The already unstable economic conditions of 1928 were severely intensified on October 29, 1929 when the American Stock Market crashed. When the Depression hit, the German economy was especially vulnerable since it was built out of foreign capital, mostly loans from America. Germany was also very dependent upon foreign trade as they had an extremely strong export market. When America suddenly asked for their money back, and when overseas countries could no longer afford German imports, the well oiled German industrial machine quickly ground to a halt. As production levels fell, German workers were laid off and inflation soon followed, making it hard for families to purchase some necessities with devalued money. Lower and middle class Germans were obviously worst hit. “The Great Depression began and they were cast out into poverty and deep misery and began looking for a solution, any solution. Adolf Hitler knew his opportunity had arrived.”
The Depression affected all parts of German society, and the ramifications were quite terrible. As Geoff Spencely remarks: “As world markets and investments collapsed, economic activity declined everywhere while unemployment increased dramatically. Few countries were affected as badly as Germany, however, and the Weimar Republic visibly wilted under the strain.” Whilst most people were wallowing amongst the economic turmoil, Hitler and the Nazis gained from it. The Government was unable to do anything, as they could rarely ever agree. “The crisis of the Great Depression brought disunity to the political parties in the Reichstag. Instead of forging an alliance to enact desperately needed legislation, they broke up into squabbling, uncompromising groups.” However, Hitler provided the people with hope. The Republic was once again showing its inadequacies in dealing with a major crisis, and to the people, Hitler was really the only option left. In extreme time, people go to the extremes of politics, and that it what the German people began to do.
Victor Schiff was quoted as saying “If there is indeed a point on which there is … no difference of opinion among us, it must surely be that Hitler owes his rise and his ultimate victory essentially to the World Economic Crisis: to the despair of the unemployed proletariat; to the academically trained youth for whom there is no future; to the middle class businessman and craftsman heading for bankruptcy and the farmers threatened with a fall in agricultural pricing.” These people looked to Hitler for a solution. The Great Depression was one of the most significant factors in the Nazis continued rise to power in the 1920’s. The people of Germany had not been able to rely on their government at any crisis situation, and again the Weimar Republic seemed unable to help, so they went to the extremes and looked to Hitler and the Nazi Party for an answer; and they gave one.
The killing of millions of Jews and other “non-Aryans” in the Holocaust is almost undoubtedly the greatest crime against humanity in recorded history, and it was made possible by a unique combination of factors.
Ever since the end of the war, the German people had suffered one problem after another. The numerous governments had done little to help, largely due to the fact that out of the nineteen Weimar governments, not one ruled with a majority, and this inspired little confidence in the people as the governments could take no decisive action. By the end of the 1920’s, a series of events had steadily eroded away the German people’s tolerance of the ineffectual democracy. They were tired of hopeless struggle, and when the Great Depression hit and the Government did very little to aid the people, it was the last straw. A landslide of support went to the Nazis who were promising to return Germany to its former glory.