Lesson video

Hello, welcome to history, here at Oak National Academy.

My name's Mr. Newton, and I'll be your teacher today, guiding you through the entire lesson.

Right, let's get started.

In 1933, Germany was a country in crisis.

It had been haunted by years of violent clashes on the streets and a government that seemed powerless to act.

The Nazi Party had risen to popularity by being seen as a solution, promising order and the restoring of strength.

In January 1933, Adolf Hitler was elected chancellor of Germany.

However, he was still just one man in charge of a fragile coalition, lacking real control.

There were very few Nazis in government.

So here's the question: How does Hitler, a man with limited power, transform a democracy into a dictatorship? By the end of this lesson, you'll be able to explain how the Reichstag fire and the Enabling Act allowed Hitler to establish a Nazi dictatorship.

Before we begin, there are a few keywords that we need to understand.

A dictatorship is a type of government where absolute power is concentrated in the hands of a single ruler or a small group.

And Gleichschaltung is a Nazi term, meaning coordination, the process of bringing all aspects of German life under Nazi control.

This meant synchronising all state and social institutions with Nazi ideology.

Today's lesson is split into three parts.

First, we'll look at Hitler's fragile grip on power.

Even though he was appointed chancellor, his position was far from secure.

So how did he plan to strengthen his hold? Next, we'll focus on the Reichstag fire, a dramatic event that gave Hitler the excuse he needed to act decisively.

And finally, we'll explore the Enabling Act, a crucial law that handed Hitler near-total power.

Right, let's begin with Hitler's fragile grip on power.

There are many ways in which Weimar Germany drifted away from democracy.

However, there were some major events which explain how Hitler established a dictatorship in Germany.

Firstly, there was the Reichstag fire, which created a climate of fear and suspicion.

Then there was the Enabling Act, which gave him legal power to rule by decree.

And later, the Night of the Long Knives, where he eliminated rivals even from within his own party.

In today's lesson, we'll focus on the first two and explore how Hitler used crisis, law, and propaganda to tighten his grip on power.

In January 1933, Adolf Hitler was appointed chancellor of Germany, but his power was limited.

Take a look at this photo.

This is Adolf Hitler shaking hands with President Hindenburg in 1933.

It might look like a moment of unity, but it actually represents a tense and fragile political arrangement.

Hindenburg was still the most powerful figure in Germany, and many people believed he could control Hitler.

In fact, Hitler only became chancellor because conservatives thought they could use him to stabilise the government and then sideline him later.

But this photo also hints at the beginning of a major shift.

While Hitler appears respectful, he's already thinking about how to move beyond this arrangement and gain full control.

The Nazis held only a few cabinet positions and lacked a majority in the Reichstag.

Hitler, like his predecessors, faced the same political deadlock that had plagued the Weimar Republic for years.

The Weimar Republic had struggled to get laws passed because the Reichstag was deeply divided and no party had a clear majority.

If Hitler was to implement his radical vision and dismantle democracy, he needed a way to unlock the gridlock and transform Germany legally into a dictatorship.

That meant planning new elections for March in the hope of securing a majority.

Okay, let's have a check for understanding.

Why was Hitler's power limited when he first became chancellor in January 1933? A, he lacked the support of the army.

B, the Nazis only controlled a minority of the Reichstag and cabinet.

C, the SA had not yet gained control of the police.

Pause the video, have a think, and then come right back.

Okay.

Welcome back.

And well done if you knew the correct answer was B: the Nazis only controlled a minority of the Reichstag and cabinet.

Okay, let's continue.

So what was it like to live in Germany during Hitler's early days in power? What did people see and hear on the streets, and how did it make them feel? Well, immediately to mark Hitler's appointment as chancellor, thousands of Brownshirts and SS men marched through Berlin in a torchlight parade designed to dazzle and intimidate.

Drums pounded, flags waved, and crowds lined the streets, some cheering, others uneasy.

Similar displays followed across Germany, blending spectacle with violence.

