Hitler's Rise to Chancellor

• The central question is: How was Hitler able to become Chancellor in 1933?

How to Use This Booklet

• The booklet aims to engage students actively in lessons, encouraging them to ask questions and highlight information.
• Discovery sessions involve watching videos and reading new information, which prepares students for Explore lessons.
• A textbook will offer further detail and extend understanding of the subject.
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Week 20 Discovery: How did the Depression affect Germany?

• Key words include Wall Street Crash, the Great Depression, and Propaganda

The Reorganisation of the Nazi Party 1924-1928

• The Munich Putsch proved a political disaster for the Nazi Party
• Sixteen Nazis were killed, the putsch was not supported, Hitler was imprisoned, and the Nazi party was banned
• Hitler used his time in prison to write Mein Kampf and plan the reorganisation of the Nazi Party
• He was released in December 1924
• The ban on the Nazis was lifted two weeks later.

Mein Kampf

• Basis for Nazi party beliefs and policies from 1924
• Included: nationalism, the belief in a superior Aryan race, socialism, and totalitarianism.

Relaunch of the party

• Hitler relaunched the Nazi party on February 27, 1925, at Munich Beer Hall
• Approximately 4000 people came to hear him speak

Hitler's objectives after the relaunch

• To create a national party with support across the country
• To consolidate Hitler's position as leader
• To win votes

Solutions to Nazi Problems in 1924

• Philip Bouhler became secretary and Franz Schwarz treasurer.
• The party was divided into regions (Gaue) run by a Gauleiter.
• Wealthy businessmen such as Thyssen, Krupp and Bosch made donations to the Nazi party.
• The Hitlerjugend (Hitler Youth) was set up.
• The President of Bavaria was persuaded to lift the ban on the Nazi Party.
• Ernst Rohm was forced to resign as leader of the SA.
• Hitler was promoted as the voice of the Nazis.
• The SS (Schutzstaffel) was created.
• Attention was turned to rural voters.
• Dr Joseph Goebbels was appointed to improve Nazi party propaganda.
• Point 17 of the 25 Point Programme was amended regarding land confiscation.

Nazi Organisation

• Departments for finance, education, and industry, based in Munich
• The party raised money from businessmen and nationalist industrialists like Krupp.
• Germany was divided into 35 Gaue (regions) with a local leader, the Gauleiter
• The German Women's Order and Hitler Youth were set up to gain women and youth members
• By 1929, the Nazi party had over 100,000 members

Leadership of the party

• Nazi leaders in the northern, urban, and industrial areas, Strasser and Goebbels had stronger socialist views
• Other party leaders, as Hitler, in the southern more rural areas had stronger nationalist views
• The 1926 Bamburg Conference strengthened positions
• The SS (Schutzstaffel or protection squad) was set up
• Selected members worked as Hitler's personal bodyguard
• The SS were under Himmler's control and grew to 3000 members and were known as the Black shirts

Developing support for the Nazis

• Goebbels was put in charge of propaganda
• The best way to get the support of the masses was by appealing to peoples their feelings
• The Nazis targeted wealthy businessmen, farmers, women, soldiers and anyone who hated the Weimar Republic, the Treaty of Versailles and Jews.
• Propaganda campaigns included posters, leaflets, radio, film, and organised rallies

The Lean Years - A lack of success

• The Years 1924 – 1928 have been called the 'Lean Years' for the Nazi Party
• The Party was well organised with a membership of over 100,000
• In 1928, the Nazis only got 3% of the votes, they were the 7th biggest party in the Reichstag

Reasons for failing to secure more votes

• Under Stresemann Germany was economically better off and people supported extreme parties like the Nazis less.
• Stresemann improved Germany's international standing, making the people happier
• The ex-army general and war hero Hindenburg became President
• Nazis struggled to get any support from the working classes

The Reorganisation of the Nazi Party

• The ban on the Nazi party was lifted in 1925
• In March 1925 the party was relaunched
• Hitler proceeded to reorganise the party

