This six part series traces the Nazi dictatorship from 1933-1945. Part 1 traces events from 30 January 1933 through the remilitarization of the Rhineland, March, 1936

2. The 12-Year Reich
Nazi Germany, 1933-1945
Session I
Establishing the Dictatorship
1933-1936

4. It began with
a torchlight
procession
30 January 1933

5. Hitler is Reich Chancellor! And what a
cabinet!!!! One such as we did not dare to
dream of in July. Hitler, Hugenberg,
Seldte, Papen!!! .... What an achievement
by Hindenburg!
Luise Sollmitz,
Hamburg schoolteacher

6. It ended with
all Berlin in
ruins
8 May 1945

7. Never in history has such ruination--
physical and moral--been associated with
the name of one man....Hitler’s name
justifiably stands for all time as the chief
instigator of the most profound collapse of
civilization in modern times.
Ian Kershaw,
Hitler; 1936-1945 Nemesis,
p. 841

8. Sir Ian Kershaw describes Hitler’s career as
following the course of the ancient Greek tragic
hero: Hubris (overweening pride) leading to
Nemesis (destruction).
What was true for Hitler was also true for the
people who accepted him; some joyously, some
grudgingly.

10. The Legend
the seizure of power,
the Machtergreifung
“undoubting belief”
“fanatical will to victory”

12. true, Hitler clung to his
“all or nothing” strategy
with “undoubting
belief”
but it was the hubris of
the conservatives who
believed they could
“use” him which led to
Hitler’s government

13. Once in, the next steps...
consolidating the
dictatorship
within a year and a half
Hitler gathered all
power into his own
hands

14. The Means

15. The Means
pseudo-legal measures
terror
manipulation
willing cooperation

16. Gleichshaltung -- coordination
part manipulation, part willing cooperation, this process
occurred with stunning speed
the rush to join the party led to cynical jokes
local organizations from garden clubs to singing
societies pledged their loyalty to the new leader
opportunism mingled with genuine idealism

17. The Milestones

18. The Milestones
the Reichstag fire, 28 Feb 33
the last “free” election, 5 Mar 33
taming labor, 1-2 May 33
subordinating state governments, summer 33
emasculating the SA, 30 Jun 34
Hindenburg’s death, 2 Aug 34

19. The timetable, 1933
1 month--civil liberties extinguished
2 months--”most active political
opponents...imprisoned or fleeing and the Reichstag
surrendered its powers”
4 months--”once powerful [labor] unions dissolved”
< 6 months--”all opposition parties suppressed or gone
into voluntary liquidation”
-- Kershaw, p. 435

20. Civil liberties extinguished
the Reichstag fire
provides an excuse
this emergency decree
suspends civil liberties
on the eve of the last
“semi-free” election
on 5 March the Nazis
win 44% of the seats

21. Reichstag surrenders its powers
Hitler brought a
measure giving himself
dictatorial powers on
23 March
despite an heroic
speech by SPD leader,
Otto Wels, the
Reichstag passed the
Enabling Act, 441-94

22. Once powerful unions dissolved
a Nazi Mayday celebration
replaces the one
organized by the unions
the very next day the SA
take over the union offices
now workers are
“represented” by the Nazi
German Labor Front (DAF)

23. Bücherverbrennung -- Book
Burning
on 10 May on the
Berlin Odeonsplatz and
at many German
universities some
20,000 books were
burned

24. Opposition parties suppressed
this headline from 23 June
announces the outlawing
of the SPD
the Social Democrats were
the oldest and greatest of
Germany’s parties
too “Marxist” for the Nazis
their criticism from abroad
provided the justification

25. The timetable -- 1934
January-- Länder (state governments) abolished
30 June-- “Night of the Long Knives” the SA
decapitated and dozens of other “enemies” murdered
2 August-- President Hindenburg dies, the office is left
unfilled and the army swears allegiance to Hitler

26. “Coordination” of the states

27. “Coordination” of the states
by summer of ’33 all the
Länder (states) had Nazi
appointed governors to
“coordinate” them
in January 1934 they
were abolished as
political entities
Germany ceased to have
a federal constitution

28. SA terror
beginning on 30 Jan
33, the SA began
“settling scores”
they were used as
auxillary police and KZ
guards, here at
Oranienburg, outside
Berlin

29. SA as “People’s Army”
the regular army was
limited to 100,000
the rival SA grew to 4.3
million
Hitler was pressured to
choose

