Editing Nazi Germany (section)

== Politics ==
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 102-04062A, Nürnberg, Reichsparteitag, SA- und SS-Appell.jpg|thumb|upright=0.9|[[Heinrich Himmler]], Hitler and [[Viktor Lutze]] perform the [[Nazi salute]] at the [[Nuremberg Rally]], September 1934.|alt=]]

=== Ideology ===
{{Main|Nazism}}
The Nazis were a far-right [[fascist]] political party which arose during the social and financial upheavals that occurred following the end of World War I.{{sfn|Spielvogel|2016|p=1}} The Party remained small and marginalised, receiving 2.6% of the federal vote in 1928, prior to the onset of the Great Depression in 1929.{{sfn|Evans|2005|pp=6–9}} By 1930 the Party won 18.3% of the federal vote, making it the Reichstag's second largest political party.{{sfn|Kershaw|2008|p=204}} While in prison after the failed [[Beer Hall Putsch]] of 1923, Hitler wrote ''[[Mein Kampf]]'', which laid out his plan for transforming German society into one based on race.{{sfn|Kershaw|2008|pp=146–147}} Nazi ideology brought together elements of antisemitism, [[racial hygiene]], and [[eugenics]], and combined them with [[pan-Germanism]] and territorial expansionism with the goal of obtaining more ''Lebensraum'' for the Germanic people.{{sfn|Evans|2008|p=7}}

The regime attempted to obtain this new territory by attacking Poland and the Soviet Union, intending to mass-murder or deport the Jews and [[Slavs]] living there, who it viewed as being inferior to the Aryan [[master race]] and part of a [[Jewish Bolshevism|Jewish-Bolshevik]] conspiracy.{{sfn|Bendersky|2007|p=161}}{{sfn|Gellately|1996|pp=270–274}} The Nazi regime believed that only Germany could defeat the forces of Bolshevism and save humanity from world domination by [[International Jewry]].{{sfn|Bytwerk|1998}} Other people deemed [[life unworthy of life]] by the Nazis included the mentally and physically disabled, [[Romani people]], [[Persecution of homosexuals in Nazi Germany and the Holocaust|homosexuals]], [[Persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses in Nazi Germany|Jehovah's Witnesses]], and social misfits.{{sfn|Longerich|2010|p=49}}{{sfn|Evans|2008|p=759}} Additionally, [[Freemasonry|Freemasons]] were [[Anti-Masonry#Nazi Germany and occupied Europe|heavily monitored and persecuted]].{{sfn|Bergen|2016|pp=36–37}}

Influenced by the [[Völkisch movement#Influence on Nazism|''Völkisch'' movement]], the regime was against cultural [[modernism]] and supported the development of an extensive military at the expense of intellectualism.{{sfn|Kershaw|2008|p=81}}{{sfn|Evans|2005|pp=7, 443}} Creativity and art were stifled, except where they could serve as propaganda media.{{sfn|Evans|2005|pp=210–211}} The party used symbols such as the [[Blutfahne|Blood Flag]] and rituals such as the [[Nuremberg Rally|Nazi Party rallies]] to foster unity and bolster the regime's popularity.{{sfn|Evans|2005|pp=121–122}}

=== Government ===
{{Main|Government of Nazi Germany}}
[[File:WWII, Europe, Germany, "Nazi Hierarchy, Hitler, Goering, Goebbels, Hess", The Desperate Years p143 - NARA - 196509.jpg|thumb|Hitler, Göring, Goebbels and [[Rudolf Hess]] during a military parade in 1933|alt=]]
Hitler ruled Germany autocratically by asserting the ''[[Führerprinzip]]'' ("leader principle"), which called for absolute obedience by all subordinates. He viewed the government structure as a pyramid, with himself—the infallible leader—at the apex. Party rank was not determined by elections, and positions were filled through appointment by those of higher rank.{{sfn|Kershaw|2008|pp=170, 172, 181}} The party used propaganda to develop a [[cult of personality]] around Hitler.{{sfn|Evans|2005|p=400}} Historians such as Kershaw emphasise the psychological impact of Hitler's skill as an orator.{{sfn|Kershaw|2008|pp=105–106}} Roger Gill states: "His moving speeches captured the minds and hearts of a vast number of the German people: he virtually hypnotized his audiences".{{sfn|Gill|2006|p=259}}

While top officials reported to Hitler and followed his policies, they had considerable autonomy.{{sfn|Kershaw|2001|p=253}} He expected officials to "work towards the Führer"&nbsp;– to take the initiative in promoting policies and actions in line with party goals and Hitler's wishes, without his involvement in day-to-day decision-making.{{sfn|Kershaw|2008|pp=320–321}} The government was a disorganised collection of factions led by the party elite, who struggled to amass power and gain the Führer's favour.{{sfn|McElligott|Kirk|Kershaw|2003|p=6}} Hitler's leadership style was to give contradictory orders to his subordinates and to place them in positions where their duties and responsibilities overlapped.{{sfn|Speer|1971|p=281}} In this way he fostered distrust, competition, and infighting among his subordinates to consolidate and maximise his own power.{{sfn|Manvell|Fraenkel|2007|p=29}}

