The Soviet Union and Nazi Germany in the 1930s as Totalitarian States

After Germany’s humiliating defeat in World War I, Germans had little faith in their government, and in the early 1930s following the stock market crash in New York, Germany was economically struggling . Millions of people were out of work due to the world wide catastrophe making it an opportune time for Hitler and the Nazis to rise into power. Hitler, who was a powerful and spellbinding speaker, attracted Germans desperate for change. He promised to make Germany a better country and promised the disenchanted, a better life. Nazis appealed especially to the youth, unemployed, and members of the lower to middle class. Hitler’s rise to power seemed instantaneous. Before the economic depression, Nazis were virtually unknown, winning less than 3 percent of the vote to the Reichstag, which was the German Parliament. However, in the 1924 elections, the Nazis won a whopping 33 percent of the votes which was more than any other party. In January of 1933, Hitler was appointed Chancellor, the head of German Government . The Germans were convinced that they had found a savior for the Nation. The timing of his rise made it very easy for Hitler to gain power in a democratic government because people were hopeless and wanted a fast solution to the deficit. He promised things like a stronger economy, prosperity, and anything that they desired . He focused on first getting noticed and then grew from there. He didn’t say anything but what the people wanted to hear. Getting the people of Germany to trust him was how he started to gain so much control. Unfortunately, Hitler’s charm and persuasion was not the sole reason why Hitler gained so much power in a democratic

By analyzing the Third Reich, Soviet Union, and the United States from a Totalitarianism perspective, it becomes apparent that these three entities are more alike than they are different. Their similarity lies in the fact that each superpower established unity by tailoring an ethos, whether being of ideological or ethnic nature, that highlighted the superiority of one community over another. Through this, the Third Reich, Soviet Union, and United States were able to establish a legitimacy that allowed them to purse both national and imperial agendas on the world stage, whilst wiping out those who stood in their way. The difference, however, is the methods in which each superpower acted in order to pursue these goals. In sum, the Third

In January 1933, Adolf Hitler capitalized on his appointment to Chancellor as a new government began forming around him. Conservative politicians responsible for placing him in power had envisioned a way to harness Hitler and the Nazi party (also known as the National Socialist German Workers’ Party) to establish an authoritarian government by replacing the republic. Hitler, recognizing the circumstances, masterfully established his own totalitarian regime and maintained complete control. In 1945, a dozen nations had worked together through more than a half decade of warring finally succeeded in removing Hitler from power only after they had committed heinous war crimes known as the Holocaust.

According to Fredrich’s “six point syndrome”, a totalitarian state must consist of an official ideology, a single mass party, terroristic police control, monopoly control of the media and arms and central control of the economy. During the Nazi Reich between 1933-1939, under Hitler as Fuhrer (supreme leader), the Nazi regime was able to successfully achieve aspects of totalitarianism by exerting tight control of the media and police; leading to control of certain aspects of German social, political, legal, economical and cultural life. However, there are significant features of the Nazi regime that simply fail to fit Friedrich's six, all encompassing concepts of totalitarianism.

Totalitarianism alsogrew during the 20th century. A totalitarian government is one in which a single party rules over the entire state and has complete control. The people in a totalitarian society have no say in anything. This was the type of society that Hitler controlled. Everyone under Hitler was controlled by his rules and power. When Hitler rose into power, the Germans were still recovering from the aftermath of World War 1. Hitler promised the people radical changes and an end to all their sufferings and before long they came to love him. As a cause for all their sufferings, Hitler blamed the Jews and thus the Holocaust began. Hitler made many promises and told the people whatever he knew they wanted to hear. Before long, the people were brainwashed by him and started to submit to whatever Hitler told them to do. Germany quickly became a totalitarian state. The people were made to think

Adolf Hitler; he gained support by promoting, anti-Semitism and anti-communism with charismatic oratory and propaganda. He transformed the Weimar Republic into the Third Reich, a single-party dictatorship based on the totalitarian and autocratic ideology of Nazism. He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and served as head of state as “Führer und Reichskanzler” from 1934 to 1945. Hitler promised to defy the treaty of Versailles and he also intended to rebuild the military. His intentions were to unite all Germans into a greater Germany, including the ethnic Germans who lived in Austria, Poland, Czechoslovakia and

