Hitler - Soldier to Dictator World War II

Adolf Hitler. His name still haunts society more than sixty years after he took his life, hours before Nazi Germany surrendered to the Soviet Army in Berlin in 1945. He was born on 20th April 1889, in the small Austrian town named Braunau. Hitler was well known for his natural public speaking and leadership skills, even throughout his schooling life. It was these key features about Hitler that enabled the National Socialist Party (or Nazi Party) to become the leading political party in Germany and for Hitler to become Chancellor in 1933. Hitler's appointment as Chancellor made not only himself more powerful but also the Nazi political party as a whole as they became the dominant political party in Germany.

The way in which Hitler became Chancellor was unique and was only possible due to the warring political powers in Germany during the 1920's and 1930's. The depression that followed Germany's surrender in World War 1 was a key factor in Hitler's appointment. The Nazi's used the depression as a weapon equipped with propaganda to raise support. They used the Depression to criticize the Weimar Republic on the failure to maintain a recognizable economy for Germany. This criticism gained huge support for the Nazi party because many Germans judged Germanys success on the strength of its economy. The propaganda included posters and Nazi gatherings where promises were made to boost employment with leadership in Germany. Hitler also used his natural leadership and public speaking skills to exploit the Weimer Republic's weakening state and decreasing popularity by challenging their credibility as a government. All these aspects put things in motion, which ended in Hitler being appointed Chancellor.

After Hitler was appointed chancellor, there are specific events that turned the Weimar Republic into a dictatorship within eighteen months. The first and perhaps the most important, was the Reichstag Fire on February 27th. The Reichstag had been victim of an arson attack by a Dutch communist named Marinus van der Lubbe. Two positive things came from this in a Nazi perspective. The first was that the Nazi party could now openly criticize and attack the German Communist Party, which eventually ended with several of the leaders being hanged or shot for crimes against the state as they were blamed for the Reichstag fire as the culprit was openly communist . The second was that Hitler was able to convince President Hindenburg to issue a decree entitled "For the Protection of the People and the State". The decree suspended constitutional guarantees pertaining to civil liberties. This decree was justified by a 'Defensive measure against communist acts of violence endangering the state.'

As the year of 1933 progressed so did Hitler's power. The next move on Hitler's agenda to secure power was the 'Enabling Act' The vote was in his favour, 441 for and 89 against. This enabled Hitler to suspend the German constitution; this effectively made him dictator of Germany, free of all legislative and constitutional constraints. This came into effect on March 23rd 1933 and was put down in history as the 'Enabling Act'. On 26th of April 1933, the Nazi's successfully took over Local Governments as well as the local police force. They used this new power to replace anti-Nazi teachers and university professors. Soon after Hitler turned his attention to the Trade Unions. On the 2nd of May 1933