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 these lessons, we're trying to understand how Adolf Hitler rose to power.

We've been tracing his journey from a leader of small political group to being appointed chancellor of Germany in 1933.

By 1933, millions are out of work.

Violence fills the streets.

The government argues endlessly and can't pass a single law.

The Weimar Republic is struggling to survive.

Today we'll explore how Germany's most powerful politicians, many of whom disliked or feared Hitler, chose to invite him into power.

Was it a cunning strategy gone wrong, a desperate move to avoid civil war, or something even more complex? By the end of this lesson, you'll be able to explain why Hitler became chancellor of Germany in January 1933.

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

In this lesson, we're using the word deadlock in a political context, and a deadlock happens when no party or group has a clear majority, so nothing can get passed or decided.

Authoritarian or authoritarian governments give most power to one leader or a small group.

This can bring stability and quick decisions, but offers few rights or choices for ordinary people.

Conservative is someone who values tradition, social order, and gradual change.

In 1930s, Germany conservatives wanted to protect the old institutions and were often opposed to democracy or radical movements.

Franz von Papen was a wealthy aristocrat and former army officer.

He had little popular support, but moved easily in elite political and military circles.

And Kurt von Schleicher was a senior army officer and political schemer who worked behind the scenes to influence government decisions and shape power from the shadows.

Today's lesson is divided into three key parts.

First, we'll look at the Reichstag deadlock, how the Weimar Republic struggled to function as democracy began to break down, and how emergency powers started replacing parliamentary decisions.

Next, we'll uncover the backroom deals and the rise of the Nazis diving into how Hitler gained influence not just through popularity, but through alliances with powerful elites who thought they could control him.

And then lastly, we'll look at the final deal when Hitler became chancellor, and we'll see how a small group of politicians eventually gave Hitler power and how that decision changed the course of history.

Right, let's begin the lesson with Reichstag deadlock and the turn to authoritarian rule.

As the Great Depression tightened its grip on Germany, the Weimar Republic staggered under the weight of mass unemployment, economic collapse, and growing political extremism.

During this time, the parliamentary system was in deadlock, and the government resorted increasingly to presidential emergency decrees under Article 48.

The photo on the left shows the inside of the Reichstag in 1925, showing politicians from various parties.

And these parties often disagreed on what to do, especially in times of crisis, and this often resulted in deadlock.

So what do we mean by parliamentary deadlock? No party had a majority in the Reichstag and coalitions kept collapsing.

There was no majority of politicians could agree on what to do.

With the Reichstag unable to pass laws, the government resorted increasingly to presidential emergency decrees under Article 48 of the Constitution.

With democracy faltering, many people were turning to alternative solutions.

Therefore, Germany stood at a crossroads, facing three possible futures.

Authoritarian rule under presidential decree, the rise of the Nazi movement, or the formation of a renewed democratic coalition that could stabilise the republic.

But the chances of that third option were fading fast.

To many Germans, authoritarianism seemed attractive, especially to older generations who remember the order and stability of the Kaiser's rule.

Take a look at this image on the left.

This is a 1914 photograph of General Paul von Hindenburg, taken long before he became president of Germany.

Notice the military uniform, the medals, the posture, the stern expression.

To many Germans, especially older generations, Hindenburg symbolised a more stable ordered past, one rooted in the discipline and authority of the old military elite.

At a time of deep national crisis, people often clung to what they knew.

For many, that meant longing for strong authoritarian leadership.

Hindenburg seemed like someone who could deliver that, perhaps even by abandoning the democratic system that appeared to be causing more harm than good.

Maybe he could rule by presidential decree using Article 48, not as a temporary emergency measure, but as a consistent tool of government.

Another option that's also promised strong, decisive leadership was the Nazi party.

Why many older Germans looked to traditional authority figures like Hindenburg, others, especially young voters, and those hit hardest by the economic crisis were drawn to the bold promises of radical change made by Hitler and the Nazis.

They didn't just promise order, they promised action, national pride, and a total break from the failures of the Weimar democracy.

Ironically, the shift toward authoritarianism began not with the Nazis, but with the Weimar Republic's own leaders, most notably Chancellor Heinrich Bruning.

Okay, let's have a check for understanding.

Why did many German leaders begin to see authoritarian rule as a solution during the Great Depression? A, they believed authoritarian rule could end deadlock with decisive leadership as under the Kaiser; B, they believed authoritarian rule would allow them to avoid signing the Treaty of Versailles; C, they thought authoritarian rule would increase Germany's chances of receiving American loans? Pause the video, have a think, and then come right back.

