History

To what extent were Hitler’s domestic policies crucial to his rise?

National Socialism’s pre-war success was largely a product of its domestic policies. Hitler’s economic
policies reduced unemployment and created a strong industrial economy while his social policies
created societal divides and strengthened his own grip over the country. Key tenets of his economic
policy included the New Plan of 1934-37 under Schacht and the Four-Year of 1936-39 under Goering.
Key features of his social policies were the usage of propaganda, the demonization of Jews and the
suppression of the opposition. However, it can also be argued that the Nazi’s success was as much a
result of its own policies as it was of the unfavourable conditions at the time, namely weaknesses of
the Weimar Republic and economic instability.

Post 1933, Germany underwent rapid economic growth, at least some of which can be attributed to
Hitler’s policies (Hitler coming to power coincided with a global economic recovery). Hitler’s initial
economic policy was directed by Dr. Hjalmar Schacht who served as the Economics Minister. Schacht
established the ‘Organization of Industry’ to promote trade and industrial investment in Germany.
He then introduced the New Plan in 1934. Under the New Plan, Germany invested massively in
public works projects such as road building, building of hospitals and schools, forest clearing and
planting etc. The National Labour Service was also set up to train young workers in basic skills
needed for employment. To bring in rapid militarization, Schacht was bypassed in favour of Hermann
Goering in 1936. Goering introduced the Four-Year Plan in 1936, the chief aim of which was to make
Germany an autarky and prepare her for war. Under the Four-Year Plan, massive amounts were
spent on rearmament and the labour force was directed into vital areas such as arms production.
Import controls were introduced to protect German manufacturers and the production of synthetic
substitutes for oil and rubber was started to make Germany self-sufficient in resources. The
combined effect of these two major economic policies resulted in a massive upsurge in employment
with unemployment falling from around 4 million in 1933 to a 100,000 by 1939. At the same time,
there was rapid growth in the production of both consumer and industrial goods. Industrial
commodities like steel and coal saw a healthy growth in output while new-age synthetic materials
like oil and rubber saw a massive spike in production. Thus, the German economy grew rapidly
under Nazi rule and due to reduced unemployment the German people enjoyed a relative level of
prosperity by 1939.

Hitler’s social and political policies helped the Nazi party strengthen its grip over Germany thus
contributing to his rise. The use of propaganda was made to promote feelings of affiliation and
loyalty towards the Nazi party thus helping Hitler consolidate power. Nazi propaganda policy
entailed the use of mediums like radio, press, films, literature, theatre, art and political rallies to
achieve its aims. Through these various mediums of propaganda, Nazi ideologies of ultra-
nationalism, German expansionism, anti-Semitism and anti-communism were proliferated. Under
Nazi propaganda policy, the Reich Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda, under the
leadership of Joseph Goebbels, established a virtual monopoly over all forms of media and cultivated
a cult like following of Hitler while eliminating elements hostile to the ideologies of National
Socialism. Thus the Nazi policy of propaganda was successful in producing loyal and obedient citizens
and was critical to the consolidation of Hitler’s authority over the nation.
Another social policy employed by the Nazi party was the persecution of the Jews. The Jews, as an
ethnic group, were subjected to the Nazi party’s anti-Semitic agenda and were increasingly
persecuted and oppressed. In fact, Nazi policy towards the Jews can be said to be one of
‘institutionalized’ and ‘eliminationist’ anti-Semitism. After gaining power, the Nazi party rapidly
implemented their anti-Semitic programme and introduced legislation and government support to
exclude Jews from professional, economic and social life. Between the years 1933-39, increasing
restrictions were imposed on the Jewish population in relation to the ownership of business,
citizenship, education, marriage and sexual relations. This entire programme of the persecution of
Jews achieved the Nazi policy of anti-Semitism and promoted the concept of a racially pure
Germany.

However, it can also be argued that Hitler’s rise and the subsequent Nazi successes were a result of
the weakness of the Weimar system and the economic instability of the early 1930s. The Weimar
Republic was, from its inception itself, structurally flawed due to certain provisions in its constitution
and an insincere attitude towards democracy adopted by Germany’s political parties. Article 17,
laying forward the system of proportional representation, and Article 48, allowing for the suspension
of the constitution during emergencies, created an unstable political regime that allowed itself to be
exploited by Hitler and the Nazis. As historian Bracher noted, “Hitler made his way into the
government… through the authoritarian gap in the Weimar constitution”. Another key factor was
the economic mess that Germany found itself in after the Great Depression in USA. The Great
Depression resulted in a virtual collapse in German industry with unemployment soaring to over 6
million. Hitler was able to exploit the discontent created by this economic crisis to rapidly increase
the Nazi party’s vote share. Thus it can be said that Hitler’s ascent to power was not only a result of
his policies but also due to external factors.