The Nazis by 1928

• Membership of the Nazi Party increased from 27,000 in 1925 to over 100,000 by the end of 1928
• The Nazis only got 3% of the votes (12 seats) in 1928, down from the 32 seats they got in 1924!
• Germany was better off under Stresemann and there was no need to vote for extremist parties
• The Nazis didn't appeal to many working-class Germans, they were more likely to vote Social Democrats or the Communist Party

The Wall Street Crash, 1929

• The Wall Street Crash happened in October 1929, when more than 16 million shares were traded in panic selling
• US banks lost billions of dollars, businesses and banks shut down
• The Great Depression in America soon spread to the rest of the world

The Social & Economic effects of the Depression on the German People

• By January 1933, 40% of factory workers were out of work, and wages had fallen by around 70% of 1928 levels
• Civil Servants faced wages cuts of 25%
• Unemployment benefit was cut by 60%
• Those who had savings often had them wiped out, as banks collapsed, or investments went bust
• Many Germans were unable to pay their rent and crime began to rise

Political Effects of the Depression on the Weimar Republic

• The man Hindenburg appointed as Chancellor was Heinrich Bruning
• He was the first Chancellor that did not have the support of a majority in the Reichstag
• Bruning's policy was to cut Government spending, increase taxes, and cut unemployment benefits
• The right-wing parties hated the higher taxes, and the left-wing parties hated the cuts to unemployment benefits, which led to continual infighting
• Bruning began to rely more and more on President Hindenburg and Article 48 to pass laws, without approval of the government
• Bruning, 'The hunger chancellor' quits in May 1932, having lost all support

Growth of support for Extremist Parties

• As Germanys social and economy problems increased so did support for 'extreme' right and left-wing parties such as the Nazis and the German Communist Party (KPD)
• The KPD, the natural party of the working class, gained increases in votes from the suffering due to two main factors: huge unemployment and the falling wages
• The communists were seen as the one party who could save workers' jobs and wages
• By 1932 the KPD secured 15% of the vote and had 89 members of parliament in the Reichstag
• As communist votes grew, so did Nazi votes and at a quicker rate
• The Middle and Upper classes were terrified of a communist government, who feared their land, businesses and profits would be taken away

Using the Depression to gain votes

• The period was a 'gift' to the Nazi party
• They used the unemployment, chaos and divides to increase their number of seats in the Reichstag, which rose from 12 in 1928, to 230 by 1932
• Hitler and Goebbels realised that using propaganda was a crucial method to increase Nazi support
• The Nazi use of propaganda was essential in the Nazi rise to power
• Goebbels ensured the Nazi message was simple, everywhere, and repeated often
• By 1930, the Nazis owned 130 newspapers across Germany
• He used modern technology; radio, newspapers, posters, rallies to spread the Nazi message locally and nationally
• The Nazis relied on general slogans rather than detailed policies
• They talked about uniting Germany behind one leader, going back to traditional values
• If an idea was shown to be unpopular then they would change it

Groups targeted by the Nazis

• The Nazis promised something new to all Germans, unity.
• This gave Germans hope in a time of crisis
• Hitler simply wanted Germans to follow him in the journey to restore German greatness

The Role of Hitler

German propaganda called Hitler 'our last hope' and appealed them to unite under 'one leader'

Hitler was shown as the strong, decisive leader that Germany needed, who promised:

• To restore law and order

• To scrap the Treaty of Versailles

• To 'make Germany great again'

• To stop the Jewish menace

• To intimidate voters, destroy opponents' offices and disrupt rallies

• Hitler even used plans to fly around up to 6 cities a day during the 1930 and 1932 elections, to spread the Nazi message

The Presidential Election of 1932

• Hitler received 11 million votes (30%) which highlighted how the people saw Hitler as a potential future leader of Germany

The Role of the SA

• The SA made the Nazis seem organised and disciplined in the time of chaos
• The SA made people thing they could bring back law and order
• The SA were also used to attack communists, with 18 killed in one clash