ADOLF HITLER - The Rise and Fall a Fascist Leader

SA

'Storm Detachment was the Nazi Party's original paramilitary wing

Who did Hitler appointed as a regional party leader. Why

Goebbels. He did that to regain complete control of the Nazi party and established system the Fuhrerprinzip (a party under one leader).

Whilst in prison. How did Hitler use his time productively

He produced his book 'Mein Kampf' (My Struggle)

The swastika was an ancient symbol associated with the ___________. It is commonly used in _____________

sun; Buddhist shrines

By the time Hitler left hospital with his eyesight restored he had convinced himself that .......

that the Jews had been responsible for Germany's defeat. He believed that Germany would never have surrendered normally and that the nation had been "stabbed in the back" by the Jews.

Totalitarian State

A state under the control of a dictatorial government

Goose - step

A style of marching in which the knees aren't bent and the feet are lifted high

Hitler develops hatred for the Jews starting from when?

About 1908 - that he developed a hatred of the Jews. By 1910, his mind had become warped and his hatred of the Jews- known as Anti-semitism - had become set

When and where was Adolf Hitler born ?

Born April 20, 1889 in a small Austrian town called Braunau near the German border

1923 Munich Beer Hall Putsch

By 1923, Hitler believed that his party was strong enough to take over Munich and then march to Berlin in Power. He believed this because of: - Growth in support for NSDAP - Weakness of the Weimar Republic (poor economy and blamed for signing the TOV) - Hyperinflation

1923

By 1923, the NSDAP had grown in support, particularly in Munich - the capital of Bavaria

Reichstag

German word for parliament

Lebensraum

'Living Space', territories considered appropriate for German annexation

By the late 1920s, the German economy declined in the following ways:

- Crop prices for farmers dropped - Loans were withdrawn from Germany - Many Factories closed - Workers lost their jobs - Inflation rose - People lost fortunes on the stock market

How did this Stock market crash affect the German economy?

- Hyperinflation - Factories closed down because there was no money - Workers lost their Jobs

How did Hitler come to power in 1933

- In November 1932 elections the Nazis again failed to get a majority of seats in the Reichstag. Their share of the vote fell- from 230 seats to only 196. Hitler contemplated suicide. But then he was rescued by Hindenburg - Franz von Paper was chancellor, but he could not get enough support in the Reichstag. Hindenburg and Von paper were having to govern by emergency decree under Article 48 of the Constitution. They offered Hitler the post of vice-chancellor if he promised to support them. - Hitler refused - he demanded to be made chancellor. So von Papen and Hindenburg took a risk. On 30 January 1933 Hindenburg made Hitler Chancellor. He thought he could control Hitler - how wrong he was. - In the end, Hitler did not Take power at all - he was given it

Hitler aimed to grow the party by making sure most types of people felt included:

- SS were established in 1926 - an elite group within the SA - Hitler youth and the Student's League were created to instill Nazi beliefs - National Socialist Women's League gave women a role in a male dominated party

Who were the SA?

- Sturmabteiling (Storm troopers) also known as the 'Brown Shirts' led by Ernst Rohm - The SA wore grey jackets, brown shirts, swastika armbands, ski-caps, knee-breeches, thick woolen socks and combat boots. - The SA were instructed to disrupt the meetings of political opponents and to protect Hitler from revenge attacks.

Untermensch

A person considered racially or socially inferior

When did Hindenburg die

2 August 1934

How many medals did Hitler earn for his bravery?

6

Who was the German President at the time?

87-year-old president named Paul von Hindenburg.

Swastika

A cross with arms of equal length all bent halfway at 90 degrees adopted by Nazi Party

Concordat

A formal agreement between two parties, especially between a church and a state.

Strong-arm salute

A gesture where the arm is fully extended meaning 'hail leader'

Fuhrer

A leader, especially one exercising the powers of a tyrant

SS

A major parmilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and Nazi Party.

Aryan

A member of an alleged master race with no fixed definition, involving people of German descent.