30. Taming the SA
by June Hitler felt forced
to move against his “Old
Fighters”, chief among
them Ernst Röhm, here
he arrested and executed
hundreds without trial
the event became known
as the “Night of the Long
Knives”

31. The major beneficiary: the SS
originally, 1928, a small
section (280 men) within the
SA
Himmler conspired against
his boss, Röhm
his reward was to become
head of the new “Praetorian
Guard”
he and Heydrich come to
control all police power

32. Hindenburg’s death, end of
the presidency

33. Hindenburg’s death, end of
the presidency
2 August 1934, the
aged president dies
Hitler announces that
there will be no
replacement
he becomes Führer
and Reichschancellor

34. Triumph of the Will
the emasculated SA is
given center stage at
the annual Party Day
the army is jealous
Leni Riefenstahl makes
her famous film

35. Greatest propaganda film?
often hailed as such
Riefenstahl was
famous from the
“mountain films”
she pioneered as a
female director

36. Working towards the Führer
the administration of
Germany developed
haphazardly
Hitler’s work style was
“dilletantish”
he encouraged rivalries
party and state organs
duplicated efforts

37. Nazionalsozialistische
Betriebszellenorganizatsion
founded in 1928 as the
party wing for organizing
and converting workers
it was tarnished by its
connection to the
Strasser brothers, the left
wing of the party
after 1933 the NSBO lost
lapel pin out to the DAF & Ley In the future
we will create
an aristocracy
of labor--
Adolf Hitler

38. Nazionalsozialistische
Betriebszellenorganizatsion
founded in 1928 as the
party wing for organizing
and converting workers
it was tarnished by its
connection to the
Strasser brothers, the left
wing of the party
after 1933 the NSBO lost
lapel pin out to the DAF & Ley In the future
we will create
an aristocracy
of labor--
Adolf Hitler

39. Arbeit -- Labor
party
govt
Robert Ley
Franz Seldte German Labor Front
Labor Minister (DAF)

40. RAD und Organisation Todt
Fritz Todt

41. RAD reviewed by Hitler, Nürnberg Parteitag

42. Polizei -- Police
party
govt
Heinrich Himmler
SS
Sicherheitsdienst
shoulder patch
Franz Gürtner Gestapo
ID card
Justice Minister

43. The dualism of party and state was never
resolved -- and was not resolvable. Hitler himself
welcomed the overlaps in competence and lack
of clarity....he undermined all attempts at ‘Reich
reform’ by Frick, aimed at producing a more
rational authoritarian state structure.
Kershaw, Hubris, p. 539

44. Innenpolitik -- Domestic Politics

45. Encirclement--note the small soldier and the 100,000. The French
have 500,000. The Swedes 300,000. Even the Poles have 250,000

46. Die Judenfrage -- the Jewish Question

47. Der Geschäftsboykott -- business
boycott

48. Der Geschäftsboykott -- business
boycott
Deutsche! Wehrt Euch!
Kauft nicht bei Juden!
Germans! Protect yourselves!
Don’t buy from Jews!
Note the shift, “We’re not
attacking them, we’re just
defending ourselves.”
Still, there was international
criticism, organized of course,
by “The Jews”

49. Ariernachweis -- proof of Aryan
descent

50. Both German military and economic weakness and
the intense foreign reaction to the first anti-Semitic
measures influenced Hitler to focus on domestic
policy

51. Innenpolitik -- Domestic Politics
examples of the techniques of coercion
“the stick”

52. SA as police auxiliaries
after 30.i.33 they ran
amok beating up their
street gang opponents
basements served as
makeshift prisons for
torture and murders
these “excesses” led to
30.vi.34, “the night of
the long knives”

53. Gestapo--pre-Nazi roots
all 19th century
European states
developed “political”
police to combat the
crime of revolution
the German distinction
was between Sicherheits
(SIPO) and
Polizei
Kriminal (KRIPO)

54. 30,000 Betreungsleute
“trustworthy people” = reliable informants
the initial wave of informants overwhelmed the police ability
to follow up. By April, 1933 a temporary halt was called
German bureaucratic efficiency led to the “Betreungsleute”
system of “official squealers”
intended consequencees, fear and self-censorship
unintended consequence, Die deutsche Blick, the
German glance

