1933 in Germany

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See also:Other events of 1933
History of Germany  • Timeline  • Years
On 27 February 1933, Germany's parliament building in Berlin, the Reichstag, was set on fire.

Events in the year 1933 in Germany.

Incumbents

National level

Events in Germany

On 21 March, President Paul von Hindenburg met Hitler on "Day of Potsdam".
  • 30 January – National Socialist leader Adolf Hitler is appointed Chancellor of Germany by President of Germany Paul von Hindenburg.
  • 1 February – Adolf Hitler gives his "Proclamation to the German People" in Berlin.
  • 27 February – The Reichstag, Germany's parliament building in Berlin, is set on fire under controversial circumstances.
  • 28 February – The Reichstag Fire Decree is passed in response to the Reichstag fire, nullifying many German civil liberties.
  • 1 March – Hundreds are arrested as the National Socialists round up their political opponents.
  • 5 March – German federal election, March 1933: National Socialists gain 43.9% of the votes.
  • 8 March – National Socialists occupy the Bavarian State Parliament and expel deputies.
  • 12 March – Hindenburg bans the flag of the republic and orders the Imperial and Nazi flag to fly side by side.
  • 15 March – Hitler proclaims the Third Reich.
  • 20 March – Dachau, the first Nazi concentration camp, is completed (it opens 22 March).
  • 21 March – Jewish organizations announce an economic boycott of German goods.
  • 23 March – The Reichstag passes the Enabling Act ("The law for removing the distress of people and the Reich"), making Adolf Hitler dictator of Germany, curbing its own power.[1]
1 April: Nazi soldiers hanging a poster on the window of Jewish-owned business, that says: "German, protect yourself. Do not buy from Jews".
10 May: In Germany, the Nazis stage massive public book burnings.
  • 1 May - parades held to celebrate May Day, which had been declared "national workers' day" and a public holiday by the Nazi government. Hitler and Hindenburg attend the parade in Berlin.[2]
  • 2 May - all Trade Unions closed down, their headquarters and records were seized, and their leaders attacked and imprisoned.[3]
6 May, Nazi raid on the Institut für Sexualwissenschaft.

Births

Deaths

Modern comparisons

The pivotal nature of 1933 in Germany has led to it being a commonly used analogy in modern politics. The 1933 power grab by the Nazi party has been associated with modern political events, particularly the Presidency of Donald Trump in the United States and the 2023 Israeli judicial reform (eventually passed in 2025).[5][6][7][8] Professor Daniel Blatman, a historian of the Holocaust at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, stated in a February 2023 interview with Haaretz that the situation surrounding the proposed judicial reform at the time, "Really Does Recall Germany in 1933", and referred to the more extreme ministers of the government as "neo-Nazi".[8] Israeli journalists and others repeated or elaborated on Blatman's compassion.[9][10] In a 2017 essay titled "The Reichstag Fire Next Time: The coming crackdown" Russian-American journalist M. Gessen wrote, "The Reichstag fire, it goes almost without saying, will be a terrorist attack, and it will mark our sudden, obvious, and irreversible descent into autocracy".[11]

References

  1. ^ a b c d McDonough, Frank (February 2020). "1933: death of a democracy". History Today. 70 (2): 70–83.
  2. ^ "Monday 1 May 1933".
  3. ^ "2 May 1933: Dissolution of German Trade Union".
  4. ^ Spiegel.de (German)
  5. ^ Werner Lange (27 April 2025). "Hitler's First 100 Days — And Trump's". Common Dreams.
  6. ^ "I wrote the book on Hitler's first 100 days. Here's how Trump's compare". 28 April 2025.
  7. ^ "This German word explains Trump's authoritarian impulses — and Hitler's rise to power". 12 July 2025.
  8. ^ a b Shani, Ayelett (10 February 2023). "'Israel's Government Has neo-Nazi Ministers. It Really Does Recall Germany in 1933'". Haaretz.
  9. ^ B. Michael (6 March 2023). "We Mustn't Compare Israel to Germany. But It's So Similar…".
  10. ^ "Neo-Nazis in 'Israel': Is Netanyahu's Government Following in Hitler's Footsteps?".
  11. ^ "The Reichstag Fire Next Time, by Masha Gessen". Harper's Magazine.
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