woodguru wrote:
Did those who supported Hitler know they were Nazi's...of course not, they thought they were on the right side of freeing Germany
Sound familiar
He was all set to unite the population and put an end to political discord.
The Nazis focused on voters from all walks of life, rather than on just one group, such as the workers or Catholics. They also attracted many people who had never voted before.
Still, in November 1932 the party seemed to be past its peak.
The economy was recovering, and the NSDAP received 11% fewer votes than in the July elections earlier that same year.
Hitler appointed Chancellor the conservative parties did not manage to win enough votes. They pressured President Paul von Hindenburg to appoint Hitler chancellor.
They hoped to form a majority cabinet with the NSDAP.
The fact that they expected to use Hitler for their own agenda would turn out to be a fatal underestimation.
30 January 1933 was the day: Von Hindenburg gave in and appointed Hitler chancellor. ‘It is like a dream.
The Wilhelmstraße is ours', Joseph Goebbels, the future Minister of Propaganda, wrote in his diary.
So, although Hitler was not elected by the German people, he still came to power in a legal way.
Hermann Göring’s role in particular was very important. He was a minister without portfolio who got to control the police force of Prussia, the larger part of Germany. For the Nazis, this was a reason to celebrate their 'national revolution', but many Germans were indifferent to the news.
They had seen many governments come and go and did not expect the new government to last any time at all.
Fire in the Reichstag: a first step towards the dictatorship
They overpowered the suspected arsonist, a Dutch communist named Marinus van der Lubbe.
He was executed after a show trial in 1934. Evidence of any accomplices was never found.
Freedom of expression was no longer a matter of course and the police could arbitrarily search houses and arrest people.
The political opponents of the Nazis were essentially outlawed.
According to the Nazis, everything ‘un-German' had to disappear
Books written by Jewish, left-wing, or pacifist writers were burned.
Time and again, they used legal means to give their actions a semblance of legality.
Step by step, Hitler managed to erode democracy until it was just a hollow facade.
https://www.annefrank.org/en/anne-frank/go-in-depth/germany-1933-democracy-dictatorship/