Successive ''[[Reichsstatthalter]]'' decrees between 1933 and 1935 abolished the existing ''Länder'' ([[States of the Weimar Republic|constituent states]]) of Germany and replaced them with new [[Administrative divisions of Nazi Germany|administrative divisions]], the ''Gaue'', governed by Nazi leaders (''[[Gauleiter]]s'').{{sfn|Evans|2005|pp=48–49}} The change was never fully implemented, as the Länder were still used as administrative divisions for some government departments such as education. This led to a bureaucratic tangle of overlapping jurisdictions and responsibilities typical of the administrative style of the Nazi regime.{{sfn|Freeman|1995|p=6}}

Jewish civil servants lost their jobs in 1933, except for those who had seen military service in World War I. Members of the Party or party supporters were appointed in their place.{{sfn|Evans|2005|pp=14–15, 49}} As part of the process of ''Gleichschaltung'', the Reich Local Government Law of 1935 abolished local elections, and mayors were appointed by the Ministry of the Interior.{{sfn|Evans|2005|p=49}}

=== Law ===
{{Main|Law in Nazi Germany}}
[[File:Nuremberg_laws.jpg|thumb|Chart showing the [[pseudo-scientific]] racial divisions used in the racial policies of Nazi Germany|alt=]]
In August 1934, civil servants and members of the military were required to swear an oath of unconditional obedience to Hitler. These laws became the basis of the ''Führerprinzip'', the concept that Hitler's word overrode all existing laws.{{sfn|Evans|2005|pp=43–44}} Any acts that were sanctioned by Hitler—even murder—thus became legal.{{sfn|Evans|2005|p=45}} All legislation proposed by cabinet ministers had to be approved by the office of [[Deputy Führer]] [[Rudolf Hess]], who could also veto top civil service appointments.{{sfn|Evans|2005|p=46}}

Most of the judicial system and legal codes of the Weimar Republic remained in place to deal with non-political crimes.{{sfn|Evans|2005|p=75}} The courts issued and carried out far more death sentences than before the Nazis took power.{{sfn|Evans|2005|p=75}} People who were convicted of three or more offences—even petty ones—could be deemed habitual offenders and jailed indefinitely.{{sfn|Evans|2005|p=76}} People such as prostitutes and pickpockets were judged to be inherently criminal and a threat to the community. Thousands were arrested and confined indefinitely without trial.{{sfn|Evans|2005|pp=79–80}}

[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-J03166, Berlin, Amtsübernahme Dr. Thierack.jpg|thumb|A meeting of the four jurists who imposed Nazi ideology on the legal system of Germany (left to right: [[Roland Freisler]], [[Franz Schlegelberger]], [[Otto Georg Thierack]], and [[Curt Rothenberger]])|alt=]]
A new type of court, the ''[[Volksgerichtshof]]'' ("People's Court"), was established in 1934 to deal with political cases.{{sfn|Evans|2005|pp=68, 70}} This court handed out over 5,000 death sentences until its dissolution in 1945.{{sfn|Evans|2008|p=514}} The death penalty could be issued for offences such as being a communist, printing seditious leaflets, or even making jokes about Hitler or other officials.{{sfn|Evans|2005|p=72}} The Gestapo was in charge of investigative policing to enforce Nazi ideology as they located and confined political offenders, Jews, and others deemed undesirable.{{sfn|Weale|2012|p=154}} Political offenders who were released from prison were often immediately re-arrested by the Gestapo and confined in a concentration camp.{{sfn|Evans|2005|p=73}}

The Nazis used propaganda to promulgate the concept of ''[[Rassenschande]]'' ("race defilement") to justify the need for racial laws.{{sfn|Evans|2005|pp=539, 551}} In September 1935, the Nuremberg Laws were enacted. These laws initially prohibited sexual relations and marriages between Aryans and Jews and were later extended to include "Gypsies, Negroes or their bastard offspring".{{sfn|Gellately|2001|p=216}} The law also forbade the employment of German women under the age of 45 as domestic servants in Jewish households.{{sfn|Kershaw|2008|p=346}} The Reich Citizenship Law stated that only those of "German or related blood" could be citizens.{{sfn|Evans|2005|p=544}} Thus Jews and other non-Aryans were stripped of their German citizenship. The law also permitted the Nazis to deny citizenship to anyone who was not supportive enough of the regime.{{sfn|Evans|2005|p=544}} A supplementary decree issued in November defined as Jewish anyone with three Jewish grandparents, or two grandparents if the Jewish faith was followed.{{sfn|Kershaw|2008|p=347}}{{clear left}}