55. Both uniformed and plainclothes
SD discovered, and Gestapo “dealt with”
enemies of the state

56. Innenpolitik--
“the carrot”

57. Public works --the Nazi
WPA
the Autobahn
housing projects
the 1936 Olympics

58. “Hitler’s”
Autobahn
Begun under
Weimar cabinets,
he soon took
credit for it

59. Multipurpose economic
stimulus
the greatest employment,
120,000 occurred in
1936
the highway system
was a boost to auto
production, auto service
industry, and tourism
it was also a defense
asset

61. Urban renewal, “Germania”
this photo shows the
East-West Axis in Berlin,
1939
Hitler and Speer created
major rebuilding
programs for many of
the Reich’s cities
the war ended these
plans

65. Nazi public housing
Weimar was internationally known for its excellent
public housing
as the depression deepened the housing gap
increased from 100,000 to 900,000 by 1932.
the Nazis addressed the problem, adding 300,000/year
during peacetime
quality was sacrificed to meet the pressure of
urbanization as industry continued to “drain” rural labor

66. Olympia,1936
Weimar Germany had
garnered both winter and
summer games in 1932
after initial, post-Hitler,
misgivings, the
International Olympic
Committee stayed “on
board”
in addition to the prestige,
the games brought
economic benefits

67. A massive construction project
Architect Werner March (1894-1976)

69. Hitler opens the Games, 1.viii.36
Goebbels directs a massive propaganda blitz

71. Riefenstahl’s documentary
her pioneering work
was widely hailed
it took 18 months to
edit the footage
it was screened in two
parts: “Peoples Festival”
and “Festival of Beauty”

72. Interest in this work
continues
innovative techniques
for close-up action
shots are still studied
the nude and semi-
nude sequences
certainly didn’t hurt box
office

75. Nazi ambiguity about the
body and sexuality
the monthly magazine,
“Spirit and Beauty”
here illustrated “eurythmy”
in the nudist mode
popularized before 1933
Streicher’s Stürmer with
his beautiful Aryan
maidens being ravished
by evil Jews was definite
pornography

76. sculpture in the new Reichskanzelei
this central office building of the regime displays
the garish taste of the Führer

78. Kraft durch Freude--
Strength through Joy
KdF, a suborganization of the
DAF, built a village for visitors
to the games
It also sponsored subsidized
trips as rewards for workers
Ley called it “the real
accomplishment of what
Marx only promised”

79. KdF touring holidays
1937 brochure
describing all the
touring vacations
for the Gau Hesse-
Nassau

80. The promised KdF-Wagen
A promise betrayed
better known to us as
the Peoples Car, or...
originally proposed by
Hitler to Ferdy Porsche
in 1932
prototypes in 1938
production converted
to military vehicles

81. A promise made good
VE 301
Volksempfänger “VE
301” (Peoples Receiver)
was developed to sell for 76
RM when most radios were
costing 200-400 RM
in 1938 an even smaller
model for 35 RM was made
its nickname “Goebbels’
Lip” (Goebbels’ Schnauze)

82. All Germany
hears the Führer
with the Peoplesreceiver

83. And for the really poor
“Here you can hear the Führer speech”

84. Volksgemeinschaft
YOU ARE NOTHING
YOUR VOLK IS EVERYTHING!

85. The Act of Community
serves the building up thereof

86. A mighty unity
A millionfold
Yes!

87. Each must help
doing his part in
the Four Year Plan
Recycle Order
Old Materials

88. The political
Leader
admonishes you of the duty
to think of the
One pot program

89. The One Pot
custom
is
so
none Sacrifice for a hungry racial commrade
need
hunger

90. Against hunger and cold
A badge
given to
donors
for fidelity and Volkish Community

91. Winter Help Campaign
A Volk helps itself!

92. I collect for the WHW

93. BDM in the service of the Winter Help Program
of the German Volk
1934/35
Each (girl) will have
on Sunday 4.November
the flower of the
WHW
You also must Contribute!

