Nazi Party Early Years & The Munich Putsch

Hitler and the growth of the Nazi Party to 1933

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Early Years, 1920-2

The German Workers' Party was formed in 1919. Hitler joined the party, and quickly became leader, this was mainly due to his amazing skill at public speaking. In 1920, the party was renamed the National Socialist German Wokers' Party, AKA the Nazis. With Hitler as leader, they announced the 25 point programme. This mainly consisted of ideas saying that Germany belong to the Germans so only they should live there, and others, such as Jews, must leave. 

Hitler organised his own private army in 1921, called the SA, (Stormtroopers). They were mostly young men, some used to be Friekorps. They dressed in brown, and were nicknamed the brownshirts. Supposedly, their role was to protect speakers at Nazi meetings from left-wing opponents. But in actual fact, they spent most of their time starting the violence and opponent party's speeches.

The Munich Putsch

Causes

1. Weimar Weaknesses: After the main period of the Weimar, people begun to feel their government was very weak, along with lots of extremist groups being set up. This lead to anger.
2. Nazi Party Growth: During the 1923 Crises, (Occupation of the Ruhr and Inflation). the Nazi party rapidly grew. It went from 6,000 members to 55,000. The SA were desperate for a revolution. Hitler became friends with General Ludendorff (An old German General). Hitler thought the army would follow Ludendorff in a Putsch.
3. Stresemann calling off Passive Resistance in the Ruhr: Every German was furious that Stresemann called off passive resistance in the Ruhr, they felt like he was giving it to France. There was a right-wing revolt in Berlin and the Rhineland declared independence as a result of this. The government had to proclaim a state of emergency.
4. Mussolini's Example: In 1922, Mussolini has seized control of the Italian government by marching on Rome. Hitler wanted to copy this.

Events

8 Nov 1923: Hitler interrupted the Beer Hall meeting, and forced Kahr, the Bavarian Prime Minister, and two officials to support him in overthrowing the Reich government. The SA took over the Army HQ. Jews were beaten up and the anti-Nazi newspaper offices were trashed. However, Hitler then made a mistake by releasing Kahr. Kahr went on to call in the police with army reinforcements.

9 Nov 1923: The Nazis marched on Munich, but got stopped by the police in one street. They had made a blockade. The Nazis tried to push through, but as a result 16 Nazis died, and 3 policeman. Hitler ran off, and got arrested two days later. Whereas Ludendorff kept trying to push on through the blockade, but he got arrested.

Results

The Nazis were defeated and their leaders were arrested. Hitler was arrested and put on trial for treason. He was imprisoned for 9 months and forbidden to speak in public. BUT: Hitler turned his trial into a publicity stunt, giving long speeches. Before the Putsch, no one had really heard of Hitler, but after his trial, he became a national hero, as he went against the idea of stopping passive resistance in the Ruhr.

 Even the judge said he agreed with Hitler, so gave him a short sentence. 

While in Prison, Hitler wrote his book, 'Mein Kampf', this sold in the millions. He set out his beliefs in this book, and made him the leader of right-wing opposition to Weimar. Furthermore, Hitler realised he was not going to gain power by force and rebellion, but in fact he would have to be elected.

Recovery of Weimar Republic 1924-29

Recovery of Weimar Republic 1924-29

Gustav Stresemann became Germany's leading politician in 1923. He greatly improved Germany and it's relations with other countries. This period was known as the 'Golden Age of Weimar.

Political Recovery
At the time there was a system of proportional representation. Stresemann was able to take advantage of this by forming the 'Great Coalition' made up of the pro-democracy parties. They were able to resist criticism from smaller extremist parties, due to their size. Furthermore, they were able to pass any laws they needed to.

Economic Recovery
Stresemann called off passive resistance in the Ruhr, thus increasing industrial production. The French left the Ruhr once repartions were resumed.
 Additionally, he solved hyperinflation by burning the old currency and introducing the new rentenmark.
In 1924, the Dawes Plan allowed Germany to pay reparations according to it's ability to do so. It also allowed Germany to take a loan of 25,000m gold marks from the USA.
This was followed by the Young Plan of 1929 which gave Germany a further 59 years to pay reparations.

