The road to Nazi dictatorship opens...

A good but long article on the elections in Germany from the March 13th, 1934 Time magazine that put the Nazis in the best power position they ever experienced when they garnered 288 total seats (44.17%) 196 (33.67%) +92 seats.

Exulted Chancellor Hitler: "The National revolution is on its way and will continue!"

Later on in the article, Chief Government Press Officer Walter Funk declares; "You must realize, Heine Herren, that what has happened in Germany is no ordinary change. A new era has begun! Parliamentary and Democratic times are past."


See:

GERMANY: National Revolution! - TIME

The article goes into detail on which Constitutional rights of the German citizenry were suspended by President von Hindenburg as well. The moment in time wherein the German government and people were put under the Nazi thumb, and sent down the road to ruin.

Shortly thereafter Franklin Roosevelt would be sworn in as America's new President. This marked (I believe) the last time the inaguration was in March.

 

Thanks OP, I had it in my head it was the last, not the first week of March for some reason. Dooooh!

 

It's interesting how Hitler came to power.

In the May 1924 elections [after Hitlers abortive Coup attempt] the Nazi's voted 6.5% of the vote & picked up 32 seats in the Reichstag, by Dec. '24, the vote was down to 3.0% & 14 seats & in May '28 Hitler was fading fast with just 2.6% & 12 seats.
If that trend continued Hitler could have disappeared from the scene, but as wiki says he was saved by the Wall st. crash & the great depression which followed. Germany's Wiemar Republic was hit hard by the depression, as American loans to help rebuild the German economy now stopped. Unemployment soared, especially in larger cities, and the political system veered toward extremism.

The unemployment rate reached nearly 30% in 1932. Repayment of the war reparations due by Germany were suspended in 1932 following the Lausanne Conference of 1932. By that time Germany had repaid 1/8th of the reparations.

This gave the Nazis their opportunity, and Hitler's message, blaming the crisis on the Jewish financiers and the Bolsheviks resonated with wide sections of the electorate. At the September 1930 Reichstag elections the Nazis won 18.3% of the vote and became the second-largest party in the Reichstag & Hitler came to power in January 1933.

It's more then possible that the Nazi Party might never have come to power had it not been for the Great Depression and its effects on Germany.

 

Hi;
Hitler also used the fear of Bolshevism as a rallying cry; Hitler: profile of a dictator - Google Books
"The Jewish Bolshevik Conspiracy" is still a myth that has traction in some corners. So could have Hitler seized power without the Stalinist dictatorship to the East? Doubtfull.... In a strange way the two dictators were linked and the societies they formed were eerily similiar.
JeffinMNUSA

 

Good summary, Anzac. I'd add that the adverse effect of the Depression was made worse with the huge reparations that Germany was required to pay under the Versailles Treaty. This was one of the hooks Hitler used to snare the German electorate and discredit the government.

 

The HUGE reparations of the Versailles treaty were of little import in reality. First off they were smaller than the reparations required by the Germans after the Franco-Prussian War (if time and damage are considered), and the French paid them on time and in full in gold Francs. Eventhough the entire war was fought on French territory and the Germans lost nothing to war damage.

This was one of the reasons the French were adamant in reparation payments being made. Next, the Germans had paid less than 1/8 of the total, the reparations had been altered to a sliding scale set on GDP, and then put on "moritorium" BEFORE Hitler came to power. He could "pound his chest" and claim he stood up to the "Jewish Finance conspiracy", but in reality that was a done deal in 1930 with the Young Plan.

But notice they never voted him into power, they voted for the party he was the head of, but never for him to any extent. He only won a single seat by vote, as the head of the party itself. He won that by nearly unanimous ballots, the only man who voted against him was a librarian who mysteriously "disappeared" the following day, and his body was found in an alley three or four days later. A portent of "things to come"?

 

Brndirt1, thanks for the explanation. I based my post from what I remember from reading the Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. I may have have recalled incorrectly so I think it's time for me to review my copy of that book.

 

That isn't too bad a memeory from the book, it is just a bit "off" is all. Not an untruth exactly, but sort of Shirer's interpretation of events.

Books put out later, with different sets of information cast a slightly different shadow. Not that Shirer was "wrong", just using the more popular interpretation of events of the time. His Berlin Diary is also a bit "slanted", but not maliciously or anything, just a subjective view rather than an objective one.

