The Rise of the Nazi Dictatorship and the Third Reich

The Rise of the Nazi Dictatorship

In the elections of 1932, the Nazi Party received 13 million votes. In January 1933, they arranged for President Hindenburg to appoint Hitler as Chancellor. Soon after, Nazi squads sparked a fire in the Reichstag and blamed the Communists. This incident served as a pretext for Hitler to eliminate his opponents and seize full powers. In 1934, after the death of Hindenburg, he proclaimed himself Führer and Chancellor of the Third Reich.

The Nazi Dictatorship in Germany

In 1934, within a few months, the Nazis transformed Germany into a dictatorship:

• Dissolution of Democracy: All political parties and trade unions were dissolved, Parliament was closed, elections and civil liberties were suppressed, and the systematic persecution of opponents began.
• Monopoly of Power: Only the Nazi Party was allowed to exist.
• Labor Control: Workers were required to join the Labor Front, the only union permitted.
• State Control: The government authorized dismissals based on political and racial grounds. The judiciary lost its independence and became subject to the party's will, while local state authorities were transferred to the Reich.

Social Control and Ideology

The Nazi state aspired to total cohesion of German society, based on the superiority of the Aryan race and National Socialist ideology. The educational system, universities, culture, and art were forced to follow Nazi slogans, leading many artists and intellectuals to flee the country. All literary and artistic production was censored, and public events were held to burn books considered harmful. Women were relegated to a marginal role, limited to the three "Ks": Kinder, Küche, Kirche (children, kitchen, church).

Indoctrination and the Hitler Youth

To ensure the indoctrination of new generations, the regime created the Hitler Youth, which took charge of the leisure and education of young people.

A Regime of Terror

The German state became a police state that imposed its rule through terror. Powerful police forces under the control of Himmler were tasked with pursuing any opposition. The obsession with racial purity led to the systematic persecution of Jews:

• 1933: Boycott of Jewish businesses.
• 1935: The Nuremberg Laws were enacted, preventing mixed marriages and excluding Jews from German citizenship.
• 1938: Jews were forced to wear identifying badges.

Starting in 1933, concentration camps were established to imprison opponents and enemies of the Reich. Many Jews were interned, forced to perform labor, and eventually subjected to extermination.