With the victory of the Nazis in 1933 the political situation in Germany changed abruptly. The party of the National Socialists (NSDAP) had become more powerful over the years and had used the economic crisis and confusing situation among the parties in the Reichstag to come to power. The Nazis blamed the democrats for not having achieved any economic or political improvement, and its leader Adolf Hitler "assured Germans that he could succeed where the republic had failed,..."(15) Consequently, the Nazis´ first objective was to destroy democracy and to eliminate the Reichstag. On January 30 in the same year, President Paul von Hindenburg appointed Adolph Hitler as Chancellor. The second strongest party since the elections of 1930, the Nazis already controlled the Ministry of the Interior of Prussia, which gave them control over two thirds of the nation´s police. The following day Hitler broke up the Reichstag. The Weimar Republic had come to an end and the Reichstag was doomed to fall under the Nazis. The building itself was seriously destroyed except for the library and the archives. A Dutch communist with the name of Marinus van der Lubbe was found at the scene and charged with arson. At the end of 1933 he was found guilty and executed. Today, historians still argue about who was responsible for the fire. Some say it was Lubbe because of a communist plot, while others say the Nazis did it to create an incident in order to come to power and under the pretext of the Ermächtigungsgesetz (Enabling Act) which was passed on March 24. This law enabled Hitler not only to pass laws without the consent of Reichstag, Reichsrat, and Reichspresident but also to legalize the Nazi power in- and outside the country. Today, this law is forbidden.
Regardless of who started the fire, there is no doubt that the Nazis took advantage of the situation in order to proceed with their cause at the expense of the civil rights and freedom of the German people. In the same night of the Reichstag fire, the Nazis used the opportunity to arrest 4,000 communists.(16) Not only did the Nazis use the incident as a propaganda against communists but they also arrested additional 40,000 members of the opposition. Consequently, the Nazis had achieved their objective of eliminating democracy and ensuring their majority in the parliament.
After the fire on February 28, 1933, president Hindenburg and Hitler invoked Article 48 of the Weimar Constitution, which permitted the suspension of civil liberties during national emergencies. Some examples of this Decree of the Reich President for the Protection of the People and State abrogated the following constitutional protections: Freedom of the press, free expression of opinion, individual property rights, right of assembly and association, right to privacy of postal and electronic communications, states´ rights of self-government, and protection against unlawful searches and seizures. This Decree enabled the Nazis to suppress the opposition in the elections on March 5. In addition, federal police agencies, the SS (Special Security) and SA (Storm Troops), were created. This enabled the Nazis to suppress all opponents. Consequently, communists were arrested although the communist party was not banned until after the elections, so that the left vote would remain split.
On March 5, 1933, with a majority of 44% the Nazis won the elections. Now the new parliament consisted almost entirely of members of the Nazi party. The Nazis used their new power to create disorder among the German people and took advantage of the new situation by offering solutions in the form of abrogating civil rights and state laws. Hermann Göring a member of the Nazi party, declared that there was no further need for State Governments. Consequently, all Weimar State governments were replaced with appointed Nazi commissioners. After a new Reichstag had been elected on March 23, 1933, the Nazis met in the Kroll Opera, east of the Königsplatz, and on March 24, they passed the Law for Terminating the Suffering of People and Nation at the Reichstag, which was also known as the Enabling Act, giving Adolf Hitler ultimate dictatorial power.
In July, 1933, all other parties, except the NSDAP were forbidden and the Reichstag contained only members of the Nazi party.(17) The Reichstag took on a different role: for Hitler the Reichstag had always symbolized the Weimar Republic. He hated the building and used the Reichstag to hold propaganda speeches, knowing that it was a degradation for the former parliament. However, Hitler did not destroy the building, because he liked the architecture. In addition, Hitler and his architect Albert Speer were planning a major street through Berlin (called the Grosse Achse) and a new government building which would have reached a height of 290 meters. This would have led to the destruction of many historical buildings in the city. Nevertheless, because of the war Hitler was never able to fulfill his dreams. Until 1939 the Nazis used the Reichstag for several anti-semite exhibitions and film presentations.(18) Consequently, the Reichstag no longer served as a parliament building. The Nazis themselves met in the Kroll Opera, mainly on holidays, where Hitler gave most of his speeches.
With the beginning of WWII, the Reichstag again took on a different function. In 1941 the building served as a base for the German airforce and next to the Reichstag, the Wehrmacht constructed a bunker. In the following years all windows were removed and the building was transformed into a fortress. During WWII especially when the air raids of Berlin started, the Reichstag became severely damaged. Towards the end of WWII, the Reichstag became the main target for the Red Army. The victory over Berlin and the capture of the Reichstag was the central goal for the soviets. Although the Nazis hated the Reichstag and never used the building for their politics, for the soviets it had a special meaning; it symbolized Hitler and Nazi Germany and by conquering the Reichstag it would symbolize the soviet victory over Nazi Germany.
"So sehr, daß sie mehr als eine Million Geschosse auf diese kurzfristig zur Festung ausgebaute Parlamentsruine feuerten,...als würde dort der Krieg zu Ende sein."(19)
This was, however, paradoxical since for the Nazis in 1933, the Reichstag
had symbolized the victory over the Republic and they had never used the
building for their meetings. On May 2, in 1945, Berlin was conquered by
the Red Army and on top of the Reichstag
the Russians hissed the flag of the USSR, symbolizing the victory over
the capital and Nazi Germany.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|