Use Of Hitler's Propaganda To The Seizure Of Power

Hitler’s appointment as Chancellor in 1933 brought about the beginning of the end to a brief democratic government in Germany. He worked hard to return to the old Totalitarian rule with himself as dictator, and also for ‘Machtergreifung’ – the seizure of power. Hitler had no intention of sharing power and his aim was to achieve complete control over Germany and to build a German Empire through the Nazi Party. His personality and manifesto were extremely convincing to people of all age groups and people believed Hitler had the power to restore Germany to past greatness. Promises such as the decrease in unemployment levels were also coming true and his totalitarian rule had suppressed all other opposition. Dr.Goebels also played a large part in covering up the horrific truth behind Hitler’s ideology. The propaganda convinced the German people that the violence used, such as the action of the SS, was beneficial to the maintenance of the state. The Nazi’s also began to victimize certain stereotypes so that they would gain more support and shift the blame for any problems onto groups such as the Jews. This also inevitably installed a fear in most Germans. Propaganda was a core method that Hitler used to gain control and support within
Germany. The emotion, romanticism and passion behind his speeches and most importantly his rallies at Nuremburg were able to convince the German people about Hitler’s ideology, which some historians would argue is the most important factor when securing the political stability of the Nazi Party. Goebel’s gained the title of ‘Minister of Propaganda’ under Hitler’s government in 1933. As Reichsminister for Propaganda and National Enlightenment, Goebbels was given complete control over radio, press, cinema, and theatre; later he also regimented all German culture. Goebbels placed his undeniable intelligence and his brilliant insight into mass psychology entirely at the service of his party. His most potent propaganda was against the Jews (used as a scapegoat to absorb any problems Germany had). As a hypnotic orator he was second only to Hitler, and in his staging of mass meetings and parades he was unsurpassed. The power that Goebels propaganda had over the German showed just how significant a political figure he was.
Persuasive leadership such as this is a large reason why the Nazis managed to stay in power for so long. However it was not only Goebels that had a huge influence over the German people. When taking in to account the strength of the Nazi leadership the personality of Hitler himself should not be forgotten. His charismatic and recognizable personality was the driving force behind the rise of the Nazi’s and even as the reality behind his proposals came out, the supporters were not only backed up by the fulfilment of the economic promises Hitler had made but by the influence of his character.
Heinrich Himmler, commander of the SS installed fear into the people of Germany using violence.
Hitler has constructed a perfect group of leaders, and their unquestionable authority was key in maintaining the Nazi state. The SS were Hitler’s soldiers in the sense that they swore complete loyalty. “We vow to you and the superiors appointed by you obedience unto death. So help us God.” This was the oath taken by SS soldiers directed at Hitler. The SS state induced a fear into the people of Germany through incidents such as the ‘Night of the Long Knives’ in which the SS rounded up and shot around 400 victims, all of which were posing some sort of threat to Hitler. This made it especially clear to Germany the type of response
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Opposing the would get, therefore no one dared to start an uprising, leaving the Nazi’s to thrive on the power they had accumulated. Hitler’s absolute dictatorship gave him the power to introduce extremities of Anti Semitism. The Jews became a scapegoat for Germany’s problems: the defeat in WWI, the problems faced due to the Treaty of Versailles, the increasing communist support, the failure of the Weimar Government and the economic problems. Schoolchildren were being taught how to prejudice against Jews with changes to the curriculum, and racial purity was greatly encouraged. Hitler provided substance behind the anti Semitism making it popular amongst many Germans who were jealous of the Jew’s economic success. The humiliation of the Jews steadily increased and events such as Kristallnacht – in which Jewish homes, businesses and synagogues were looted - reiterated all fear felt towards the Nazi’s. Providing a prejudice upon which the Germans could vent their anger took all of the problems away from the Nazi’s, leaving them to be seen as completely positive for the rebuilding of Germany. This was also greatly enhanced by the suppression of all opposition by the Nazi party. Hitler was slowly making Germany into a totalitarian state in which he was the only person with power. Gleichschaltung was introduced to make Nazism a part of everyday life. It is the complete co-ordination of everything to do with the Nazi regime. Nazi groups were being set up for all works of life including youth groups, secretarial groups, doctor groups and in 1936 a Nazi approved church was founded. Hitler was making Nazism unavoidable and these groups all encouraged Nazi support and ideology. Children were even encouraged to tell on their parents if there was any suspicion that they opposed the policies of the party. Hindenburg’s death in 1934 gave Hitler complete chancellorship and he gave himself the title of Fuhrer. “Ein Volk, Ein Reich, Ein Fuhrer” this motto was passed around Germany to indicate how Germany was being brought together under one absolute leader with no opposition. However Hitler had to work to gain such unquestioned authority. In 1933 the Burning of the Reichstag led Hitler to claim emergency powers from President Hindenburg giving him unopposed power to make enabling acts. These acts gave Hitler the ability to pass laws without consulting the Reichstag; the second step, after the Reichstag Fire Decree which gave Hitler plenary powers and helped him on the way to a dictatorship. The night of the long knives, as previously mentioned, also eliminated opposition. Ernst Rohm was leader of the SA, and after showing loyalty to Hitler by helping him attain chancellorship, he and his Stormtroopers wanted some sort of reward. Hitler showed how any resistance at all would be treated by killing Rohm and all other SA leaders. Hitler also abolished all trade unions so that there was no possibility of a workers revolution against him. The elimination of opposition had made the Nazis the sole party in Germany making it extremely difficult to get rid of such a prominent part of everyday life. Hitler also wanted to please the people and fulfil his promises so that he would still have popular support. The KDF organisation was introduced to please the working class. It gave them cheap or free holidays and evening classes. The Nazis also avoided heavy taxation and a reduction in consumer goods. This pleased the people and most were thought to be fairly happy with the Nazi’s performance in government. The Unemployment figures fell rapidly from 6% of the population out of work to 0.04% in 1939. This was being done through labour camps, public works programme such as the innovative Auto-Bahn and the Nazi Party under the Gleichschaltung regime created many jobs. A main policy for Hitler was the self sufficiency of Germany called Autarky. This was a postitive thing for agricultural workers as the prices of goods were fixed. Germany’s GNP rose by 102% and it seemed as if everyone was pleased with the results that the Nazi party was producing, so there was no real reason to want to start a revolution. The economic recovery of Germany in the period whilst the Nazis were in power was very important to ensuring that the people were pleased and still supported the party. However with the removal of all opposition in reality the German people had little choice but to be governed by Hitler, and if they were opposing him; many were to scared to act. The leadership of Hitler himself and main political figures stabilised the Government and sorted out many of the problems resulting from WWI and the weak Weimar Government causing the people of Germany to trust Hitler. All of these factors contribute to show why the Nazi’s stayed in power, despite the horrific truths behind the policies. Many Germans just saw Hitler and the Nazi Party as an answer to the problems that Germany had long been searching to solve.