Okay, welcome back, and well done if you knew the correct answer was A, they believed authoritarian rule could end deadlock with decisive leadership as they had had under the Kaiser.

With the Reichstag in deadlock, public unrest growing, and pressure mounting for strong leadership, many believed that decisive action was the only way forward.

Chancellor Heinrich Bruning shifted towards authoritarianism and bound the SA and SS.

So why did he do this? Bruning's government had been in power since 1930 and had been ruling by emergency decree, Article 48.

They had been enforcing deep spending cuts, and this was widely unpopular.

Therefore, Bruning's government used censorship to silence criticism.

And censorship is often associated with authoritarian governments.

However, this only deepened a crisis.

In early 1932, political extremism and street violence were escalating.

Bruning attempted to reduce the political unrest by banning the Nazi paramilitary forces, the SA and the SS.

However, this decision was not positively received by all.

The SA ban angered powerful right-wing elites, including General Kurt von Schleicher who arranged for Franz von Papen to become chancellor.

Okay, so let's unpack what exactly happened here.

The SA ban obviously outraged Hitler, but it also angered powerful right-wing elites.

These right-wing elites viewed the SA as useful in countering the threat of communism.

They may not have liked the Nazis or even approved of their violent tactics, but they were willing to turn a blind eye.

The elites could keep their distance publicly while still benefiting from the chaos that SA created against the communists.

Among the rights wing elites who saw the SA as useful was General Kurt von Schleicher.

He was a key advisor to President Hindenburg.

Seeing Bruning as a liability, Schleicher coordinated his dismissal in May 1932 and arranged for Franz von Papen to become chancellor.

Let's take a look at this photo from 1932.

We can see General Schleicher on the right and Franz von Papen on the left.

And we can imagine the steaming conversations they had during this time.

And Halon Papen could replace Bruning as chancellor.

Papen was a wealthy aristocrat with limited political experience and little public support.

Schleicher had supported his appointment hoping Papen would act like a puppet under military control, given that Schleicher was heavily connected with the military.

This was a crucial step towards Hitler getting closer to power.

By replacing Bruning as chancellor, largely in response to his move against the Nazi SA, conservative elite signalled their willingness to collaborate with the Nazis to stabilise the nation on their own terms. In other words, high ranking politicians were showing their willingness to work with the Nazis.

Okay, let's have a check for understanding.

What I want you to do here is change one word in this sentence to make it correct.

So let's read the sentence.

Bruning's decision to cut government spending and ban the SA won him support from right-wing elites.

So we need to change one of those words into the correct word to make the sentence make sense.

Pause the video, change the word, and then come right back.

Okay, welcome back, and well done if you knew you had to change the word won to lost.

So it should have read, Bruning's decision to cut government spending and ban the SA lost him support from right-wing elites.

Okay, great, let's move on to task A.

What I want you to do here is explain to your partner two ways in which authoritarian rule became seen as acceptable or normal in Germany between 1930 and 1932.

So you could take this in turns to have a discussion about the ways in which authoritarian rule became acceptable, or you could jot down some notes on a piece of paper.

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

Okay, great, welcome back.

So there's many things that you may have discussed.

So you might have explained that one way authoritarian rule became seen as acceptable was because many Germans, especially older generation, remembered the stability and order of the Kaiser's rule.

With democracy in crisis and constant political deadlock, strong leadership seemed like one possible way to restore control.

Another way was through the actions of Chancellor Bruning ruled by presidential emergency decree instead of relying on parliament.

He also enforced censorship and tried to ban political groups showing that authoritarian methods were already being used by democratic leaders.

Alternatively, your answer may include, another way was that conservative elites like General Kurt von Schleicher were willing to work with the Nazi party to bring stability.

Even though the Nazis were authoritarian and used violence, some leaders saw them as a useful ally to restore order and resist communism.

Okay, great.

So we've now established how the Reichstag was in deadlock and violent politicians turned towards a more authoritarian approach with some signalling their intention to collaborate with the Nazis.

Let's now move onto the second part of the lesson where we uncover the backroom deals and the rise of the Nazis.

Hitler's rise in 1932 to 1933 was driven by political miscalculations and secretive deals among Germany's conservative elites.

These elites plotted to shift Germany towards authoritarian rule, but they couldn't agree on how to make it happen.

And the key elites involved were President Hindenburg, General Kurt von Schleicher, and Chancellor Franz von Papen.

All of them believed that the Weimar Republic was in a persistent crisis, and they aimed to replace democracy of a stronger authoritarian system.

But personal rivalries and conflicting ambitions weakened their efforts.

