mar 1, 1933 - Enabling Act

Description:

In the 1933 elections, the Nazi party had 288 seats, but still not the majority vote. Hitler claimed he now wanted an 'enabling law', which would place all the power in his hands, allowing him to pass laws without the need of the Reichstag. The nationalists were prepared to support him, but even then the Nazis still wouldn't have 2/3 of the Reichstag seats which is what they needed to pass a change to the constitution.

What did the Nazis do to obtain the votes they needed?

- Ban the communists :
Banning the communists from serving in the Reichstag was relatively easy under his emergency powers

- Intimidating the social democrats:
The social democrats themselves did not vote to the enabling act, but all the other parties did since they fell under Nazi pressure ( the Kroll Opera House where the voting was taking place was flooded with SA and SS men, intimidating the parties)


What did the Enabling Act do to other parties?

- Communists: Banned from Reichstag
- Rival Political Parties: disappeared since Germany became a 1 party state after the enabling act
- Trade unions: Banned, all workers became part of the German workforce
- state parliaments: all taken over
- Church: made a deal with the Nazis to be protected under religious freedom (this didn't last long)

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