Question

What background problem existed in Nazi Germany that was used by the Bolsheviks/Nazis to undermine the state from within?

Answer 1

Some important backgrounds have to be considered inorder to make sure that the understanding of the Nazi rise.

1) Political unrest:

With the armed forces rebeling against each other, people lost faith in the political framework. This laid easy grounds for parties like the Nazi to overcome and control the minds of the people to rebel against the then powerful people of the country. One of the major turn around was, On the 9 November 1918, having lost the support of the military, and with a revolution underway at home, Kaiser Wilhelm II was forced to abdicate his throne and flee Germany for Holland.

2) Elections of 1933

President Hindenburg signed the Emergency Decree for the Protection of the German People. This decree suspended the democratic aspects of the Weimar Republic and declared a state of emergency. This led to the loss of confidence of people and gave a good reason for Nazi party to gain enough votes and make their political presence more significant. On the 5 March 1933, the elections took place, with an extremely high turnout of 89%. In this 43.3% was won by Nazi.

3) The night of long knives

The Night of Long Knives, also known as the Röhm Putsch, was the purge of the SA leadership and other political opponents from the 30 June 1934 to the 2 July 1934. It was allegedly caused and carried out by the SS and the Gestapo, over 150 people were murdered and hundreds more were arrested.

4) The Nazi Propaganda

When Nazi came to be significant. their propaganda aimed to exploit people’s fear of uncertainty and instability. These messages varied from ‘Bread and Work’, aimed at the working class and the fear of unemployment, to a ‘Mother and Child’ poster portraying the Nazi ideals regarding woman. Along with this , Jews and Communists also featured heavily in the Nazi propaganda as enemies of the German people.

All these led the breaking down of a more liberal era of German politics and economy.