At the same time, fears of civil unrest led them to pursue a more gradual transition through parliamentary means.

In other words, even though they believed strong authoritarian action was necessary to fix Germany's problems, they had to be careful about how they did it.

Germany had already shown during the revolution of 1918 that it was more than capable of descending into chaos and uprising.

So instead of an outright dictatorship, these elites looked for ways to slowly shift power away from democracy through legal parliamentary steps.

At least on the surface.

They needed to keep the public on their side.

Central to their dilemma was Adolf Hitler.

Though they saw him as radical and untrustworthy, his Nazi party had mass public supports.

In April 1932, Hitler ran against Hindenburg in the presidential election.

And although he lost, Hitler received 37% of the votes, revealing that millions now saw him as a serious national leader.

Any new government would need to include the Nazis to claim public supports.

Yet the elites disagreed on how to involve Hitler without giving him real power.

Okay, let's have a check for understanding.

Which two reasons explain why Germany's conservative elites hesitated to take full authoritarian control in 1932 to 1933? A, they believed Hitler might support a moderate coalition government.

B, they feared unrest and thought using parliament would avoid violence.

C, they needed the Nazis on side due to their mass support and Reichstag strength.

D, they wanted to defend the democratic values of the Weimar system.

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

Okay, welcome back, and well done if you knew the correct answers were B, they feared unrest and thought using parliament would avoid violence, and C, they also needed the Nazis on side due to their mass support and Reichstag strength.

Unlike the previous chancellor, Chancellor Bruning, Papen as chancellor believed that Germany's crisis could be solved by forming a broad right-wing coalition, which would include the Nazis.

Though Papen personally disliked Hitler, he saw the Nazi party's mass following as a way to support his own weak government.

To win their cooperation, Papen lifted the ban on the SA and SS, allowing Nazi paramilitaries to return to the streets.

Violence between rival groups worsened, but Papen believed that including the Nazis in governments, which contained their threats.

He offered the Nazis minor roles in his cabinets, but Hitler, confident after his party's growing success, demanded nothing less than the chancellorship.

Hitler demanded he should be chancellor because of the mass support he had.

Papen refused.

With the Reichstag deadlocked and unable to support his government, Hindenburg called new elections in July 1932, hoping they would bring a more stable result.

However, the outcome shocked the establishments.

The Nazi party surged, winning 37% of the vote and becoming the largest party in the Reichstag.

Under normal circumstances, the leader of the largest party would be appointed chancellor, but Hindenburg refused to appoint Hitler.

Hindenburg saw Hitler as an untrustworthy extremist.

He was seen like a low ranking corporal with no aristocratic standing.

Papen, despite lacking a majority, clung to power, and the Reichstag remained in deadlock.

Meanwhile, Schleicher, who had begun to lose Hindenburg's trust and had fallen out with Papen, began holding secret talks with Hitler, hoping to bring the Nazis into government on his own terms and strengthen his own position.

A cunning political operator, Schleicher had helped Papen rise, but now schemed to replace him.

Okay, let's have a check for understanding.

Working with your partner, discuss the following questions.

Why did Papen lift the ban on the SA and the SS and offer Nazis minor roles in his cabinet? And why did Papen call an election? Pause the video, have a quick discussion, and then come right back.

Okay, great, welcome back.

Hopefully, you had some great discussions there.

So let's have a look at the first question.

Why did Papen lift the ban on the SA and SS, and also offer Nazis minor roles in his cabinets? So hopefully, you had said something like that.

He was trying to win Nazi support for his government and strengthen his weak political position.

And in that way, he could contain the threat of the Nazis and help to stabilise the country.

He could bring them on side into his government, but keep them controlled.

And, but the second question, why did Papen call an election? But after Hitler was denied the chancellorship, the Reichstag was deadlocked once again and unable to support Papen's government.

So looking to unlock the deadlock, Hindenburg called new elections, hoping a fresh vote would produce a more stable result.

In other words, the election might result in certain parties getting a majority, and between them, they could pass laws and unlock the Parliament deadlock.

What were the outcomes of the July 1932 election? Select three correct answers.

A, Hindenburg immediately appointed Hitler as chancellor; B, Hindenburg refused to appoint Hitler due to distrust; C, Papen remained in power despite lacking a majority; D, the Nazi party became the largest party in the Reichstag.

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

Okay, welcome back and well done if you knew the correct answers were B, Hindenburg refused to appoint Hitler, C, Papen remained in power despite lacking majority, and D, the Nazi party became the largest party in the Reichstag.

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.

And the two statements are conservative elites had calculated that they needed to work with the Nazis through Parliament.

