Hitler's Rise to Power: 1924-1933
How democratic gridlock allowed Hitler to seize dictatorial powers.
In the 1920s, Hitler was a nobody. Within just a decade, the Nazi politician became the de facto one-man dictator of Germany. How did this happen? What circumstances could have facilitated this unfortunate turn of events?
1924-1929
Having failed his Beer Hall Putsch coup in 1923, Hitler was thrown in jail. From there, he penned his infamous Mein Kampf. The Nazi Party was outlawed.
By the time Hitler got out of jail, Germany’s inflation had already stabilized. Even still, Hitler continued to gain attention and popularity. He continued to give public speeches, which grew his audience. His book sold tens of thousands of copies over the next few years.
In these few years, Hitler was still a minor actor in German politics. He was a nobody. And the conditions which fueled his minor popularity had already been diffused by economic recovery. How on Earth did he become Germany’s dictator?
1929-1932
Things took a turn for the worse in 1929. Germany fell into the Great Depression. The entire world began to suffer. The US stock market crashed in October. The whole world fell into a depression.
Leading up to the parliamentary elections in 1930, held in the Reichstag building, the Nazis were able to get their first significant showing. The party received 18% of the vote, and proportional representation in Parliament. By this time, the Nazis had become serious players in the game of German politics.
Fast forward a couple years, to 1932. Hitler actually made a run for president. Germany’s president at the time was Paul von Hindenburg. The same Hindenburg from the iconic Hindenburg disaster (which inspired Led Zeppelin’s debut album cover). Hindenburg was one of the two leaders of Germany’s military. He was president of the Weimar Republic since 1925. Although Hindenburg won the election, Hitler got a fairly sizable showing. He got 35% of presidential votes.
1933
The Weimar Republic had a strange political system. It was not a presidential system. It was not a parliamentary system. The president and the parliament were both independently elected, and the two would coordinate to organize a coalition government.
The parliament held a number of elections as well. None of the different factions were able to rule independently, so the parties were forced to forge coalitions. There were two parliamentary elections, but still no majority. Meanwhile, the Nazis continued to enjoy support in the Reichstag. Germany was left without a government, in a de facto state of anarchy. There were no acting cabinet. There was no executive. Only gridlock.
The Weimar Republic had an odd system, allowing the president to appoint a chancellor that might not represent the parliament. Hindenburg was not a fan of Hitler, but was convinced that an interim regime under Hitler was necessary. The Nazis were still a minority party, but Hitler managed to get appointed Germany’s chancellor. The chancellor was the German equivalent of a prime minister.
In February, a fire broke out in the Reichstag building. It was done by a Dutch communist. Using it as a pretext, Hitler urged Hindenburg to authorize emergency powers to suspend civil liberties. The Reichstag Fire Decree was passed. Up to this point, all of Hitler’s actions were completely legal. The German constitution allowed for emergency powers.
But how do you go from emergency powers to a dictatorship? Even as Hitler led the government, suspending one liberty after the other, the Germans in parliament still couldn’t elect a majority government. The Nazis made sure to keep it that way, using violent intimidation tactics to prevent any organized political opposition. The March elections turned in their favor, gaining 44% of the vote. Although not a majority, the Nazis had the support they needed to form a coalition government, with Hitler as its chancellor. Hitler’s new elected government took another bold step. It passed the Enabling Act, an amendment to the constitution which enabled the chancellor to enjoy unlimited legislative powers for the next four years. Under this act, the Reichstag effectively ceded its legislative powers to the head of state. By July, the Nazis criminalized all other parties. Now, Hitler had full control.