Will Is Not Enough
There was no "triumph of the will." Hitler's will never triumphed. Hitler believed the ferocity and absolute certainty of his convictions was more than enough to bring him to power. Kershaw shows that not to be the case. Having the will to achieve success in grabbing hold of the political system is only, say, half the battle. What Hitler lacked was a politician's sense of the political. Hitler knew and understood leadership, but he did not understand politics. This lack of political understanding is why Hitler needed help to gain power. Without his allies, he never would have.
Reichswehr Minister Schleicher was a politician. He spoke as one when he attempted to negotiate with Hitler about a Hitler Chancellorship. His belief was that "the teeth of the Nazis would be drawn by the inevitable compromises they would have to make in the face of the realities of political responsibility (p.371)." However, taming the Nazis did not work. Hitler would take no lower office, and would not allow another Nazi to do so. Compromise, negotiation, and deal-making were tools very rarely used by the NSDAP. The idea that actually governing responsibly and making decisions that would have repercussions on the lives of tens of millions of people would require some level of pragmatism and compromise did not register. Traditional notions of what politics consists of were not part of the Nazi reportoire.
This is why Hitler did not gain the Chancellorship on his own. Hitler had all of the will to gain the seat of power that a man can possibly carry within him, but it was not enough to succeed. He needed those who understood politics. He would have remained an obscure far-right fringe figure if not for the active help of 'big business' and high-ranking members of the political class. Hitler's will was not the sole means of gaining authority. It was a traditional political mixture, allies in high places and dire national circumstances, that propelled him into the Chancellorship
Reichswehr Minister Schleicher was a politician. He spoke as one when he attempted to negotiate with Hitler about a Hitler Chancellorship. His belief was that "the teeth of the Nazis would be drawn by the inevitable compromises they would have to make in the face of the realities of political responsibility (p.371)." However, taming the Nazis did not work. Hitler would take no lower office, and would not allow another Nazi to do so. Compromise, negotiation, and deal-making were tools very rarely used by the NSDAP. The idea that actually governing responsibly and making decisions that would have repercussions on the lives of tens of millions of people would require some level of pragmatism and compromise did not register. Traditional notions of what politics consists of were not part of the Nazi reportoire.
This is why Hitler did not gain the Chancellorship on his own. Hitler had all of the will to gain the seat of power that a man can possibly carry within him, but it was not enough to succeed. He needed those who understood politics. He would have remained an obscure far-right fringe figure if not for the active help of 'big business' and high-ranking members of the political class. Hitler's will was not the sole means of gaining authority. It was a traditional political mixture, allies in high places and dire national circumstances, that propelled him into the Chancellorship
I would have to agree with Andrew. Hitler could not have gained the seat, the authority, without the backing of those around him. I would attribute this coming to power to his power to manipulate those around him. For one, he had the support of Nazi sympathizers already. For instance, Neithardt, who was Hitler's judge, allow Hitler to speak at length and thus use his rhetorical prowess. Not to mention, Hitler had inside information on the Bavarian government; in order to keep Kahr, one of the heads of the Bavarian government, from appearing treasonous, Hitler was given much leniency. After the trial, Hitler was released early, only one year out of five year sentence.
ReplyDeleteIt can be seen that the government, years before Hitler solidifies his support, that people in high places had already sworn allegiance to the right's cause.