HISTORY IGCSE CONTENT - 20TH CENTURY OPTION - DEPTH STUDY GERMANY: HITLER DOMINATING GERMANY BY 1934 - HITLER BECOMING CHANCELLOR BY 1933

1. DEPTH STUDY
NAZI GERMANY
HITLER DOMINATING
GERMANY BY 1934
HITLER BECOMING
CHANCELLOR BY 1933
9

2. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY
THE NAZIS AND WORLD ECONOMIC
DEPRESSION
• The world depression transformed the prospects of the Nazi
Party.
• In Germany there were wage cuts, short-time working,
unemployment, homelessness, and poverty on a scale never
seen before.
• The established parties that made up the Weimar coalitions,
such as Social Democrats, took the blame.
• Voters changed support to the parties that had been the most
critical of the Weimar coalitions, the Communists and the
Nazis.
• The breakthrough point for the Nazis came in the general
election of September 1930.

3. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY
INCREASING NUMBER OF VOTES
• Unemployment stood at more than 2 million and the
Nazis polled over 6 million votes, making them the second
largest party in the Reichstag next to the Social Democrats.
• The Communists, with more than 4.5 million votes were
the third largest party.

4. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY
GENERAL ELECTION RESULTS 1930-1932
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
1930 September 1932 July 1932 November
Percentage of the Nazis and Communists
Nazis Communists

5. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY
NAZIS AND PROPAGANDA
• Over the next 18 months, the economy continued to
deteriorate and the Nazis used any opportunity to attack
the coalition.
• The propaganda machine, led by Josef Goebbels, was
working at full capacity as the Party message was spread
by thousands of posters, pamphlets.
• Those already faithful to the Party were invited to attend
torch-lit parades and mass rallies.
• The Nazis were the masters of spectacle and technology.

6. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY
NAZIS AND PROPAGANDA
• During the 1932 presidential election, when Hitler stood
against Hindenburg, the Nazi leader was flown by
aeroplane from one speaking venue to the next one,
visiting 5 cities per day.
• The depression also boosted the fortunes of the
Communists, who argued that the root of the problem is
the capitalist system.
• Nazis portrayed themselves as the defender of the actual
system, calling the Communist as “scheming
revolutionaries” together with the Jews.
• Wealthy industrialists began contributing to the Nazi Party

7. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY
POLITICAL MANOEUVERINGS 1932-1933
• During the general elections of July 1932, the
unemployment reached 6 million.
• Nazis became the largest party in the Reichstag with 13
million votes.
• Normally, the leader of the largest party was expected to
become a chancellor, but president Hindenburg had no
intentions of appointing a man he had privately described
as “the vulgar little corporal”.
• Instead, Franz von Papen (from Centre Party) was invited
to form a government.
• Without Nazi cooperation, von Papen was unable to

8. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY
Franz von Papen Kurt von Schleicher

9. CAMBRIDGE IGCSE – DEPTH STUDY: GERMANY
SCHEMINGS 1932-1933
• The Nazis lost 2 million votes and 34 seats in this election,
they remained the largest party in the Reichstag.
• Von Papen couldn’t form the government and Von
Schleicher (former general) tried to form the next
government.
• Towards the end of January, von Papen (who was von
Schleicher’s rival) persuaded Hindenburg to appoint Hitler
as chancellor and himself as vice-chancellor.
• Hitler was to be offered 3 positions in a total of 12
ministers.