Section 3

Hitler and His Views

Adolf Hitler’s ideas were based on racism and German nationalism.

Section 3

• 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.)

Section 3

• 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.)

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• 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.)

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• 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.)

Section 3

The Nazi State, 1933–1939

Hitler used anti-Semitism, economic policy, and propaganda to build a Nazi state.

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• 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.

• Heinrich Himmler directed the Schutzstaffeln, commonly called SS, using terror and Nazi ideology to promote the Aryan master race.

The Nazi State, 1933–1939 (cont.)

Section 3

• 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.)

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• 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.)

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• The Nazi Party began expanding their anti-Semitism policies to anti-Jewish boycotts and new racial laws such as the Nuremberg laws.

The Nazi State, 1933–1939 (cont.)

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• The Nuremberg Laws:

– defined anyone with one Jewish grandparent as a Jew

– excluded Jews from German citizenship

– stripped Jews of their civil rights

– forbade marriages between German citizens and Jews

The Nazi State, 1933–1939 (cont.)

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– 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.)

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• 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.)

Section 3

• After Kristallnacht, Jews were barred from all public transportation and public buildings, and were prohibited from owning or working in any retail store.

• The SS encouraged Jews to “emigrate from Germany.”

The Nazi State, 1933–1939 (cont.)

THE END OF SECTION 3