DESCRIBE
Describe the key features of the Nazi Party in the years 1920-21.
One feature of the Nazi Party at this time was that it formally set out its beliefs in
the Twenty-Five Point Programme. One major belief was that the Nazis wanted
to remove the Jews from German life, revealing their strong anti-Semitism and
extreme beliefs as an integral part of their organisation. Moreover, one of their
foreign policy aims was to achieve ‘Lebensraum’ and to expand German living
space, as they believed Germany deserved more territory being superior
A second feature was that the party started using bullyboy tactics to intimidate
opponents. The Stormtroopers were founded in 1921 and they used to parade in
an organised manner; in brown uniforms and wearing swastikas. They also went
around disrupting left-wing political meetings. This was really appealing to
unemployed ex- soldiers who viewed communists as one of the reasons for their
failure.
Describe the key features of the Reichstag Fire (1993)
One key feature of the Reichstag Fire was that on the 27th February 1933 a Dutch
Communist called Marianus van der Lubbe was arrested at the site of the
Reichstag shortly after it had been destroyed by fire. He confessed to having
started the and van der Lubbe was found guilty and executed. Hitler said that the
fire was part of a communist plot to overthrow the Weimar Republic and
establish a communist dictatorship.
Another key feature was that Hitler and the Nazis were able to exploit the
Reichstag Fire for their own political gain by crippling the opposition. After the
fire, Hitler persuaded Hindenburg to pass a law suspending civil liberties, which
meant Hitler could imprison 4000 political rivals. This meant by the March 1933
election, the Nazis got a massive boost in the chances of getting a majority
Describe the weaknesses of the Weimar Constitution
One of the weaknesses of the Weimar Constitution was proportional
representation. During the 1920s even parties with a small number of votes had
seats in the Reichstag, which meant many different political parties all shared
power in the Reichstag. So no party had a majority and usually they had to come
together to form a coalition. Sometimes the parties in the coalitions fell out
because they wanted different things, making stable government difficult.
Another weakness was the abuse of Article 48. If the parties could not form an
effective government and could not run the country, then Article 48 allowed the
President to suspend the constitution and rule by decree. So the constitution
looked weak and people might lose faith in it, and look for other (more extreme)
alternatives.
Describe the key features of the Nazi Party in the years 1920-21.
One feature of the Nazi Party at this time was that it formally set out its beliefs in
the Twenty-Five Point Programme. One major belief was that the Nazis wanted
to remove the Jews from German life, revealing their strong anti-Semitism and
extreme beliefs as an integral part of their organisation. Moreover, one of their
foreign policy aims was to achieve ‘Lebensraum’ and to expand German living
space, as they believed Germany deserved more territory being superior
A second feature was that the party started using bullyboy tactics to intimidate
opponents. The Stormtroopers were founded in 1921 and they used to parade in
an organised manner; in brown uniforms and wearing swastikas. They also went
around disrupting left-wing political meetings. This was really appealing to
unemployed ex- soldiers who viewed communists as one of the reasons for their
failure.
Describe the key features of the Reichstag Fire (1993)
One key feature of the Reichstag Fire was that on the 27th February 1933 a Dutch
Communist called Marianus van der Lubbe was arrested at the site of the
Reichstag shortly after it had been destroyed by fire. He confessed to having
started the and van der Lubbe was found guilty and executed. Hitler said that the
fire was part of a communist plot to overthrow the Weimar Republic and
establish a communist dictatorship.
Another key feature was that Hitler and the Nazis were able to exploit the
Reichstag Fire for their own political gain by crippling the opposition. After the
fire, Hitler persuaded Hindenburg to pass a law suspending civil liberties, which
meant Hitler could imprison 4000 political rivals. This meant by the March 1933
election, the Nazis got a massive boost in the chances of getting a majority
Describe the weaknesses of the Weimar Constitution
One of the weaknesses of the Weimar Constitution was proportional
representation. During the 1920s even parties with a small number of votes had
seats in the Reichstag, which meant many different political parties all shared
power in the Reichstag. So no party had a majority and usually they had to come
together to form a coalition. Sometimes the parties in the coalitions fell out
because they wanted different things, making stable government difficult.
Another weakness was the abuse of Article 48. If the parties could not form an
effective government and could not run the country, then Article 48 allowed the
President to suspend the constitution and rule by decree. So the constitution
looked weak and people might lose faith in it, and look for other (more extreme)
alternatives.
