Consider the view that Hitler was either a strong leader or weak dictator. Share your views!
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2 Responses to “How powerful was Hitler?”
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Hitler was a lucky dictator. Whether he was strong or not, to have achieved as much as he did, cirumstance was definitely in his favour and yet I would argue that he was a strong dictator and a weak revolutionary. If being strong means holding on to your power then he did damned well against an array of possible threats from plenipotentiaries. If being strong means excercising or exerting your will on others then he also did well as the ultimate goal of all nazis was ‘the will of the fuhrer’.
Hitler was a powerful dictator. His rise to power was dependent on circumstance, such as the loss of public faith in the Weimar, however at that point he was not yet a dictator. The ‘Hitler myth’ provided an image of power however that power was also given to him by the people and especially the Nazis through the ideal of “working towards the will of the Fuhrer”. If a person(s) dedicates themselves to doing anything to please and impress someone, it gives the person they are attempting to impress power over them.
It could be argued that power of the SA was Rohm’s (through that was dealt with) or the concentration camps were under the influence of Himmler but they were still in turn working beneath and towards Hitler.