He was also under threat from other groups especially the Communist Party. After the Wall Street Crash ( October 1929) many people looked to extremist groups such as the Nazi and Communist Parties. People blamed the Social Democrats who were linked to the Weimar Republic for the economic failure and this is why popularity grew for the Nazi Party. It was essential to gain a two thirds majority in the Reichstag if Hitler hoped to pass any laws of his own. So one of the first things Hitler did after becoming Chancellor was to dissolve the Reichstag and call for a fresh election on the 5th March 1933.
Despite some initial efforts by local prosecutors to take legal action against those who carried out the murders, which the regime rapidly quashed, it appeared that no law would constrain Hitler in his use of power. The Night of the Long Knives also sent a clear message to the public that even the most prominent Germans were not immune to arrest or even summary execution should the Nazi regime perceive them as a threat. In this manner, the purge established a pattern of violence that would characterise the Nazi regime: the use of force to establish an empire. Almost unanimously, the army applauded the Night of the Long Knives, even though the generals Kurt von Schleicher and Ferdinand von Bredow were among the victims. The ailing President Hindenburg, Germany's highly-revered military hero, sent a telegram expressing his "profoundly felt gratitude" and he congratulated Hitler for 'nipping treason in the bud'.
Due to the Depression making people want a drastic change in political party in ower there was an increase in communist support and as a result an increase in Nazi support because people were scared of communism and the Nazi's promised to deal with them. The depression was taken advantage of by Nazi propaganda and they convinced a lot of people that electing Hitler would solve their problems. This means that the Depression was the most important factor in the election of Hitler because with out it then nobody would want to change the current party in power because before the depression then German was extremely prosperous. Therefore, the Depression was the most important factor that lead to the election of Hitler. It could be argued that the Hitler attributes was the most important reason for why Hitler was appointed Chancellor in 1933.
It is clear that Terror and intimidation were important factors in allowing the Nazis to consolidate power 1933, for the reason that violence still had an impact on political developments, for example, even negotiations between Hitler, von Papen and Hindenburg took place against the conditions of well publicised acts of SA (Storm troopers) violence. In May 1933 ¬, ¬SA members stormed trade union headquarters and disbanded it. This violence cuased many leaders of the SPD to flee abroad and in June its party was officially banned. The majority of the 3000 members of the party that remained were arrested and taken to the Dachau concentration camp where they were later tortured and killed. This ulitmately potrays the brutality of the Nazis, which effectively contributed to their consolidation of power.
During the 20th century, the Germans faced an appalling economic depression and during that time, the people lost trust in their government, and taking advantage of this opportunity, Hitler rose to power. Germany became secluded, and to the German people, Hitler was their ultimate savior. In a matter of years, Hitler rapidly rose to power and boosted the economy. Hitler and his Nazi party rise to power was one of chance and circumstance. His alternative views struck chord with the people; he was able to channel Germany’s disgust for the Weimar Republic, Treaty of Versailles and minority groups into support for his National socialist Party.
In the early 1930’s Stalin felt threatened by his growing opposition and was determined to bring the party under his total control. At the 17th Party Congress in 1934, Sergei Kirov received the vast majority of votes which led to his assassination due to the threat that he posed to Stalin’s leadership. Many argued that this was a turning point in Russian history. It unleased a terror that killed millions in the next four years. Stalin was able to eliminate all effective opposition through a series of purges.
But Germans blamed it for signing the Versailles treaty and for hunger and unemployment. Hitler set up a fascist style party called the Nazi party. Hitler wanted to tear up the Versailles treaty and unite all Germans so they could form a great German empire. He blamed the Jews and the communists for Germany’s troubles and wanted to destroy them. When the Great Depression 1929 forced many factories to close, desperate Germans voted for the Nazi party.
Some historians say it was the consent and willingness of the German people that took him to Fuhrer but there are other strong arguments such as the Enabling Law, the demolishment of other political parties and trade unions, his agreements with the church, media and industrialists and the Night of the Long Knives. One of the main reasons Hitler was able to come into power was the consent from the German people. Without their willingness to believe and back Hitler, he wouldn’t have been able to gain any real momentum. On the 5th of March in 1933 the Nazis increased their vote from 33.1% to 43.9%, securing them 288 seats. One of the ways Hitler got the backing of the German people was by telling them what they wanted to hear.
Therefore Liberals wanted constitutional reform and more power to be given to the Reichstag. Whereas socialists demanded social reform and power to the workers and trade unions. However conservatives, such as Bismarck wanted to conserve to the Junkers – the elite class. To do this he proposed the Anti-Socialist Law in 1879 and also passed the Tariff Law, which appeased the liberals. The years leading up to the war the German people were dreading it, there were protests in Berlin in July 1914.
One also needs to take into account the weaknesses of their democratic government of the Weimar Republic and its failure to deal with the problems of the day. This essay requires an explanation of the phenomenal electoral success of the Nazi Party between 1929 and 1933 with particular reference to the contribution made by their leader, Adolf Hitler. Arguably the most important reason for the Nazis rise to power was the personal qualities and leadership Adolf Hitler himself possessed. Hitler was a great and mesmerising speaker, he was a strong performer and when he spoke he aroused the emotions of his listeners and they were convinced just by his persona instead of what he was saying. This was important for Hitler’s rise to power as he gained huge population and support due to his impressive speeches.