International Relations
Relations with other countries were improved by the signing of the:
* Locarno Treaty, 1925

The German foreign minister Gustav Stresemann proposed that France, Germany and Belgium should recognize as permanent their frontiers that was agreed at Versailles. This included the promise not to send German troops into the Rhineland and the acceptance that Alsace-Lorraine was permantely part of France. The French foreign minister, Aristide Briand agreed with Stressemann's proposals and signed the treaty. 

* The Kellogg-Briand Pact, 1928
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kellogg%E2%80%93Briand_Pact
Basically is was a pre-NATO sort of thing.

* Germany was invited to join the League of Nations, 1926
This meant that Germany was again accepted by the other powers.

Economic Problems for the Weimar Government, 1923

Economic Problems for the Weimar Government, 1923

When the German government was ordered to pay £6600m in reparations as part of the Treaty of Versailles, the government announced that they could not afford the payments.
As a result of this, the French invaded the Ruhr, which is Germany's main industrial error. The idea behind this was that they would take what they were owed by force. However, as a passive resistance, the workers went on strike and the industrial production rates dropped to nothing.
 The government tried to solve the problem by simply printing more money. Money lost it's value and went out of control. For example, in 1918 a loaf of bread cost 0.6 marks but in November 1923 it cost 201,000million marks.

Winners from Hyperinflation

• Borrowers: Money borrowed in 1919 was worthless by 1923, so could very easily be paid back.
• Big Businesses: Exporters could sell goods abroad for more valuable currencies.
• Landowners: As prices went up, so did the value of land.

Losers from Hyperinflation

• Workers: The price of goods always rose faster than wages. Trade Union funds were wiped out.
• Savers: Savings in the bank were now worthless.
• People on fixed Incomes (Pensioners): Their incomes were now to low to live on.
• Small Businesses: They could not deal with rapid changes in prices. These were normally ran by the Middle Class, and many of them began to look towards the Nazis for improvement. 

Early Problems of the Weimar Republic, 1918-33

Early Problems of the Weimar Republic, 1918-33

The German Revolution began when the sailors mutinied at Kiel. This quickly spread to all cities and ports and also to the Western front. This caused councils to be setup that mimicked the Soviets in Russia. In November 1918 the Kaiser abdicated and Ebert (the leader of the Social Democrat Party) took charge as President.

The Treaty of Versailles

The German people hated the Treaty and blamed the politicians of the republic for signing it. They saw it as a stab in the back (to the army).

Secondly, the Germans hated the fact that they were blamed for the war in the war guilt clause in the treaty. They were made to pay £6600m of reparations in 1921.

 Furthermore, many other harsh terms were imposed on them at Versailles: Germany lost 1/10 of it's land. The army and Navy was scaled back to 100,000 men and only six ships.

Political Challenges

Left-Wing Uprisings

• Berlin 1919: The Spartacists (Communists) were defeated by the Friekorps.
• Bavaria 1919: A Socialist republic was set-up, but it was crushed by the government.

Right-Wing Rebellions

• Berlin 1920: The Kapp Putsch uprising was lead by Wolfgang Kapp, however they were defeated by a general strike by the workers.
• Munich Putsch (1923): A Nazi Putsch was defeated by the authorities. 

Weimar Constitution

Despite the Constitution being democratic, it had a large weakness from within. The constitution gave the President, the states and the army too much power, whilst a voting system of proportional representation meant that lots of small parties got seats in the Reichstag.  This lead to a lot of coalitions who could not make any agreements in the Reichstag. The republic survived through the crises of 1919-23 by using the right-wing army and Freikorps units to crush the Communists, and getting the help of the left-wing unions to crush the Kapp Putsch.

Bangladesh : Flood Defence Scheme [Case Study]

Bangladesh : Flood Defence Scheme [Case Study]

Causes:

Natural

1. Monsoon Climate - Long periods of heavy rainfall. Up to 100mm/Day.
2. Snow Melt - Rapid increase in river discharge.
3. Low lying land - River Delta
4. Cyclones - Regularly hit Bangladesh at speeds of 200 kph.

