Marymount Secondary School

S3 History
Totalitarianism (Nazism)

RISE OF TOTALITARIANISM
Definition of totalitarianism

Case study: Hitler and Nazi Germany

1. Adolf Hitler
⚫ Born in Austria, he had lived in Germany from 1912 onwards.
⚫ He had been a brave soldier on the Western Front during World War One, winning
the Iron Cross twice. He could not accept that Germany had lost the war.
⚫ In 1919, he joined the German Workers’ Party and became the leader and
changed the name to the National Socialist German Workers’ Party (Nazis).
⚫ He was a charismatic speaker and the party grew under him.
⚫ He attempted to take power illegal in 1923 but failed. He was imprisoned briefly
afterwards. His book Mein Kampf contained many of his ideas which became
Nazism.
⚫ He became the Fuhrer (the top leader) of Nazi Germany during the period 1933-
45.
(This serves as background only.)

2. Nazism/Nazi ideas

(a) Superiority of the Aryan race

⚫ Hitler believed that the Aryan race was the superior and master race in the world
and other races were inferior.
(b) Anti-Semitism
⚫ He believed the Jews was an inferior race in the world. They were responsible
for Germany’s problem and to be exterminated.
(c) Repudiation of the Treaty of Versailles
⚫ He wanted to reverse the Treaty of Versailles because he found it unjust.
(d) Lebensraum (living space)
⚫ He claimed that the Germans had a right to more living space to live, and the
space was to be sought in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union.
(e) Totalitarianism

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⚫ Hitler was anti-democracy and believed in the rule of the elite. Individuals were
unimportant. They had to believe, obey and follow the party and the (party)
leader.
(f) Anti-communism
⚫ Hitler hated communism. Communism was founded by a German Jew. Given
his anti-Jewish feeling, it was not surprising that Nazism was anti-communist by
nature.

Why did Hitler come to power in Germany in 1933?

Factors contributing to the rise of Hitler

1. The Treaty of Versailles

⚫ The ‘war guilt clause’, the reparations, the disarmament and territorial
arrangements of the Treaty of Versailles brought harm and disgrace to the
Germans. Many Germans denied that they had lost the war and blamed the
government who had agreed to the Armistice and signed the Treaty of Versailles.
The government was seen as weak and ineffective, as it signed the Treaty of
Versailles which made living conditions worse in Germany. So the Treaty of
Versailles paved the way for the rise of strong leadership in Germany.
⚫ After the Great Depression, Hitler was able to win people’s support by promising
to undo the Treaty of Versailles and making Germany great again.
(Please refer to the notes on the impact of the Treaty of Versailles on Germany)

2. The Great Depression 1929

⚫ The Great Depression of 1929 was a turning point in the fate of the Nazis. Before
1929, the economy of Germany was prosperous. The Nazi Party was not popular.
In the 1928 election, the Nazis had 12 Reichstag members only. However, the
Great Depression hit Germany hard, the economy collapsed, resulting in the
unemployment of six million people. It provided an opportunity for Hitler and
his Nazi Party. Hitler promised to get these people back to work. Through clever
campaigning and brilliant speaking skills, Hitler gained support in many parts of
Germany. After 1929, as the economy got worse, the Nazi Party had more
support and became much more popular. By 1929, membership of the Nazi
Party had risen to nearly 200,000. The Nazi Party gained 107 seats in 1930
election and rose to 230 in the 1932 election. It became the largest political party

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 in 1932. Although the Nazi lost some seats in November election in the same
year, the Nazi remained the largest political party. As the head of the party,
Hitler was appointed to be the chancellor who took office in January 1933.

3. The role of Hitler and the Nazi Party

⚫ The charisma of Hitler, plus the strong organization of the Nazi Party, made them
ideally the best option for the Germans.
⚫ Hitler was a master opportunist who analyzed the conditions of Germany during
the Great Depression and gave people the promises they wanted.
⚫ Hitler was a gifted speaker and he won the people over by promises like jobs,
strong government, glory and prestige. The Nazis were excellent in using
propaganda to present Hitler and the Nazi as the ‘saviour’ for Germany. Thus,
people were attracted to vote for the Nazi Party in elections.

