World One War: The Birth of Nazism

In 1918, a revolutionary new political party was born out of the chaos and economic destruction of the First World War.

This party would, in the end, be one of the main catalysts for the destruction of 60 million people by 1945.

The party in question grew out of a number of nationalists groups which were formed in Germany during the last years of World War One.

On March 7^th 1918, Anton Drexler, an avid German nationalist, formed a branch of the ‘Free Committee for a German Workers' Peace’ in Munich and called it ‘Committee of Independent Workmen’.   Drexler, who had been a member of the militaristic ‘Fatherland Party’ during World War One, was bitterly opposed to the Armistice of November 1918 and the revolutionary chaos that followed in its wake.  Drexler merely followed the sentiments of other Nationalistic parties who opposed the Versailles Treaty, believed in the superiority of the German people and blamed Germanys defeat on Communism and Jewry.  

In the ensuing political, military and social chaos of Weimar Germany, Drexler saw the unfolding situation as an effect of the new Weimar Republic being out of touch with the German people.  In response, Drexler amongst other nationalists emphasised the need for a strong unified nation.

In 1919, Drexler created a new party which he called ‘Deutsche Arbeiterpartei’ or ‘German Workers Party’.  In order to ease the concerns of the middle-classes, Drexler made it clear that the party supported the middle-classes.  The party became one of many ‘Volkisch’ movements which existed in Germany at that time.

In a nutshell, the parties beliefs were that through profit-sharing rather than socialisation, Germany would become a unified national community or ‘Volksgemeinschaft’ .  This ideology was hard-line anti-Semitic, as the party declared that a ‘national community’ must be Jew free.

The DAP with a membership of 60, was comparatively small compared to some of Germanys other parties.  Nevertheless, in a society which was ripe for evolution and turmoil, the struggling state authorities kept close observations on all political parties.

The introduction of young Adolf Hitler in 1919, who was ordered to attend the parties meetings and report on its activities, was to be the catalyst of its growth.

Becoming embroiled in a heated political debate, Hitler impressed party members with his oratory skills and vehemence of the situation Germany was in.  Recognising skill, Drexler invited Hitler to join the party.  Amongst its early members were Ernst Rohm, Rudolf Hess, Hans Frank and Alfred Rosenberg.

Although when he joined, Hitler’s card stated he was the 555^th member, he was in fact the 55^th.  This was a clever ploy in order to impress the size of the party on the German people and authorities.

Hitler’s first speech was at the Hofbraukeller where he spoke in front of over 100 people.  Initially only speaking at small meetings and venues, Hitler’s oratory skill combined with his propaganda techniques, took himself and the party to more prominent positions.

In 1920, the party added ‘National Socialist’ to its official name and subsequently became the National Socialist German Workers Party (NSDAP) R Nazi for short.

Through his oratory skill and vehement attacks on the Weimar Government, Hitler appeared thirty-one times within one year after he joined the party.

By the end of 1920, the parties’ members had swelled to over 3,000.

Recognising his own abilities, Hitler supported by Drexler, became Party Chairman in July 1921.  Scrapping the arrangement whereby the chairman was elected by the party, Hitler acquired the title ‘Fuhrer’ after a series of short and sharp internal conflicts which he won.  It was subsequently accepted that the part would be governed by the ‘Fuhrerprinzip’ whereby Hitler was the sole leader of the party and he alone decided on its policies and strategy.

Having sole control of the party, Hitler saw the movement as a revolutionary organisation whose aim was the violent overthrow of the despised Weimar Republic, which he and other Nationalists saw as being controlled by Socialists, Jews and the so-called ‘Novemberberuche’ or ‘November Criminals’ who had signed the armistice.

The infamous ‘Sturmabteilung’ or SA, commonly known as Brownshirts, were founded as the parties Para-military wing in 1921 and began attacks on other political parties in the early chaos of Weimar Germany.