the night of the long knives

Learning Objectives: To explain how Hitler overcame the opposition facing him in order to consolidate his position of power within Nazi Germany

Night of the Long Knives

Night of the Long KnivesLO: To explain how Hitler overcame the opposition facing him in order to consolidate his position of power within Nazi Germany

RECAP:

How did the Reichstag Fire & the Enabling Act help Hitler consolidate his position of power.

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ROOM: 418028

The Road to DictatorshipLO: To explain how Hitler overcame the opposition facing him in order to consolidate his position of power within Nazi Germany

Must - Describe the events of the Night of the Long KnivesShould - Explain how the Night of the Long Knives increased Hitler’s powerCould - Make a judgment about the most important events that led to Hitler’s Dictatorship

LO: To explain how Hitler overcame the opposition facing him in order to consolidate his position of power within Nazi Germany

The Road to Dictatorship

Hitler wants to become dictator of Germany. As one of his closest advisor, Hitler wants you to help him.

The obstacles which may stand in his way are:

•Any new laws must be passed by the Reichstag •There are only 3 Nazis in the government •He does not have the support of the army which feels threatened by the SA•Opposition parties exist•Hindenburg, the president can sack him at any time

Background•Hitler was Chancellor, but still did not have full control.•Opposition from outside the Nazi Party was being destroyed – Communists were banned and concentration camps had been set up.•BUT – some within the Nazi Party opposed Hitler. ALSO – some important people would not support Hitler while these opponents remained.


• The Stormtroopers were also know as the Brownshirts

• Formed to protects the Nazi Party in 1921

• Ernst Rohm was their leader

Sturmabteilung (SA)LO: To explain how Hitler overcame the opposition facing him in order to consolidate his position of power within Nazi Germany

• Some SA members were still keen on the original ideas of the Nazi’s – a National Socialist Revolution

• They wanted rich landowners and big businesses to be swept away or taken over

• Gregor Strasser was the main believer in this – he had a lot of supporters

Why were they disloyal?LO: To explain how Hitler overcame the opposition facing him in order to consolidate his position of power within Nazi Germany

Gregor Strassor was not keen on Hitler!

‘I am a man marked by death.

Whatever happens, mark what I say: From now on Germany is

in the hands of an Austrian who is a congenital liar, a

former officer who is a pervert, and a clubfoot.

And I tell you the last is the worst of them all. This is Satan

in human form.’


Ernst Rohm, the leader of the SA, also clashed with Hitler.He wanted the Brownshirts to become the new German Army. With him in charge of course

Ernst RohmLO: To explain how Hitler overcame the opposition facing him in order to consolidate his position of power within Nazi Germany

Did Rohm know what was coming?

Adolf is a swine. He will give us all away. He only associates with

reactionaries now. Adolf knows exactly what I want. Not a

second edition of the imperial army. Are we revolutionaries or

aren’t we? We have got to produce something new, don’t

you see? A new discipline. A new principle of organisation. The

generals are a lot of old fogies. (Jan 1933)


Was Rohm in a strong position?

Hitler can’t walk over me as he did a year ago; I’ve seen that. Don’t forget that I have three

million men, with every key position in the hands of my own people…If Hitler is reasonable I shall settle the matter quietly; if he isn’t I must be prepared to

use force – not for my sake but for the sake of the revolution.

(Jan 1934)


Why should HitlerWhy should Hitlersupport the support the

SturmabteilungSturmabteilung(S.A)(S.A)

The S.A. had been in existence

since the early days of The Nazi

Party

The S.A. had supported Hitler and the Nazis by putting up posters,

handing out leaflets and intimidating political opponents throughout the 1920’s and early

1930’s.

The S.A. had more than 2 million

members by 1934.

The S.A. had fought for Hitler

during the Munich Putsch in

1923

Members of the S.A. were loyal Nazis

Ernst Rohm shared Hitler’s vision of a

racially pure society

The S.A. was led by one of Hitler’s earliest supporters

– Ernst Rohm

Ernst Rohm was personally loyal to

Hitler

Why should HitlerWhy should Hitlerpurge the purge the

SturmabteilungSturmabteilung(S.A)(S.A)

The German Army was well organised and trained and possessed the

weapons necessary to wage large scale war

S.A. leaders were demanding rewards for their loyal service.

They were angry that new Party Members were receiving

more recognition than they were

Many Generals and leading Nazis distrusted and feared Ernst Rohm

If the S.A. were not brought under

control Hitler may lose the support of

Hindenburg (the President) and

powerful conservativesErnst Rohm wanted to

merge the regular German Army with the

S.A

Ernst Rohm was a potential rival to Hitler

The S.A. were becoming lawless by the early

1930’s and were causing some Germans to turn against the Nazis

As S.A. membership grew, they were

becoming harder to control

The S.A. were good at breaking up opponents political meetings, but

they were not a professional army.

