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Rise of Hitler

Inquiry Questions:
How did the treaty of Versailles effect Hitlers rise to power?

The treaty of Versailles was signed in 1919 and signified the end to the first world war. However, the
treaty imposed harsh penalties towards German by humiliation and blame and abolishing the
German economy. Due to this, the people of Germany developed a hatred towards the allied powers.
This then resulted in Adolf Hitler seizing the opportunity of giving Germany hope by exploiting their
anger and resentment. With the use of propaganda he was able to convince the German people that
he could save them and bring Germany back up to its former glory.

Hitler thus was able to develop the Nazi party and with the help of Germanys economic crisis, food
shortage, land shortage, and the anger and resentment of the German people, Hitler was able to use
propaganda, and motivational speech to influence the German people that he could save then and
that he could revive Germanys greatness. This then allowed him to rise to political power. These
opportunities for his arise would not be possible without the effects of the treaty of Versailles and
Hitlers ability to influence and seize opportunity amongst people in need of help and support.
Hitler’s ability if persuasion was able to bring him to a position in Germanys hierarchy of power to do
as he pleased. His rise led to the beginnings of the second world war as Hitler perceived it as way to
get back what was stolen from Germany after the first world war.

Summary:

The treaty of Versailles was signed in 1919 and thus has been one of the most influential moments in
history to date. The treaty is seen as simply the end to the first world war however, it was also the
beginning of a chain of events that lead to events of the second world war. This began with the harsh
punishments imposed on Germany through the treaty such as de-militarisation, loss of land, large
payments towards the allied nations, and the war guilt clause that stated that Germany was to take
to blame for the destruction of the first world war.

The German economy suffered immensely following the effects of the treaty. Specifically the
payments that were requested by the allied nations. Due to the amount of money that German had
to pay; Germany began to print mass amounts of money in an attempt to pay the depts. However,
this led to German economy experience hyperinflation which effectively began a widespread wave of
unemployment and poverty across Germany.

This is what paved the way for someone such as Adolf Hitler to go down in order to give the people
of Germany hope into what was a bleak and uncertain future for their country. Hitler was able to
harness the resentment and worry of the German people, this gave Hitler popularity amongst the
German people thus promoting his political stand. Through propaganda and influence Hitler was able
to convince the people of German that he would be the one to save them from the poverty and
depressing lifestyles in Germany, Hitler was able to give the people of Germany hope and thus gave
him influential power in the political setting and then his uprising to leadership in 1933.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, this is why the treaty of Versailles was the most influential event in history to
contribute towards Adolf Hitlers uprising. From the punishments opposed onto Germany including
de-militarisation, the loss of land, harsh economic impacts, and the blame for the war. To the effects
of the punishments such as poverty, hyperinflation, and humiliation. This set the way for Hitler to rise
in Germanys social and political systems thus giving him the power to begin the second world war.
Bibliography:

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United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington, DC (2023). Nazi Propaganda. [online]
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United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington, DC (n.d.). Treaty of Versailles. [online]
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impact-of-the-Treaty-of-Versailles-on-the-Weimar-Republic-between-1919-and-1924/#:~:text=The
%20effects%20of%20the%20Treaty.

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