After WW1 what was hitler's job?

Adolf Hitler remained in the Germany Army after WW1. Hitler's job was to visit as many political organisations as possible to check out whether they were right wing, centre politics or left wing. In particular, in the aftermath of the Russian Revolution, both the government and army wanted to know who the socialists or communists were.

Hitler joins German Workers Party. Why?

After the visit, Hitler joined the party as it seemed to represent all that he believed in. He quickly became the party's propaganda officer.

Alois death and his decision to leave school

Alois died when Hitler was thirteen and so there was no strong influence to keep him at school when he was older. After, doing very badly in his exams, Hitler left school at the age of fifteen. His mother, as always, supported her son's actions even though Hitler left school without any qualifications

Explain in detail, what the Night of Long Knives was about.

Although the Enabling Act gave Hitler a great deal of power, he still felt threatened by members in the SA, the army and the party. Members of the army did not like the growing popularity of the SA. Hitler promised that he would dissolve the SA and incorporate them into the army if key leaders of the SA were arrested. On the night of June 29th - June 30th 1934, units of the SS arrested the leaders of the SA and other political opponents. Seventy-seven men were executed on charges of treason though historians tend to think thefigure is higher. The SA was placed under the command of the army. Hitler received an oath of allegiance fromall those who served in the army. Röhm was shot. Others were bludgeoned to death. From that time on the SS became a feared force in Nazi Germany lead by Heinrich Himmler.

Mein Kampf

An autobiographical manifesto by Nazi party leader Adolf Hitler

Putsch

An illegal effort to forcibly overthrow the current government

List some of the topics included in Hitler's book

Anti-semitism; Germans as the superior (Aryan) race; Fuhrer principal; dislike of Communism and Democracy and need to conquer Russia; criticism of the Treaty of Versallies

Authoritarian

Exhibiting and demanding strict obedience to authority

Hitler refounded the party in Munich

February 27 1925. After he promised to function within the republican system (follow the rules), the ban on the Nazis was removed.

Hitler was awarded the _________ ___________for his bravery during WWI.

He was awarded Germany's highest award for bravery - the Iron Cross. He called the day he was given the medal, "the greatest day of my life".

Describe Adolf Hitler's Parents

His father - Alois -was fifty-one when Hitler was born. He was short tempered, strict and brutal. Hitler's mother - Klara - was the opposite of Alois - very caring and loving and she frequently took Hitler's side when his father's poor temper got the better of him. She doted on her son and for the rest of his life, Hitler carried a photo of his mother with him wherever he went.

Hitler's Job in the Education Department of the army and his discovery of his talent

Hitler also worked within the Education Department of the army and his task here was to lecture soldiers on the dangers of communism. Senior officers were impressed with Hitler's skill as a speaker. It was at this time that Hitler, who was a loner, discovered his greatest talent - public speaking. The gas attack Hitler had suffered had affected had affected his vocal chords and he spoke in a manner that few had heard before. Many who later heard Hitler speak at public rallies claimed that his voice had hypnotic qualities to it.

How did Hitler manipulate the event of the Reichstag Fire to his advantage?

Hitler convinced Hindenburg that the fire was the result of a Communist plot. Hindenburg signed a decree for the Order of the Protection of People and State. This allowed Hitler to arrest thousand of Communists and to ban all communists publications. The Communist party was outlawed and not allowed to take part in the March 1933 elections.

What was dangerous game Hitler was playing?

Hitler had made it clear that he would not be able to work with the Reichstag that had been elected in the November 1932 .While the Nazi Party was the largest single party in it, this did not give Hitler a working majority as the two largest parties after the Nazis were both on the left- the Social Democrat Party and the Communists. New Elections for the Reichstag had been called for March 5th 1933. The danger for Hitler was that he might not get as much support in the new election as in the previous one. He was playing a dangerous political game that could have ended his political career.