If Hitler supported the German Army he would gain the support of large

businesses

What was Hitler’s Decision?

Hitler complied a hit list of disloyal SA men.

Himmler, Heydrich and Goering were keen to do this.

Viktor Lutze, another SA chief was also willing to help


This was of course done in secret!

Himmler, leader of the SS, was especially keen to get rid of Rohm. He wanted

control of the concentration camps

and police forces.

Watch you back Ernst…


What happens next?

Read the worksheet - Why did Hitler turn on the SA in the

Night of the Long Knives?

As you read highlight the following:

•Key individuals involved in the event;

•Key events that took place.


Death of HindenburgLO: To explain how Hitler overcame the opposition facing him in order to consolidate his position of power within Nazi Germany

On 2nd August 1934 President Hindenburg died. Within hours,

Hitler had declared himself President and was now

Commander in Chief of the German Armed Forces as well

as Chancellor of the Reichstag. He combined the

offices of President and Chancellor and declared

himself ‘Führer’ (leader) of the new Third Reich.

The Führer OathLO: To explain how Hitler overcame the opposition facing him in order to consolidate his position of power within Nazi Germany

Hitler made the whole of the army swear an oath of loyalty to him personally.

‘I swear by almighty God this scared oath:

I will render unconditional obedience to the Führer of the German Reich and people, Adolf Hitler, supreme

commander of the Wehrmacht, and, as a brave soldier I am ready at any time to stake my life for this Oath.’

With this final step, Hitler’s power was unquestionable and his consolidation of power complete

How was Hitler able to increase his power between January 1933 and August 1934?

(8 marks)

You have to explainexplain how this dramatic change from Chancellor to Dictator happened in just 18

months.

It is important that you don’t just describedescribe (tell a story).

Every paragraph must have a Point, some Evidence and an ExplanationExplanation...

Hitler's Consolidation of Power


Bun - PointBun - Point

Salad - EvidenceSalad - Evidence

Meat - ExplanationMeat - Explanation

Bun - LinkBun - Link

*History Skills Builder* Burger/PEEL Paragraphs


(8 marks)


Answer this question using P-E-E-L.Answer this question using P-E-E-L.1)Write a brief introduction setting the scene.

In January 1933 Hitler was in a weak position. Hindenburg could sack him at any time and he had only 33% of the vote.

1)Choose the 3 events you think are the most important to Hitler’s power increasing.

2)Write a paragraph about each one, making sure you explain how the event led to Hitler’s

power increasing.



(8 marks)


Sentence starters...A key event that helped Hitler increase his power was...One way Hitler was able to increase his power was...Another event that led to Hitler increasing his power was...

Useful connectives (for explanation)This meant that...This led to...It enabled him to...He could now...This resulted in...


Two things you have learnt

Two things that youstill have questions



Who are shown in the centre of the cartoon?

How have they been portrayed?

Cartoon Analysis

Can you explain the cartoon caption:‘They Salute with Both Hands Now’’?

What is the joke?

Describe the appearance of Hitler, Goebbels and Goering.

What point is Low, the cartoonist, trying to make?

What is written upon Hitler’s armband? (Go to next slide to enlarge)

What do you think is meant by this?

What is written upon Hitler’s armband?


What has been discarded on the floor? (See message enlarged on next slide)


What has been discarded on the floor?


What has happened to the people in the foreground?

According to the cartoonist who seems most likely to be responsible for this action?

Give evidence.Cartoon from the London Evening Standard with permission

Who are the people surrounding the scene?

Why is their presence so significant?

Overall, what is the meaning of the cartoon?

How useful is the cartoon in helping us to understand the events that occurred during The Night of the Long Knives?

So what have I learnt about the S.A.?

(Some information has been added for you)

The S.A. was led by one of Hitler’s earliest

supporters – Ernst Rohm

The S.A. had supported Hitler and the Nazis by putting up posters, handing out leaflets and intimidating political

opponents throughout the 1920’s and early 1930’s.

So what have I learnt about the reasons for theNight of the Long Knives?


If the S.A. were not brought under control

Hitler may lose the support of Hindenburg

(the President) and powerful

conservatives

The S.A. were becoming

lawless by the early 1930’s and were

causing some Germans to

turn against the Nazis

So what have I learnt about the consequences of theNight of the Long Knives?


Ernst Rohm, potential rival to Hitler and leader of the

S.A. was shot dead

At least 83, (but more likely over 200) people were killed

Hitler’s popularity soared within the Party and

amongst the German population

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long kniveslearningobjectives