Clashes erupted in several cities between Nazis and communists.

In the weeks that followed, Hitler launched a vast propaganda campaign ahead of the March election.

At the Berlin Sports Palace, he stood before swastikas and banners promising just four years to rebuild Germany.

He portrayed himself as a saviour, not a dictator.

His core message was that he would crush the communist threat, maintain a stable country, and revive Germany as a great power once again.

This message was crafted to win votes and reassure business leaders that only the Nazis could restore order.

Yet for all the noise and violence, Hitler remained anxious.

Support for the Communist Party, the KPD, had grown, and its paramilitary forces frequently clashed with the SA in the streets.

Were the communists preparing to launch a revolution just as they had in Russia? Surely, he thought, they must be planning something.

Gripped by paranoia, the Nazi leadership saw conspiracy lurking in every corner.

And then came what they claimed was proof that their fears were justified.

Complete this sentence with the correct missing word: Before the March 1933 elections, Hitler's propaganda campaign focused on portraying him as Germany's saviour from the "blank" threat.

Pause the video, fill in the blank, and then come right back.

Okay.

Welcome back.

And well done if you knew the correct sentence should have read that: Before the March 1933 elections, Hitler's propaganda campaign focused on portraying him as Germany's saviour from the communist threats.

Okay, great.

Let's move on to task A.

And I have a statement here for you: "In January 1933, Hitler was in a weak position, not a strong one." Discuss.

So I want you to discuss that question, and to help you to frame your discussions, I want you to consider the following questions: What limits were there on Hitler's power when he first became chancellor? How did the Nazis try to build strength and support in the early weeks of Hitler's leadership? And the last question: Why was fear of communism important in helping Hitler increase his control? Pause the video, have a go at the task, and then come right back.

Okay, great.

Welcome back, and well done for having a go at that task.

So let's look at what you could have discussed for the first question: What limits were there on Hitler's power when he first became chancellor? So you may have discussed that Hitler had no majority in the Reichstag, meaning he could not pass laws easily.

And this was something that had plagued the Weimar Republic for years.

And this was further compounded by the fact that the Nazis only held a few cabinet positions, so they were not fully in control of the government.

In other words, they had very few Nazis in the senior positions of government.

You might have said that the Weimar political deadlock continued just as it had under previous governments, and that President Hindenburg still had real authority and could remove Hitler if he wished.

Okay, let's have a look at the second question: How did the Nazis try to build strength and support in the early weeks of Hitler's leadership? You may have discussed that they launched impressive propaganda displays like torchlight parades to show strength and gain public attention.

And this was reinforcing their message the Nazis were bringing strength and order to a divided Weimar Republic.

You could have said that the SA and SS were used to intimidate opponents and build a sense of fear and control, and that Hitler gave powerful speeches, promising to rebuild Germany in just four years.

And then the final question was: Why was fear of communism important in helping Hitler increase his control? And you could have said that Hitler and his followers believed that the communists were planning a retaliation or a revolution.

So there was this general fear or paranoia amongst the Nazi leadership, and indeed, the wider German public.

And indeed, the public were witnessing street violence between the SA and communist paramilitaries, which increased that sense of danger.

And this fear allowed the Nazis to present themselves as the only force strong enough to stand up to communism or stop communism, and this reassured business leaders and those who wanted order restored.

So now that we've established that when Hitler became chancellor, he did not have total power, and his position was far from secure, and he was worried about the rising support for communism and the spectre of another revolution in Germany, let's now move on to the second part of the lesson: the Reichstag fire, a dramatic event that gave Hitler the excuse he needed to act decisively.

On a cold night in February 1933, a fire broke out in the Reichstag building.

In the photo, we can see the Reichstag building, the German parliament, and we can see that it's engulfed in flames.

And we can see firemen are working in the foreground.

But the damage was already done.

By the time the smoke had cleared, much of the chamber lay in ruins.

