Rise Of Adolf Hitler Essay, Research Paper
Weimar and the Rise of Hitler After World War I the allies intended to permanently cripple Germany. Throughthe Versailles Treaty they would do this. The document stole Germany s nationalism,pride, and power. It left Germany helpless and lost. Many believed that Germany had beenabsolutely exploited and cheated under the terms of the treaty. At the time nobody knew,but the Versailles Treaty would be the very seeds of the next world war. The end of World War I shocked many people. Most of these people were thecitizens of Germany. The German army intended to deliver the German Offensive of 1918,this final attack would guarantee German victory. The government then pushed theGerman citizens to hang on just a little longer so they may be the victorious country. Thegovernment controlled the flow of information to the German citizens using propaganda,this information mislead them to believe that they were just about to win. But because ofthe United States admission to the war, Germany was forced into submission. The citizens of Germany were outraged. They had been mislead and they were fullof questions. They wondered why many of their soldiers were still in the city of Belgium,if they had really lost, why wasn t Germany invaded? They also wondered why thegovernment had said they were just about to win. Naturally, the country of Germany decided to point fingers on who was to blamefor the loss. Many people, including Adolf Hitler, blamed the Jews and communists. Onceagain, anti-Semitism plays a role in our world s history. The Jews have been blamed forthe death of Jesus, the black plague, and many other events. This is purely because of pureignorance. Germany despised the Treaty of Versailles. One of the articles of the treaty wasthat Germany limit their army to 100,000 men. Since Germany glorified the army as thenumber one thing in the country, it stabbed Germany s pride and militarism. The countrywas also forced to pay reparations and accept guilt for the war. Germany felt they had noteven started the war and it was extremely unfair to pay reparations. Germany was alsoforced to give up their colonies. The country felt cheated and angry at the VersaillesTreaty. Germany felt exploited, and many sought to avenge what they had lost. The Weimar Republic was instantly blamed for signing the Versailles Treaty. Manycalled the Weimar Republic traitors for the signing the treaty. While this was going on,facts were hidden from the citizens of Germany. The actual German military officers hadpushed the German Kaiser for peace. The officers wanted to keep their honor and prestigein the eyes of the public. So this fact was left to be a secret. The government of Germany between 1919 and 1932 was the Weimar Republic.Many despised this because Germany had never had a democratic government. They alsolooked at the people of Weimar as traitors for signing the Versailles Treaty. These werethe causes of Weimar s distrust and unpopularity. The NSDAP party intended to turn thegovernment of Germany around. In 1932, the four major political parties in Germany were very different. Thedemocratic SPD intended to concentrate on working class rights. They wanted tocut-down on Germany s militarism attitude to benefit the working class. The communistKPD party intended to form a non-class society, so the lower class may refrain from beingstarving slaves. They too, wanted to rid the Weimar government and cut down on militaryspending. The religious Center Party were democratic Catholics, who saw a future filledwith better moral values. They wanted to outlaw abortion and concentrate on growing theeconomy by using taxation appropriately. Then there was the determined NSDAP party filled with nationalism. The Nazissoul purpose was to reject the Versailles Treaty, and regain what Germany had lostbecause of it. Hitler told the citizens of Germany that they had been stabbed in the back.
Hitler told them that the other parties were weak because they had no intention to rid thedocument which gave Germany the position they lay in. The NSDAP intended to giveback the German pride by rebuilding the army, replace the democratic government withone strong leader, and purge the corrupting non-Aryan influences. The NSDAP wasdetermined and ready to take action. This influenced many of the German citizens. TheNSDAP was impressive, compelling, and determined to change Germany for the better. The democratic constitution was fatally flawed. Article 48 was the fatal virus: Inthe Reich President s opinion, if he felt the country was in a moment of desperation, hecould take matters in his own hands, and suspend the Fundamental Rights. This includedhelp from any armed forces. This fact gave dictatorship powers to the president indirectly. Because of the extreme nationalism and will to take action in the NSDAP party,many people hoped to use the Nazi party. The Weimar republic believed they could useHitler to purify Germany by ridding the Jews and communists, then after, they couldcontrol Hitler. After the NSDAP took 37% of the votes and won the election, many ofHindenburg s advisers believed that Hitler would be closely watched by the primeministers from doing any drastic moves when ruling the government. So on January 30,1932, Hindenburg gave the title of chancellor to Hitler. Then after the death ofHindenburg, Adolf Hitler was given the chance of becoming the dictator of Germany. Hitler made extraordinary moves in the country of Germany. Hitler outlawed any political party but the NSDAP in Germany. He justified this law by saying that the otherparties were ruining Germany s purity and German values. This included the brilliant planof burning the Reichstag, and framing the communists. He explained to the Germancitizens that all the other parties were traitors, because they did not seek to destroy theVersailles treaty. Another move was the article made in March 24, 1933. The EnablingLaw was the final piece to the absolute dictatorship. This allowed Hitler to decree any laweven if it conflicted with the constitution. So the fatal virus of the democratic constitutiondid have effect on the country of Germany. Hitler could now do as he pleased, and he did.He outlawed Jews marrying Germans, he outlawed Jews from voting, he made it clearthat no Jew be citizen of Reich, and held the army under oath to be loyal and follow ordersof the Fuehrer. Hitler declared himself Fuehrer, the dictator, an absolute monarch. In a time of desperation, emergency, or distress, a country needs someone to takeimmediate action. These times were present in Germany in 1933. The citizens of Germanywere hungry, in need, and unnourished. The Nazi party and Hitler promised immediateaction. Since it seemed as if Germany had been going nowhere fast, many were influencedby the intentions of the Nazi party. Because the public despised democracy, they were infavor of having one strong leader in the country. Hiter stressed the most important thing ina country is the people. He hypnotized people during his speeches because he was veryinfluential and compelling. The Nazi party changed many lost and confused minds to befollowers filled with nationalism and determination. Hitler was an extremist. Hitler was aleader, a brilliant organizer, and an excellent orator. These qualities, plus the dilemma inthe country of Germany, equals an absolute monarchy. If we learn from the rise of Hitler, our world shall never experience the things inthe ensuing events of World War II again. We must learn from our mistakes to prevent thesame things to happen in the future. Throughout history an influential man has takencharge over a broken group, country, or organization. The result may be good or bad.Clearly, the rise of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party was one of the worst episodes in thehistory of our world. Those who choose not to learn of the past are doomed to repeat it. -Winston Churchill