Money makes the world go round, in the case of Germany in 1933, it allowed a certain Adolf Hitler to rise to power.
I disagree with this statement as I feel that besides money issues, Hitler`s own attributes allowed him to rise to power, such as being an excellent speaker and a charismatic leader and reorganising the nazi party.
After world war 1, Germany had a lot of debts. So, the Weimar Government had to print more money to pay of their debts. But, this lead to hyper-inflations and many Germans become poor. Although the economy recovered in the end the weimar government still lost the support of the middle class because they felt that weimar government had failed them.So, they would want to choose a different Government such as hitler.Thus, Germans being poor allowed Hitler to rise to power.
One other point would be Hitler being an excellent speaker and a charismatic leader. Many people would listen to hitlet talk for hours because they thought that Hitler understood their problems and because hitler told them what they wanted. This ability also saved him when he was in court for overthrowing the Weimar Government.Hitler was sympathetic and sentenced Hitler to 5 years of jail. So, this allowed hitlet to rise to power because he was able to gain many support from the people and was allowed to survive the trial because of this ability and eventually took power.
Another point would be Hitler`s ability to reorganise the Nazi Party. Initially, the Nazi party had the least seats and votes. But, after hitler set up branches of the nazi party in different pars of Germany, created a youth movement and large public meetings . Hitler was able to gain alot ofsupports for the nazi party which help the nazi partygain most seats and votes in the end.So, because of the hitler`s ability to reorganise the party, he was able to rise to power since he was the leader of the nazi party, which was the most powerfull party.
Saturday 11 August 2012
Sunday 5 August 2012
A commentary on the reliability of "The Eternal Jew"" poster
Source1: A movie poster from the movie ' The eternal Jew'
Jews are the vermin of the human race and similarly spread disease and corruption. Unlike rats, however, the narrator continues, Jews have the uncanny ability to change their appearance and blend into their "human hosts." A scene depicts four bearded men in traditional religious Jewish clothing, then shows them shaved and in modern business suits, while the narrator explains that only a "trained eye" can distinguish their Jewish features.
Since the Jew is not the attacked but the attacker, not only anyone who attacks passes as his enemy, but also anyone who resists him. But the means with which he seeks to break such reckless but upright souls is not honest warfare, but lies and slander. Here he stops at nothing, and in his vileness he becomes so gigantic that no one need be surprised if among our people the personification of the devil as the symbol of all evil assumes the living shape of the Jew.
Source 3: Hitker's Willing Executioners, written by Daniel Jonah Goldhagen
The perpetrators of the anti-Jewish slaughter, Mr. Goldhagen contends, did not kill Jews because of threats or some German propensity for obeying authority. They participated in the slaughter because they were steeped in a historical culture of anti-Semitism. They tortured and massacred Jews, starved them, toyed with them, punished them for their birth, and they did so voluntarily, even eagerly, with unsurpassable malice and cruelty.
Source 1 is not reliable because the movie was made to show how terrible the Jews were and to show hatred to the Jews, so , they would obviously show only the bad side of the Jews.Also, by referring to Source 2 and Source 3, the sources said "they tortured and massacred Jews, starved them, toyed with them, punished them for their birth, and they did so voluntarily, even eagerly, with unsurpassable malice and cruelty" and "here he stops at nothing, and in his vileness he becomes so gigantic that no one need be surprised if among our people the personification of the devil as the symbol of all evil assumes the living shape of the Jew." Although the two sources was about showing hatred to the Jews and showing how bad they were, the two sources were written by Adolf Hitler and Daniel Jonah Goldhagen, who both hated Jews, so they would also show just the bad side of the Jews. And because all of the sources were written to make the Jews look bad and had a bias tone, Source 1 is unreliable.
Source 1 is not reliable because the movie was made to show how terrible the Jews were and to show hatred to the Jews, so , they would obviously show only the bad side of the Jews.Also, by referring to Source 2 and Source 3, the sources said "they tortured and massacred Jews, starved them, toyed with them, punished them for their birth, and they did so voluntarily, even eagerly, with unsurpassable malice and cruelty" and "here he stops at nothing, and in his vileness he becomes so gigantic that no one need be surprised if among our people the personification of the devil as the symbol of all evil assumes the living shape of the Jew." Although the two sources was about showing hatred to the Jews and showing how bad they were, the two sources were written by Adolf Hitler and Daniel Jonah Goldhagen, who both hated Jews, so they would also show just the bad side of the Jews. And because all of the sources were written to make the Jews look bad and had a bias tone, Source 1 is unreliable.
