NAZI : THE RISE OF THE IDEOLOGY
‘Nazi’ – an ideology which set its roots in Germany in the
20th century and took the world towards one of the biggest
catastrophes and bloodbath known as the World War II. This ideology developed
through Adolf Hitler; a man responsible for the genocide of millions of
innocent lives. But how exactly Germany came to accept the Nazi ideology, is a
question worth asking. To this question there is no simple one-line answer,
rather it was due to a very complex series of events that gradually made the
Germans believe in this ideology. The past legacy of Germany played a
significant role, after the end of World War I the Germans were nostalgic about
their past and longed for a strong leadership as that of Bismarck. The failure
of democracy of the Weimar Republic was a fuel to the fire. The rise of
nationalist sentiments among the people was also a considerable cause. Finally
the humility faced due to the defeat in WWI and the rising ideas of Anti-Semitism
and Pan-Germanium seduced the Germans towards the Nazi ideology.
I shall try to explain these events in details in a series of articles and also try
to explain a few instances which triggered the situation. I shall use
references from the books : The Coming of the Third Reich, The Third Reich in
Power and The Third Reich at War; these three books are collectively known as
The Third Reich Trilogy written by Richard J. Evans. Also I shall use a few references
from the book The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich by William L. Shirer.
NOSTALGIA OF THE GOOD OLD DAYS
The Iron Chancellor
Otto von Bismarck was the person who unified the German Empire which is also known as The Second Reich. Bismarck fought a series of wars to transform a collection of small German states into the large German Empire. His political diplomacy and powerful rule to create the German Empire earned him the title of “The Iron Chancellor”. Bismarck was born on 1st April 1815 in Schonhausen. He completed his schooling in Berlin followed by higher education in University of Gottingen, University of Berlin and University of Greifswald.
From 1851 to 1862 he served as ambassador to Russia and France for Prussia. Later he was appointed as the Minister President and Foreign Minister when Prince Wilhelm became the King of Prussia. At that point Bismarck became a very powerful man and was all set on his mission to create the German Empire.
In 1815 the German Confederation was formed which was an association of 39 German speaking states. This was formed as a replacement of the Holy Roman Empire which dissolved in 1806. Although Kingdom of Prussia and the Austrian Empire were members of the confederation but large parts of their territories were excluded since those were originally not the parts of the Holy Roman Empire. There was conflict between Prussia and Austria regarding the leadership of the confederation since those were the largest states in area. Bismarck's aim was to unite this confederation under a single rule along with a few German speaking states that belonged to foreign Kingdoms.
In 1864 Prussia declared a war against Denmark and with the help of Austria, and within 8 months time captured the German speaking regions of Denmark. Denmark surrendered control over the regions of Schleswig, Holstein and Lauenburg and those came under the control of Prussia. This is known as the Second Schleswig War.
Again in 1866 took place the Austro-Prussian war between Prussia and the Austrian Empire. In this war a few states of the German Confederation allied with the Austrian Empire among which one was the Kingdom of Saxony. On the other hand some states allied with Prussia. This time Prussia had a international alliance in the form of Italy. Prussia won the war in just seven weeks and ended the dominance of Austria over the German Confederation. Hence the German Confederation; which consisted of 39 small German speaking states partly came under the Prussian leadership with a few south German states yet to be annexed. In 1867 the German Confederation became the North German Confederation leaving out the parts of Austrian Empire.
Finally in 1870 the Franco-Prussian War took place. Bismarck could successfully provoke France by forming another international alliance, this time with Spain. France getting sandwiched between Prussia (the confederation) and Spain declared war upon the Kingdom of Prussia.
In 1971 Prussians won the war and annexed the regions
of Alsace and some parts of Lorraine from France. This war also won the trust
of the remaining south German states. The remaining south German states of Baden, Wurttemberg, Bavaria and Hesse-Darmstadt came under the Prussian rule thus forming the German Empire. Also the captured areas of Alsace and Lorraine also came under German Empire.
