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The Nazi party rose to power in March 1933 due to many reasons, some more significant than the others. The fear of communism did contribute to the Nazi partys rise to power, however this was not the central reason. In addition President Hindenburgs role was extremely significant as he selected Hitler as Chancellor in January 1933. Nevertheless the key route to the Nazi’s rise to power was the Great Depression. One of the reasons that contributed to the rise to power of the Nazi party was Hitler himself: Hitler was an enigmatic character with a large personality, a brilliant peaker, an organised man and a driven politician.
He practiced his speaking making abilities by attending many rallies and would draw the masses in by speaking quietly to begin with and as he saw people leaning in trying to catch what he was saying he would suddenly increase his volume and catch their attention, this was one of many intelligent techniques Hitler used as well as propaganda and the majority of people thought Hitler sounded like the only man who could lift Germany out of its crisis.
His self-belief and passion for Germany provided a light in a bleak situation and persuaded people to believe in him. He had the ability to control people’s emotions because he realised that the only way to appeal to the masses wasn’t by confusing them with political policies (something they wouldn’t understand) but however by tailoring his speeches to each individual audiences and would add empathises on how he would solve their problems.
He portrayed his party in such a manner that it gave people a strong sense of belief that the Nazis were the solution to their problems. He often underlined the importance of how the failures of the Weimar republic were associated with the problems Germany was facing and because he adn’t been in the government he wasn’t associated with failure, therefore presenting himself as the strong extremist leader who would help Germany. The Great Depression was one of the most significant factors that contributed to The Nazi’s election success.
It created a crisis induced atmosphere. The Great Depression’s intensity was very severe on European countries that relied on America for financial aid however to an extent unlike Germany which had the most devastating effect on its economy and impacted the lives of ordinary Germans in a negative way. Germany was forced to withdraw from the Dawes plan which was Germanys financial support, it was the only way Germany could pay back reparations to England and France from the horror that was the treaty of Versailles.
The economy was failing apart rapidly; one in three Germans were unemployed, many were forced to accept wage cuts, were reduced to instant poverty and in January 1933 it was calculated that the unemployed made up a fifth of the whole German population. This a cted tte the economy as the unemployed were entitled to benefits longer the depression lasted the less they received and the less money fuelled into he economy causing it to go bust therefore political and economic instability occurred.
Also the benefit system was originally designed for only 800,000 and couldn’t cope with the large numbers that needed benefits by 1932. Hitler being intellectually tactical saw an open window to success and used the depression to his advantage, and used propaganda to appeal to a wide audience. He targeted the route of their fears, worries, and emotions and provided an alternative to solve their problems by promising food and Jobs yet didn’t go into much detail on how this would be done.
By 1930 the votes went up by 18. and later in 1932 by 37. 4%. In desperate times people turned to anyone who provided an answer to their problems and Hitler rose to this occasion. Additionally many landowning interests supported Hitler and were bitterly hostile to Bruning as he was associated with the economic failure that was the Weimar republic. He failed to take charge of situation as he had no alternative plan and this exposed the weaknesses of the Weimar Republic.
In addition this is why the depression is considered the most significant unlike the fear of communism. Party Organisation is a much more significant factor than fear of ommunism in aiding the rise of the Nazi Party. The organisational structure of the party was organised by regionally sub-dividing Germany into a number of Gaue which were controlled by a Gauleiter, who had been appointed Hitler and only received orders from Hitler. This was an easy way for the Nazis to spread their world/ideology throughout each town/section of Germany.
Hitler afforded to do this by befriending Germanys wealthiest business men to fund the Nazis finances and they agreed to do so as they shared a common interest with Hitler such as hatred of ommunism and hoped Hitler would limit the power of the trade union. In addition there is evidence that the organisational structure of the party was working as in Neidenburg, 25. 8% of people voted for the Nazi party, however without Hitler ever visiting the part of Germany.