Sunday 29 July 2012
It is five years into Hitler's reign of power
The lives of the people of Germany has changed a lot under Hitler's leadership. In general, the people of Germany had little freedom, Jews were treated badly and Nazism was a big part of the German's lives.
- The people of Germany had little freedom
-The SS and the Gestapo
 |
| The Gestapo |
The SS ( Schutzstaffel or Elite Guard) was Hitler's personal bodyguard unit . Whereas, the Gestapo was the secret police, a police force that works in secret to destroy the government's opponents. They arrested and sometimes killed all those who opposed Hitler and the Nazi Party. The Gestapo was also above the law. These struck fear into the Germans and made people be scared to oppose Hitler.
- Hitler using emergency laws
 |
| A court filled with Nazism |
 |
| A Quarter Warden |
- The informers
Every town was divided into smaller units called viertels ( quarters ). Each quarter had a warden who was a Nazi. He would visit the houses in his quarter every week to check and gather information on everyone , he also had reports on all of them. The people of Germany were also encouraged to report on their families and neighbours who did not show their full support for Hitler. This means that the Germans must show their support to the Nazis.
- Jews being treated cruelly
 |
| Propaganda against Jews |
Hitler strongly opposed marriage between Germans and Jews because he felt that this would weaken the German race. Hitler also convinced many Germans that the Jews were responsible for all the bad things that were happening in Germany despite the fact that the population of Jews in Germany was about 1%. When Hitler came to power, all Jews were not allowed to have jobs in the government and media, Jews were banned from attending schools and theatres and they could not trade or own shops or business in Germany. And after World War II, the Nazis attempted to kill all the Jews in Germany and all the Jews in the lands that they conquered. More than 6 millions Jews were killed. So in short, Jews were seen as untouchables and they were treated cruelly.
- Nazism being a big part of the German's livesNazism was a big part of the German's lives because of the use of propaganda and the youths being brainwashed by the Nazis.
- Propaganda
A radio station owned by the Nazis One of Hitler's most trusted minister, Joseph Goebbels, played an important role in spreading Nazi propaganda in Germany to gain the people's support for Hitler. The Nazis bought all radio stations and had total control of the radio. Radios were installed in all public areas and work areas, they were also sold at a low price. Orders would be given for everyone to switch on their radios and listen to Hitler's speech whenever he makes one. The Nazis also controlled all the cinemas, movies could only be shown when they were approved by the Nazis . Also before the start of all movies, short films, which highlighted the achievements of the Nazis, which contained Nazi beliefs, had to be shown. The Ministry of Propaganda made sure that the Germans only hear,read or see what the government want them to.- Youths being brainwashed by the Nazis
Hitler wanted all youths to be Nazis. He did this by setting up Nazi youth organisations and controlling their education system. In the Nazi youth organisations, boys went through programmes of military athletics while girls learnt how to be physically fit and how to take care of babies Also, it would be easier for youths to enter universities or obtain jobs if they joined the Nazi youth organisations, so they would obviously be tempted to join the organisation. But, the main purpose of the Nazi youth organisation was to teach the youths of Germany that they should believe only Nazi ideas. The Nazis controlled the education system by making sure that all teachers had the ability to teach Nazi beliefs in classrooms and making sure that all subjects being taught had something to do with the praising of Nazis or Germany. The main objective of changing the education system was to teach Nazi ideas and to instill a sense a of loyalty to Nazism in all German Youths.
So, did the lives of the people improve under Hitler's leadership?
Because of all these, I believe that the lives of the people of Germany, especially the Jews, did not improve under Hitler's leadership.
Thursday 12 July 2012
-Hitler's Rise to Power -
~ How Hitler Rose to power ~
Adolf Hitler's rise to power began in Germany in September 1919. When Hitler joined the political party that was known as the German worker party, and was later commonly referred to the Nazi Party. This political party was formed and developed during the post-World War I era.The Nazi Party was anti-communism and was opposed to the democratic post-war government of the Weimar Republic and the Treaty of Versailles. It advocated extreme nationalism , Pan-Germanism and virulent anti-Semitism.
Hitler was also motivated by his strong desire for security, stability and peace.
There are many reasons on how Hitler rose to power, two of the main factors are "The Weimar Government's weakness" and " Hitler's Abilities".
The Weimar Government's weakness
The Weimar Government had many weakness like making the constitution and the system of proportional, being opposed by the right , being opposed by the left not having the ability to keep order in the country, losing the support of the middle class and losing a capable leader.
