91 Years Ago: Adolf Hitler’s Party Seized Power in Historic Elections in Germany

In history, no significant event happens suddenly. Each has a background and a developmental process. The story of Adolf Hitler, one of the architects of the greatest tragedies in human history, the Second World War, is precisely such a tale.

In this content, we will take you back to the year 1932 when the National Socialist Party became the leading party in Germany for the first time.

The expression “Continuation of the First World War” is used for the Second World War. The reason for this designation is the agreements made after the First World War, preparing the ground for the Second war.

In November 1918, the Allied Powers, led by the United Kingdom and France, imposed severe agreements on the defeated states, including Germany, the Ottoman Empire, and Austria-Hungary.

The Versailles Treaty imposed on Germany particularly left the country in a very difficult economic situation.

During this period, a deep-seated hatred and anger began to sprout in German society from the 1920s onwards.

Adolf Hitler’s development and recognition process also coincide with those years. Rising in popularity with German nationalist ideas, Hitler was already one of the country’s leadership candidates by the 1930s.

Hitler’s fundamental manifesto was based on the invalidity of the Versailles Treaty signed after the First World War.

Stating that the rulers trampled the honor of the German nation, Hitler promised to build a powerful nation again when he came to power.

Every speech Hitler made in the early 1930s fascinated the masses.

On July 31, 1932, the party participated in the general election for the third time. The results did not yield a party that could secure a majority in parliament. The National Socialist German Workers’ Party, with 37% of the total votes, did not achieve a majority but had the highest number of seats. In the elections held in November, Hitler managed to maintain this superiority.

What Hitler emphasized the most in his speeches was the issue of the German nation being stabbed from within.

Hitler, who stated that internal enemies needed to be eliminated, targeted the Jews, a significant population in German society.

Since the early 1930s, Hitler began targeting Jews in the country, portraying this community as Germany’s enemy. These statements would soon become state policy.

On March 5, 1933, Hitler took the country to a general election again. During the campaign, he received significant financial support from industrial, financial, and insurance giants. In the elections on March 5, 1933, the votes for the National Socialist German Workers’ Party reached 44%. He was now the leader of the country, and no one could stand in his way.

After a fire broke out in the German Federal Parliament, Hitler used it as a pretext to completely eliminate the opposition, consolidating control over the entire country.

Creating a psychological breakthrough with the slogan “One Nation, One Leader,” Hitler managed to unite a large crowd filled with feelings of revenge behind him.

Now, all that was left was to arm and eliminate all dissenting voices in the country.

Immediately after the elections, a “authorization law” was passed in parliament. This law transferred all powers of the Reichstag to the cabinet for four years and suspended its activities for this period.

This law, along with the law, successfully rendered the Parliament completely ineffective.

Already, 81 communist deputies had been detained before the elections.

The Parliament was now entirely under the control of the Nazi Party, and no authority other than Hitler’s was accepted.

As a result of Parliament granting him extensive powers, Hitler became the sole leader of the German Empire after March 23, 1933. He escaped the pressure of Parliament or the daily affairs of President Hindenburg and rendered him ineffective.

1933 became a fateful year for Germany. A law was passed, closing all parties except the Nazi Party.

Hitler’s new goal was to unite the masses for the great German ideal he would achieve.

For this, he organized massive rallies.

In his speeches, he challenged all of Germany’s enemies, and these words were welcomed with enthusiasm by the people.

On August 2, 1934, Paul von Hindenburg died. Upon this, Hitler also assumed the presidency.

For Hitler and his Party, the November 1932 Elections were of vital importance to determine the fate of their Great War, where all obstacles were removed to make Germany the sole leader.

If other political parties had been able to present effective opposition during this process, Hitler’s empowerment to this extent would not have been possible.

A disgraced people found solace in turning to fascism.

The continuation of the story awaited the world with the Second World War and the Holocaust.