FACTORS FOR THE RISE OF HITLER INTO POWER IN GERMANY
Adolf Hitler was born in 1889 at Breionav, Austria Hungary on the border with Germany. Hitler earned his living by painting and selling post cards which obviously earned him little profits. In spite of this humble beginning and miserable experiences, Hitler became an outstanding politician and dictator on the European continent
Several factors helped Hitler to rise to power:-
(a) Popularity of the Nazi party.
The Nazi party was popular in Germany especially between 1932 and 1933. The party raised the hopes for national unity, revising a prosperous economy and improving the living conditions particularly for the unemployed. The party got support from the rich middle class namely the professionals, merchants, civil, servants and other white collar workers.
(b) Antipathy against the Versailles treaty.
Hitler became popular among the Germany nationalists because he promised to overthrow the Versailles settlement. Hitler reminded the Germans that the treaty would not be morally accepted because it discounted Germany yet it case Bismarck time and blood to build.
(c) The communist threat.
The big capitalists of Germany saw in Hitler the protection of their interests against the communists and the socialists. Communism and socialism had grown too strong in Germany because they advocated for nationalization and renglish-swahili/distribution” target=”_blank”>distribution of wealth.
(d) Economic problems.
The economic hardships brought about by the great depression and world war one had disastrous effects in the Germans. There was general discontent and frustration which undermined people‘s confidence in the Weimar Republic because it had no solutions, hence the Germans turned to Hitler.
(e)
Strong personality.
It must be borne in mind that Hitler had a strong character in relation to his political opponents in 1933. He was the most powerful diplomatic figure in Germany politics and an orator of the 20th century. He was so attractive to the Germans by his propaganda and political speeches. He exploited the corruption and mismanagement of the Weimar Republic.
(f) The weakness of the Weimar republic.
The Weimar republic was declared after Kaiser William II fled in 1918. It was the first democratic republic with a democratic constitution. However the republic had so many problems for example it lacked support from the Germans because they argued that it accepted the humiliating and unpopular Versailles treaty with its harsh terms consequently most of the Germans supported the Nazi party.
(g)
Effects of world war one.
The defeat of Germany in the Great War frustrated many Germans. German nationalists like Hitler after remarked that Germany was not defeated, but simply nglish-swahili/betray” target=”_blank”>betrayed by the Kaisers government. There was widespread discontent in Germany ; there was low production that led to scarcity of goods therefore contributing to hero inflation for example in 1923 one British pound was equivalent to 20,000,000,000 marks where as in 1918 it was only 20 marks, with all these hardships, the Germans turned to Hitler.
EFFECTS OF FASCISM AND NAZISM IN EUROPE
1. Outbreak of world war two.
The expansionist polices pursued by Mussolini had a great to play in the outbreak of the Second World War. Hitler and Mussolini wanted to control the whole world. Hitler attacked Australia, Czechoslovakia and finally Poland. The attack of Poland forced Britain and France to drop the appeasement policy and declare war on Germany that caused world war two.
2. Rise of dictators on the European continent.
The political systems of Nazism and Fascism contributed to the rise of dictators on the Europe continent. The governments of Germany and Italy were characterized with the absence of democracy. The press was under state control, political meetings and associations were prohibited. There was no freedom of speech.
3. Collapse of the League of Nations.
The policies of Hitler and Mussolini contributed greatly to the collapse of the League of Nations. The two leaders ignored the resolutions of the league, Italy attacked Ethiopia in 1935, and Germany attacked Austria in 1934 and Poland in 1939. The actions of Hitler and Mussolini weakened the League of Nations and accounted for the eventual collapse in 1945.
4. Weakened the economies of Europe.
Nazism contributed to the decline of the economy of Germany and other European nations. Nazism contributed to the outbreak of the Second World War that contributed to widespread insecurity that disrupted economic activities.The European powers also invested many resources in the war, which contributed to their decline as world powers.
5. Terror and violence.
The policies of Nazism and Fascism brought terror and violence in Europe. Nazism was associated with racial segregation. The Germans believed that their race was the most superior race, they argued that the Jews were contaminating their race hence there is a need to eliminate them. Hitler killed many Jews in concentration camps; it is believed that six million Jews direct died in Nazi hands.
6. Abolition of free market economy.
The policies of Hitler and Mussolini contributed to the abolition of the free market policy in Germany and Italy. The state controlled the economy through price controls and quotas. There was also creation of massive public work as a strategy to address the unemployment problem.
7.
Rise of Zionism.
The actions of Hitler to kill many Jews in concentration camps led to the formation of Zionist movement, this movement aimed at uniting all the Jews and settles them in Palestine. This movement started in the late 19th century and reached its peak in 1948 after Hitler’s Holocaust. This led to the establishment of the state of Israel. The movements name is derived from Zion, the will on which the temple of Jerusalem was located.
