The Nazi Political system

Question	Answer
Social Darwinism	Defined as: ' The application of biological evolution to human society'- coined 'survival of the fittest' by Herbert Spencer- believed 'laws of nature' meant life was struggle- strong rose to top leaving weak at bottom- natural order of things- shouldn't interfere-prevent progress
How Social Darwinism relates to Hitler and war	Social Darwinists feel nations struggle against each other to gain control of limited sources- social Darwinism became important regarding race in early 20th century- concern over 'weaker' groups in society- necessary to breed out inferiority- Hitler saw world in social Darwinist terms-central to NAACP system of gov/ ideology.
Totallitarianism	Totalitarianism is ‘a system of government that is centralised and dictatorial and requires complete subservience to the state’. This system was ensured through the establishment of Führerprinzip, where the Nazis of each rank would show complete dedication and work towards the Führer.
The Fuhrerprinzip	Idea of absolute loyalty to the leader and complete acceptance of whatever decisions he made- remained basis of gov upon seizure of cower was complete in 1934 summer
Decision making under Nazis	Generally-Hitler gave orders- transmitted downwards- enacted by relevant authorities- some of most momentous decisions made in 3rd Reich was made by Hitler and no one else-but- lot more complex/ chaotic- look at how Hitler was as a leader
Working toward the Fuhrer	Hitler was the sole authority within the party and Nazis at each rank would act out to achieve his aims. Hitler’s ideas were rarely set out on paper as he disliked paperwork and the formalities of committees. Therefore, to take action Nazi’s would have to ensure an audience and explain their plans before taking on the project to achieve what they believed Hitler wished.
Nazi- working toward the Fuhrer- comptition	In this Führerprinzip structure members of the Nazi party were in constant competition, falling in line with Hitler’s strong belief in social Darwinism. The leading Nazi’s such as: Himmler, Goebbels, Göring, Bormann and Speer worked toward being Hitler’s successor and lower ranks aimed to gain promotions and establish more power within the party. This system ensured complete dedication to the Führer because if one failed to meet Hitler’s demands or acted against him in any way other Nazis in the same ranks would inform Nazis with greater power of their mistakes. This information would eventually reach Hitler, causing the individual’s downfall in the party or more severe punishment.
How Hitler ensured totalitarianism	Hitler set up roles such as Gaulieters to control regions, Kreisleiters to control districts, Ortsgruppe to control small towns and Zelle and Blöcke to control 250 and 50 households to ensure any new developments formed in Berlin were implemented across Germany.
Cumulative Radicalisation	The Führerprinzip also allowed for cumulative radicalisation where the leading Nazi members would compete for Hitler’s favour, finding that he preferred radical solutions to issues if they would not be greatly unpopular amongst the public. Therefore, the Nazis became more and more radical with their implementations to stand out amongst the others in the same rank.
Dual State	The relationship between the Nazi party and the state has been given the term ‘dualism’, this refers to a government system in which two forces co-exist. Even though some of the Nazi members wanted to establish the party’s control over the civil service, Nazi leadership did not wish to confront the institutions of state.
Why was institutions of state not altered	Many Nazis acknowledged the bureaucracy of the German state was already efficient and staffed with well educated personnel. A growth of March converts (those who joined immediately after Nazi consolidation of power between January and March 1933) diluted Nazi radical ideas to alter the state apparatus.
Why was institutions of state not altered pt2	Hitler referred to the relationship between the party and state in a vague manner. He remained ambiguous when describing the role between party and state, first stating that ‘the party is inseparably linked with the state’ in 1933 before declaring the Party’s main responsibilities to organise propaganda and indoctrination two months later. Yet in September 1934 he informed party congress ‘it is not the state who commands us but rather we who command the state and declaring a year later that the Party’s role was to accomplish the tasks the state could not accomplish. This ambivalence was a contributing factor to the political unrest that occurred over these years.
How dual system initially worked	Nazi Germany= 'dual state'- - Nazi elite didn't dissapear but hardly any changes made to top of civil service- continued to work as normal- implemented policies devised by minitered-- until 1938- not all ministers were Nazis eg Schacht remained economic minister till 1936- in early years traditional groups sought to maintain independence while Nazi governing group wanted greater control in society
Nazi gov structure	The Nazi Party consisted of the party chancellery, Nazi members and Nazi organisations. Many officials in the party held positions and administered offices of a similar nature in both party and state. For example, Goebbels was a ‘Reichsleiter’, a member of the Reichsleitung (the committee at the top of the Nazi party) and Chief of Propaganda in the NSDAP as well as Minister for propaganda. Yet Hitler also ‘invented’ new organisations or positions whose roles were caught between party and state to deal with issues as they arose.
Nazi gov structure pt2	Should be noted Reich Chancellery was 1 of 5 seperate offices that supported Hitler, others were: Fuhrers chancellery- headed by Bouhler Presidential chancellery- headed by Meissner Hitler's personal adjutant and staff headed by Bruckner The office for Fuhrers depuputy headed by Boremann
dual systems- issues	The responsibilities of these departments were not well defined and in many cases, there was often ‘overlap’ or conflict over roles between the new organisations or state offices causing chaos and confusion. In the German state the term ‘civil servant’ covered a broad range of roles.
Reich chancellery	The Reich Chancellery was responsible for coordinating government; the Chancellery’s role became increasingly important as the cabinet declined from 1934. Lamners was head of the Reich Chancellery, helping with government legislation and bridging the gap between Hitler and other organisations. Yet Lamners found it increasingly difficult to coordinate the increasing number of organisations.
Government ministers	Government ministries were run by leading civil servants. The judiciary had a conservative attitude and was often biassed against the left. With the new regime many judges and lawyers were coordinated but not replaced. Yet these ministries were placed under increased pressure as the workers' roles often overlapped with Nazi offices.
Justice system	The Nazi’s ensured to interfere with the justice ministry by setting up special courts without a jury for political offences and a people’s court in 1934 for cases of high treason with a jury composed entirely of Nazi members. All legal authorities lost influence to the SS who could act above the law due to the decree ‘Nacht und Nebel’ of 1941, allowing them to imprison a person without question under suspicion of them being dangerous.
Nazi system progression	3 stages in development of Nazis- 1st- 1934- 36-reliant on support of army and big businesses- night of long knives essentially big attempt to reassure both 2nd-1936 and 38- reduce power/ status of army/ big businesses- oct 1936- Goring put in charge of economy- 1838 scandals involving senior army members allowed Nazis to gain control 3rd- 1936- 45- SS becomes and remains dominant force- from 1939- was dominant force`

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