The Munich Putsch & The Nazis

The Munich Putsch

Right – wing conservative leaders addressed a meeting of many right – wing supporters in a Munich beer hall. Hitler & his supporters burst into the meeting and declared a revolution. He brought these two leaders into a separate room and got them to promise loyalty to the Putsch since both groups wanted to overtake the Weimar government. Ebert declared a national state of emergency because of the treason in Munich. The conservative leaders then denounced the Putsch. Ludendorff encouraged Hitler not to give up, and Ludendorff became the new Putsch leader. The Nazis then marched to a military base in Munich, and about a dozen people were killed. Hitler was arrested, and Nazism was banned. Hitler was tried and gained national recognition for denouncing the Weimar regime at his trial. The right – wing judges are extremely lenient to Hitler, choosing not to deport him back to Austria and only give him an 8 month sentence. While in jail, Hitler wrote a blueprint for his future plans which he titled Mein Kampf (My Struggle).

Based on the 25-Point Program, what were the main ideas of the NSDAP when Hitler joined it?

When Hitler joined the Nazis (National Socialist German Workers Party), several main ideas were extreme nationalism, racism, and a variety of socialist concepts. Extreme nationalism, which can be defined as having pride for your own country and having a feeling of superiority over other countries, was definitely thriving in Germany. The 25-point program demanded the unification of all Germans in Greater Germany, which included Austria and Germany, because of the right of self-determination. It also suggested the Treaty of Versailles must be destroyed as the German people should have equality of rights in respect to other nations. The program demanded land and territory for the well-being and colonization of Germany's surplus population (lebensraum). It also mentioned that there should be a nationalization of industry. The program suggests that Germans should abolish their current mercenary army and form a national army. The 25-points demanded that criminals would be put to death if their activity was harmful to the general population. Lastly, the program also discussed that while the duty of individuals was to the state, the duty of the state was to provide for its volk (people).

The 25-points were racist against anyone who was not German. Only a "member of the race" could be a citizen, and only citizens were allowed to live in Germany. If it was considered impossible to sustain the total population of the State, foreigners were to be expelled from Germany. All non-Germans who had immigrated to Germany since August 2, 1914, also were be forced to leave the country. Additionally, the Nazis were extremely anti-Semitic as no Jews were allowed to be members "of the race" and could not come to Germany as they fled pogroms in other countries.

The Nazis also partly supported a socialistic society, meaning that they supported a collective ownership of the means of production and distribution of goods. Everyone was required to work, and the profits would be divided. The Nazis hoped to extend old age welfare. Lastly, the government was responsible for a reconstruction of the German national education system. The State would teach children "the German way" and educate exceptionally gifted children.