Unit 3 - The State and the People: Change and Continuity
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History essay on Nazi consolidation of power in Germany 1934.
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Unit 3 - The State and the People: Change and Continuity
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History essay on Nazi consolidation of power in Germany 1934. It answers the question:
To what extent could the Nazi takeover of power in Germany to August 1934 be described as legal?
Unit 3 - The State and the People: Change and Continuity
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NAZI GERMANY HISTORY CLASS ESSAY: NAZI CONSOLIDATION OF POWER 1934
Gloucestershire College
A-level history
Source of the essay: Whitfield, R. & Waller, S. (2015). Oxford AQA History for A Level: Democracy
and Nazism: Germany 1918-1945 (Oxford A Level History for AQA). OUP Oxford.
To what extent could the Nazi takeover of power in Germany to August 1934 be
described as legal?
’Never forget that everything Hitler did in Germany was legal.’ Those are the
words of the American minister and leader of the Civil Rights Movement Martin
Luther King Jr. However, was everything legal that Hitler did in order to
consolidate power? That is the topic that will be discussed in this essay.
Looking back at the history of how the Nazis seized the power in Germany, it is
shown that many of Hitler’s and his party’s actions were, in fact, allowed or legal.
Starting with the Reichstag Election in July 1932 and November 1932. In July the
NSDAP Party gained 37.3 % of the vote. Unfortunately for them, in the November
election, their vote declined and they got 33.1 % of the vote. The main reasons for
the Nazi success in this period were, firstly, the Great Depression which started to
take over Germany in 1929. At least 6 million people were unemployed in 1933
and lived in poverty. That was when people started to oppose democracy even
more. As a result, the right-wing parties, such as KPD and NSDAP, gained
popularity. Secondly, Nazi Party had strong propaganda. They appealed to many
working-class people which is essential as the majority of the population were
lower-classes. They promised to solve the social problems and to provide ’work
and bread’ to people. Hitler, himself, had a strong character and exquisite orator
skills. In addition, he had Joseph Goebbels, the minister of propaganda, in his
party. These election results made the Nazi Party the largest party in the
Reichstag. As a consequence, Hitler as the leader of the Party, could be considered
for the Chancellorship.
Another pro argument is the emergency decree or the Decree of the Protection
of Nation and the State and the Enabling Act. The Emergency decree was passed
using Article 48 by Hindenburg. It had the function of suspending important civil
rights and extending police powers at the same time. This decree was used to
assault Communists and it was a step forward to Hitler in achieving the passage of
the Enabling Act. This act allowed Hitler to pass laws without the consent of the
Reichstag or without consultation with Hindenburg. It was gained in a legal way –
by gaining 2/3 of votes with only SPD voting against it. That was the beginning of
the Gleichschaltung process. It was the final step in legalising the Nazi
Dictatorship.
Banning the formation of new parties was the next step in the consolidation of
power, which was, in fact legal. KPD was already banned in March 1933 using the
Enabling Act. Later the SPD was banned as well. A law against the Formation of
New Parties was passed. That led to Germany being a one-party state and closer
to a full Nazi Dictatorship.
One factor, which was out of Nazi control was Hindenburg’s death in 1934. A law,
which concerned the Head of the State of the German Reich gave Hitler the power
to merge both president’s and chancellor’s posts. The army took an oath of loyalty
to him. Hitler became a non-negotiable leader or Führer of his country and the
takeover of Germany was achieved.
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