Hitler's dream and his mother's death

Hitler had never given up his dream of being an artist and after leaving school he left for Vienna to pursue his dream. However, his life was shattered when, aged 18, his mother died of cancer. In Vienna, the Vienna Academy of Art, rejected his application as "he had no School Leaving Certificate". His drawings which he presented as evidence of his ability, were rejected as they had too few people in them. The examining board did not just want a landscape artist.

The Beer Hall Putsch and Hitler's arrest proved an important turning point. How?

Hitler saw clearly the need for a change of tactics. The Nazis could not achieve power by force, but would have to work within legal means. They would have to gain support and win the elections.

What was Hitler's reaction to the return to stability in Germany

Hitler was not dismayed by the return to stability (economically and Politically) in Germany. He did not believe it would last and worked to establish a highly structured party that could compete in elections throughout Germany and attach new recruits when another time of troubles arose.

Describe Adolf Hitler at school and Education

Hitler was not popular at school and he made few friends. He was lazy and he rarely excelled at school work. Hitler was able but he simply did not get down to hard work and at the age of eleven, he lost his position in the top class of his school - much to the horror of his father.

1921

In 1921, Hitler became the leader of the NSDAP, replacing Anton Drexler.

In February of 1914 Adolf signed up for ____________. He was denied because?

In February 1914, in an attempt to escape his misery, Hitler tried to join the Austrian Army but he failed his medical . Years of poor food and sleeping rough had taken their toll on someone who as a PE student had been "excellent" at gymnastics. His medical report stated that he was too weak to actually carry weapons.

In October 1918, what happened to hitler

In October 1918, just one month before the end of the war, Hitler was blinded by a gas attack at Ypres. While he was recovering in hospital, Germany surrendered. Hitler was devastated

Explain the stock-market crash of 1929.

In October 1929, the American Stock Market crashed. Shares and other investments in the US fell in value by very large amounts, and this was followed by depression. Germany had borrowed money from the USA in what was known as the 1924 Dawes Plan. This was to ease reparations payments under the Treaty of Versallies. When the US economy crashed, these loans were withdrawn.

September 1919, What party did Hitler visit. Explain

In September 1919, Hitler visited, as a V-Man, a meeting of the German Workers' Party. The party name indicated that it had socialist leanings with its "workers" tag. It was, in fact, an extreme anti-Semitic, anti-communist, right wing nationalist party led by Anton Drexler. At Hitler's visit it only had 40 members.

In the early 1920

In early 1920, the party changed its name to the Nationalist Socialist German Worker's Party (NSDAP) which quickly got corrupted to 'Nazi' by both enemies and supporters alike. Hitler wrote out the party beliefs in the so called 25 Point Party Programme. This party would have been laughable in normal circumstances but Germnay was not in normal circumstances. The NSDAP played on the Germans hatred of the Treaty of Versallies (which it said it would ignore; the belief that Germany had been stabbed in the back. Even in its early days, the NSDAP tuned in to many people's emotions. However, in 1920, the party was just one of many right wing parties that seemed to exist in Germany at this time. Besides changing the party name, the red flag with the SWASTIKA was adopted as the party symbol.

Propaganda

Misleading information aimed at influencing the opinions or behavior of people

NSDAP

National Socialist German Workers' Party

Explain the event of the Munich Beer Hall Putsch in Detail

On 8 November 1923, von Kahr (right wing politician) held a meeting in a Bavarian beer hall when Hitler, backed by the SA, marched into the hall and declared a revolution. For a number of reasons, Hitler's putsch failed: he was overconfident; there was not enough planning and organization at the time; the Bavarian Police and von Kahr (right wing politician) opposed the NSDAP and there were clashes between them in the streets, during which time Hitler was wounded.

When was Hitler released from prison

On December 20, 1924 (only nine months into his sentence) Hitler was released from the prison

How was the German Parliament (Reichstag) structured?

President - elected every 7 years Chancellor - appointed by the president - usually the leader of the most popular party Reichstag/Parliament - parties represented based on proportion of votes)

Hitler combined the roles of ________________________ and _______________________________. He was now the _______________________ of Germany

President ; Chancellor; Furher

What happened in 1929

Stock market crashed

Incarceration

The act of confining , or the state of being confided (imprisonment).

