nazi dictatorship 1933-39

• The Terror State

  Nazis and the Law
• Hitler was determined that the Nazis not be bound by the law and legal systems
• Hitler's word became law, and they found that they did not need to introduce a new constitution or legal system, they just passed laws to make the justice system work to their will
• Citizens were no longer considered equal before the law, and judges were no longer permitted to work independently of government
• People could be arrested, locked up and sent away without a trial, and the law was very inconsistent
• The SS

  Controlled by Himmler, the SS were seen as Hitler's bodyguard
• After the Night of the Long Knives, the SS became the main police force involved in arresting political prisoners
• By 1936 the SS were in charge of the police force and concentration camps
• The use of the SS


  Controlled and systematic, and was a key way of keeping Nazi control
• The SD


  Established in 1931 as an offshoot of the SS, led by Heydrich, the internal security of the Nazi Party
• Once in power, the SD was used to gather intelligence and monitor public opinion, report on dissidents, and report back to Hitler
• The SD worked separately to the Gestapo and was not staffed by police officers, but committed Nazis
• Concentration Camps


  Essentially prisons which the prisoners were forced to work in, not the same as extermination camps
• The first concentration camp was Dachau, near Munich, and the majority of prisoners were political opponents
• The Nazis brutally tortured inmates, which made them less likely to continue resistance once released
• After 1934 all concentration camps were under SS control and the treatment of prisoners became systematised
• Once the political opponents were dealt with, they moved on to dealing with undesirables and asocials
• Camp guards were given immunity from persecution by Himmler
• The Gestapo


  The secret state police, dealing with intelligence and had a reputation for being all knowing
• Although ordinary Germans believed that there were agents everywhere, it was actually a relatively small organisation
• Most agents were based in the office and were professional police rather than Nazi members
• They depended on information supplied by informers, people who spied on neighbours and workmates for example
• The Gestapo received an overwhelming volume of information from informers so couldn't act on all intelligence
• People adjusted their behaviour, so criticism was stifled and many lived in an atmosphere of fear and suspicion
• Nazi Propaganda Aims

  • Establish coordination between government and population
  • Abolish resistance
  • Encourage people to support them
  • Spiritual mobilisation of the German people
• Resistance Political Resistance

  Resistance to the Nazi regime
• Nazi control over the school system

  • Control over the teachers
  • Control over the curriculum
• Groups expected to mount resistance to Hitler


  • SPD
  • KPD
• How the Nazis controlled the school system

  1. Dismissed teachers for political alliance or being Jewish

  2. Vetted textbooks

  3. Pressured teachers to join the regime's teaching union

  4. Indoctrination permeated every area of the school curriculum
• Hitler feared the unions linked to the SPD would stage a general strike to stop the Nazi takeover
• Hitler's consolidation of power

  • Differences within the Nazi party on next steps
  • Hitler's view to gain dictatorial power, eliminate opposition, and takeover institutions
• Due to divisions within and between the SPD and KPD, they posed no serious threat to Hitler
• Importance of academic education under the Nazis

  Downgraded, access to higher education (universities) severely restricted
• Economic Policies


  The Roles of Schacht and Goering
• Creation of a one-party state

  1. Banning of other political parties

  2. Outlawing of new political parties
• The SPD were unprepared for a Nazi takeover, and although they campaigned against the Nazis, they faced the most action and violence from the SA
• When Hitler was appointed chancellor in 1933, the NAZI party did not have a coherent and carefully thought out economic policy
• The KPD was better prepared, but the Gestapo worked hard to ensure that there was little threat from the Communists
• The KPD had been essentially disbanded and banned, with members in exile or concentration camps
• Restrictions on access to universities

  • Women restricted to 10% of places
  • Jews restricted to 1.5% of places