Inside, police found a young Dutch communist named Marinus van der Lubbe, who quickly confessed to the crime.

Van der Lubbe was an unemployed bricklayer, embittered by poverty, and he was angry at a system which he blamed for his poor situation.

He believed a dramatic act might awaken Germany's workers from their despair.

In other words, similar people like him who found themselves unemployed could rise up in revolution to fix the system.

That night, under the cover of darkness, he set fire to the symbolic heart of German democracy, hoping to spark a revolution.

Within minutes, Hitler, Joseph Goebbels, and Hermann Goring were at the scene.

Smoke curling into the night, Hitler found not just a crime, but an opportunity.

Goring roared that this was the beginning of a communist uprising.

Hitler's eyes burned with fury.

"There will be no mercy," he roared.

"The Communist members of the Reichstag must be hanged this very night." Okay, let's have a check for understanding.

Why did the Nazis see the Reichstag fire as an opportunity? A, it allowed them to cancel upcoming elections.

B, it created sympathy for the Nazis abroad.

C, it provided justification to act against communists.

Pause the video, have a think, and then come right back.

Okay.

Welcome back.

And well done if you knew the correct answer was that the Reichstag fire was an opportunity because it provided justification to act against the communists.

Whether van der Lubbe acted alone in the arson attack or as part of a broader conspiracy remains debated.

But for the Nazis, the truth was less important.

They had their story, which was that there was an imminent communist threat to Germany.

The Reichstag fire became the excuse for a swift and brutal crackdown.

Hitler asked President Hindenburg for emergency powers to deal with public disorder and defend the state against communist acts of violence.

The next day, President Hindenburg, already showing signs of dementia and easily manipulated, signed the Reichstag Fire Decree, officially known as the Decree for the Protection of the People and the State.

This law was originally intended to deal with public disorder and defend the state against communist acts of violence.

And to do that, it needed to suspend or restrict certain freedoms. For example, protection from unlawful arrest.

This meant the police could arrest people without giving a reason or putting them on trial.

Thousands of people were locked up simply for being political opponents.

It also removed freedoms of speech and the press.

For example, newspapers that criticised the Nazis were shut down, and people were arrested for speaking out.

Only pro-Nazi voices were allowed to be heard.

It also removed the right to protest or join political groups.

Opposition parties couldn't hold meetings or campaign, and many were banned altogether.

Streets and the political space were cleared, allowing the Nazi Party to dominate the space.

And it also removed protection from home searches without a warrant.

Therefore, police could now break into homes at any time, and people lived in fear of sudden raids, especially if they were suspected of being against the government.

Although the decree was originally intended to defend the state against acts of violence, in Nazi hands, it became a tool to shut down all opposition.

This was achieved because the decree suspended key civil liberties: freedom of speech, the press, assembly, and association.

Authorities could now arrest citizens without trial and hold them indefinitely.

Hitler declared that the struggle must not be dependent on court decisions.

Armed with this power, the Nazis unleashed terror.

Thousands of communists were arrested.

Their newspapers were shut down.

Meetings were disrupted.

The SA interpreted the decree as a licence to rampage.

They attacked, imprisoned, and murdered not just communists but also Social Democrats and trade unionists.

Hitler was removing all of his opponents.

Okay, let's have a check for understanding.

Which of the following were consequences of the Reichstag Fire Decree? Select two correct answers.

A, civil liberties like free speech and assembly were suspended.

B, communists were arrested and their newspapers shut down.

C, Hindenburg resigned in protest over the decree.

D, the March 1933 elections were cancelled.

Pause the video, select your two correct answers, and then come right back.

Okay, great.

Welcome back.

And well done if you knew the correct answer was: A, civil liberties like free speech and assembly were suspended, and B, communists were arrested and their newspapers shut down.

Okay, let's continue.

So, a question you might be thinking is that if the Nazis were using the Reichstag Fire Decree to openly crush opposition, why didn't more people speak out or resist? Here we should remember that Goebbels' propaganda machine had also flooded Germany with tales of communist plots, and many Germans, terrified of civil war, actually welcomed the crackdown.

