German Opposition to Hitler   Term Paper ID:27348 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: Argues that Hitler's rise to power, & control of Germany by the Nazi Party, was not without opposition. States that even after ascension of Nazi Party, opposition continued from inside & outside the government.... More...

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Paper Abstract: Argues that Hitler's rise to power, & control of Germany by the Nazi Party, was not without opposition. States that even after ascension of Nazi Party, opposition continued from inside & outside the government. Paper Introduction: The Nazis did not come to power in Germany without opposition, and they did not develop their war machine in an atmosphere completely without resistance. There was resistance to the Nazis within German society from a number of people and groups in society, and this resistance was dealt with harshly as the Nazis tried to consolidate their own power and bring everyone into conformity with their program of belligerence toward Germany's neighbors. During the early days of the rise of the National Socialists to power, there were three characteristics of the regime: 1) a commitment to national tradition to make Germans identify with the state and its power; 2) the joining of tradition with the promise of a new order, of an historic breakthrough, and of a national revival and renewal; and 3) terror directed at enemies and at the Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. They merely abstained from participation, a stance whichwas a danger in itself but which could be mitigated by being unobtrusive:"It was therefore easier for anonymous men and women to belong to thesilent Opposition than for prominent people or those who in some capacitystood in the limelight" (Rothfels: p. The evidence that there was an opposition was interpreted in thissame vein by assuming that such opposition did not develop until the nationwas confronted with defeat. While a large proportion of the intellectual class has rightly beenblamed for failing in its responsibility to criticize the rise of NationalSocialism, there were also leading men in philosophy and education,history, jurisprudence, economics, physics, and other disciplines who wereinvolved in open opposition or at least refused to follow orders. ReferencesRothfels, Hans, The German Opposition to Hitler. There is no doubt that, though the Civil Service as a whole was forced to tow the Party line, there were entire groups within it in silent but effective opposition and that they opened emergency exits wherever they could (Rothfels: p. Knopf, 1987. The silent Opposition, those who were non-Nazis, may haveincluded sympathizers as well as those who were antagonistic but silentabout the Nazis. At first, this was directed at opponents of the regime,notably the Communists. The entire nation was being brought intoconformity under the official designation Gleichschaltung, literallytranslated as "putting into the same gear." The work of terror could nowbe carried out more easily because the SA (Storm Troopers) and the SS werenow considered "auxiliary police." Goebbels was made minister ofpropaganda and imposed more stringent censorship (Stern: pp. There was resistance to the Nazis within German society from anumber of people and groups in society, and this resistance was dealt withharshly as the Nazis tried to consolidate their own power and bringeveryone into conformity with their program of belligerence towardGermany's neighbors. Some of the active Opposition worked effectively under the cover oftheir membership in the ruling class and even under the protection of ahigh position in the Gestapo or the SS. 3 ).The churches provided open opposition to Hitler, particularly as he haddeclared a form of war on them as he wanted the state to take over thechurches and to direct them in ways compatible with National Socialism.Various religious leaders were arrested, hundreds of them, eventuallyresulting in a diminishing of the resistance from that front. Hitlerestablished his absolute dictatorship within the first few weeks: "He didso by that diabolical simultaneity of reassuring the old elites andsilencing or terrorizing most would-be opponents" (Stern, 1987: p. Theseintellectuals often preserved their ethical structure in small groups wherethey would read the old works and refuse to support the official Partypublications. 167).In 1933, Hitler persuaded Hindenburg to sign emergency decrees that inessence ended all civic rights that had been granted by the WeimarConstitution, and this would become the "legal" basis for the terror thatwas now unleashed. 167-168). The opposition inside Germany discounted for a long time. . The Nazis did not come to power in Germany without opposition, andthey did not develop their war machine in an atmosphere completely withoutresistance. Scholarly literature was still published, often free of allNazism though some disciplines--notably historiography--were under muchpressure to conform and to present the forms of the old myths supported bythe Nazis. 24 ). the whole nation had deliberately shut their eyes toterrible crimes which had been committed by Germans" (Rothfels, 1962: p.16). 28). New York: Alfred A. Shirer(196 ) notes that this persecution of religion did not arouse the Germanpeople as it should have: "A people who had so lightly given up theirpolitical and cultural and economic freedoms were not, except for arelatively few, going to die or even risk imprisonment to preserve freedomof worship" (p. Rothfels states that there were four rough groups of Nazis during theThird Reich period: actual Nazis, nominal Nazis, non-Nazis, and anti-Nazis.Divisions between these groups are not easy to make and must have shiftedover the years. In the technical branches of theCivil Service, there were many non-party members who were superficialconformists but who were often able to maintain successfully certainprinciples of professional ethics: Not a few men and women who escaped persecution and terror owed their lives to this fact or found sympathy and help in highly unexpected quarters. The refusal to conform merged with more or less covert forms ofresistance: "From abstention it is only a step to an attitude whichdeliberately undermines National Socialist dogmas or which incites toopposition against a tyrannical regime in all its forms and effects" (p.36). New York: Simon and Schuster, 196 .Stern, Fritz, Dreams and Delusions. Some individuals went further and published indirect attacks on theNazis, a difficult proposition given the fact that the Gestapo and thePropaganda Ministry were thought to be everywhere. . An examination of theseworks shows, though, that resistance was found more often than many foreignobservers believed then or since. During the early days of the rise of the National Socialists topower, there were three characteristics of the regime: 1) a commitment tonational tradition to make Germans identify with the state and its power;2) the joining of tradition with the promise of a new order, of an historicbreakthrough, and of a national revival and renewal; and 3) terror directedat enemies and at the populace at large in order to convince the peoplethat compliance was the only way to avoid further trouble. The attempt on Hitler's life was thus seen asevidence of generals who attempted to save their own lives and to preservethe General Staff for a third world war. Throughoutthe war and at its conclusion, the theory that prevailed was that noopposition to Hitler worth speaking of ever existed inside Germany: "It wasassumed that . Chicago: Henry Regnery, 1962.Shirer, William L., The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.

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