Creating a Dictatorship

What did Hitler do to create a dictatorship?

Hitler consolidated his power by creating a dictatorship. He used the Reichstag Fire to gain the power he needed to be able to pass the Enabling Act in March 1933. This law enabled him to remove all groups, institutions or organisations that could oppose him.

When did Hitler create a Nazi dictatorship?

Hitler created his dictatorship and consolidated his power between January 1933 and August 1934.

What did Hitler do to create a dictatorship?

There were 10 main steps that Hitler took to create a Nazi dictatorship and consolidate his power:

• ❖ He used the Reichstag Fire to gain emergency powers under the Decree for the Protection of the People and the State which suspended all civil rights.
• ❖ He used this power to attack his rivals, the Communist Party.
• ❖ After the March 1933 election, he gained the support of the Centre Party and the German National People's Party to achieve a 2/3 majority in the Reichstag so he could pass the Enabling Act.
• ❖ Nazi officials were put in charge of all local government on 7th April, 1933.
• ❖ All independent trade unions were banned and replaced with the Nazi German Labour Front on 2nd May, 1933.
• ❖ The 'Law against the Formation of the New Parties' was passed on 14th July, 1933 which made all political parties illegal except the Nazi Party.
• ❖ In January 1934, all local governments were taken over (regional Länder parliaments were abolished) and Hitler appointed governors to run them instead.
• ❖ During the Night of Long Knives, on 30th June, 1934, Hitler had the SS murder possible rivals in the SA.
• ❖ When President von Hindenburg died on 2nd August, 1934, Hitler declared himself Germany's Führer, a role that combined the powers of the chancellor and the president.
• ❖ The army then swore an oath of loyalty to Hitler.

How did Hitler control the trade unions in his dictatorship?

Hitler controlled the trade unions through 3 main modes of suppression:

• ❖ He banned all independent trade unions on 2nd May, 1933 and replaced them with the Nazi German Labour Front to control the workers.
• ❖ Workers could no longer complain about pay and conditions or go on strike.
• ❖ Trade union leaders were thrown in jail.

How did Hitler control political parties in his dictatorship?

Hitler also controlled political parties through 3 main modes of suppression:

• ❖ The 'Law against the Formation of the New Parties' was passed on 14th July, 1933 and this made all political parties, except the Nazi Party, illegal.
• ❖ Now, the Nazis could round up all political opposition, arrest them and put them in concentration camps.
• ❖ All other political parties were closed down, including their newspapers.

How did Hitler control local government in his dictatorship?

Hitler controlled local governments in 3 key ways:

• ❖ By April 1933, Hitler's puppet local governments were in charge of the local police forces. The Gestapo was formed and the first concentration camp for political prisoners opened in Dachau.
• ❖ In January 1934, the Nazis took control of all regional, or Länd, governments by abolishing the regional, or Länder, parliaments.
• ❖ Hitler appointed governors who answered directly to him to run the regions instead.

What did Hitler do to the role of president in his dictatorship?

When President von Hindenburg died on 2nd August, 1934, Hitler declared himself Germany's Führer. It was a role that combined the powers of the chancellor and the president.