Germany is one of the most influential European countries in the world today. Scholars have pointed out that for a long time, the state has always wanted to be the world hegemony, but all its efforts were in vain. 1 While this is the case, several studies point to the contributions of Germany towards the world wars that took place in the early 20th century. While Germany is mentioned in almost every aspect of the wars, Adolf Hitler’s aggressive behavior is severally associated with the bloody wars of the 20th century. However, while this is true, it is significant to note that Hitler used the National Socialism ideology to propel the Germany agenda at that particular time. 2 Accordingly, this paper seeks to discuss into detail the National Socialism ideology as propagated by Adolf Hitler.
The Nazism ideology was grounded on nationalism, militarism, and expansionism coupled with totalitarianism. In addition, Hitler used his martial success and propaganda to make himself and his party attractive to the people of Germany. Through this, Hitler became one of the worst dictators in the world history. The National Socialism ideology is also referred to as Nazism. The ideology was grounded in Germany ideas but can be historically traced from the Prussian norms during the reign of Frederick William I who ruled between 1688– and 1740. 3 The tradition regarded militarism and dictatorship of the Prussian army as the standard model for all people and civil life. To this belief, political romanticism that was against rationalism was added. Finally, elements of the principles that led to the French revolution were incorporated into the ideology. 4 It is significant to note that the Nazism ideology was grounded on several aspects as discussed herein.
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To begin with, there was totalitarianism. In this ideology, the state’s power had no limits since it would stretch across all the spheres of Germany life (political, social, economic and cultural). The ideology held that it was the duty of the government of the day to make rules and shape, coordinate as well as regulate the manner in which the society operated to make the Germany nation better. In this aspect, the government had the power to control the press and the media coupled with the restrictions of the rights and freedom of the individuals. Moreover, the government had the power to manage education and spread propaganda. Articulating the features of Nazism. The government regarded civil rights and freedoms as an extraneous and subservient to the states’ interest.
The second feature of the Nazism was nationalism. Scholars note that Nazism was first a nationality ideology. 5 The ideology was grounded on the interest of German which included the reinstating the economy of Germany, attaining economy’s self-efficiency and reconstructing its martial power and providing the Germany people with their fundamental entitlement. Historians and diplomats point out to the fact that Nazism did not recognize the significance of international relations. In fact, its interest was only grounded in advancing the interests of the Germans. Adolf Hitler hated and disliked diplomacy and other intentional organization such as the League of Nations. With his aggressive behavior, Hitler never honored any foreign treaty or even discussing any unless it was for the benefit of Germans. 6 Moreover, other races such as the Jewish were not regarded as human. This explains why the Nazism ideology led to the mass killing of the Jewish population.
Another aspect of the Nazism ideology was militarism and expansionism. Adolf Hitler and his followers held that to defend the German nation, expansion and rearming of the armed forces was very crucial. The rearmament policy went against the provisions the Versailles treaty. Adolf Hitler also believed that the rearming of the army was primary to the expansion of the Germany state. The organization and structure of the NSDAP were military evident in the size and popularity of its paramilitary groups. 7 Also, Adolf Hitler desired to unite all the German-speaking people of Europe and form one great unified nation of German. Accordingly, he believed that to have a large unified German, he needed to acquire living space to accommodate the needs of the new countrymen. This space was to be captured from countries such as Czechoslovakia, Poland, and Russia. The Nazism ideology held that to achieve the above unification; the primary move was to have a union between Germany and Austria. 8
It is significant to note that the entire idea of Nazism can’t be separated from Adolf Hitler. As such, it is important to examine the strategies that Adolf Hitler used to make himself and his party attractive to the German people. To start with, in 1933 when Adolf Hitler became the chancellor, he had very little support from the people of German. 9 However, through propaganda and military success, Adolf Hitler soon became an idol that the people of Germany respected without question. It is this adulation that made Hitler change into a disaster. 10
Immediately after the death of the second Reich president Paul Von Hindenburg, Hitler embarked on expurgating the Reich presidency and had the army sworn in with a personal oath of unconditional obedience to him as the Führer of the German Reich and People." 11 With this move, Hitler became the head of the state and the chief commander of the armed forces and the head of the government. Also, he took monopoly over the state’s party (NSDAP) and accumulated power that was unlimited by any of the policies or constitutional regulation of German. With such power, it implied that Hitler became the face of German. 12
To win the respect of the people, Hitler went ahead to change the constellation of power. The change indicated Hitler’s identity and the country that he was ruling. This acted like a complete bond between Hitler and the people of German. The change took place in the referendum that was held on 19 August 1934. 13
The martial success of Hitler had also led him and his party to look attractive among the people of Germany. One of the major successes in military that Hitler had was in Rhineland. 14 The Germany troops made a remarkable move that demonstrated the weaknesses that the western democracies had. The major domestic problems that had been experienced in the region in the previous period were temporally forgotten. This made the people in the region to sing in support of Hitler. 15 Finally, Hitler spread propaganda demonstrating that he had single-handedly raised the economy of Germany. With such a message it became easier for the people of Germany to agree with his ideas and policies.