The Treaty of Versailles was rather mild compared to the conditions and reparations demanded of the French after the Franco-Prussian War. The French territory was the only territory occupied, the French infrasturcture was the only damaged, and NO fighting took place on "German" soil. Yet the French paid "reparations" to Germany in gold, and on time, and in full with a much smaller economy.

German reparations were initially set at $33 billion by the Treaty of Versailles. But Germany paid only about $4.5 billion in the entire period between 1918 and 1932. Slightly less than what France paid after the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71. And the French paid in gold, on time and in full (Paris 1919: Six Months That Changed the World", Margaret McMillan)

Stephen Schuker, a University of Virginia historian and author of "American 'Reparations' to Germany, 1919- 1933", believes the Germans, by using the proceeds of American loans (Dawes Plan) to pay off their debts in Europe, ultimately paid no reparations at all.

And when the Germans defaulted in the early thirties as a result of the "depression" (Schuker argues), American bankers had effectively paid reparations to Germany. According to Schuker's calculations, the total net transfer from the United States to Germany in the period 1919-1931, adjusted for inflation, "amounted to almost four times the total assistance that the United States furnished West Germany under the Marshall Plan from 1948 to 1952." (emphasis mine)

That Franco-Prussian war reparations incident had a great deal of impact on why the French demanded reparations from Germany post WW1. But that doesn't really matter, the Germans never paid but a small percentage of it back before they defaulted, and the Lucerne Group (with prompting from the American banker named Young) granted them a moratorium on ALL payments until the global economy recovered after the Great Depression started. The war started before the Great Depression ever eased.

 

Hello brindirt1,

I have come across this statement of yours before - please allow me to set some things straight.

1. France did not pay 5 billion $, but 5 billion Francs in Gold = 4 billion Goldmark - with a more or less intact economy
BTW, they paid it within 2 1/2 years - which promted Bismarck to say - damn, I should have asked for more
2. France "only" lost about 3% of its territory
Germany had lost almost 15% of its territory, 10% of it's population, almost 30% of its coal mines, a huge loss in its agricultural production, plus all colonies - and therefore billions of previous investment. It's economy was in total shambles.
3. Germany had to pay 33 billion $,???

Now what did Germany really have to pay:

The Versailles treaty did not state any sum in itsself - but the outlook towards preparations

After Germany had surrendered the first demand was presented to pay initally as a "first" payment 20 billion in Goldmark.
In 1920 in Boulogne, Germany was informed that it had to pay 269 billions in Goldmark (94,000 tonnes of Gold = today about 2 trillion US$), within 42 years. France was to get 52%. Germany in 1921 was asked additionally to pay 14% of its total export revenue.
Germany refused and cities in the Ruhr were occupied.

In May 1921 Goerge Lloyd asked for a reduced to 132 billion Goldmark (47,000 tonnes of Gold)= today about 1 trillion US$ in 66 years, plus 26% of its export revenue =(33billion$????)

Due to inflation and payment stallments, the French occupied the Ruhr in 1923.
In 1929 the Young plan saw a payment of 112 billion Goldmark = about 800 billion US$. within 59 years.

In the end Germany paid about 39 billion Goldmark = 250 billion US$
According to German figures that include the loss of territory, economics, colonies, etc,etc.. Germany had payed/lost a total of about 100 billion Goldmark = 700 billion US$

4. In 1872 France's economy certainly wasn't "much" smaller including all their colonies then that of Germany.
Germany's rise in economy was after 1872 and can be indeed attributed to the French payment.
5. France on their own picked up the war - nothing to debate about - I am not refering to the Bismarck telegram but to the whole runup before.
BTW Napoleon (Bonaparte) had to pay 700 million Francs
6. If the Kaiser caused WWI on his own is very debatable.
7. France was not forced to dismantle their entire army to 100,000 and to curbed on their Fleet or to reduce and hand over their merchant fleet.

Therefore the statement that: "The Treaty of Versailles was rather mild compared to the conditions and reparations demanded of the French after the Franco-Prussian War" certainly doesn't stand up at all.

BTW, Germany (Young plan and foreign credit lines - revived in 1953 - London-foreign-dept-resolution) has payed 10 billion US$, and is paying presently about 8 million US$ per year since 1990 with the last rate in 2020.

Regards
Kruska

Oh and BTW as a side argument, Hitlers and all the other national and socialist movements did not really stirr around in regards to the money issue - (That is more of a Neo-Nazi twist in regards to distorted views about Hitler) it was the inclusion of the Versailles treaty that Germany was given the single fault of having caused WWI - thus justifying the reperations and everything else. -the single fault issue - was the striking argument used by Hitler to its fullest extend - since it's rejectment was shared by all Germans. Hitler now just had to plug the ripe apple from the tree.

