Hitler could not achieve the solid control over the masses which he had, if he did not have the help of the so called powerful propaganda machine. Propaganda had been vital in winning the Nazis support that helped them come into power. As Goebbels stated in 1934 “Propaganda was [their] sharpest weapon in conquering the state, and remains [their] sharpest weapon in maintaining and building up the state”. The reason why Nazis relied on propaganda was first to keep the population contented and second win support for particular policies. Another rather ambitious aim of theirs was to indoctrinate the people with their Weltanschauung or in other words they were aiming to turn the population into committed members of their Volksgemeinschaft (a community whose members would be Aryan, genetically healthy, socially useful and politically committed to the regime).
They believe that this approach maintained Hitler’s personal power. Hitler took responsibility for all the important decisions in the Nazi party for example foreign policy, this made everyone believe that he was a strong leader and doing what was best for Germany. Also the fact that there were other powers in the Reich did not detract from Hitler’s personal power; he only hired those who were most loyal to Hitler for example Himmler. The only way to maintain or increase your power in the Nazi regime was through access to Hitler, in order to get this people had to do as he wished or their power would diminish. This interpretation supports the idea that Hitler had full control of the Reich, all the
As a ruler, Adolf Hitler of the Nazi party had numerous successes but he also had he fair share of failures. At the beginning of World War II, Hitler was seen as a savior to the German nation because of his oratory skills, appeal to the people and his successes. One of his first successes came when he fulfilled his promises to the German people and reversed the Treaty of Versailles. After the death of Hindenburg in 1934, Hitler was seen as the successor. The German public saw Hitler as god-like with his vast power and glorifying the German race as being the “master race.” When he finally reversed the power of the Treaty of Versailles and rebuilt Germany’s armed forces, the German nation basically did as he told them to do.
However, this was not manifested in reality, in which Hitler maintained power through his Kommandogewalt and appeal to the German public. This is highlighted in Kershaw’s statement that Hitler’s “power was charismatic, not institutional”. Hitler’s self-appointed omnipotence was only feasible due to his popular support from the German Volk and not any leadership structure. Hitler’s capacity to control a totalitarian state was also undermined by the nature of his rise to power. The Hitler Myth, which depicts Hitler as Germany’s saviour from the “ruin” following World War 1 and the Treaty of Versailles, undermined his ability to lead the Nazi state through means of violence and terror because his power
How similar were the dictatorships of hitler and stalin? However much they disliked each other, Adolf Hitler and Josef Stalin were actually very similar people - they were both ruthless and amoral, and drove their countries to greatness (albeit this statement does depend on your idea of greatness). These men were persistent and they obsessed over making sure their countries were the ideal world in their minds. They focused on breeding hard working, ‘perfect’ people to live in their countries, while getting rid of anyone who didn’t fit their ideals. Rise to power Josef Stalin was a keen, intellectual man who knew how to make sure he was viewed well by the public.
Hindenburg couldn't oppose against the public's choice otherwise he would be going against the democratic ‘Weimar republic’ regulation of including the people’s views. Overall, Hitler’s popularity with the nation was one of the main reasons why he was appointed as chancellor. He promised things to a variation of people that not many other politicians had offered. Secondly, because of the propaganda that was responsible for the change of peoples view's of the
By convincing Hindenburg that there was a large communist threat the country was put into a state of emergency and, with Hindenburg’s backing, Hitler was allowed to pass decrees to govern Germany anyway he liked, with the financial backing of krupp and bosch etc, which in this case is fortunate for the question at hand. Consequently this is why I believe it was the most important event to dictatorship because it was the “spark” that allowed any other event to happen and without it democracy may have just struggled on. One of these events was the election in 1933. Now Hitler had the power to convince Hindenburg to allow him
They were beginning to doubt that Germany had any pride left. Historian R.Landau writes in his book (The Nazi Holocaust) that the ‘Nazi party was appealing’. This demonstrates that Hitler and the Nazis were a modern and plausible option for the public. Many of the middle class and other highly regarded sections of society were also drawn to the Nazi’s. Therefore, strengthening Landau’s view and the above argument that Hitler became leader of Germany as he was leader of the most popular parties.
When these aspects are considered in relation to Hitler they are only partly true. Hitler was a charismatic leader, who was not necessarily competing with anyone else for his title as furher, however he is considered to have been lazy, not wanting to make decisions, and handing things down to the people below him. This shows that he did not lead on his own, but relied on the people around him to make decisions. This can lead to the conclusion that, although Hitler was charismatic and didn’t compete with anyone, he was not a total leader; he was more of a symbol, as if he was more concerned with his image as the furher, rather than the work behind the role. This shows that first part of the criteria, for Hitler’s Nazi regime to have been considered a totalitarian state, according to the view of historians, has only been partly met.
Though it wasn't the only key element in the maintenance of power, Nazi Government also used other factors including; fear and the success Hitler turning Germany socio-economy around. Joseph Goebbels' Propaganda Ministry controlled newspapers, radio and film in Germany. And their control was furthered extended into music, theatre, literature, art, architecture and sports when the Reich Chamber of Culture was established in his ministry. It was through his control of the media he was able to produce different mediums of propaganda and convey Nazi Ideology. These views included, anti-Semitism, anti-Communism and racial purity, while also enhancing Hitler's image (otherwise known as the fuehrer myth), and make the Volksgemeinschaft more appealing.