Take a moment to examine this propaganda poster.

It shows a strong, heroic Nazi figure smashing Germany's enemies.

And this was part of Goebbels' propaganda campaign.

The message is clear and brutal: the Nazis are here to destroy anyone who opposes them and their vision to rebuild Germany.

And this message resonated with the public, who were fed up with a failing Weimar government and fearful of communism and revolution.

And importantly, with opposition parties terrorised into submission, unable to campaign freely due to intimidation and arrests, the Nazis made significant gains in the March 1933 election.

And this meant that, with the backing of the German National People's Party, the DNVP, they secured a 52% majority in the Reichstag.

And this was enough to pass laws and push forward their agenda.

The next law they passed would transform Weimar Germany forever.

Okay, let's have a check for understanding.

Complete this sentence with the correct missing word: With opposition parties unable to campaign freely due to intimidation and arrests, the Nazis made significant gains in the March 1933 "blank." Pause the video, fill in the blank, and then come right back.

Okay.

Welcome back.

And well done if you knew the correct sentence should have read that: With opposition parties unable to campaign freely due to intimidation and arrests, the Nazis made significant gains in the March 1933 election.

Okay, great.

Let's move on to task B.

What I want you to do here is, using the knowledge gained from the lesson so far, provide supporting evidence for the following statements.

So statement number one reads: The cause of the Reichstag fire was politically motivated.

So what you need to do is provide some knowledge, some detail from today's lesson, which can support the fact that the Reichstag fire can be seen as politically motivated.

And you need to do that for the other two statements: Number two: The Nazis used the fire to justify emergency action against their opponents.

And number three: The Reichstag fire had major consequences for the Nazi rise to power.

Pause the video, have a go at the task, and then come right back.

Okay, great.

Welcome back.

So there's many ways that you could have answered the question, but compare your answers with the ones I have here.

So for the first statement, "The cause of the Reichstag fire was politically motivated," you might have said something like: The man who started the fire, Marinus van der Lubbe, was a Dutch communist who wanted to inspire German workers to rise up, have a revolution, and that he believed setting fire to the Reichstag, the symbolic heart of German democracy, would spark a revolution.

And then for statement two, "The Nazis used the fire to justify emergency action against their opponents," you could have said something like: The Nazi leaders immediately claimed the fire was part of a communist uprising, of course playing into that deep fear that was already in the country.

And the next day, Hitler persuaded President Hindenburg to sign an emergency decree that allowed the Nazis to arrest political opponents and take away basic freedoms. And for the final statement, "The Reichstag fire had major consequences for the Nazi rise to power," you could have said that after the fire, the Nazis arrested thousands of communists and made it nearly impossible for opposition parties to campaign in the March election.

And as a result, the Nazis and their allies gained a majority in the Reichstag.

This helped them pass laws more easily and move towards establishing a dictatorship.

So we've established Hitler's initial grip on power was fragile, and that he feared a communist plot against him, and how he used the Reichstag fire as an excuse to remove political opposition, which enabled him to gain a majority in the Reichstag.

Let's now move on to the Enabling Act, a crucial law that handed Hitler near total power.

So even though Hitler now was in a coalition which gave him a majority in the Reichstag, he had seen how previous Weimar majorities had still struggled to govern.

Take a look at the photo on the left.

It's a photo of the Reichstag.

It gives us a clear sense of what parliamentary democracy in Weimar Germany might have looked like, rows of seats filled with members from a wide range of political parties, each with their own ideas, priorities, and agendas.

The Reichstag was often deeply divided.

Parties had to form coalitions to pass laws, and those coalitions were usually unstable and short-lived.

Even when a government had a majority, it often struggled to get anything done because of internal disagreements and constant political infighting.

Now, even though Hitler had just secured a coalition that gave him a majority, he hadn't forgotten what he'd seen over the past decade.