The “Night of the Long Knives” is a purge that Hitler ordered on his own party. Hitler did this so he can eliminate any political rival that can go against him in the future. Hitler targeted the Nazi troops that helped him gain power in the 1930’s. Shortly after murdering his own party, hitler gained absolute power. On July 3rd, Papen, a general staff officer, resigns and on August 2 Hindenburg, who commanded the German military, dies. Hitler becomes the chancellor and president and makes decisions leading to the

Hitler rose to power after President Hindenburg's demise yielded him presidency in addition to the Chancellor role he already held. This made him the Fuhrer (Supreme Leader) with complete control of Germany. He took numerous political, social and economical measures to ensure his popularity amongst his people so as to prevent rebellion. He already in fact had some of these measures implemented way before Hindenburg's death in August 1934, when he was just Chancellor. These policies kept him in power until his death in 1945.

Thomas Jefferson once said, “The purpose of government is to enable the people of a nation to live in safety and happiness. Government exists for the interests of the governed, not for the governors” (McAdam np). In a totalitarian system, however, this is often not the case. Because it requires complete subservience from its citizens and focus primarily on power, a totalitarian government does not, if fact, exist for the interests of the people. Mahmud II’s various policies reveal his totalitarian tendencies regarding issues both foreign and domestic.

In the late 1930’s, totalitarian dictators in Europe and Asia were running rampant. Adolf Hitler took over Germany and proceeded to take over Austria, Czechoslovakia, and Poland. In Italy, Benito Mussolini invaded Ethiopia. Emperor Hirohito and General Hideki Tojo of Japan invaded Korea, Manchuria, and the rest of China. In the Soviet Union, Josef Stalin used his Secret Police to kill anyone who opposed him and then helped Germany take over Poland. The League of Nations watched on, powerless to do anything as Europe began to fall. They tried to appease Germany by ignoring the capture of Austria, but Germany took advantage of it and took over other countries. The United States had not joined the League of Nations because they wanted to remain isolated. They had once again

World War II, also known as: Second World War, a conflict that went on through the years 1935-1945. The Axis powers involved-Germany,Italy,and Japan. And the allies involved-France,Great Britain,United States,the Soviet Union,and China. After an uneasy 20-year hiatus, of the disputes left unsettled by World War I. The 40,000,000–50,000,000 deaths incurred in World War II make it the bloodiest conflict, as well as the largest war, in history.

In the 20th century, Hitler ruled over Germany with a strong, brutal fascist ideology. His manner of securing power was very much based on fear and manipulation. Compared to Stalin, who gained power through the torture of his own people for his gain, Hitler's ways were much worse, using scare tactics to make people follow him and playing mind games with other countries and their leaders. Also, what he believed about the enemies of his state was extremely based on his own feelings and ideas. In addition, the way he attempted to make his nation great and mighty was very intense and shocking to many.

Nazi Genocide during World War II was the horrific and brutal crimes in European History. The use of poisonous gases, crematoriums, intense labor, and shootings was the revenge of Adolph Hitler to his political opponents that made Germany fall into the Great Depression. “Unfortunately, there is no good term to describe the creation of conditions in which the death of human beings is not just allowed but deliberately intended” (Pressler, 12). The leader of the Nazi party was an Austrian named Adolph Hitler. Hitler was like a God in the eyes of desperate German families that had endured hard times in Germany during the Great Depression. The political ideology of fascism ruled Germany with an iron fist throughout the 1930s to the mid1940s in terms

It is to an certain extent that Nazi consolidation of power in 1933 was due to the use of terror and violence. However the terror and violence was very limited because the Nazi's weren’t in a strong enough position to exert terror and violence alone. Nazi propaganda against the communists made most Germans fearful of Communism therefore allowing Nazis to consolidate a bit more power through means of terror. On the other hand the Nazi party’s policy of legality and the threat of communism are to a large extent the underlining most important factor in explaining how the Nazis were able to destroy political opposition and become dominant and consolidate power in 1933. Legality was a policy where Hitler’s objective was to legally consolidate

It is to a certain extent that Nazi consolidation of power in 1933 was due to the use of terror and violence. However the terror and violence was very limited because the Nazi's weren’t in a strong enough position to exert terror and violence alone. Nazi propaganda against the communists made most Germans fearful of Communism therefore allowing Nazis to consolidate a bit more power through means of terror. On the other hand the Nazi party’s policy of legality and the threat of communism are to a large extent the underlining most important factor in explaining how the Nazis were able to destroy political