Conclusion:

The Treaty of Versailles made the German government unpopular (because it signed
the treaty). When life got better between 1924-1928, nobody paid attention to the
Nazis. In 1929, the Great Depression affected Germany severely, this gave Hitler the
opportunity. Through excellent campaigning skills, Hitler presented his party as the
best option for Germany to carry the country through difficulty. The Nazi Party
became the largest political party in election in 1932 and Hitler finally came to power
in 1933.

In what ways/How did Hitler come to power?

⚫ Hitler came to power by legal means, which is election. He was appointed as

the chancellor because he was the head of the largest political party in Reichstag
(parliament).

Nazi Germany 1933-39

1. Meaning of totalitarianism

⚫ It refers to a political system in which only one party is allowed. There is only
one leader – the dictator – who rules the country. The party controls nearly
every aspect of life of the people.

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2. Features of totalitarianism in Nazi Germany/Life under the Nazis

Totalitarianism means the dictator and the party controlled all aspects of life of the
people.

Political aspect

-Basically, the government kept the people under control by setting up a one-party
dictatorship, secret police and concentration camps. There were severe consequences
if people failed to comply.

(a) One man dictatorship

⚫ Hitler was the Fuhrer with supreme status in Germany.
(b) One party dictatorship
⚫ Germany under the Nazis was a one-party dictatorship. After coming to power,
Hitler outlawed the other political parties. The Nazi Party was the only legal
party and also the ruling party. Hitler was the Fuhrer who was in absolute
control.
(c) Police state
⚫ Nazi Germany was a police state. Secret police, Gestapo, was created to eliminate
all opponents. The secret police had power to arrest and interrogate people.
(d) Suppression of opposition
⚫ Opponents would be imprisoned, sent to concentration camps or even executed.

Economic aspect

-Basically, the government controlled the economy including deciding the economic
policies and priorities.
(a) A large scale of public works was launched to solve the problem of unemployment.
⚫ Motorways or autobahns were built. Railways were extended.
⚫ There were major house-building programmes.
⚫ Conscription was also announced to reduce unemployment.
(b) People were controlled to prevent disruptions. E.g. no independent trade union
was allowed. Strikes were not allowed either.
(c) A Four-Year Plan was launched in 1936 to prepare the German economy for war.

Social aspect

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-Basically, all social media and education were controlled for promoting the leader, the
government and the party so that they would support Hitler and his policies.

(a) Censorship
⚫ The Nazis controlled all public information to make sure that no criticisms or bad
images of the party and Hitler were revealed to the public.
(b) Propaganda
⚫ Radio, films and newspapers were intended to promote Nazi ideas and policies
among the public. For example, the Nazis took control of the German film
industry. German films of the 1930s showed great German heroes defeating
their enemies. The Nazis used sporting events to spread their propaganda. The
1936 Berlin Olympics was used by the Nazis to suggest the superiority of the
Aryan race.
(c) Indoctrination in education
⚫ All teachers were required to teach the Germans the Nazi ideas.
⚫ Textbooks were re-written to include subject like Race studies and the Nazi
version of history
(e) Youth organizations
⚫ Boys and girls were to join young organizations. Boys went to Hitler Youth and
girls joined the League of German Maidens. They were taught to support Hitler.
Girls were taught about the role of women to have lots of children and be good
wives and mothers. The Nazis wanted women to stay at home rather than
working.

Anti-Semitism: The Nazi treatment of the Jews

Hitler thought that the Jews were one of the most inferior races. They were
responsible for many Germany’s problems. They received the worst treatment of all
those persecuted by the Nazis

1. In 1933, the Nazis organized a boycott of all Jewish businesses, doctors, dentists,
etc. Jewish shops were marked with the star of David and the word ‘Jude’.
2. In 1935, the Nazis passed the Nuremburg Laws. According to these laws, Jews
were no long German citizens. Intermarriages between Jews and Germans were
strictly forbidden. All Jews were forced to wear a yellow Star of David on their
clothes.
3. Jews were sent to concentration camps where they were tortured as slave labour.

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 Later, the Nazi policy turned many of these camps into death camps aiming at
extermination of the Jewish race.
4. During the war, Jews all over Nazi-occupied Europe (especially Eastern Europe)
were sent to concentration camps and killed in the gas chambers. The most
infamous one was the Auschwitz in Poland. This event was known as ‘Holocaust’.