94. THE F¨üHRER’S AND THE VOLK’S CARE
The defense of Mother and Child!

95. Jugend
Youth--Himmler addresses BDM junior leaders

96. Banner from the DHM collection

97. (to) the Führer--the youth

98. Trau keinem fuchs auf gruener Heid und keinem Jud bei seinem Eid!
Trust no fox on the green hedge and no Jew by his oath!
Children’s picture book

99. Youth serves the Führer

100. Baldur von Schirach
HJ leader
“the Pied Piper of Hamelin”

101. You too

102. Germany’s Youth must (to)the
Worldyouth
an Example of Bravery and
Efficiency be!

103. Older BDMs in Glaube und Schönheit

104. German Maiden
Your vocation:
Leader
in the Reichs
Labor
Service

105. Mother, Your sons are the future of the Nation!
Meeting of the NSF (Natl Socialist Womanhood)
10.ii.1934

106. Der Deutsche/Hitler
Grüß
began in the early ‘20s
copied from Italian
fascists, who copied it
from the Romans
photo--Feb 1933

107. A not too subtle suggestion
Volksgenosse, trittst Du
ein
Volkish comrade, make
it happen
soll dein Gruss,”Heil
Hitler” sein!
that your greeting be
“Hail Hitler!”

108. The Führer Cult
SS Mann protects Hitler from workers eager to
shake his hand, 1935

109. Judenfrage -- The
Jewish Question
1933-1936

110. Business boycott, 1.iv.33
As described earlier, the foreign outcry against this effort
organized by Gauleiter Streicher led Hitler to call it off

111. Law for the Restoration of the Professional
Civil Service
7.iv.33
six days after the uproar over the boycott this hastily drafted law
tried to regularize job discrimination already begun
the famous “Aryan paragraph” led to the dismissal of Jews as
well as political enemies from the civil service
ironically, there was no definition of “Jew”
later that month three further laws continued the trend:
against admission of Jews to the legal profession
excluding Jewish doctors from the national health system
limiting the number of Jewish schoolchildren permitted in
schools

112. “Individual Actions”
4 HJs and an SA Mann
“Jews are unwelcome
in Behringersdorf”
Daniel Beard wouldn’t
count this as their
good deed for the day!

113. Die Nürnberger Gesetze
The Nuremberg Law, 1935
announced by Hitler at the annual September Party Day
it followed a renewed wave of violence and attempted to
define the degree of acceptable “action” There had been
widespread criticism of the “lawlessness”
it focused on banning intermarriage and outlawing
sexual relations between Jews and “Aryans”
now the legal definition had to be slapped together

114. Die Blutschutzgesetz (Law for the
defense of [Aryan] blood)
this required distinguishing by ancestry “Full Jews”
“Half Jews” “Quarter Jews” and so on
but all sorts of special problems arose, Christian
converts, Jews with distinguished military service &c.
Goebbels had earlier told Fritz Lang “We decide who is
a Jew”

115. Rassenscha
nde
(race shame, i.e.,
interracial sexual
a poster by Julius
Streicher’s Der
Stürmer

116. Public shaming
of an interracial
couple
I am the greatest
swine and sleep only
As a Jew, I only take
with Jews German girls up to
my room

117. The Nuremberg Law
a chart to clarify the muddle
lt to rt, German, 2nd degree Mischlinge (mixed),
1st deg. mixed, 3/4 Jew, VollJude

118. School poster
for race
education
Nordic, Fälische
(Westphalian), and
Western
(Rhinelanders) races

119. BDM at workshop for teachers’ aides
She’s being taught how to conduct a class in
racial “science”

120. Nazi “scientific racist” texts

121. Nazi “scientific racist” texts

122. Nazi “scientific racist” texts

123. Nazi “scientific racist” texts

124. Nazi “scientific racist” texts

125. Nazi “scientific racist” texts

126. Ausenpolitik --
Diplomacy
1933-1936

127. Ceneral Commission of the Geneva Disarmament
Conference, 1932-37

128. German
Delegates
Germany had been
admitted to the
League after the
Locarno Treaty, 1925

129. Geneva World Disarmament
Conference, 1932-37

130. Geneva World Disarmament
Conference, 1932-37
even the Weimar delegates
had insisted on German
parity or universal
disarmament
France became even more
determined on Versailles
limits after Hitler took office
this pamphlet (right)
explains Germany’s
decision to leave

131. Plebiscite on leaving the
League of Nations
Hitler begins his series of
plebiscites with this one, 12
Nov 1933
over 95% of the votes were,
“Ja” (favorable)
Goebbels’ campaign “button”
from the Deutsches
Historisches Museum (DHM)
collection

132. this poster emphasizes
how much Polish military
strength exceded German
Hitler sought to break the
French “Cordon Sanitaire”
Foreign Minister v.
Neurath responded to
feelers from Poland, April
1933

133. Wer braucht Sicherheit im
Osten?Who needs security in
this poster emphasizes
how much Polish military
strength exceded German
Hitler sought to break the
French “Cordon Sanitaire”
Foreign Minister v.
Neurath responded to
feelers from Poland, April
1933

