How Did Hitler Use Propaganda
The Nazi party won 33 percent of the vote in the 1932 German elections, more than any other party. In January of that year Hitler was appointed chancellor, the head of the German government, and many Germans believed he could save them from the economic situation they were in. The Nazis ruled Germany from 1933 to 1939 and their position was relatively unchallenged. It is a common argument among historians as to how the Nazis managed to maintain power over this period of time. Successful foreign policy was an important factor involved in the Nazis consolidation of power which involved Hitlers attempts to strengthen Germany and undermine the treaty of Versailles. Economic policies were also an important factor as the Nazis tried to make Germany
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self-sufficient, producing all the goods it needed within Germany. Social Policies also played an important role in the Nazis consolidation of power in which the Nazis persecuted Jews and other minority groups. Nazi propaganda through the use of posters and radio adverts also played an important role. The Nazis creation of fear and intimidation within Germany also played an important role as many people were afraid to disagree with them. This essay will look at each of these factors in arguing that successful foreign policy was only important to a small extent as fear and intimidation was the most important factor.
Successful foreign policy was an important factor in the Nazis maintaining power between 1933 and 1939. The Treaty of Versailles was set up in 1919 in order to maintain peace after the war. This treaty punished and restricted Germany as they had to pay £6,600 million in reparations as well as having their army restricted to no more than 100,000 men. The people of Germany saw the Treaty of Versailles as “a vindictive Allied plot to humiliate Germany” (Jim McGonigle, Germany 1815-1939, 2006) and Hitler made clear his strong views against the treaty. This was important in the Nazis maintenance of power as it showed the German people that Hitler was committed to overturning the strict conditions and strengthening Germany. Another term of the Treaty of Versailles was that Germany was forbidden form keeping military forces within 50 kilometres of the Rhineland. Hitler greatly resented this term as it made Germany vulnerable to invasion and, in 1936, he boldly marched 22,000 German troops into the Rhineland. This was important in the Nazis consolidation of power as it showed that Hitler and the Nazis were determined to directly contravene the much hated Treaty of Versailles. However, it is difficult to assess the extent to which these policies pleased the German people as their were no free elections after 1933. Upon evaluation, successful foreign policy was only the most important reason the Nazis maintained power to a small extent as it did not play as big a part in the German peoples lives as the economic depression that Germany was in from 1929 making economic policies a more important factor.
Economic policies were another important factor in the Nazis consolidation of power between 1933 and and 1939. In 1935, Hitler introduced military conscription. This allowed the Germany army to train around 300,000 conscripts a year. During the upgrading of the German military, thousands of jobs were also created in the iron, steel, aviation and shipbuilding industries. This was important as it greatly reduced unemployment figures across Germany gaining the Nazi party support. Autarky is when a country provides all the resources it need and is therefore not dependant on imports from other nations. The Nazis considered Autarky to be a crucial part of Germany's return to economic stability. They worked towards self-sufficiency and promised the German people that this would provide economic, political and military success. This was important in the Nazis maintenance of power as the German people were desperate to escape the economic depression and saw the Nazi policy of Autarky as the way forward. Historian Roderick Stackelberg believes that the Nazis stance on the economy was key to their support from the German people, stating: “From 1933 to 1936 the major priority was to overcome the adverse affects of the depression and to restore the economic stability that was crucial to the projection of national power.” (Roderick Stackelberg, The Routledge Companion to Nazi Germany, 2007)
Despite this however, the Nazis never did successfully achieve their aim of self-sufficiency within Germany making this factor less important in the Nazis consolidation of power. Upon evaluation, economic policies were not the most important factor in the Nazis maintenance of power between 1933 and 1939 as the fall in unemployment under the Nazis was more to do with the exclusion of certain groups, such as Jews, from official statistics making social policies a more important factor.