These are some information about those weakness :
The Weimar Government was also unable to keep order in the country. They spent much time trying to suppress riots and attempts to overthrow the government. The Weimar Government's army was unable to stop the Communist revolts and had to often rely on the Freikorps ( Free Corps ) to put down Communist revolts. Many people tried to overthrow the government like Hitler and The Kapp Rebellion. The members of the Weimar Government became the targets of attacks. Between 1919 to 1922, a total of 376 members were murdered. All these made the people of Germany lose confidence in the Weimar Government's abilities to maintain law and order in the country.
Many people would listen to Hitler talk for hours because he seemed to understand their problems, he also told them what they wanted to hear. Shortly after Hitler joined the German Worker's Party, it was renamed to National Socialist German Worker's Party. However, the party was popularly known as the Nazi Party to the Germans. Hitler's speaking ability and charismatics saved him when he was in court for trying to overthrow the government. Hitler could have received the death sentence, but because of his speech, the judge felt sympathetic towards him and sentenced him to jail for five years. But, nine months after he was jailed, Hitler was released from jail because of his good behavior.
During the Great Depression , many Germans suffered the hardships of the Great Depression. This made the Germans believe that the Weimar Government failed them and made the Germans willing to support extremist politicians who seemed to offer more effective ways of solving Germany's problems. Both the Nazi Party and the Communists became very popular. However, Hitler exploited feat of communism to win more support. He used propaganda to spread fear , he said that Communists were only interested in creating disorder and starting a revolution in Germany , whereas, the Nazi Party was the only political party which could prevent the Communists from setting up Communist dictatorship. He also told the rich people that the Communist would take away their property and give it to the workers. This made many rich Germans support the Nazis, they also gave the Nazis financial support. Hitler then used the money to recruit a private army, the Strumabteilung ( Stormtroopers ), to commit many acts of violence towards Communists. All these allowed Hitler to gain more support than the Communists.
In the 1928 elections , the Nazis won less than 3% of the votes, in the 1930 elections, they won over 18% of the votes. And in the July 1932 Elections, the Nazis won 37.3% of the votes and became the party with the most votes, this placed the Nazi in a powerful position because no coalition government could govern without the support of the Nazis. Hitler refused to join any coalition unless he was given the position of Chancellor. President von Hidenburg refused Hitler's demand for Chancellorship at first because he thought Hitler was dangerous and that he could not be trusted. But, he soon agreed to Hitler's demand as the business leaders,influential industrialists and Von Papen agreed that Hitler should be appointed Chancellor because he could help the government tremendously. Hitler was then appointed Chancellor on 30 January 1933 and within months, Hitler ended Weimar Germany and started the Third Empire.
Hitler was also motivated by his strong desire for security, stability and peace.
There are many reasons on how Hitler rose to power, two of the main factors are "The Weimar Government's weakness" and " Hitler's Abilities".
The Weimar Government's weakness
The Weimar Government had many weakness like making the constitution and the system of proportional, being opposed by the right , being opposed by the left not having the ability to keep order in the country, losing the support of the middle class and losing a capable leader.
These are some information about those weakness :
- Making the constitution and the system of proportional
- Being opposed by the right
Many Germans opposed the Weimar Government. This is so as the Weimar Government signed the Treaty Of Versailles which made the Germans angry because the Germans believed that the army had not been defeated. The top army officers told the Germans that the Weimar Government stabbed the army in the back. They also did not support the new democratic system. Because of all these, they were determined to obstruct the work of the Weimar Government.
- Being opposed by the left
- Not having the ability to keep order in the country
The Weimar Government was also unable to keep order in the country. They spent much time trying to suppress riots and attempts to overthrow the government. The Weimar Government's army was unable to stop the Communist revolts and had to often rely on the Freikorps ( Free Corps ) to put down Communist revolts. Many people tried to overthrow the government like Hitler and The Kapp Rebellion. The members of the Weimar Government became the targets of attacks. Between 1919 to 1922, a total of 376 members were murdered. All these made the people of Germany lose confidence in the Weimar Government's abilities to maintain law and order in the country.- Losing the support of the middle class
At the end of World War 1, Germany had huge debts. The Weimar Government printed money to pay off its debts which led to hyper-inflation. Many Germans became poor overnight and savings became worthless. The Germans blamed the Weimar Government for this. The economy recovered in 1924, but, the Weimar Government still lost the support of the middle class because they felt that the Weimar Government has failed.
- Losing a capable leader
The Weimar Government also lost a very capable leader, Gustav Stresemann, who died on 3 October 1929 because of a heart attack. He signed and negotiated many papers which led to many positive developments. He played a big role in bringing stability and prosperity back to Germany and was also one of Hitler's main competition. After his death, Germany became rather vulnerable and Hitler's chance of rising to power increased.
Hitler's Abilities
Hitler had many abilities like being an excellent speaker and a charismatic leader, reoganising the Nazi Party, exploiting the fear of Communism to win support and being skillful at making deals with politicians.