 

Kruska, brndirt1, Opanapointer, thanks for sharing what you know of the subject. I think it's time to expand my reading and that means finding a good book on the issue. Any recommendations?

 

These are the ones that jump to my mind, The Rise and Fall of The Third Reich by William Shirer is a good starting place if you haven’t read it. Also Allan Bullock’s; Hitler. A Study In Tyranny fills in some blanks left in Shirer.

Charles Flood’s; Hitler-The Path to Power is a bit tedious at times, but informative. Hitler’s younger life is well represented in August Kubizek’s; The Young Hitler I Knew.

Those are all I remember having in my storage shed (for room in my apartment) at the moment, and which I have used most often and have taken passages from and put on "file" in digital form for use in the referencing of posts.

 

Hello Falcon Jun,

sorry but my sources are primarily German and written in German in regards to this issue - however I believe that Wiki should have this information as well.

Regards
Kruska

 

Thanks for the tips, guys. As I've said, I have read The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich and I also have a copy of the book's black and white movie version. I intend to review these before setting out to find the books you recommended.
And Kruska, I understand what you mean. Still, I don't think reading Deutsch would be a problem. I can still read and understand your language a bit though I am badly out of practice speaking it. The last time I regularly spoke German was 25 years ago in college. Back then, my teacher invited German and Swiss nationals to our class so we could practice what we had learned.

 

Just a general question: does this section allow discussions in the Pacific just before World War II? It seems to me since Poland is mentioned in the title of the section, it implies that this only allows discussions about Europe post WWI.
Going back to the subject of this thread: Germany had a strong Communist Party presence that competed with Nazi Party before Hitler rose to power. From what I have read, the Communist Party had a strong following because of fiscal policies of the German Weimar Republic. I've read that the fiscal policy of the government before Hitler's rise to power could've worked if it was given enough time. Unfortunately, given the desperation of the German public, it looked like patience were wearing thin and those who advocated quick fixes took advantage of the situation. And that's where Hitler and his ilk came in.

 

I am not enthousiast on Shirer :his book is outdated,there is a lot of BS in it and it is written by a journalist,not by an historian .

 

I don't disagree, I feel it is a starting place only. And it is written by a journalist, and while not a "gospel" remains easier to read even for its length than other works. I was a fan when I first read it while I was in Jr. High way back when, but better works have come out since then. I forgot to include the works of HughTrevor-Roper in my list, but that was because I was suffering a brain cramp at the moment.

 

Hello Falcon Jun,

there you go - have fun

Maybe you could try Nr. 1 first - it is easier to read and is based on historical documents and newspaper accounts and commentatition by scholars for Schoolstudys of History in Germany.

1)PSM-Datenbank zur Unterrichtsvorbereitung im Fach Geschichte (PSM-Übersicht:20. Jahrh., Deutschland, Weimar)
Go for Weimarer Republik - and click on P

2)http://www.versailler-vertrag.de/vv-i.htm

3)Eberhard Kolb, Der Frieden von Versailles, München 2005.
Verlag C.H. Beck, München 2005, ISBN 3-406-50875-8

4)Titel The Treaty of Versailles: a reassessment after 75 years, Band 1919Band 20 von Publications of the German Historical InstituteThe Treaty of Versailles: A Reassessment After 75 Years, Manfred Franz BoemekePublications of the German Historical Institute, Washington, D.C
Autoren Manfred Franz Boemeke, Manfred F. Boemeke, Gerald D. Feldman, Elisabeth Gläser
Herausgeber Manfred F. Boemeke, Gerald D. Feldman, Elisabeth Gläser
Ausgabe illustriert
Verlag Cambridge University Press, 1998
ISBN 0521621321, 9780521621328
Länge 674 Seiten

The below is a very interesting read IMHO - out of viewpoint from those day's by a certainly nationalistic - but not a Nazi minded person - To my interpretation it reflects the mindset of those times perfectly.

Titel Zwischen Kaiser und "Führer": Generalfeldmarschall August von Mackensen : eine politische Biographie
Autor Theo Schwarzmüller
Ausgabe 3
Verlag Schöningh, 1997
ISBN 3506782843, 9783506782847
Länge 463 Seiten

Regards
kruska