Social policies also played an important role in the Nazi consolidation of power. The Nazis took a number of measures to control the lives of the German people. In 1935, the Nazis introduced the 'Acts Hostile to the National Community' Law. This allowed the Nazi Party to legally persecute their political opponents. This was important in the Nazis consolidation of power as people were fearful of what would happen if they spoke against the beliefs of the Nazis. The Hitler Youth was set up to teach children of the views of the Nazi Party and to train them to become SA officers. By December 1936, membership of the Hitler Youth was virtually compulsory for all boys and girls older than the age of 10. This was important in the Nazis maintenance of power as it meant the future generations of Germany had been indoctrinated with Nazi beliefs with historian Ian Kershaw stating that this “was highly attractive and conveyed much of Nazism's dynamic appeal,” (Ian Kershaw, The 'Hitler Myth': Image and Reality in the Third Reich, 2001). Despite the success of the Hitler Youth, many children were quite aware that their education was being distorted and could see the strong bias in their lessons. Upon evaluation, Social policies was only important in the Nazis consolidation of power to a small extent as many children rebelled against the Nazi controls on them such as by listening to illegal jazz or swing music.
Nazi propaganda was another important reason as to why the Nazi maintained power from 1933 to 1939.
The Nazis used propaganda as a way of controlling the German people. Many families across Germany owned radios as they were very cheap to buy. These would be used to broadcast Nazi Party messages and public speeches. This was important in the Nazis consolidation of power as the radios would promote the positives that Hitler brought to Germany which helped him gain loyalty from the people. Any media such newspapers, radio, cinema and theatre that conveyed anti-Nazi ideas were censored and all books that did not agree with the Nazi point of view were all banned and often publicly burned. This was important in the Nazis maintenance of power as people did not get to see any negative opinions on the Nazi Party's views. Despite this however, it is believed that propaganda did not have much affect on the working class people of Germany with historian Tim Mason claiming, “ Nazi Propaganda was largely unsuccessful among the working class,” (Tim Mason, Nazism, Fascism and the Working Class, 1995). Upon evaluation, propaganda was only important in the Nazis consolidation of power to a small extent as many German people were quite aware they were being bombarded with Nazi Propaganda and intentionally avoided it such as by turning up to the cinema in order to avoid the propaganda
film.
Fear and intimidation was another important factor involved in the Nazis consolidation of power between 1933 and 1939. Concentration camps were set up by the Nazis, with the first opening in 1933, to imprison people who the Nazis deemed to be 'undesirable'. This included Jews, criminals, gypsies and those who opposed the views of the Nazi Party. This is important in the Nazis consolidation of power as people were afraid to disagree with the beliefs of the Nazis as they feared they may endure a similar fate to those placed in the concentration camps. The Schutzstaffel, more commonly known as the SS, was set up in April 1925 and acted as Hitler's private army. Hitler used them to eliminate any political opposition in the Reichstag such as communists and socialists. Historian Jeremy Noakes argues that the SS gave the Nazi party a huge amount of control over the German people, stating:
“...the SS controlled both the police and its own prison-camp system, an awesome power.” (Jeremy Noakes, Nazi Germany, 2008)
This was important in the Nazis maintenance of power as the lack of political opposition to the Nazis was the first step in Hitlers plan to achieve a one party state. However, even with a lack of opposition in the form of communists and socialists, Hitler still did not win a majority vote in the election of March 1933, achieving only 43.9 percent of the vote. Upon evaluation, the creation of fear and intimidation by the Nazi Party was the most important reason that they managed to maintain power between 1933 and 1939. This is because, by 1939, the German public began to become aware of the harsh conditions endured by the 21,000 people imprisoned in the concentration camps and so were furthermore afraid of the consequences of speaking out against the Nazis.
In conclusion, it is clear that the reasons as to how the Nazi Party managed to maintain power between 1933 and 1939 can be attributed to a number of factors. On one hand the successful foreign policy implemented by the Nazis, such as the strong opposition to the Treaty of Versailles, helped to maintain support from the public. Also, the attempt to create self-sufficiency within Germany showed the German people that the Nazis were committed to helping Germany escape the economic depression. Furthermore, social policies implemented by the Nazis, such as the mandatory attendance of the Hitler Youth, helped to brainwash the children of Germany with Nazi beliefs. Additionally, Nazi propaganda that was forced upon the German public helped to promote the positives that Hitler brought to Germany. On the other hand, the creation of fear and intimidation by the SS within Nazi Germany caused people to become afraid of opposing the views of the Nazi Party. Overall, successful foreign policy was only the most important reason the Nazis managed to maintain power to a small extent as the Nazis creation of fear and intimidation was a much more important reason.
