The Extent of Opposition Towards the Nazis
There was little opposition that was effective in resistance to the Nazis. Hitler's power was finally consolidated in 1934 when Hindenburg died in August of that year, up until this time Hitler could have been dismissed as Chancellor. However, after this time he could not legally be removed. The evidence also suggests the mass population had not many reasons to resist a new government which, seemed at the time to turn around Germany, almost abolishing unemployment and improving living conditions. Organisations that opposed the regime were in the minority, due to the threat of punishment and the power of the police state. Also the organisations were only united in one aim, the downfall of Hitler and the Nazis, and this was not enough, as they were divided on the methods to achieve this, and what should replace Nazi Germany.
The Army and the Church were in the best position to oppose the regime. They both had legal reasons to meet in public in large groups, whereas political groups had been abolished when Hitler came into power. The Church could not be integrated into the Nazis or abolished. The Church itself had great influence over the German people, as ninety percent of the population in 1932 were either Catholic or Protestant. It was well organised and strong, especially as it was internationally based. However the priests were not interested in opposing the regime, the leadership of the churches were very naive in believing that they could reach and understanding with the Nazis, and as most of the German population and even the world, they underestimated the Nazis ability and gave in easily to them. Churches did use methods to criticise the regime as they disagreed with ma...
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...er really became unmanageable for the regime. The mixed strategies of propaganda and incentives, food on the table when it was most required and Gestapo surveillance for the most part ensured the compliance of the working class in public." From M.Housden 'Germans and their opposition to the Third Reich'
The extent of opposition to the Nazis was ineffective due to Hitler's mass popularity with the people, and the opposition groups being unable to co-operate with each other. Coupled with Hitler's forceful and terrorising SS and Gestapo watching over the German people constantly. Hitler knew his aims, and a major priority was keeping opposition repressed. He succeeded for many years because of his banning other political parties and making opposition illegal. Therefore the little opposition that did remain was not supported and so did not threaten the Nazi State.
There could have been a return to parliamentary Party politics. There were some signs to show that democracy may have been revived. During the continuous utilisation of Article 48 to govern, the Reichstag gave their vote of no confidence in challenging the executive use of it. Also, a section of the public appeared to still support the Republic; the Centre Party and SPD continued to have steady support until 1932. However, it seems that any chances of democracy were ruled out. The political Parties were still inclined to pursue their own political interests when a united, broad and moderate front was needed. Two moderate Parties even defected to Hitler after the offensive from the right and Hindenburg made little effort to restore the influence of the Reichstag.
How the Nazis Gained and Maintained Power in Germany Why did no one succeed in stopping Hitler? * 37% of votes in July * Higher than any other party * Good reason for Hitler to take control and power * Hitler had learnt the only way to achieve real power was through democracy thanks to the Munich Putsch. * Hitler established a secure position very quickly once he came to power * Papen and the other Weimar politicians believed that the constitution would stop revolutionary movements. Hitler turned down the position of vice-chancellor, good move, he. wanted to become the chancellor, which would give him far more power.
Prior to the Nazi takeover of Germany, the nation had been suffering deeply. An economic depression, large-scale unemployment, and the shame of losing World War I had put Germany in a dark place. The Nazi’s were incredibly aware of this, and their propaganda at the time reflected a need to reunite the German people. Propaganda appealed to national pride, and putting ones country before themselves. Of course, a strong united people needed a leader that was just as strong, and the “myth of Hitler” would create that leader. Slogans like “One People, one Fuhrer, one Reich!” promoted national unity, and a Wochenspruch from February 1938 states, “The greatest of all sacrifices is to give one’s life to preserve the existence of the community.” Leni Riefenstahl’s Triumph of the Will comes from this time period and helps form the mythological image of Hitler. Propaganda also focused on the good the Nazi party was doing. It discussed how well the Nazi welfare system was working, newsreels showed happy German people enjoying the benefits of the Nazi regime.
In the Reichstag from 1928 to 1932, seats of the Nazi Party rose from 12 to 230. This was the result of a number of factors involving the crash of the Wall Street and the following depression, the weaknesses of the Weimar Constitution and Hitler’s speaking skills in the public. The actions of President Hindenburg and the crippling nature of Article 48 were important factors in helping Hitler and his rise to power.
I feel the unprecedented rise of the Nazi party was partially due to the circumstances in Germany after the collapse of the Weimar Republic. Many people in Germany were living in crippling poverty and the strain of the and the country was trying to find stability after World War. Moreover, many people were still angry about the way Germany was treated by the allies in the treaty of Versailles. Hitler and his Nazis seized the opportunity and presented a united and organised front that promised to make Germany a great and powerful nation once more. By blaming Jewish people and other sections of society as for all the country’s problems Hitler united the Germans by giving them someone to blame. This lead to the youth of Germany being caught in the middle of following the Nazi cause or opposing it.
Nazis and the Party had very similar ideologies. Although Nazis eliminated people because of their religion (Sauer 683) and the Party eliminated people because of their anti-Party feelings (Orwell 187), they both tried to eliminate anyone who did not agree with them. This practice was essential for controlling the masses and holding on to power. Retaining power is much easier for a government when the entire population that government rules agrees with its philosophies. No one would attempt to remove the current government from power if he or she agreed with that government.
