Five Brothers and a War

Hitler’s Rise to Power

Hitler appeared in the Reichstag to promise that if the bill passed into law, he would use the powers granted him sparingly. On March 23, the vote was taken and the bill passed into law on a 441-84 vote. As soon as it passed, the Nazis in the Reichstag stood and sang the Horst-Wessel Lied. Hitler had set the stage to become dictator, and democracy essentially ended, and it all happened legally—setting aside the thousands of criminal acts that facilitated the legal takeover.

Upon von Hindenburg’s death on August 2, Hitler immediately (within hours) combined the offices of President and Chancellor into the combined office of Führer (“Supreme Leader.”) This act was illegal, in that the Enabling Law specifically forbade Hitler from altering the presidency. To overcome this problem, Hitler set the date of August 19 for a national referendum on his combining the offices. 95% of the eligible voters cast their ballots, with more than 38 million voting in favor. The final count was 90% in agreement and 10% opposed. The day von Hindenburg died, everyone in the armed forces was also required to swear a new oath—to Hitler personally. There was no oath of loyalty to the country, only to Hitler himself. Similarly, the day after the national referendum, every government employee was required to swear an oath of allegiance to Hitler.

nazi germany

Hitler feigning submission to von Hindenburg, though he held the President in total contempt. The feeling was mutual in that von Hindenburg called Hitler “The Austrian Corporal”.

Five Brothers and a War

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