He knew that majorities in the Reichstag didn't guarantee strong or lasting power.

What he wanted was something more reliable, something that removed the need for compromise altogether.

Hitler now sought something more powerful: the Enabling Act.

The Enabling Act was a law that would enable Hitler, or allow Hitler, to bypass the Reichstag and govern by decree.

It effectively dismantled the Weimar Constitution and handed Hitler the authority to enact laws without parliamentary approval or even the president's consent.

In essence, it gave Hitler the legal framework for a dictatorship.

But to pass it, he needed a two-thirds majority in the Reichstag, something he didn't quite have yet.

Therefore, the Nazis used every tool at their disposal.

Communist Reichstag members were barred from taking their seats.

Other opponents were arrested or intimidated.

When the vote was held on the 23rd of March, members of the Reichstag gathered under the shadow of swastika banners, with SA and SS troops lining the entrances.

Inside, Hitler addressed the chamber, assuring that the new powers would only be used to restore order and rebuild Germany.

Only the Social Democrats dared to resist.

Their leader, Otto Wels, rose to speak.

Knowing he might not walk out alive, he carried a cyanide capsule in case of arrest.

This was something he could swallow if needed to end his life.

His voice trembled, but his message was clear: democracy, justice, and freedom still mattered.

"You can take our lives," he said, "but not our honour." The Nazis jeered.

Hitler responded with contempt.

That evening, the Enabling Act passed, 444 votes in favour and just 94 against, all from the Social Democrats.

So again, we might ask: why didn't more people resist? Clearly, the Nazis had used every tool at their disposal: fear, violence, arrest, and intimidation.

But there was something else at play here.

For so many Germans, the Enabling Act didn't feel like a dramatic break from the past.

After all, President Hindenburg and several Weimar chancellors had already ruled through emergency decrees.

So here's the question: If temporary emergency powers had already become normal in Weimar Germany, was it really such a big step to make these powers more permanent through the Enabling Act? Okay, let's have a check for understanding.

What I want you to do here is complete this sentence with the correct missing word: The "blank" Act allowed Hitler to pass laws without needing the Reichstag or the president's approval.

Pause the video, fill in the blank, and then come right back.

Okay, welcome back.

And well done if you knew the correct sentence should have read: The Enabling Act allowed Hitler to pass laws without needing the Reichstag or the president's approval.

After the passing of the Enabling Act, democracy's end was swift.

Hitler turned his attention to dismantling every institution that might oppose him.

The process of Gleichschaltung, or coordination, began.

Hitler was determined to avoid the institutional resistance that had plagued the Weimar government.

This meant getting control of all the different organisations and groups across German society.

Gleichschaltung was essentially the Nazification of every aspect of German life.

In Nazi terminology, it meant connecting every circuit of society to a single master switch, Hitler's will.

In a society battered by the Great Depression and disillusioned with democracy, the promise of order, however brutal, held a grim appeal.

Political parties dissolved or were banned, and by July 1933, Germany had become a one-party state.

Trade unions were abolished and replaced with the German Labour Front, a Nazi-controlled body that stripped workers of their rights.

Town councils were taken over.

Local officials were forced to join the Nazi Party or step aside.

Civil servants, teachers, and judges were purged for being Jewish or politically unreliable.

The Church, the press, schools, and the arts were also brought into line.

Even sports teams, choirs, and youth groups were merged or shut down unless they swore loyalty to the Nazi regime.

Have a look at this photo.

It shows members of the Hitler Youth in 1933.

Notice the uniforms, the disciplined rows, and the red Nazi flags in the background.

This wasn't just a youth club; it was part of a much bigger plan.

The goal of Gleichschaltung was simple: remove all sources of opposition and ensure that everyone, especially the young, were loyal to the Nazi regime.

So this image isn't just about young people in uniform.

It's a glimpse into how dictatorship took root in everyday life.

