Adolf Hitler’s rise to becoming the absolute leader of Germany was a gradual and calculated one. How did Hitler become the German Chancellor?
Hitler became Chancellor of Germany in 1933 following the federal elections, where the Nazi Party won the most seats. Following the death of President Hindenburg in 1934, Hitler used his emergency powers to declare himself Führer, the absolute leader, and dictator of Germany.
For more on Hitler’s path to becoming the Chancellor of Germany, read on.
Hitler
Adolf Hitler was born on April 20, 1889, in Braunau am Inn, Austria. Hitler served in the German trenches during the First World War and was wounded, suffering a leg injury from a shell blast while in France and temporary blindness from a British gas attack in Belgium.
Hitler was outraged by the restrictions and reparations enforced on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles at the war’s conclusion. The Treaty stipulated that Germany’s military must be downsized and could not possess an air force or submarines. German territory was surrendered to France and Poland, and colonies were taken away.
Perhaps most relevant to the rise of Hitler, Germany was ordered to pay $33 billion in reparations, equivalent to approximately $500 billion a century later. It was an enormous amount, one that an already ailing German economy could not hope to repay.
The result was hyperinflation that destroyed the value of German currency. A few years after repayments started, one US dollar was the equivalent of billions of German marks. Basic commodities such as bread became so astronomically priced that consumers were physically unable to carry enough money.
Nazi Party
Hitler’s rise to power was born out of these dire circumstances, at a time when the German economy and sense of national pride had both been severely damaged. He founded the Nazi Party and used his talent for public speaking to call for a new order to replace the Weimar Republic.
His solution to the perceived flaws in the political system was national unity, with himself as the dictator. He would unify all the German-speaking nations of Europe and racially “purify” the continent.
Hitler used Germany’s Jewish and communist groups as scapegoats for Germany’s misfortune He promoted militarism, expressing his view that war had made humanity great and an extended peace would see it decay.
The Nazi Party was organized with military precision. It had a private army, the Sturmabteilung (SA), which by 1923 included approximately 15,000 men, mostly veterans of the Great War.
In 1923, Hitler and the SA attempted a coup in Bavaria, known as the “Beer Hall Putsch”. The attempt was unsuccessful and Hitler spent a year in a low-security prison, with much of his time spent writing “Mein Kampf”, which served as both an autobiography and manifesto.
Rather than attempting another coup by force, Hitler integrated the Nazi Party into German politics. As Germany’s economic situation worsened, support for Nazi politics grew. The SA also used physical intimidation to coerce people into voting for the party.
Becoming Chancellor
In 1932, Hitler entered the presidential election, coming second to Paul von Hindenburg. Later in the year, the federal elections led to the Nazis controlling the largest number of seats.
Hindenburg reluctantly appointed Hitler to the position of chancellor, while surrounding him with other politicians who he felt would temper some of Hitler’s aggression. When a fire started in the Reichstag, a Dutch communist was arrested and Hitler grasped his opportunity.
Hitler encouraged Hindenburg to grant him emergency powers, restricting the press, allowing for arrests without cause, and transferring power from regional governments to the chancellor.
Hitler quickly exploited his new powers, imprisoning or killing his political opponents. Hindenburg died a year later and Hitler declared himself Führer, the absolute leader of Germany.
He invested heavily in the military and created numerous jobs through projects such as building new roads. Fearing the outbreak of another World War, Britain and France allowed the growth of the German military.
These programs reinvigorated the economy and Hitler planned to repay the debts incurred with the wealth of nations Germany would soon conquer.
The Nazis suppressed any political opposition and Hitler purged the SA on the “Night of the Long Knives”. He removed many of the more thuggish elements and replaced them with the Schutzstaffel (SS), with racial requirements for membership.
In 1938, Germany began its aggressive expansion into neighboring countries. In 1939, it invaded Poland, marking the beginning of World War II in Europe.