The Rise of Hitler and the Nazi Party

The Rise of Hitler and the Nazi Party

Early Life

•Hitler was born on April 20th, 1889 in AUSTRIA

•He had a poor relationship with his father and was very close to his mother

•He was an aspiring painter, and was twice rejected by the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna

•It was at this time, in 1908, that Hitler began a movement based on the beliefs that Germans were the master race

Multiple Choice

True or False: Hitler was from Germany.

• True

• False

WWI

•Hitler pleaded to be in the Bavarian (a state in Germany) Army and was granted his request

•He served as a messenger in a regiment that exposed him to enemy fire (story)

•He was shot in the leg and suffered from a poison gas attack

•He was awarded the Iron Cross – the highest military honor in Germany

Multiple Choice

Which award was he given when was in the Bavarian Army during WWI?

• Iron Cross

• Purple Heart

Early Politics

•Hitler helped form the National Socialist German Workers’ Party (Nazi) in 1919 and assumed leadership in 1921

•Beer Hall Putsch (‘pooch’) November 8th, 1923

–Attempted to seize power and overthrow the Bavarian gov't for signing the ToV

–It failed and Hitler was imprisoned for 5 years for high treason (but he only serving one year – he was not considered a threat to the public)

Multiple Choice

What was the purpose of the Beer Hall Putsch?

• Hitler wanted to conquer Europe.

• Hitler wanted to overthrow the Bavarian government

• Hitler wanted to celebrate the successful formation of the Nazi Party.

Multiple Choice

Was the Beer Hall Putsch a success?

• Yes

• No

Mein Kampf

• He wrote Mein Kampf (“My Struggle) in 1925 while he was in prison

•This became the Nazi ideology – and it attacked Jews, Communists, democracy, and the Treaty of Versailles

•Hitler also wrote that Germany needed to destroy the French Nation and conquer Russia, among other things

•The book sold/distributed 10 million copies between 1925-1934

Multiple Choice

Which one is NOT a part of Nazi ideology?

• blaming Jews

• destroy the French Nation

• attack Communists

• conquering the world

Rise to Power

•By 1932, the Nazi Party was the biggest political party and held 230 seats

•Hitler demanded to be appointed the position of chancellor

•Just before the 1933 election, the Reichstag (parliament) was burned to the ground. The president of Germany granted the Nazi Party the power to squash any political opposition, and they intimidated and arrested socialist and communist party members

Multiple Choice

What happened to the Reichstag (Parliament)?

• It was burned to the ground.

• Three was a bloody revolt.

• It was destroyed by a natural disaster.

The Enabling Act

•After the 1933 election, Hitler proposed the Enabling Act, which would essentially give him a dictatorship – and it passed!

•The Enabling Act…

–Banned all political parties

–Germany was declared a one

 party state

–Jews were not allowed to be

 in civil service professions

–Local and state governments

 were staffed by Nazi members

Multiple Choice

What did the Enabling Act NOT do?

• Nazi members were staffed in local and state governments

• ban all political parties

• grant more individual rights

• Jews were not allowed to be in civil service professions

Absolute Power

•When the president of Germany died in 1934, Hitler’s cabinet passed a law proclaiming the presidency to him (rather than holding elections)

•The military swore an oath to Hitler, not the state

•Hitler had obtained absolute power, and Germany became known as the Third Reich

Why Vote for Hitler?

1.True believers

–believed he was their savior – from the depression, the Jews, the Communists, and the Tof V

2.Ignorance

–People did not consider Hitler to be a real threat

3.Did not take him seriously

–People just thought Hitler was ‘odd’

4.New party needed

–The depression and hyperinflation highlighted the need for new political leadership

Multiple Choice

What is one reason people would vote for Hitler

• He was seen as a savior

• He was an experienced politician

• He knew how to fix the economy

History of the Swastika

•The Swastika is a religious symbol used by the Egyptians, Chinese, Roman armies, and many others

•The Swastika means good luck!

•The Nazi Party used the Swastika because they felt it had connections to original caste systems that avoided racial mixing

•The Swastika is banned in most countries, except for religious or scholarly reasons

Multiple Choice

What does the swastika mean?

• peace and prosperity

• pure race

• good luck

Nazi Party

The SA (“Brown Shirts”)

•Hitler’s private army

•They bullied opponents into obeying

 the Nazi Party

•However, once Hitler rose to power, he had the SA replaced by a new organization – the SS

Night of the Long Knives

•Leaders in the SA (Rohm) were killed

•The SA was destroyed

The SS (“Black Shirts”)

•The SS were Hitler’s private bodyguards

 and were led by Heinrich Himmler

•They arrested and killed anyone who challenged Hitler

•The SS took over law enforcement in Germany and implemented the ‘Final Solution’

The Gestapo

•The Gestapo were the secret police of Nazi Germany

•They investigated treason, espionage, and sabotage cases against the Nazi Party (i.e. Valkyrie)

•The Gestapo also set up and administered the concentration camps

Hitler Youth

•The Hitler Youth was an organization under the Nazi Party

•By 1936, they had over five million

 members in the organization

•They were indoctrinated in anti-Semitism, and even drafted into the military ranks during WWII

Multiple Choice

Which group was Hitler's private bodyguards that were led by Heinrich Himmler?

• The SA (Brown Shirts)

• The SS (Black Shirts)

• The Gestapo

• Hitler's Youth

Multiple Choice

Which group was Hitler's private army?

• The SA (Brown Shirts)

• The SS (Black Shirts)

• The Gestapo

• Hitler's Youth

Multiple Choice

Which group was made up most children and young adults that was indoctrinated with Nazi ideology?

• The SA (Brown Shirts)

• The SS (Black Shirts)

• The Gestapo

• Hitler's Youth

Multiple Choice

Which group was Hitler's secret police that also set up the concentration camps?

• The SA (Brown Shirts)

• The SS (Black Shirts)

• The Gestapo

• Hitler's Youth

•“Otto Bauer, a 56 year old business man, said on a train in June 1942 that Germans had two alternatives: to kill Hitler or be killed by him. He was overhead by a married couple who reported him [to the Gestapo]. He was beheaded on September 16, 1943 for causing discontent and unrest.”

•It was by using fear that Hitler had stopped freedom of speech and expression – everyone had to obey Nazi policy, or face the consequences!