And the second statement is Hindenburg and Papen were unsuccessful in working with the Nazis.

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

Okay, great, welcome back.

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

So for the first statement, conservative elites had calculated they needed to work with the Nazis through Parliament.

Hitler received 37% of the vote in the presidential election, and the Nazis became the largest party in the Reichstag in July 1932.

And that this showed they had mass support.

The elites realised that any new government would need the Nazis to appear legitimate, to appear legal and fair.

They hoped to work with the Nazis through Parliament, but without giving them real power.

And for the second statement, Hindenburg and Papen were unsuccessful in working with the Nazis.

And to back that up, Papen offered the Nazis minor cabinet roles, but Hitler refused to accept anything less than the chancellorship.

Although the Nazis have popular support, Hindenburg still distrusted Hitler and refused to appoint him.

As a result, parliament remained deadlocked, Nazis became the largest party in the Reichstag after the July 1932 elections, and Schleicher began secretly scheming to replace Papen.

Okay, great.

Let's now move on to the final part of the lesson, the final deal, when Hitler became chancellor.

And we'll see how a small group of politicians eventually gave Hitler power.

So given that Papen had little support and Parliament was still in deadlock, Hindenburg once again ruled using Article 48.

Therefore, with parliament sitting in deadlock, the government called another election.

In November 1932, German voters went to the polls for the second time in four months.

Nazi's support dropped slightly from 37% to 33%, but they still remained the largest party.

The decline worried Hitler's inner circle, but he still refused to join any government unless he was made chancellor.

Papen's own support collapsed, and he proposed a drastic solution.

Papen proposed a military dictatorship.

And I'll place some soldiers next to Papen so you can keep track of these political developments.

So we can see that Papen was so fed up and desperate with the political situation that he wanted to replace democracy with military rule.

But Schleicher, now wary of Papen's recklessness, blocked the plan.

And I'll put this sad emoji on the diagram to show that Schleicher and Papen's working relationship is now in difficulties.

Instead, Schleicher convinced Hindenburg to remove Papen.

So let's remove Papen from the diagram.

And Schleicher convinced Hindenburg to make him chancellor instead.

So in December, Schleicher becomes chancellor.

Let's give him his title in the diagram too.

Once in office, Schleicher attempted to win over the Nazis.

However, his attempts to negotiate with the Nazi leadership completely failed.

Given that Schleicher does not have the Nazi support, he had no majority in the Reichstag.

Furthermore, Schleicher's relationship with Hindenburg had also started to deteriorate.

Hindenburg resented the way Schleicher had pushed out Papen, a man he trusted and now viewed Schleicher with growing suspicion.

So we can see then, as I said earlier, these elites were all plotting to ship Germany towards authoritarian rule, but they couldn't agree on how to make it happen.

Personal rivalries and conflicting ambitions weakened their efforts and it continued to keep themselves and Germany in a desperate situation.

Okay, let's have a check for understanding.

Answer the following questions.

Did the Nazis lose significant support in the November 1932 election? Two, who replaced Papen as chancellor after the election? And three, did the new chancellor succeed in gaining Nazi support? Pause the video, have a go at those questions, and then come right back.

Okay, let's check those answers.

So the first question, did the Nazis lose significant support in the November 1932 election? And this might have been slightly tricky because the Nazis lost some support, dropping from 37% to 33%, but they still remained the largest party.

So the drop wasn't significant.

Question two, who replaced Papen as chancellor after the election? So that was general Kurt von Schleicher who replaced Papen as chancellor.

And final question, did the new chancellor succeed in gaining Nazi support? And the answer is Schleicher failed to win Nazi support, leaving him without a majority and politically weak.

While Schleicher was busy scheming his way into the chancellorship, failing to win over the Nazis and quickly losing Hindenburg's trust, another plot was quietly unfolding.

Behind the scenes, Papen was plotting his revenge after being removed from his position as chancellor.

Papen secretly approached the Nazis directly, Papen proposed a deal with Hitler.

Hitler would be chancellor with Papen as his deputy.

Photo on the left shows Hitler and Papen in 1933 holding a meeting.

The key to their plan was convincing Hindenburg who still distrusted Hitler.

At 85 years old, Hindenburg was increasingly frail and reportedly showing signs of dementia, making him more reliant on close advisors like Papen and his son, Oscar.

Papen was backed by wealthy business leaders and he reassured the agent president that Hitler could be controlled.

If made chancellor, Hitler would be one of only a few Nazis in a cabinet dominated by Papen and other conservative politicians.

Hitler, they believed, would be a puppet of the old elites.

