Background and Early Years of Nazi

1918 (Nov) - German Empire collapses; Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicates1; armistice2 ends WWI → political vacuum, legitimacy crisis.

1918 (Nov) - November Revolution; workers’ and soldiers’ councils; Spartacist uprising begins → fear of left-wing radicalism.

1919 - Treaty of Versailles and Political Instability

  • Treaty of Versailles imposes harsh terms: loss of territory, war guilt clause, and reparations.
  • Spartacist Uprising (January): communist revolt crushed by the Freikorps.
  • Weimar Constitution adopted (August): Germany becomes a democratic republic.

1920 - Hitler changed party’s name from DAP to NSDAP (Nazi)

  • Hitler became leader of DAP, former leader Drexler resigned
  • ==key methods==:
    • Powerful Speech
    • Gamble and Political Manoeuvre

1920s - Hitler established SA

1921 - Germany Struggles to Pay Reparations

1923 - Year of Crisis

  • French and Belgian troops occupy the Ruhr (January) after Germany defaults on payments.
  • Passive resistance leads to hyperinflation; the mark collapses.
  • Hitler and the Nazi Party attempt Beer Hall Putsch (November) in Munich; fails, Hitler imprisoned.

1924 - Recovery and Dawes Plan

  • Dawes Plan3 restructures reparations and stabilizes the economy.
  • Rentenmark4 introduced to curb inflation.
  • Hitler writes Mein Kampf in prison/released from prison.
  • Nazi turned to Legal Means to gain more support.
  • ==Party Core Ideology/Propaganda Methods==
    • Nationalism/anti-Semitism/Social Darwinism+Racism => Negative Cohesion + National Socialism
    • Aryan race superiority
    • Organization targeting specific population (Hitler Youth; the Nazi Teachers’ Association; Union of Nazi Lawyers; the Order of German Women)
    • Symbols of Swastika and Nazi salute
    • Criticism of Weimar Republic & Treaty of Versailles
    • Uniform

1925 - Political Stabilization

  • Hindenburg elected President, symbolizing old military influence.
  • Hitler created SS

1926 - Germany Joins the League of Nations

  • Marked as a return to international diplomacy and partial recovery.

1928 - Economic Boom and Political Calm

  • Industrial production recovers to pre-war levels.
  • Support for radical parties lessens.

1929 - Great Depression Begins

  • Wall Street Crash leads to withdrawal of American loans under the Dawes Plan.
  • German unemployment, poverty, inflation surge.

1930 - Political Polarization

  • Collapse of the Grand Coalition5.
  • Nazi Party gains 18.3% in elections, becoming the second-largest party.
  • ==key methods==:
    • Promised job/National Pride/Strong Leadership
    • Radio/Film/Mass rallies
    • Expansion of SA to create fear and protect party

1931 - Economic Collapse Deepens

  • Banking crisis hits Germany.
  • Unemployment surges; radical parties gain more support.

1932 - president elections (Hitler nearly won against Hindenburg, but gained great exposure)

1933 - Jan. Hitler named Chancellor by Hindenburg - Feb. Hitler exploited Reichstag Fire Decree - Mar. Enabling Act passed, Hitler acquired dictatorial power: - Systematic persecution of Jews and other groups - Dismantle of democratic system

![[_resources/Rise of Nazi.png]]

Economic hardship and Political Unrest provided fertile ground for rise of Nazi; Hitler’s personal charisma was decisive to enable Nazi to stand out from other parties, while other parties’ weakness(internal dispute/limited support gained) also contributed to it; Vulnerabilities in Weimar Constitution enabled Hitler to actually come to power and enable his further expansion from a party leader to dictatorship. Beer Hall Putsch in 1923 marked a significant turning point, where Hitler shifted Nazi’s strategy from violence to constitutional means, foreshadowing his acts to gain more votes and his future appointment as Chancellor in 1933.

Footnotes

  1. 退位↩︎

  2. cease fire↩︎

  3. The Dawes Plan temporarily resolved the issue of the reparations that Germany owed to the Allies of World War I↩︎

  4. a currency issued on 15 November 1923 to stop the hyperinflation of 1922 and 1923 in Weimar Germany↩︎

  5. an arrangement in a multi-party parliamentary system in which the two largest political parties of opposing political ideologies unite in a coalition government.↩︎