chancellor to fuhrer

• Enabling Act


  Law created by Hitler that would allow him to make new laws without needing support of other politicians in the Reichstag
• The Enabling Act would bring an end to democracy in Germany
• Why the Reichstag voted for the Enabling Act


  1. Nazi Party used the SA and SS to intimidate politicians before the vote

  2. No more Communist politicians to oppose the Enabling Act due to the Reichstag Fire

  3. Nazi Party had a 2/3rds majority in the Reichstag anyway

  4. Enabling Act was voted for by 444 votes to 94, even though members were threatened and intimidated
• On 2nd August, 1934, President Hindenburg died aged 87
• This automatically meant that Hitler took over supreme power
• Hitler declared himself Germany's Fuhrer and added all of the President's powers to those he already had
• Hitler forced an oath of loyalty to him from every soldier in the army
• A public vote was held on 19th August to confirm Hitler as the Fuhrer
• Bombarded by Nazi propaganda, 90% of voters supported this
• On 19th August The Weimar Republic formally ended and Hitler's Third Reich had begun
• Hitler Banned Political Parties


  1. In May 1933, Hitler sent the SS to the offices of other political parties, arrested their leaders, destroyed their newspapers and took their party funds

  2. In July 1933, Hitler banned all other political parties in Germany
• Hitler Banned the Trade Unions


  1. Trade Union leaders were arrested and trade unions were banned

  2. Strikes by workers were also made illegal
• In January 1934, Hitler abolished the power of regional governments in Germany
• This meant that Hitler would control all regional governments in Germany from Berlin
• Night of the Long Knives


  The evening on 30th June, 1934 when Hitler executed the leader of the SA, Ernst Rohm with around 100 other members of the SA. More than 1,000 others were arrested.
• Hitler wanted no rivals to his power but he began to think that the leader of the SA, Ernst Rohm was a threat to him
• Rohm had been the SA leader from the start and had huge respect from them-in some cases more than Hitler
• The SA numbered around 3 million and they would be able to give Rohm huge support if he ever wanted to challenge Hitler
• Many SA hated Hitler for forming another loyal group of Nazi troops, the SS
• Hitler was also under pressure from the leader of the SS, Heinrich Himmler to reduce the power the SA
• What happened on 30th June, 1934

  1. The SS leaders warned Hitler that Rohm was planning to seize power

  2. Hitler arranged to meet with Rohm and other leaders of the SA at a hotel

  3. When they met, Rohm and other senior SA officers were shot and killed
• Hitler told the public that they had been monitoring Rohm for months and that he was planning a revolution
• Hitler therefore told the public that killing Rohm was in the best interests of Germany and the German people
• The German parliament building was destroyed by a massive fire in February 1933
• A young communist was caught by the building with matches and firelighters by the police. He confessed and was found guilty of the fire. He was then executed in prison in January, 1934.
• How Hitler used this event to his advantage


  1. Despite the young communist being arrested, Hitler used the fire to make the German public and President Hindenburg believe that there was a bigger communist threat against Germany

  2. Now Hitler was in charge of the police, he ordered his newly appointed Chief of Police, Herman Goering to arrest 4,000 communists that same evening
• How Hitler persuaded Hindenburg to give him more power


  1. After the fire, Hitler put pressure on Hindenburg to declare a state of emergency

  2. This meant that Hitler was able to make decisions by himself without a vote from the Reichstag
• What Hitler did with his 'State of Emergency'

  1. Hitler issued a Decree for the Protection of the People which gave him the legal power to imprison anyone he saw as opposition

  2. He banned communist newspapers

  3. He told the German police force to ignore the violence of the SA towards the communists

  4. Hitler used the fear of the Communists to persuaded a wealthy industry owner called Gustav Krupp to give the Nazi Party 3 million marks to fight against the Communist Party
• Now that many Communists had been banned or under arrest, Hitler called for another election
• After a bloody and violent campaign, the Nazis increased their share of the vote dramatically
• Hitler now had enough members in parliament to vote for any laws he wanted and change the constitution of the Weimar Republic as he wanted