This is how he used his abilities:
- An excellent speaker and a charismatic leader
Many people would listen to Hitler talk for hours because he seemed to understand their problems, he also told them what they wanted to hear. Shortly after Hitler joined the German Worker's Party, it was renamed to National Socialist German Worker's Party. However, the party was popularly known as the Nazi Party to the Germans. Hitler's speaking ability and charismatics saved him when he was in court for trying to overthrow the government. Hitler could have received the death sentence, but because of his speech, the judge felt sympathetic towards him and sentenced him to jail for five years. But, nine months after he was jailed, Hitler was released from jail because of his good behavior. - Reorganising the Nazi Party
Hitler realised that he could not take power by force, so he reorganised the Nazi Party after being released from jail so that he could win power through election. He set up branches of the Nazi Party in different parts of Germany, created a youth movement to get the support of the young and arranged large public meetings to attract new members. This made the Nazi Party gain a lot of support.
- Exploiting the fear of Communism to win support
During the Great Depression , many Germans suffered the hardships of the Great Depression. This made the Germans believe that the Weimar Government failed them and made the Germans willing to support extremist politicians who seemed to offer more effective ways of solving Germany's problems. Both the Nazi Party and the Communists became very popular. However, Hitler exploited feat of communism to win more support. He used propaganda to spread fear , he said that Communists were only interested in creating disorder and starting a revolution in Germany , whereas, the Nazi Party was the only political party which could prevent the Communists from setting up Communist dictatorship. He also told the rich people that the Communist would take away their property and give it to the workers. This made many rich Germans support the Nazis, they also gave the Nazis financial support. Hitler then used the money to recruit a private army, the Strumabteilung ( Stormtroopers ), to commit many acts of violence towards Communists. All these allowed Hitler to gain more support than the Communists. - Being skillful at making deals with politicians
In the 1928 elections , the Nazis won less than 3% of the votes, in the 1930 elections, they won over 18% of the votes. And in the July 1932 Elections, the Nazis won 37.3% of the votes and became the party with the most votes, this placed the Nazi in a powerful position because no coalition government could govern without the support of the Nazis. Hitler refused to join any coalition unless he was given the position of Chancellor. President von Hidenburg refused Hitler's demand for Chancellorship at first because he thought Hitler was dangerous and that he could not be trusted. But, he soon agreed to Hitler's demand as the business leaders,influential industrialists and Von Papen agreed that Hitler should be appointed Chancellor because he could help the government tremendously. Hitler was then appointed Chancellor on 30 January 1933 and within months, Hitler ended Weimar Germany and started the Third Empire.
- Interview with Hitler -
*Me -> M , Hitler-> H
Today I am meeting with with Adolf Hitler to interview him about how he rose to power.
M: Hello Mr. Hitler, thank you for taking time off your busy schedule to allow me to have the honours of interviewing you.
M: Hello Mr. Hitler, thank you for taking time off your busy schedule to allow me to have the honours of interviewing you.
H: No problem. Make it quick though , I've a meeting soon.
M: Will do. Well, congratulations on finally rising to power Mr Hitler. So.. I'm really curious, well, I think that almost everyone is too, Mr Hitler, what made you think that you could rise to power?
H: I'd say it was because of the Weimar Government, they were weak. I was sure I could rise to power after the Great Depression.
M: Hmm.. how were the Weimer Government weak?
H: Isn't it obvious? They made a silly voting system of proportional representation, this really messed up the daily life of the Germans. Seriously, changing governments almost all the time, the longest government didn't even last 3 years! What in the world were the Weimar Government thinking? That aside, they couldn't even keep order in Germany!
M: Well, I see your point, I guess. So, what was your opnion on Gustav Stresemann?
H: Oh, him. He was probably the only person in the Weimar Government who were capable of anything, I'd say that he was one of my biggest competition. The Weimar Government was messed after his death! [Hitler laughing]
M: That's kind off cruel. Do you dislike the Weimar Government?
H: Hate. I dont dislike them, I hate them. Hate is more lasting than dislike.
M: Oh. What other reasons made you think you could rise to power? Perhaps your ability of being an excellent speaker and being extreme charismatic?
H: [Hitler laughing] You really think I'm an excellent speaker and that I'm charismatic?
M: Of course I do! I'm pretty sure many people does too. You don't have to be humble about it!
H: Well, it did boast my confidence. Not to mention it saved me when I was [Hitler sighs] at the court when my sentence was to be decided.
M: Another question , quite a few people claims that you were exaggerating about the Communists. Is that true?
