Nazism: Rise to Power, Dictatorship, and Policies
The Coming to Power of Nazism
In 1920, Hitler founded the NSDAP (National Socialist German Workers’ Party) and created the SA paramilitary groups (Assault Sections) that threatened political opponents. The Munich Putsch, a failed Nazi coup in 1923, resulted in Hitler’s imprisonment. During this time, he wrote *Mein Kampf* (My Struggle), outlining his undemocratic, anti-Semitic ideology, advocating for a single leader, Pan-Germanism, and territorial expansion at the expense of Eastern European peoples.
The 1929 Crisis
The worsening economic and social situation following the 1929 crisis favored radical positions (political polarization). The Nazis gained social support from ruined peasants, unemployed workers, and middle-class bourgeois who feared communist revolution, as well as from nationalist military members. In January 1933, President Hindenburg appointed Hitler as Chancellor (Prime Minister).
The Nazi Dictatorship
Hitler dissolved the parliament and called elections in 1933. He prohibited the media and the activities of the opposition, imposing constraints on the Assault Sections. The Reichstag fire was blamed on communists, which was used as a pretext to suspend individual liberties and reinstate the death penalty. Although the Nazi party did not obtain an absolute majority, with support from Catholics, Hitler achieved the power to make laws for four years and change the constitution. He also assumed the powers of the President of the Republic upon Hindenburg’s death.
Hitler dissolved all parties and unions except for the NSDAP and the Nazi union. He eliminated a section of his party that opposed him and controlled the judiciary. Federal states were centralized, and repression was carried out by the SS, the Gestapo, and the network of concentration camps.
Nazi Economic Policy
The goal was economic autarky. State intervention was strong, prioritizing heavy industry and promoting the manufacture of substitute strategic products. Prices and wages were controlled to curb inflation, and infrastructure was built.
The results included growth in industrial production and full employment. However, workers lost purchasing power and rights, and working hours increased. Inflation was controlled, but the foreign trade deficit was maintained. The benefits of monopoly enterprises and banks increased.
Social Policy
The objective was Aryanization: protecting Aryan racial purity by removing political dissidents, disabled individuals, and ethnic minorities. People with hereditary illnesses were sterilized. The Nazis persecuted Jews, destroying their shops and synagogues, boycotting businesses. The Nuremberg Laws forced Jews to wear identifying badges, prohibited mixed marriages, and deprived them of German citizenship. In 1943, the “Final Solution,” the extermination of Jews, began.
Social and Ideological Cohesion
A nationalist and racist cultural model was implanted. Education was controlled through the Ministry of Culture and propaganda. Teachers with differing ideologies were expelled, free education was suppressed, and textbooks were revised. Youth organizations with Nazi ideals were created, and the role of women was reduced.