134. Polish-German Non-Aggression Pact
26 January 1934

135. Polish-German Non-Aggression Pact
26 January 1934

136. The Armaments of Germany’s Neighbors
this turntable device
listed the number of
soldiers, ships, aircraft,
tanks, &c.
the injustice of
Germany’s unilateral
disarmament was a
constant refrain

137. Wir Wollen Wieder Waffen!
We will rearm! (literally, we wish again
Hitler, and even more his national-conservative allies,
planned from the beginning to overturn the Versailles
limits
even the Weimar governments had secretly violated
them
and, seriously overestimating the courage of his
enemies, Hitler believed he too had to keep his steps
secret until he felt strong enough to openly defy the
“Versailles Diktat”

139. Germany ends the Versailles
humiliation, 1935
the Versailles Treaty had plebiscite campaign badge
placed the Saarland under
the League of Nations for
15 years
its resources were given to
France
the half million voters now
must choose to become
German, French, or keep
the status quo A UNITED VOLK BREAKS ITS CHAINS

140. Plebiscite campaign poster
as the plebiscite day
approached Goebbels
unleashes a massive
barrage of propaganda
still the region was
Catholic and working
class, the two groups
least enthusiastic about
Nazism

141. Plebiscite campaign poster
as the plebiscite day
approached Goebbels
unleashes a massive
barrage of propaganda
still the region was
Catholic and working
class, the two groups
least enthusiastic about
Nazism
We died for you!
And you?

142. Plebiscite campaign pin

143. Plebiscite campaign pin
German the Saar
on 13 January 91% of the
Saar’s electorate freely
chose dictatorship
Hitler “milked his triumph”
“made dove-like noises”
...”no further territorial
demands to make of ever so!
France”

144. Welcome
Dear Brother
to the
we once again
Homeland see you home
Homecoming of the
1 March 1935

145. Two open challenges raise the
stakes of German rearmament
10 March 1935- Göring
announces the creation
of the Luftwaffe--
massive foreign protest
16 March- military draft
reinstituted
(call-up papers
pictured, rt)

146. Two open challenges raise the
stakes of German rearmament
10 March 1935- Göring
announces the creation
of the Luftwaffe--
massive foreign protest
16 March- military draft
reinstituted
(call-up papers
pictured, rt)

147. Versailles limits on the
German Navy

148. Versailles limits on the
German Navy
no submarines, naval aviation, or battleships
6 heavy cruisers (< 10,000 tons displacement)
6 light cruisers (< 6,000 tons)
12 destroyers (< 800 tons)
12 torpedo boats

149. British disillusionment with
the Versailles Treaty

150. British disillusionment with
the Versailles Treaty
beginning with J.M. Keynes, The Economic Consequences of
the Peace, 1919
historians cast doubt on Art. 231, “war guilt” clause
British opinion distanced from French over strict enforcement,
especially during the Ruhr crisis, 1923
not so much appeasement as differing approaches as to how
best avoid war
German complaints over “unilateral disarmament” were viewed
as legitimate by many in Britain

151. The Hankey
Report
August, 1933-visit
October, 1933-report
Gen’l Sir Maurice Hankey, Royal Marines
First Baron Hankey
(1877-1963)

152. Hankley’s report concluded with the words: “Are we still
dealing with the Hitler of Mein Kampf , lulling his
opponents to sleep with fair words to gain time to arm
his people, and looking always to the day when he can
throw off the mask and attack Poland? Or is it a new
Hitler, who discovered the burden of responsible office,
and wants to extricate himself, like many an earlier
tyrant, from the commitments of his irresponsible days?
That is the riddle that has to be solved”

153. Hitler’s views on Britain: enemy of
the Reich, or fellow “Aryan” power?

154. Hitler’s views on Britain: enemy of
the Reich, or fellow “Aryan” power?
strongly influenced by Br opposition to Fr occupation of the Ruhr,
1923; Hitler revised his initial view of Br as inevitable enemy
In Mein Kampf and sequel Zweites Buch, he strongly criticized the
pre-1914 Ger govt for its naval and colonial challenge to the Br
empire
Br friendship could be won by renouncing such global ambitions
and seeking an anti-Fr, anti-Soviet alliance
Br would agree to Lebensraum in Eastern Europe in return for
a”sea pact” where Ger renounced any challenge to the Royal Navy