Human

1. Deforestation
2. Living on flood plains
3. Global Warming

Effects

The floods in Bangladesh hugely affect and shape the country, some of the effects they cause are:

• Disease
• Building Damage
• High Death toll. (140,000 die a year from floods)
• Mass Movement
• Crops Destroyed
• Psychological Damage
• Famine
• Poverty

Protection Measures

Many warning systems are being setup in order to combat the floods and try to defend the inhabitants against them. For example:

- Satellite Tracking

- Officers in each village.

- Radio Warnings

- Warning Flag System.

In addition to simple warning systems, they also take action against it such as,

• Strengthen embankments along the shore.
• Plant mangrove trees along the shore to halt waves.
• Build storm shelters on stilts. Each of these cost £80,000.
• Educate the people to use the shelters. 

Furthermore, emergency aid is donated and used, things like food, water, blankets, medicine and shelters for the future.

Establishment of Nazi Dictatorship

Establishment of Nazi Dictatorship, 1933-34

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Summary

When Hitler first became Chancellor, he wanted to establish a dictatorship. He achieved this between the beginning of 1933 and August 1934, when he removed all opposition to the Nazi Party. He even destroyed the   SA because they were considered a threat to the party. He appointed Nazi ministers to all governmental roles in Germany, to ensure he had control of all aspects of the country. Finally, when President Hindenburg died, Hitler had achieved total control and became Fuhrer.

The Events

The Reichstag Fire

• After becoming Chancellor, Hitler called an election so that he could increase Nazi seats in the Reichstag.
• On the 27th of February, the Reichstag building was burnt down. Within the building a communist called 'Van Der Lubbe' was found inside with matches. (Some believe he was planted here by the Nazis).
• This event, gave Hitler an excuse to pass emergency laws, which were to 'protect' Germany from Communists. He also took this as a chance to arrest many of his Communist opponents and banning them from running in the March election.

The Enabling Act

The Nazis had done well in the March election, however they only won 44% of the seats. They then teamed up with the Nationalist party. This did give them the majority, however it was still not enough to change the Constitution of the German Republic (66%). 

As a result, Hitler then used the SA to threaten and bully other parties and force them to vote for his new law, the 'Enabling Act'. The Enabling Act gave Hitler complete power to make laws for 4 years without consulting anyone, be it the Reichstag of the President. The Wiemar Constitution had been destroyed.

Removal of Opposition

With his recently gained powers from the Enabling Act, Hitler then removed any opposition to the Nazi party.

• April: They took over the local-government and the police. They started to replace teachers and University professors who were anti-Nazi, and replaced them. Furthermore, the set up the secret police called the Gestapo, they encouraged people to report on opponents of Nazism and 'grumblers' Anyone who did a 'crime' against the Nazis were sent to concentration camps. These crimes were such things as writing anti-Nazi graffiti or even just having a book that was banned.
• May: Trade unions were abolished and Hitler set-up the German Labour Front. This banned a worker's right to strike, and meant they got paid less.
• July: Hitler banned all other parties.
• Political opponents were arrested, and Nazi supporters were put into important positions such as Judges.

Night of the Long Knives

The SA was run by Ernst Roehm. Hitler, basically, felt that he was getting too much power and was becoming a threat to him. For example, they wanted more communist-type of policies put in and things to be more socialist. However, Hitler knew these would affect big businesses, and he needed the support of big businesses. Furthermore, they wanted control of Germany's army. Yet Hitler wanted and needed the army's support and did not want it to be used against him.

 As a result, on the 30th of June, Hitler ordered the murder of many SA leaders. Including Roehm. Also, he killed the former Chancellor von Schleicher.

Death of Hindenburg

On August the 2nd, President Hindenburg died, and Hitler declared himself the new President, and took the title of 'Fuhrer'. The army took a personal oath of loyalty to Hitler, and promised to serve him. Hitler now had complete control.

Key Dates

1933

January: Hitler becomes Chancellor

February: Reichstag Fire

March: Election gave Hitler control of Reichstag & Enabling Act

May: Trade Unions abolished.

July: All political parties banned.

1934

June: Night of Long Knives eliminates the SA.

August: Hindenburg dies and Hitler becomes Fuhrer.

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