In January 1933, the frail and 85-year-old president Hindenburg agreed to appoint Hitler as chancellor.

When asked how he could work with the Nazis, Papen replied, "You are wrong.

We have hired him." Now, from a modern perspective, it seems shocking that anyone would allow Hitler into power, but at the time, the future was far less clear.

Many believed that working with the Nazis, though far from ideal, was preferable to more chaos or even more civil war.

They didn't yet know what Hitler and the Nazi party would become once in power, but Papen and his allies had made a fatal miscalculation.

Within months, Hitler dismantled the last remains of the Weimar of democracy and established dictatorship.

Far from being controlled, Hitler had seized control of the entire state.

True or false, Papen and other conservatives believed Hitler would be controlled as chancellor by a cabinet of conservatives.

Is that true or false? Pause the video, have a think, and then come right back.

Okay, welcome back, and well done if you knew the correct answer that that is true.

Yes, Papen and other conservatives believed Hitler would be controlled as chancellor because the cabinet was full of conservatives.

Okay, great, let's move on to the first part of task C.

What I want you to do here is starting with the earliest, sort these events into chronological order.

And you can see I've given you several events all listed in a mixed up order.

So you need to rearrange them into the correct time order.

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

Okay, welcome back, and well done on having a go at that task.

So the correct chronological order is, firstly, Hitler wins 37% of the vote in a presidential election, showing that he has mass appeal as a national leader.

Then we go to Chancellor Papen lifts the ban on the SA, hoping to win Nazi support.

Then after the July 1932 elections, Hitler refuses to join any coalition unless he has made chancellor.

Now, Hitler and the Nazis have this huge support.

He feels he's in a position to demand to be the leader, to be the chancellor.

However, Hindenburg refuses to appoint Hitler's chancellor despite the Nazis becoming the largest party in the Reichstag.

Hindenburg obviously distrusted Hitler and saw him as a sort of lowly corporal or a loud mouth extremist.

So with those events unfolding, Schleicher decides to replace Papen as chancellor, but fails to gain support from the Nazis or win a majority in Parliament.

So Schleicher thought that he could do it better himself, but it all goes wrong.

And then in the background, Papen, bitter from his removal from office, negotiates behind the scenes with the Nazis and persuades Hindenburg to appoint Hitler as chancellor, believing he can be controlled by conservative elites who dominate the cabinets as opposed to Nazi members.

Okay, great, let's move on to the second part of task C.

And what I want you to do here is explain why Hitler became chancellor of Germany in January 1933.

And to help you to write your answer, I want you to consider using these words.

Deadlock, conservative elites, and miscalculation.

So this is a really important task in which you're trying to now summarise the knowledge from today's lesson into a connected answer, which explains why Hitler became chancellor of Germany in January 1933.

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

Okay, great.

Well done for having a go at that task.

Now, there's many ways that you could have answered this question, but check your answer with the one I have here.

One reason Hitler was appointed chancellor was the political deadlock in the Reichstag.

No party could form a stable government, and the Nazis were the largest party after the July and November 1932 elections, meaning any government would struggle without their support.

Another reason was the miscalculation of conservative elites like Franz von Papen.

They believed they could control Hitler by placing him in a cabinet dominated by traditional conservatives with Papen himself as vice chancellor.

Papen and others such as Schleicher and Hindenburg saw Hitler as a means to stabilise Germany and prevent further unrest, especially from communists.

Finally, Hindenburg's own weakness and reliance on advisors, including his son and Papen, led him to accept Hitler's appointments, believing he could be contained.

Together, these factors allowed Hitler to come to power through both electoral success and secret negotiations and deals among elites.

Okay, great, let's summarise today's lesson, how Hitler became chancellor of Germany.

Hitler became chancellor of Germany due to political deadlock, rising support for authoritarian leadership, and the miscalculations of conservative elites.

Chancellor Bruning used emergency decrees and censorship, normalising authoritarian methods.

Conservative elites like Papen and Schleicher believed working with the Nazis through Parliament would restore stability.

After the Nazis became the largest party, Hitler demanded the chancellorship, which Hindenburg initially refused.

Both Papen and Schleicher failed to secure Nazi supports.

Papen eventually persuaded Hindenburg to appoint Hitler as chancellor, wrongly believing he could be controlled through a cabinet dominated by conservative elites.

Well done on a brilliant lesson.

And today, we've seen that Hitler didn't storm his way into power.

He didn't need a violent revolution, for example.

Instead, his rise was made possible by a collapsing political system, growing support from a public who were desperate for change, and the shortsighted deals of conservative elites who thought they could control him.

See you next time.