Facing this transformation in Germany, many complied out of fear, others out of hope.

A few clung to the belief they could influence things from the inside.

By the summer of 1933, Nazi flags fluttered above every school, office, and government building.

The Reichstag still existed, but it had become an empty chamber.

Laws were made not by debate but by decree, often crafted by Hitler's inner circle or by Hitler himself.

Behind the veneer of unity was a silent fear.

Some hoped that things would get better.

Others found an intoxicating excitement in belonging to something powerful.

But for many, the choice had been stripped away.

Okay, let's have a check for understanding.

What does the term Gleichschaltung refer to in Nazi Germany? A, a military strategy to invade neighbouring countries.

B, propaganda technique used to control foreign media.

C, a series of economic reforms to reduce unemployment.

D, a policy of coordinating all parts of society with Nazi ideas.

Pause the video, have a think, and then come right back.

Okay.

Welcome back.

And well done if you knew the correct answer was D: Gleichschaltung was a policy of coordinating all parts of society with Nazi ideas.

Okay, great.

Let's move on to task C.

What I want you to do here is explain how the Reichstag fire and the Enabling Act allowed Hitler to establish a Nazi dictatorship.

And to help you to structure your answer, I want you to write two paragraphs.

In paragraph one, you'll explain how the Reichstag fire helped Hitler remove opposition and increase his power.

And in paragraph two, you'll explain how the Enabling Act gave Hitler the legal power to create a dictatorship.

So you can see here, this is an important question because it helps you to connect all of the knowledge from today's lesson into one coherent answer.

Pause the video, have a go at the task, and then come right back.

Okay, great.

Welcome back.

And well done for having a go at that task.

So there are many ways that you could have written your paragraphs, but compare your answers with the ones I have here.

So, for your first paragraph on the Reichstag fire, you could have put something like: Hitler became chancellor in 1933, but his position was weak.

The Nazis did not have a majority in the Reichstag, and most of the cabinet were not Nazis.

Hitler needed to increase his power legally.

The Reichstag fire in February 1933 gave him the opportunity, as the Nazis blamed the fire on a communist plot.

This created panic about a possible revolution, and the next day, Hitler persuaded President Hindenburg to sign the Reichstag Fire Decree.

This emergency law suspended basic civil liberties like freedom of speech and allowed the Nazis to arrest opponents without trial.

Thousands of communists and other political enemies were arrested or intimidated, helping the Nazis weaken opposition ahead of the March 1933 election.

And for your second paragraph on the Enabling Act, you could have put something like: After the election, Hitler still needed greater powers to pass laws without relying on the Reichstag.

He proposed the Enabling Act, which would allow him to make laws without parliamentary approval.

To ensure the law passed, Communist members were banned from attending, and other parties were threatened by the SA and SS.

Once passed, the Enabling Act gave Hitler the legal powers to rule by decree.

This allowed him to begin the process of Gleichschaltung, which meant bringing all aspects of German society under Nazi control.

Political parties were banned, trade unions were replaced with Nazi-run organisations, and local governments and civil servants were purged of opponents.

These steps completed Hitler's transformation of Weimar Germany into a dictatorship.

Okay, excellent.

Let's summarise today's lesson: "The Reichstag Fire and the Enabling Act." Hitler became chancellor of Germany in 1933, but lacked full control.

He needed new elections to gain a Reichstag majority.

The Reichstag fire gave Hitler an excuse to claim a Communist plot and push for emergency powers.

The Reichstag Fire Decree suspended freedoms and allowed Nazis to arrest and intimidate opponents.

The Enabling Act gave Hitler legal power to make laws without the Reichstag, creating a dictatorship.

Gleichschaltung brought German life under Nazi control, banning parties, unions, and silencing opposition.

Well done on a brilliant lesson.

And today we've seen how Hitler transformed a position of limited power into total control, using fear, propaganda, and the law itself to dismantle democracy.

Next time, we'll look at how Hitler consolidated that power even further.

See you then.