Fatherland

The native country of a person

Gestapo

The official secret police of Nazi Germany

Eugnenices

The study of how to organize reproduction within a human population to increase the occurrence of heritable characteristics regarded as desirable

What also added Hitler's anger during the period of his life

The terms of the treaty of Versailles

Censorship

The use of state or group power to control certain media by prohibiting certain informator

How was the Stock mark an advantage for the Nazi

This was the exactly the kind of the crisis that the Nazis had been waiting for. As times became tough, people blamed the Weimar Government. Hitler used propaganda to gain support.

Hitler with any work to support himself

Without work and without any means to support himself, Hitler, short of money lived in a doss house with tramps. he spent his time painting post cards which he hoped to sell and clearing pathways of snow.

In August of 1914...

World War One was declared. Hitler crossed over the border to Germany where he had a very brief and not too searching medical which declared that he was fit to be in the German Army.

Was Hitler a brave soldier? Describe reason(s).

Yes, He was a brave soldier. He was a regimental runner. This was a dangerous job as it exposed Hitler to lot of enemy fire. His task was to carry messages to officers behind the front lines, and then return to the front line with orders.

Was Hitler's bravery during WW1 recognised?

Yes. He was recognised by his officers.

The putsch was an _________________ and Hitler was arrested, put on trial and sentenced to __________________ years in _______________ Prison. During trials he spoke passionately about the wrongs of the ____________________________________.

act of treason; 5; Landsberg;Treaty of Versallies

Lebensborn

an SS-initiated, state-supported, registered association in Nazi Germany with the goal of raising the birth rate of "Aryan" children

Without Communism opposition , Hitler was able.....

gained a majority in the Reichstag and was able to pass the Enabling Act on 23rd March 1933

Enabling Act

gave Hitler the power to pass laws independently of the Reichstag for a period of 4 years. This effectively made him Dictator of Germany.

The Reichstag Fire

he Reichstag fire took place on February 27th 1933. The Reichstag building was where Germany's parliament sat and the fire that destroyed it has to be seen as one of the defining moments in the early days of Nazi Germany. The Reichstag was the heart of German politics. Debates, political struggles, political scheming etc. all took place in the Reichstag. It was no different from many national government buildings in Europe and its destruction had great symbolic importance for many. On the night of February 27th, Hitler and Goebbels were having dinner at Goebbels' Berlin home. Just after 21.00, Goebbels received a phone call from Dr.Hansfstaengl that the Reichstag building was on fire. Goebbels later claimed that he felt the news was so fanciful that he did not inform Hitler even though he was in the same house. It was only when he received another phone call that confirmed the news, that Goebbels informed Hitler. They immediately left for the Reichstag where they met Goering. All three declared that the fire was the work of the Communists and Socialists and the SA was put on alert to maintain order if and when the communist insurrection started. The SA did what was required of it and rounded up as many communists as they could find - nearly 4000 people. As with nearly all that they did, the Nazis tried to put a legal gloss over what was being done. The public was told that the communists had burned down the seat of government in Germany and that the police and the SA were doing all that they could to save the nation from unrest and catastrophe.The Nazis also captured the alleged perpetrator of thecrime - a Dutch communist called Marius van der Lubbe. Van der Lubbe was found guilty and executed in January 1934

Fuhrerprinzip

leader principle prescribed the fundamental basis of political authority in government structure

What are the problems Hitler faced after being released from prison

the Nazi party was in state of disorder; the NSDAP had been officially banned across Germany; the German economy was recovering as internationally trade improved (the USA had loaned Germany money through the Dawes Plan). For much of the 1920s Hitler retreated to his home in the Bavarian mountains (Berghof).

What did Hitler speak about to the returning soldiers

the betrayal of the soldiers by politicians; the stab-in- the back (of the soldiers) by the Jews; the failure of democratic politics and the disaster communism would be for Germany.