How Hitler Mantained his Power

Consent is the permission for something to happen or the agreement to do something. Although admittedly it played a part in initiating Hitler’s power and then later maintaining it, it was not the most important element. Terror was the most important element in maintaining his power. The other elements that were important in maintaining Hitler’s power include propaganda, necessity of economic depression and the removal of other political parties in Germany. Interpretations A and B refute the view that consent was the most important element in maintaining Hitler’s regime in power. Interpretations C and D however support the view that consent played an important element, albeit interpretation C was consent through propaganda.

Hans Rothfels provides the most compelling evidence to prove that consent was not the reason Hitler’s regime was maintained for 12 years, but was in fact due to terror, the necessity of the dire economic situation and also propaganda. The mixture of terror and propaganda in particular was what sustained Hitler’s regime in power; Rothfels refers to them as having ‘widespread effectiveness’. Rothfels delivers his view surrounding the importance of terror as he states; ‘fear of the overt and concealed weapons of the regime, ‘provoked a rush to join the party’. Thus, showing that the ‘concealed weapons’ of terror created a reaction in the population and encouraged them to initially join the party due to fear. Admittedly Rothfels only really focuses on terror in the early years of Hitler’s power; however there is plenty of evidence that proves terror was continued years into the regime even after the National Socialist Party (NSDAP) safely secured initial power. This was done through the continual publishing of pro...

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...netrated the minds of the people for several years which encouraged them to accept the regime and not speak out against it for a long period of time. Fear made the German people conform to Nazi ideology and beliefs. Therefore, the regime never received any significant opposition worldwide as the true brutal reality of Nazi Germany’s aims and its loyal mercenaries were unknown overseas. Terror infiltrated the minds of the population for several years which made it so significant compared to Nazi successes, consent and propaganda. Terror began in the formation of the Gestapo in 1933, to Kristallnacht in 1938 and then the continuation of it even further to 1944 in the Warsaw Uprising where the German army killed 250,000 Jewish inhabitants. Terror secured conformity and compliance of the people in the long term whereas consent only initiated Hitler’s regime in power.