H: It is not truth that matters, but victory. And if you tell a big enough lie and tell it frequently enough, it will be believed.
(I was really surprised when Hitler said this.)
M: Uhh.. well said Mr Hitler.
[Hitler's assistant knocked on the door and says: "My Führer( which means leader), its time for your meeting."]
From my meeting with Hitler, I could tell that he is a very persuasive person who has a very strong will and that he was very ambitious.
M: Hmm.. how were the Weimer Government weak?
H: Isn't it obvious? They made a silly voting system of proportional representation, this really messed up the daily life of the Germans. Seriously, changing governments almost all the time, the longest government didn't even last 3 years! What in the world were the Weimar Government thinking? That aside, they couldn't even keep order in Germany!
M: Well, I see your point, I guess. So, what was your opnion on Gustav Stresemann?
H: Oh, him. He was probably the only person in the Weimar Government who were capable of anything, I'd say that he was one of my biggest competition. The Weimar Government was messed after his death! [Hitler laughing]
M: That's kind off cruel. Do you dislike the Weimar Government?
H: Hate. I dont dislike them, I hate them. Hate is more lasting than dislike.
M: Oh. What other reasons made you think you could rise to power? Perhaps your ability of being an excellent speaker and being extreme charismatic?
H: [Hitler laughing] You really think I'm an excellent speaker and that I'm charismatic?
M: Of course I do! I'm pretty sure many people does too. You don't have to be humble about it!
H: Well, it did boast my confidence. Not to mention it saved me when I was [Hitler sighs] at the court when my sentence was to be decided.
M: Another question , quite a few people claims that you were exaggerating about the Communists. Is that true?
H: It is not truth that matters, but victory. And if you tell a big enough lie and tell it frequently enough, it will be believed.
(I was really surprised when Hitler said this.)
M: Uhh.. well said Mr Hitler.
[Hitler's assistant knocked on the door and says: "My Führer( which means leader), its time for your meeting."]
M: Well, thank you for your time Mr Hitler.
[Hitler walks away]
From my meeting with Hitler, I could tell that he is a very persuasive person who has a very strong will and that he was very ambitious.
Tuesday 3 July 2012
Life of Adolf Hitler
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Adolf Hitler
Borned on : 20 April 1889 at the Gasthof zum Pommer, an inn
Ranshofen
Passed away on: 30 April 1945
Parents : Alois Hitler (1837–1903) Klara Pölzl (1860–1907)
Hitler has a distinctive lower Bavarian dialect. In 1894 the family relocated to Leonding and atteneded school nearby Fischlham. .
Hitler became interested on warfare after finding a picture book about the Franco-Prussian War among his father's belongings.
When Hitler was 8 years old, he took singing lessons and sang in the church choir, he even thought of becoming a priest.
On 2 February 1900, Adolf Hitler's younger brother, Edmund, passed away. This deeply affected Hitler and changed him from a confident, outgoing and excellent student, to a gloomy, detached, and sullen boy who constantly fought with his father and teachers.
After Adolf Hitler's father sudden death on 3 January 1903, Hitler's performance at school deproved. His mother allowed him to quit school in autumn 1905.
From 1905, Hitler lived on orphan's benefit and support from his mother. He worked as a painter and sold watercolours. He was also rejected by the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna twice.
Hitler was present at the First Battle of Ypres, the Battle of the Somme, the Battle of Arras, and the Battle of Passchendaele, and was wounded at the SommeIn 1914, Hitler was decorated for bravery, receiving the Iron Cross, Second Class. And then he received the Iron Cross, First Class, on 4 August 1918. He also received the Black Wound Badge on 18 May 1918.
In July 1919 he was appointed intelligence agent of an reconnaissance commando of the Reichswehr, to influence other soldiers and to infiltrate the German Workers' Party (DAP)
Hitler accepted the invitation to join the DAP on 12 September 1919 and became the party's 55th member. And shortly, the DAP changed its name to National Socialist German Workers Party ( NSDAP ).
In February 1921, Hitler was very good at speaking to large audiences—he spoke to a crowd of over 6,000 in Munich.
On 11 July 1921 , Hitler joined the German Socialist Party ( DSP ) and was granted absolute powers as party chairman. Hitler begun to make more speeches and was able to gather many crowds and had many followers.
On 1 April 1924, Hitler was sentenced to five years' imprisonment at Landsberg Prison. But, Hitler was issued a pardon and he was released from jail on 20 December 1924.After being released, Hitler gained popular support by attacking the Treaty of Versailles and promoting Pan-Germanism, antisemitism, and anticommunism with Nazi propaganda.
And on 1933 , Hitler was appointed as Chancellor.
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