155. Anglo-German Naval
Agreement of 1935
in 1933 Nazis began to build U-
boats
in 1934 Battle Cruisers and Pocket
Battleships were planned
First Lord Chatfield believed that a
treaty limiting Germany to 35% of Adm Raeder
the RN was the best hope for
maintaining Br naval supremacy
in March,1935 Hitler negotiates with
Sir John Simon in Berlin
Adm Chatfield
Ribbentrop concludes the talks in
London, June, 1935

156. Battle Cruiser Scharnhorst, 1936
Along with her twin, Geneisenau, these were the
first violations of the Versailles limit of 10,000 tons

157. Ordered: 25.i.34 Laid down: 15.vi.35 Launched: 3.x.36
Commissioned: 7.i.39 Sunk in the Battle of North Cape: 26.xii.43

158. Results of the AGNA

159. Results of the AGNA
Hitler called June 18th the happiest day of his life,
believed it marked the beginning of an Anglo-German
alliance
Britain believed it marked the first step towards a treaty
limiting Germany’s ability to wage aerial warfare which
they feared even more than naval competition
France felt betrayed, believed Britain had no right to
endorse abrogating Part V of the Versailles Treaty
Stalin concluded he had to draw closer to France

160. Remilitarization of the
Rhineland
Hitler’s hubris reaches its logical outcome,
March, 1936

161. ... Hitler’s next big gamble : to destroy what
was left of the Versailles and Locarno treaties
by reoccupying the demilitarized Rhineland.
Kershaw, vol i, p. 581

163. 2nd Italian-Ethiopian War
Oct 1935-May 1936

164. Hitler counts on Britain and France being
unable to make a common policy
Abyssinian crisis

165. Emperor
Haile
Selassie
“It is us today. It will be
you tomorrow.”
at the League of Nations,
30 June 1936

166. Stalin shifts the Party Line

167. Stalin shifts the Party Line
Louis Barthou, French
Foreign Minister (d. 1934)
pursues a Franco-Soviet
treaty after the Polish-
German pact
After German military
buildup of Mar 35, push
increases
pact concluded 2 May
1935. Now, the ratification
struggle begins

168. Pierre Laval

169. General Election of
3 May 1936
French politics

170. Franco-Soviet Treaty of Mutual Assistance
Article I In the event that France or the U.S.S.R. are subjected to the threat or the
danger of aggression on the part of a European state, the U.S.S.R. and France engage
themselves reciprocally to proceed to an immediate mutual consultation on measures to
take in order to observe the provisions of Article 10 of the League of Nations Pact.
Article II In the event that, in the circumstances described in Article 15, paragraph 7, of the
League of Nations Pact, France or the U.S.S.R. may be, in spite of the genuinely pacific
intentions of the two countries, and subject of unprovoked aggression on the part of a European
state, the U.S.S.R. and France will immediately lend each other reciprocal aid and assistance.
Article III Taking into consideration the fact that, according to Article 16 of the
League of Nations Pact, every member of the League that resorts to war contrary
to the engagements assumed in Articles 12, 13 or 15 of the Pact is ipso facto
considered as having committed an act of war against all the other members of the
League, France and the U.S.S.R. engage themselves reciprocally, [should
either of them be the object of unprovoked aggression], to lend immediate aid
and assistance in activating the application of Article 16 of the Pact.

171. Mass adulation bolsters the Führer
cult and Hitler’s self confidence
20 Feb 1936- Hitler
walks to his car
he had just addressed
an SA rally
the rally
commemorated the
third anniversary of his
chancellorship

172. Wieder deutsche Truppen am
Rhein-
German troops in the Rhineland again
“Hitler’s global peace
stroke, German troops
again on the Rhine”
Mussolini’s Abyssinian
adventure brought him
into Hitler’s hands
the Franco-Soviet pact
provided the
“justification”

173. Troops cross the Rhine at Köln
7 March 1936
After three years, I believe that, with the present day, the
struggle for German equal rights can be regarded as closed

174. Hubris -- that overweening arrogance which
courts disaster -- was inevitable. The point
where nemesis takes over had been reached
by 1936.
Kershaw, vol. i, p. 591

176. “ I go with the confidence of a sleepwalker along
the path laid out for me by Providence.”
Hitler, in Munich, 14 March 1936
Ibid.
Few at this point had the foresight to realize that
the path laid out by Providence led into the
abyss.
Kershaw, Ibid.