Day 1
Adolf Hitler becomes Chancellor of Germany
Hitler
Overthrowing Democracy. Installing Fascism.
Hitler Becomes Chancellor
Adolf Hitler (April 20, 1889 – April 30, 1945) began referring to himself as “der Führer” after refounding his party upon his release from prison in February 1925. Over the next few years, the Nazi Party consolidated power by absorbing other political parties. Hitler became recognized as the leader of the German nationalists, alongside other prominent party leaders such as Heinrich Himmler, Joseph Goebbels, and Hermann Göring.
Born in Austria, Hitler renounced his citizenship in 1925, which left him stateless and ineligible to run for public office for seven years. On February 25, 1932, Dietrich Klagges, the interior minister of Brunswick (a state within the German Reich) and a member of the Nazi Party, appointed Hitler as the administrator for the state’s delegation to the Reichsrat. This appointment granted Hitler legal citizenship in Germany. Capitalizing on the fears of the German people during the Great Depression, Hitler and the Nazi Party seized opportunities to rise to power.
In the 1932 election, the Nazi Party established itself as the largest faction of the Reichstag. Hitler ran against President Paul von Hindenburg in the 1932 presidential election and lost after garnering only 36.77% of the votes. His campaign slogan was “Hitler uber Deutschlan” (“Hitler over Germany”). Although he lost to the incumbent, the election established Hitler as a strong force in German politics.
After two additional parliamentary elections in July and November 1932, President Hindenburg reluctantly agreed to appoint Hitler as Chancellor of Germany. The decision came after a period of economic and political instability during which two chancellors failed to stabilize the situation. Ultimately, the support of the conservative elite convinced Hindenburg to appoint Hitler.
Reichstag Fire
Reichstag Fire Decree
Enabling Law
After police searched the building, they arrested Marinus Van der Lubbe, a twenty-four-year-old young man from South Holland. He claimed to have set the fire in an attempt to rally German workers against fascist rule.
Four weeks prior to the Reichstag fire, a new chancellor of Germany was sworn in. He was the Nazi leader named Adolf Hitler. Upon arriving at the scene of the fire, Hitler was met by Herman Goring, the Interior Minister of Prussia, who said, “this is communist outrage! One of the communist culprits has been arrested.”[1] Hitler himself was said to have called the fire a sign from God. He claimed that it was a signal meant to mark the beginning of the communist revolt.
President Paul von Hindenburg signed the Reichstag fire decree at Hitler’s request the next day. This degree suspended most civil liberties in Germany, including habeas corpus, freedom of expression, freedom of the press, the right of free association and public assembly, and the secrecy of the post and telephone. Germany would not reinstate these rights until after the Second World War.
The Reichstag fire was a pivotal moment in the lead-up to the Second World War. Hitler used the incident to gain power and begin his reign of terror. Some historians argue that the Reichstag fire may have been a Nazi false flag operation, an incident committed with the intent of pinning the blame on someone else.
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Hitler becomes Chancellor
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Hitler becomes Chancellor