In conclusion, therefore, the Nazism ideology was grounded on nationalism, militarism, expansionism, and totalitarian. It is an ideology that had racism elements with dark minority group such as the Jewish being massacred by the regime in power. The major driver of the Nazism ideology was Adolph Hitler who believed in military territorial expansion to have one huge unified nation of Germany. To spread the Nazism idea among the people of Germany, Hitler had to employ certain strategies. To begin with, Adolf Hitler ensured that he had dismantled the Reich presidency and had the armed forces take a personal oath of unconditional respect to him. Additionally, he used his military successes to win the heart of the people of Germany. Finally, through propaganda, Hitler was regarded as a man who had single-handedly led to the economic growth of Germany. Through these strategies, although initially not popular among the people, Hitler was able to get respect and adoration from the Germans. It is this adoration that saw Hitler change into the dictators to the extent of killing the Jewish race in Germany while the world watched.
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1 Goodrick-Clarke, Nicholas. The occult roots of Nazism: Secret Aryan cults and their influence on Nazi ideology (NYU Press, 2013), 15.
2 Hayes, Peter. Industry and ideology: IG Farben in the Nazi era (Cambridge University Press, 2011), 11.
3 Cecil, Robert. The myth of the master race: Alfred Rosenberg and Nazi ideology (Dodd, Mead & Co., 2012), 22.
4 Rich, Norman. Hitler's War Aims: Ideology, the Nazi State, and the course of expansion (WW Norton & Company, 2012), 27.
5 Cecil, Robert. The myth of the master race: Alfred Rosenberg and Nazi ideology (Dodd, Mead & Co., 2012), 25.
6 Barkai, Avraham. Nazi economics: ideology, theory, and policy (Berg, 2010), 20.
7 Cecil, Robert. The myth of the master race: Alfred Rosenberg and Nazi ideology (Dodd, Mead & Co., 2012), 28.
8 Hoffman, Louise E. "Psychoanalytic Interpretations of Adolf Hitler and Nazism, 1933-1945: A Prelude to Psychohistory." The Psychohistory Review 11.1 (2012): 68.
9 Barkai, Avraham. Nazi economics: ideology, theory, and policy (Berg, 2010), 21.
10 Barkai, Avraham. Nazi economics: ideology, theory, and policy (Berg, 2010), 23.
11 Kershaw, Ian. "Hitler and the Uniqueness of Nazism." journal of Contemporary History 39.2 (2014): 239-254.
12 Barkai, Avraham. Nazi economics: ideology, theory, and policy (Berg, 2010), 26.
13 Rosenfeld, Gavriel D. The world Hitler never made: Alternate history and the memory of Nazism (Cambridge University Press, 2015), 55
14 Geary, Richard. Hitler and Nazism (Routledge, 2012), 41.
15 Mazower, Mark. Hitler's empire: how the Nazis ruled Europe (Penguin, 2009), 47.