self-sufficient, producing all the goods it needed within Germany. Social Policies also played an important role in the Nazis consolidation of power in which the Nazis persecuted Jews and other minority groups. Nazi propaganda through the use of posters and radio adverts also played an important role. The Nazis creation of fear and intimidation within Germany also played an important role as many people were afraid to disagree with them. This essay will look at each of these factors in arguing that successful foreign policy was only important to a small extent as fear and intimidation was the most important factor.
Successful foreign policy was an important factor in the Nazis maintaining power between 1933 and 1939. The Treaty of Versailles was set up in 1919 in order to maintain peace after the war. This treaty punished and restricted Germany as they had to pay £6,600 million in reparations as well as having their army restricted to no more than 100,000 men. The people of Germany saw the Treaty of Versailles as “a vindictive Allied plot to humiliate Germany” (Jim McGonigle, Germany 1815-1939, 2006) and Hitler made clear his strong views against the treaty. This was important in the Nazis maintenance of power as it showed the German people that Hitler was committed to overturning the strict conditions and strengthening Germany. Another term of the Treaty of Versailles was that Germany was forbidden form keeping military forces within 50 kilometres of the Rhineland. Hitler greatly resented this term as it made Germany vulnerable to invasion and, in 1936, he boldly marched 22,000 German troops into the Rhineland. This was important in the Nazis consolidation of power as it showed that Hitler and the Nazis were determined to directly contravene the much hated Treaty of Versailles. However, it is difficult to assess the extent to which these policies pleased the German people as their were no free elections after 1933. Upon evaluation, successful foreign policy was only the most important reason the Nazis maintained power to a small extent as it did not play as big a part in the German peoples lives as the economic depression that Germany was in from 1929 making economic policies a more important factor.
Economic policies were another important factor in the Nazis consolidation of power between 1933 and and 1939. In 1935, Hitler introduced military conscription. This allowed the Germany army to train around 300,000 conscripts a year. During the upgrading of the German military, thousands of jobs were also created in the iron, steel, aviation and shipbuilding industries. This was important as it greatly reduced unemployment figures across Germany gaining the Nazi party support. Autarky is when a country provides all the resources it need and is therefore not dependant on imports from other nations. The Nazis considered Autarky to be a crucial part of Germany's return to economic stability. They worked towards self-sufficiency and promised the German people that this would provide economic, political and military success. This was important in the Nazis maintenance of power as the German people were desperate to escape the economic depression and saw the Nazi policy of Autarky as the way forward. Historian Roderick Stackelberg believes that the Nazis stance on the economy was key to their support from the German people, stating: “From 1933 to 1936 the major priority was to overcome the adverse affects of the depression and to restore the economic stability that was crucial to the projection of national power.” (Roderick Stackelberg, The Routledge Companion to Nazi Germany, 2007)
Despite this however, the Nazis never did successfully achieve their aim of self-sufficiency within Germany making this factor less important in the Nazis consolidation of power. Upon evaluation, economic policies were not the most important factor in the Nazis maintenance of power between 1933 and 1939 as the fall in unemployment under the Nazis was more to do with the exclusion of certain groups, such as Jews, from official statistics making social policies a more important factor.
Social policies also played an important role in the Nazi consolidation of power. The Nazis took a number of measures to control the lives of the German people. In 1935, the Nazis introduced the 'Acts Hostile to the National Community' Law. This allowed the Nazi Party to legally persecute their political opponents. This was important in the Nazis consolidation of power as people were fearful of what would happen if they spoke against the beliefs of the Nazis. The Hitler Youth was set up to teach children of the views of the Nazi Party and to train them to become SA officers. By December 1936, membership of the Hitler Youth was virtually compulsory for all boys and girls older than the age of 10. This was important in the Nazis maintenance of power as it meant the future generations of Germany had been indoctrinated with Nazi beliefs with historian Ian Kershaw stating that this “was highly attractive and conveyed much of Nazism's dynamic appeal,” (Ian Kershaw, The 'Hitler Myth': Image and Reality in the Third Reich, 2001). Despite the success of the Hitler Youth, many children were quite aware that their education was being distorted and could see the strong bias in their lessons. Upon evaluation, Social policies was only important in the Nazis consolidation of power to a small extent as many children rebelled against the Nazi controls on them such as by listening to illegal jazz or swing music.