Otto von Bismarck was the person who unified the German Empire which is also known as The Second Reich. Bismarck fought a series of wars to transform a collection of small German states into the large German Empire. His political diplomacy and powerful rule to create the German Empire earned him the title of “The Iron Chancellor”. Bismarck was born on 1st April 1815 in Schonhausen. He completed his schooling in Berlin followed by higher education in University of Gottingen, University of Berlin and University of Greifswald.
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| Otto von Bismarck |
From 1851 to 1862 he served as ambassador to Russia and France for Prussia. Later he was appointed as the Minister President and Foreign Minister when Prince Wilhelm became the King of Prussia. At that point Bismarck became a very powerful man and was all set on his mission to create the German Empire.
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| The German Confederation with its border marked in red. The kingdom of Prussia and the Austrian Empire are marked in Blue and Yellow respectively |
In 1815 the German Confederation was formed which was an association of 39 German speaking states. This was formed as a replacement of the Holy Roman Empire which dissolved in 1806. Although Kingdom of Prussia and the Austrian Empire were members of the confederation but large parts of their territories were excluded since those were originally not the parts of the Holy Roman Empire. There was conflict between Prussia and Austria regarding the leadership of the confederation since those were the largest states in area. Bismarck's aim was to unite this confederation under a single rule along with a few German speaking states that belonged to foreign Kingdoms.
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| The Prussian annexed regions of Denmark after the war of 1864 (marked in light blue) |
In 1864 Prussia declared a war against Denmark and with the help of Austria, and within 8 months time captured the German speaking regions of Denmark. Denmark surrendered control over the regions of Schleswig, Holstein and Lauenburg and those came under the control of Prussia. This is known as the Second Schleswig War.
Again in 1866 took place the Austro-Prussian war between Prussia and the Austrian Empire. In this war a few states of the German Confederation allied with the Austrian Empire among which one was the Kingdom of Saxony. On the other hand some states allied with Prussia. This time Prussia had a international alliance in the form of Italy. Prussia won the war in just seven weeks and ended the dominance of Austria over the German Confederation. Hence the German Confederation; which consisted of 39 small German speaking states partly came under the Prussian leadership with a few south German states yet to be annexed. In 1867 the German Confederation became the North German Confederation leaving out the parts of Austrian Empire.
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| The North German Confederation. Prussia marked in blue while the annexed kingdom of Saxony marked in dark orange |
Finally in 1870 the Franco-Prussian War took place. Bismarck could successfully provoke France by forming another international alliance, this time with Spain. France getting sandwiched between Prussia (the confederation) and Spain declared war upon the Kingdom of Prussia.
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| The whole German Empire after unification. The states of the North German Confederation are marked in red while the newly annexed South German states are marked in yellow and the captured areas of Alsace and Lorraine are marked in light orange |
Bismarck understood the game of alliance very well. He could successfully from an alliance and turn the situation in his favour. Under his leadership Prussia never got isolated and with his tactics he always dominated over the opponents as we saw in these wars. Under Bismarck, Germany became a great power in Europe. They
had a strong military and had the 2nd best navy after Britain. Also
there was rapid industrial development and the rail network was rapidly
developing. But in 1890 Bismarck was removed as the Chancellor and his
successor was not capable enough to fill in his shoes. His successor was not capable enough to understand his policy through which he formed those alliances. The alliance formed
between Russia and France under the banner of triple entente threatened the German
Empire. Also the leadership was not strong enough rather was incapable.
The stories of Bismarck became legends among the people. He was
no ordinary man rather became a mythical character among the masses. His leadership
was missed and people started to long for such a strong leadership. These were
only the glimpses; this longing was soon going to convert into something else. The strong desire for such a leadership soon made people see Hitler as a reflection
of Bismarck. This feeling, mingled with some other ideas, was going to attract
the people towards the Nazi ideology like a moth to the flame.
To read the other parts, Click Here
To read the other parts, Click Here
2 Comments
Great explanation and clear story telling, thanks my G. Great article
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