazis.

Heinrich

Brüning

(1885-1970)Slide5

The Origins of Nazism1919: Anton Drexler founds the

Deutsche

Arbeiterpartei

(German Workers Party, DAP).

Sept. 1919: Adolf Hitler joined the DAP,

quickly rising through the ranks to become the party’s chief theorist and propaganda officer.Feb. 1920: Hitler heads a committee which draws up the Party’s ’25 Point Programme’ which remains the basis of Nazi ideology until 1945.April 1920: The DAP renamed the Nationalsozialistische

Deutsche

Arbeiterpartei

(National Socialist German Workers Party, NSDAP or Nazi for short).

July 1921: Hitler ousts Drexler

and

is appointed Party Chairman.Slide6

The Munich ‘Beer Hall’ Putsch, Nov. 1923

The leaders of the Beer Hall Putsch pose for the cameras before their trial, Leipzig, April 1924.Slide7

The Rise of Nazism

1925: Nazi party

refounded

with a new commitment to achieving power through legal means.

1926: The Bamberg Conference – Hitler re-established his supremacy in the Party, overcoming the challenge to his leadership from Gregor

Strasser, but was forced to concede that the 25-Point Programme (with its socialist elements) remained inviolable. Establishment of new efficient Party structure and youth and women’s organisations led to a growing membership: 27,000 in 1925 increased to 108,000 in 1928.

But still had little popular support – they won only 2.6% of the vote in the Reichstag elections of 1928.Slide8

National Socialist Ideology

Nazism is difficult to pin down: it is easier to say what the Nazis were against than what they were for.

Some have argued that Nazism cannot be called an ideology at all: it lacks coherence & is intellectually superficial and simplistic.

Most of the ideas key to National Socialism were present in Germany in the 19

th

century.That is not to say that Nazism is the logical result of German thought: such ideas also found receptive audiences in Britain & France.

Key concepts:

Race

F

ührerprinzip

Anti-Communism

Nationalism

Volksgemeinschaft

The 25 Points:

Creation of a Greater Germany encompassing all ethnic Germans

Revocation of Treaty of Versailles

Demand for colonies (

Lebensraum

)

Only members of the

Volk

can be citizens: no Jew can be a citizens & all non-citizens to be deported

The primary duty of the State is to provide a livelihood for its citizens: introduction of profit sharing & extension of welfare state.Slide9

Political Violence

Reichsbanner

Schwarz-Rot-Gold

– Founded in 1924 by the Social Democrat Otto H

örsing

to protect the republic from attacks by ‘political enemies’. Officially non-partisan, but run & financed by the SPD and the Trade Unions. It had around 3 million members by 1932.

Roter

Frontkämpferbund

(Red Fighter League) – Founded in 1924 as the paramilitary wing of the KPD. Its aim was to defend the working classes from attacks from the radical right. By 1927 it had 111,000 members.

Sturmabteilung

(‘Storm Division’, SA) – Founded in 1921 as the paramilitary wing of the NSDAP. Acted as a uniformed guard to protect speakers at party meetings and intimidate opposition. Had 55,000 members by 1923, rising to c.500,000 a decade later.

Stahlhelm

. Bund der

Frontsoldaten

(steel helmet. League of Frontline Soldiers) founded 1918 by Franz

Seldte

– antidemocratic, nationalistic, non-partisan but close to DNVP. Had 500,000 members by 1930.Slide10

The Presidential Election of 1932

First Round (13 March 1932)

Second Round (10 April 1932)

Turnout

86.2%

83.5%

Votes Cast

37,648,317

36,490,761

Duesterberg (DNVP)

2, 557,729 (6.8%)

-

Hindenburg (Independent)

18,651,791 (49.6%)

19,359,983 (53%)

Hitler (NSDAP)

11,339,446 (30.1%)

13,418,547 (36.8%)

Thälmann (KPD)

4,983,341 (13.2%)

3,706,759 (10.2%)

Source:

Anna von der

Goltz

,

Hindenburg: Power, Myth and the Rise of the Nazis

(Oxford, 2011), p. 145

Front cover of

Heinrich Hoffmann and Josef

Berchtold‘s book celebrating Hitler‘s campaign for the presidency,

Hitler über Deutschland

(Munich: Frz. Eher Nachf., 1932).Slide11

Reichstag Elections, 1932Slide12

Who Voted for the Nazis?

Source:

G. Layton,

Democracy and Dictatorship in Germany

(2009)

Source:

R.

Overy

,

The Penguin Historical Atlas of the Third Reich

(1996)Slide13

Preußenschlag

Boundaries of the Free State of Prussia, 1920

Chancellor Franz von Papen

Prime Minister Otto BraunSlide14

Political Manoeuvring, 1932

General Kurt von

Schleicher

(1882-1934)

State Secretary Otto Meissner (left) with Franz von Papen

Oskar von Hindenburg (1883-1960)Slide15

Hitler’s first Cabinet, 30 January 1933:

Seated (left to right): Hermann G

öring

, Hitler, Franz von

Papen.

Standing (left to right): Baron Konstantin von

Neurath

(No party, Foreign

Minister), G

ünther

Gereke

(DNVP, Commissioner

for Job Creation), Count Lutz Schwerin von

Krosigk

(No party, Finance

Minister), Wilhelm Frick

(NSDAP, Interior

Minister), General Werner von Blomberg

(No party,

Defence

Minister), Alfred

Hugenberg

(DNVP, Minister

of Agriculture and Economics)Slide16