Editing History of Germany (section)

===Establishment of the Nazi regime===
{{Main|Adolf Hitler's rise to power|Government of Nazi Germany}}
[[File:Flag of German Reich (1935–1945).svg|thumb|left|National flag of Germany, 1935–1945]]

To secure a ''Reichstag'' majority for his party, Hitler called for new elections. After the 27 February 1933 [[Reichstag fire]], Hitler swiftly blamed an alleged Communist uprising, and convinced President Hindenburg to approve the [[Reichstag Fire Decree]], rescinding civil liberties. Four thousand [[Communist Party of Germany|communists]] were arrested{{Sfn|Evans|2003|pp=329–334}} and Communist agitation was banned. Communists and Socialists were brought into hastily prepared [[Nazi concentration camp]]s, where they were at the mercy of the [[Gestapo]], the newly established secret police force. Communist ''Reichstag'' deputies were taken into "[[protective custody (Nazi Germany)|protective custody]]".

[[File:WWII, Europe, Germany, "Nazi Hierarchy, Hitler, Goering, Goebbels, Hess", The Desperate Years p143 - NARA - 196509.jpg|thumb|Key leaders of the Nazi regime (left to right): [[Adolf Hitler]], [[Hermann Göring]], [[Joseph Goebbels]] and [[Rudolf Hess]]]]
Despite the terror and unprecedented propaganda, the last free General Elections of 5 March 1933, while resulting in 43.9% failed to give the Nazis their desired majority. Together with the [[German National People's Party]] (DNVP), however, he was able to form a slim majority government. On 23 March 1933, the [[Enabling Act of 1933|Enabling Act]] marked the beginning of Nazi Germany,{{Sfn|Evans|2003|p=354, 336}} allowing Hitler and his cabinet to enact laws on their own without the President or the Reichstag.{{Sfn|Evans|2003|p=351}} The Enabling Act formed the basis for the dictatorship and the dissolution of the [[States of Germany|Länder]]. Trade unions and all political parties other than the Nazi Party were suppressed. A centralised totalitarian state was established, no longer based on the liberal [[Weimar Republic|Weimar]] constitution. Germany withdrew from the [[League of Nations]] shortly thereafter. The coalition parliament was rigged by defining the absence of arrested and murdered deputies as voluntary and therefore cause for their exclusion as wilful absentees. The Centre Party was voluntarily dissolved in a ''quid pro quo'' with the [[Holy See|Pope]] under the ''anti-communist'' [[Pope Pius XI]] for the ''[[Reichskonkordat]]''; and by these manoeuvres Hitler achieved movement of these Catholic voters into the Nazi Party, and a long-awaited international diplomatic acceptance of his regime. The Nazis gained a larger share of their vote in Protestant areas than in Catholic areas.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Geary |first=Dick |date=October 1998 |title=Who voted for the Nazis? (electoral history of the National Socialist German Workers Party) |url=https://archive.org/details/sim_history-today_1998-10_48_10/page/8 |journal=[[History Today]] |volume=48 |issue=10 |pages=8–14}}</ref> The Communist Party was proscribed in April 1933.

Hitler used the [[Schutzstaffel|SS]] and Gestapo to purge the entire SA leadership—along with a number of Hitler's political adversaries in the [[Night of the Long Knives]] from 30 June to 2 July 1934.{{Sfn|Kershaw|2008|pp=309–314}} As a reward, the SS became an independent organisation under the command of the ''[[Reichsführer-SS]]'' [[Heinrich Himmler]]. Upon Hindenburg's death on 2 August 1934, Hitler's cabinet passed a law proclaiming the presidency to be vacant and transferred the role and powers of the head of state to Hitler.