Nazi propaganda was another important reason as to why the Nazi maintained power from 1933 to 1939.
The Nazis used propaganda as a way of controlling the German people. Many families across Germany owned radios as they were very cheap to buy. These would be used to broadcast Nazi Party messages and public speeches. This was important in the Nazis consolidation of power as the radios would promote the positives that Hitler brought to Germany which helped him gain loyalty from the people. Any media such newspapers, radio, cinema and theatre that conveyed anti-Nazi ideas were censored and all books that did not agree with the Nazi point of view were all banned and often publicly burned. This was important in the Nazis maintenance of power as people did not get to see any negative opinions on the Nazi Party's views. Despite this however, it is believed that propaganda did not have much affect on the working class people of Germany with historian Tim Mason claiming, “ Nazi Propaganda was largely unsuccessful among the working class,” (Tim Mason, Nazism, Fascism and the Working Class, 1995). Upon evaluation, propaganda was only important in the Nazis consolidation of power to a small extent as many German people were quite aware they were being bombarded with Nazi Propaganda and intentionally avoided it such as by turning up to the cinema in order to avoid the propaganda
film.
Fear and intimidation was another important factor involved in the Nazis consolidation of power between 1933 and 1939. Concentration camps were set up by the Nazis, with the first opening in 1933, to imprison people who the Nazis deemed to be 'undesirable'. This included Jews, criminals, gypsies and those who opposed the views of the Nazi Party. This is important in the Nazis consolidation of power as people were afraid to disagree with the beliefs of the Nazis as they feared they may endure a similar fate to those placed in the concentration camps. The Schutzstaffel, more commonly known as the SS, was set up in April 1925 and acted as Hitler's private army. Hitler used them to eliminate any political opposition in the Reichstag such as communists and socialists. Historian Jeremy Noakes argues that the SS gave the Nazi party a huge amount of control over the German people, stating:
“...the SS controlled both the police and its own prison-camp system, an awesome power.” (Jeremy Noakes, Nazi Germany, 2008)
This was important in the Nazis maintenance of power as the lack of political opposition to the Nazis was the first step in Hitlers plan to achieve a one party state. However, even with a lack of opposition in the form of communists and socialists, Hitler still did not win a majority vote in the election of March 1933, achieving only 43.9 percent of the vote. Upon evaluation, the creation of fear and intimidation by the Nazi Party was the most important reason that they managed to maintain power between 1933 and 1939. This is because, by 1939, the German public began to become aware of the harsh conditions endured by the 21,000 people imprisoned in the concentration camps and so were furthermore afraid of the consequences of speaking out against the Nazis.
In conclusion, it is clear that the reasons as to how the Nazi Party managed to maintain power between 1933 and 1939 can be attributed to a number of factors. On one hand the successful foreign policy implemented by the Nazis, such as the strong opposition to the Treaty of Versailles, helped to maintain support from the public. Also, the attempt to create self-sufficiency within Germany showed the German people that the Nazis were committed to helping Germany escape the economic depression. Furthermore, social policies implemented by the Nazis, such as the mandatory attendance of the Hitler Youth, helped to brainwash the children of Germany with Nazi beliefs. Additionally, Nazi propaganda that was forced upon the German public helped to promote the positives that Hitler brought to Germany. On the other hand, the creation of fear and intimidation by the SS within Nazi Germany caused people to become afraid of opposing the views of the Nazi Party. Overall, successful foreign policy was only the most important reason the Nazis managed to maintain power to a small extent as the Nazis creation of fear and intimidation was a much more important reason.