In addition Hitler used fear to oppose his opponents with the SA who were positioned to break up communists meetings and threaten those that were against Hitler. The fear of Communism, was not the main reason to the rise to power of the Nazi Party, but was however a substantial factor. Hitler and the Nazis party saw the ommunists as a threat as they were another extremist party that provided an alternative situation in a bleak Germany and they appealed to the masses of the working class. Contrastingly many other classes such as the Elite, the middle class and Generals saw the communists as a threat.
As the elite feared losing their land and wealth, they were also afraid that the Left wing and the Right wing uprising would happen at the same time. Hitler used the Reichstag fire to his advantage by putting the blame on his opponents the communists, and ordered the arrest of all he most powerful communists’ news soon spread. In addition Hitler used this to make the Communists seem terrible, so people would be less inclined to vote tor the Lett wing parties. helped the Nazi party gained votes, and strengthened their support.
More Noteworthy than the fear of communism was the intrigue of the Elite; Firstly Hindenburg played a big role in helping Hitler and the Nazis rise to power, as he appointed Hitler as Chancellor even though the Nazi party had a large number of the votes in the Reichstag, he wasn’t inclined to appoint Hitler in this role and showed he as hesitant to appoint Hitler due to his refusal to Hitler’s attempts to gain total power moreover Von Papen who was chancellor suffered the opposite of Hitler and didn’t receive as much support and popularity as Hitler did, so it came to the conclusion that Hitler would be appointed as vice chancellor to increase Von Papen’s popularity however Hitler refused and demanded chancellorship which lead Hindenburg and Von Papen taking a risk in hopes that they can use his votes to exterminate democracy and it was thought that Hitler could be controlled and tamed’.
Furthermore the Elite exerted some influence on Hitler’s appointment as they started to support the Nazis party and to ensure the parties success, the elite and rich business men provide financial aid which enabled Hitler to afford multimedia campaigning to achieve mass appeal. The Nazi’s appeal was another factor that contributed to the rise to power however was much more significant than the fear of communism. The Nazis appealed to a wide range of people as they provided a solution to each class systems needs and wants. They were anti-communist which appealed to people who had property such s industrialist and land owners (the upper and middle class) as theyd have a lot to lose if the communist gained power.
Although they were anti-communist they appealed to the working class as they promised employment and food instead of reparations which appealed to men and women who wanted to support their families moreover their views and promises contradicted each other but people ignored this as they were so desperate for a ‘saviour’ the Nazis were an extreme party that offered extreme solutions to problems caused by the Weimar Republic. Hitler’s use of propaganda and auditory skills lead the people into blind obedience. In contrast to all other extremist parties they were the only party that appealed to a wide range of people, like the KPD who only appealed to the working class and extreme communists. An equally significant factor than the fear of communism was the collapse of the Weimar Republic. The Weimar Republic faced an unfortunate birth. It inherited economic problems from the war that couldn’t be solved so easily.
The loss of the war, the new form of democracy and of the signing of Treaty of Versailles all were problems the associated the Weimar Republic with. Hitler saw this as an advantage, e used the problems of the Weimar Democracy to highlight his party, Hitler wasn’t associated with the Weimar Republic there wasn’t associated with failure. People didn’t believe the Weimar politicians could solve their problems however Hitler could. As the government collapsed Hitler conveyed this powerful political image that offered structure and strength, therefore in a world where everything is falling apart people tend to look tor the most stable thing they can tind theretore aiding him to gain political support.
A1 though this helped Hitler pave a path to gaining power but was not the most significant factor. To conclude although the fear of communism did aid Hitler’s success however two factors contributed the most to the rise to power, one more than the other but still important factors; The Great Depression the most important and The Intrigue of the Elite. If the great depression had never happened people wouldn’t have found themselves so desperate to look for an extreme solution to their problems and Hitler wouldn’t have gained as much support. Moreover if the Elite had never put Hitler in the position that would help him achieve power, Hitler would have probably never gained power so quickly and easily.