By the time Adolf Hitler was elected as Chancellor of Germany in January 1933, the consolidation of power was not having the desired effect. Hitler immediately called another election, and using his newly acquired power, his first step was to ban all newspapers and political meetings, particularly those of the Communists (KPD). He also dissolved the Prussian parliament, which effectively gave Hermann Goring complete control of 60% of Germany's police force. The police support of the Nazi Party was the backing for a violent terror campaign against other political parties, again particularly against the KPD.
The Main Opposition to the Nazi Regime Introduction - An introduction to an answer for this type of question should consist of some background information, mainly about the strength and the fear factor of the Nazi’s. Including details of how the German people were the main opposition to the Nazi regime and not any specific group. Moving on to say how there were many reasons why the Nazi’s didn’t face more opposition but not stating them yet. This section of the essay would start to delve into what was the main opposition to the Nazi regime. The people.
The Fear of Socialism and the Rise to Power of the Nazis in Germany between 1919 and 1933
One of the key criteria of a totalitarian government is that there is complete control over the economy. However, within Nazi Germany there was never all-encompassing state ownership over the economy. In fact, Hitler never placed importance on the ‘socialist’ aspect of NSDAP ideology. He did not believe in state ownership or redistribution of wealth, and he allowed capitalism and big business thrive in the Third Reich, as they were necessary for the revitalisation of Germany’s economy. Moreover, the Nazi State was not the extremely rigid political structure it appeared to be. While, Hitler himself was very secure in his position as Fuhrer, below him the political structure was quite chaotic. In terms of government agencies, there was not much direction from the top, as they were instructed to interpret the will of the Fuhrer and then enact it. Moreover, there was a large amount of overlap and inefficiency, while solidifying Hitler’s position, generally weakened the ability to rule over people. Finally, below Hitler, there was a lot of infighting in attempt to gain greater power and favor from Hitler. Similar to the inefficiencies created by overlap, this created inefficiency and weakened the ability to have totalitarian
have to ask why? One of the main reasons was the use of propaganda and
The Effectiveness of Nazis' Dealings With Their Opponents After Nazis had control of Germany, the last thing they wanted was an opposition of any sort, aiming to create a totalitarian state where there are no rival parties or political debates. The citizens of Germany were responsible to serve the state and obeying the leader. This orderly state was acheived by providing many positive aspects for people to focus on. This was aimed to keep people's mouths shut and psychologically persuade them to trust and believe in the Nazis.
The Nazi Party, controlled by Adolf Hitler, ruled Germany from 1933 to 1945. In 1933, Hitler became the Chancellor of Germany and the Nazi government began to take over. Hitler became a very influential speaker and attracted new members to his party by blaming Jews for Germany’s problems and developed a concept of a “master race.” The Nazis believed that Germans were “racially superior” and that the Jewish people were a threat to the German racial community and also targeted other groups because of their “perceived racial inferiority” such as Gypsies, disabled persons, Polish people and Russians as well as many others. In 1938, Jewish people were banned from public places in Germany and many were sent to concentration camps where they were either murdered or forced to work. Many individuals and groups attempted to resist Nazism in Germany, but were unsuccessful. The White Rose, The Red Orchestra and the Kreisau Circle all advocated non-violent resistance to oppose the Nazi regime and even with the high risk of getting caught and potentially killed, the courageous members of these groups went after what they believed was right despite the serious consequences.
The Nazis are infamous for their heavy use of propaganda during their reign in the Third Reich, they used many means of propaganda such as posters, cartoons, radio, film, etc. The German citizens’ constant exposure to all of this propaganda from all directions had a deep psychological and psychoanalytical impact on them, it redefined their identity and who they were as well as what they thought of the world around them. Nazi propaganda often had deep symbolic meaning usually associated with anti-semitism and German nationalism, these elements were already present in the minds of the majority of Germans so it wasn’t hard for Adolf Hitler and the rest of the Nazi party to further provoke and enrage the emotions of people concerning these things, they merely had to tap into these pre disposed emotions in a way that would have the most favourable psychological impact for the Nazis. Some of the opinions and mindsets that German citizens had may have been there even before the Nazis came into power and made it seemed like they were brainwashing people with their propaganda, but with what justification can it be said that Nazi propaganda had a psychological and psychoanalytic impact on the German population to a great extent, rather than it being the work of pre set psychological states of mind of people due to the Treaty of Versailles, the Great Depression, Hyperinflation, and other sources which may have led the German population to support and hold anti-semitistic and nationalistic ideologies.
Historians argue that in Nazism, ‘the value of the totalitarian concept seems extremely limited’ as they compare the regime to other totalitarian states. They state that Nazism could not have been totalitarianism because it wasn’t as organized and monolithically structured as Stalin’s Russia. The Nazism ideology was a mere scheme of self-fulfilment and lacked the methodical theory of Marxism. Under no circumstance was there a level of state possession and influence over the economy in comparison to that which developed in Stalin’s Russia. In spite of the Nazi Party’s dominance over state affairs, authority was divided between themselves and a quantity of major power groups including the industrialists and the armed forces, while Stalin’s Communist Party possessed unconditional power over all Russian state affairs. A German historian stated that Hitler ‘...brought about a state of affairs in which the various autonomous authorities ranged alongside and against one another...’ Hitler relied on a level of popularity from the nation acquired through promoting himself through propaganda to maintain his leadership. There are no implications that Stalin sought popular appeal to maintain his power. Generally, historians have debated the weak dictatorship of Hitler but never have they contemplated ...