MainIdea Adolf Hitler entered politics by joining the German Workers’ Party in Munich. Hitler took over the party, which was renamed the National Socialist German Workers’ Party or Nazi for short. Hitler and His Views (cont.) After an unsuccessful revolt against the government, Hitler was imprisoned and wrote Mein Kampf, which endorsed German nationalism, strong anti-Semitism, and anticommunism. Hitler expanded the Nazi Party, and it soon became the largest party in the Reichstag. Hitler and His Views (cont.) Hitler won support of the right-wing elites of Germany who, in 1933, pressured the president to allow Hitler to become chancellor and create a new government. The Enabling Act was passed, allowing the government to ignore the constitution for four years while it issued laws to deal with the country’s problems. Hitler and His Views (cont.) With Hitler acting as dictator, the Nazi Party quickly brought all institutions under their control, purged the Jews from civil service jobs, and set up concentration camps. When the president died in 1934, Hitler became the sole ruler of Germany. Hitler and His Views (cont.) The Nazi State, 1933–1939 Hitler used anti-Semitism, economic policy, and propaganda to build a Nazi state. MainIdea Hitler dreamed of creating a purely Aryan state that would dominate the world. To achieve his goal of a Third Reich, Hitler and the Nazis used economic policies, mass demonstrations, organizations, and terror. The Nazi State, 1933–1939 (cont.) Heinrich Himmler directed the Schutzstaffeln, commonly called SS, using terror and Nazi ideology to promote the Aryan master race. Hitler created public works projects to help with the high unemployment rates and end the Depression. The Nazis used mass demonstrations and meetings, such as the Nuremberg party rallies, to gain support and evoke excitement from the German people. The Nazi State, 1933–1939 (cont.) Under Hitler’s regime, women were seen as wives and mothers who would bear the children destined to see the success of the Aryan race. Women were only allowed to work in gender-specific jobs such as nursing and social work, but were highly encouraged to stay at home. The Nazi State, 1933–1939 (cont.) defined anyone with one Jewish grandparent as a Jew excluded Jews from German citizenship stripped Jews of their civil rights The Nazi State, 1933–1939 (cont.) The Nazi Party began expanding their anti-Semitism policies to anti-Jewish boycotts and new racial laws such as the Nuremberg laws: forbade marriages between German citizens and Jews forbade Jews from teaching in schools and participating in the arts required Jews to wear yellow Stars of David and carry identification cards The Nazi State, 1933–1939 (cont.) On November 9, 1938, a more violent phase began with Kristallnacht. Nazis burned synagogues and Jewish businesses and sent 30,000 Jews to concentration camps. The Nazi State, 1933–1939 (cont.) After Kristallnacht, Jews were barred from all public transportation and public buildings, and were prohibited from owning or working in any retail store. The Nazi State, 1933–1939 (cont.) The SS encouraged Jews to “emigrate from Germany.” Summary: The Rise of NAZI GERMANY Losses in World War I and economic devastation led to political struggles in Germany. Hitler’s Nazi Party created a totalitarian state based on racism and German nationalism. The Nazis enforced their will through secret police and concentration camps. CH24_VS_3 rule Germany? The BIG Idea Hitler’s totalitarian state was widely accepted, but German Jews and minorities were persecuted. Human Rights DFS Trans 3 DFS-24_03