Ten years after World War I, Germany's outlook was grim. The economic depression that was felt worldwide hit Germany hard, and millions of people were without work. The end of World War I was still fresh in the German's mind, and the people lacked confidence in their weak government, known as the Weimar Republic. These conditions made Germany ripe for the rise of a new leader, Adolf Hitler, and his party, the National Socialist German Workers' Party, more commonly known as the Nazi party.
Hitler had powerful and mesmerizing public speaking skills, which attracted a large number of Germans who were desperate for change. Hitler promised the German people a better life and a new, powerful Germany. The Nazis were able to appeal to the unemployed, the youth, and the lower middle class.
Hitler had powerful and mesmerizing public speaking skills, which attracted a large number of Germans who were desperate for change. Hitler promised the German people a better life and a new, powerful Germany. The Nazis were able to appeal to the unemployed, the youth, and the lower middle class.
The Nazi party's rise to power was swift. Prior to the economic depression, the Nazis had no real following, and in the 1924 elections for the Reichstag (German parliament), the Nazi's had only 3 percent of the vote. In the 1932 elections, the Nazis won a 30 percent swing in votes, winning a total of 33 percent, more than any other party. Germany would finally see change in January of 1933 when Hitler was appointed chancellor, the head of the German government, which many Germans believed would be the savior of their nation.
USHMM. (2017). United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Hitler Comes to Power. Retrieved from: https://www.ushmm.org/outreach/en/article.php?ModuleId=10007671