Editing Nazi Party (section)

==== Adoption of Italian fascism: The Beer Hall Putsch ====
On 31 October 1922, a [[fascist]] party with similar policies and objectives came into power in Italy, the [[National Fascist Party]], under the leadership of the charismatic [[Benito Mussolini]]. The Fascists, like the Nazis, promoted a national rebirth of their country, as they opposed communism and liberalism; appealed to the working-class; opposed the [[Treaty of Versailles]]; and advocated the territorial expansion of their country. Hitler was inspired by Mussolini and the Fascists, beginning to adopt elements of their program for the Nazi Party and himself.{{sfn|Kershaw|2000|p=182}} The Italian Fascists also used a straight-armed [[Roman salute]] and wore black-shirted uniforms; Hitler would later borrow their use of the straight-armed salute as a [[Nazi salute]].

When the Fascists took control of Italy through their [[coup d'état]] called the "[[March on Rome]]", Hitler began planning his own coup less than a month later.{{sfn|Kershaw|2000|p=182}} In January 1923, France occupied the [[Ruhr]] industrial region as a result of Germany's failure to meet its [[World War I reparations|reparations]] payments. This led to economic chaos, the resignation of [[Wilhelm Cuno]]'s government and an attempt by the German Communist Party (KPD) to stage a revolution. The reaction to these events was an upsurge of nationalist sentiment. Nazi Party membership grew sharply to about 20,000,{{sfn|Kershaw|2008|p=110}} compared to the approximate 6,000 at the beginning of 1923.{{sfn|Childers|2001a|loc=29:00–30:00}} By November 1923, Hitler had decided that the time was right for an attempt to seize power in Munich, in the hope that the {{lang|de|Reichswehr}} (the post-war German military) would mutiny against the Berlin government and join his revolt. In this, he was influenced by former General [[Erich Ludendorff]], who had become a supporter—though not a member—of the Nazis.{{sfn|Jablonsky|1989|pp=20–26, 30}}
[[File:Bundesarchiv_Bild_119-1486,_Hitler-Putsch,_München,_Marienplatz.jpg|left|thumb|Nazis during the [[Beer Hall Putsch]] in Munich]]
On the night of 8 November, the Nazis used a patriotic rally in a Munich beer hall to launch an attempted {{lang|de|putsch}} ("coup d'état"). This so-called [[Beer Hall Putsch]] attempt failed almost at once when the local {{lang|de|Reichswehr}} commanders refused to support it. On the morning of 9 November, the Nazis staged a march of about 2,000 supporters through Munich in an attempt to rally support. The two groups exchanged fire, after which 15 putschists, four police officers, and a bystander lay dead.{{sfn|Shirer|1990|p=112}}<ref name="H2">[[Hanns Hubert Hofmann]]: ''Der Hitlerputsch. Krisenjahre deutschen Geschichte 1920–1924''. Nymphenburger Verlagshandlung, München 1961, S. 211, 272; als ''Karl Kulm'' bei [[Hans Günter Hockerts]]: ''„Hauptstadt der Bewegung“''. In: Richard Bauer et al. (Hrsg.): ''München – „Hauptstadt der Bewegung“. Bayerns Metropole und der Nationalsozialismus''. 2. Auflage. Edition Minerva, München 2002, S. 355&nbsp;f.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2015-06-11 |title=Einsatz für Freiheit und Demokratie |url=https://www.stmi.bayern.de/med/aktuell/archiv/2013/20131109demokratie/ |access-date=2023-10-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150611133949/https://www.stmi.bayern.de/med/aktuell/archiv/2013/20131109demokratie/ |archive-date=11 June 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Hitler, Ludendorff and a number of others were arrested and were tried for treason in March 1924. Hitler and his associates were given very lenient prison sentences. While Hitler was in prison, he wrote his semi-autobiographical political manifesto {{lang|de|[[Mein Kampf]]}} ("My Struggle").

The Nazi Party was banned on 9 November 1923; however, with the support of the nationalist [[Völkisch-Social Bloc]] ({{lang|de|Völkisch-Sozialer Block}}), it continued to operate under the name "German Party" ({{lang|de|Deutsche Partei}} or DP) from 1924 to 1925.{{sfn|Jablonsky|1989|p=57}} The Nazis failed to remain unified in the DP, as in the north, the right-wing [[Völkisch movement|Volkish]] nationalist supporters of the Nazis moved to the new [[German Völkisch Freedom Party]], leaving the north's left-wing Nazi members, such as [[Joseph Goebbels]] retaining support for the party.{{sfn|Jablonsky|1989|p=57}}