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The Nazi dictatorship in Germany Essay How similar were the Nazi dictatorship in Germany and the Fascist dictatorship in Italy to 1939? The similarities and dissimilarities of the dictatorships in Germany and in Italy can be identified within 3 aspects: how the dictatorships were formed (took power), how they were run, can how they affected civilian life in Germany and Italy. This essay will offer comparisons in these aspects and come to a summary of the extent and nature of their similarity. Both dictatorships were popular dictatorships. Both parties exploited the surging Nationalism in Italy and Germany after WWI, and established popularity by propaganda, rhetoric and attracting promises, like Mussolinis continuation of Giolittis Risorgimento programme and Hitlers promise to overthrow the Versailles Treaty. Both parties exploited the weakness of rival political forces, that is, a lack of democratic tradition in both countries and thus a vulnerability to the influence of radical ideology. The appointment of Hitler by Hindenburg and that of Mussolini by King Victor Emmanuelle were both more of a compromise due to shortage of alternative than a positive victory on the other side. A common antipathy against Communism that pervaded in German and Italian society gave momentum to Nazi and Fascist rising. The use of terror was an effective factor for the emergence of both dictatorships. Hitlers Nazi brownshirts and Mussolinis squadrsiti both played important roles in eliminating their opponents. The minor difference in the Nazi and Fascist paths to power is most manifest in the influence of WWI. Germany was heavily scarred by the economic, military and political penalty as a consequence of her defeat. The common hatred and vigilance against other powers gave a negative cohesion to the national psychology, which was magnificently exploited by Hitler. While on the other hand, the appeal of Mussolinis policies was more of an ambitious imperial nature. The reigns of Nazi and Fascist dictatorships had more similarities than dissimilarities. Power was highly centralized and democracy suffered a complete destruction in both countries. The Reichstag fire in Germany and the issue of a formal decree banning all other political parties in Italy in 1926 destroyed the parliamentarian machinery completely in the two countries. Violence and intimidation continued to be in frequent use to combat opposition. The murder of Ernst Roehm by the SSs and the establishment of the Chamber of Fasces and Corporations imposed on the pseudo-democratic practice of corporatism in Italy were examples for this point. Fascist and Nazi dictatorships both attempted to solve the nations economic problems. Development of heavy industry and infrastructure in Germany and Italy during this period was impressive. Big businesses benefited immensely from Fascist and Nazi economic policies. This also limited the achievement of both dictatorships in dealing with economic difficulties: Nazi economy stayed heavily dependent on imports. Italian Northern-Southern imbalance stayed unsolved. A difference here is that Nazis made use of rearmament policy as a strong impetus for economic recovery. Foreign policies were instrumental in both countries in accumulating support for the dictatorships. Mussolinis victory in the Ethiopian wars brought him massive support. The Anchluss with Austria made brought Hitlers national image to a higher level. In short, both Nazi and Fascist dictatorships were extreme-right ideological rules that were enhanced by censorship and military terrorism. Their foreign policies were both aggressive and nationalistic, to confirm the greatness of the leadership. The major difference between Nazi and Fascist dictatorships was on their bearing on German and Italian societies. Though Italian Fascism initially provided a source of imitation for the formation of Nazism, but the extent to which it influenced the society was limited in contrast with Nazi society. Benedetto Croce with his outspoken antagonism towards fascism would certainly not have survived in Hitlers regime. Anti-Semitism was not as widely spread in Italian society. This is partly due to the uniqueness of stab in the back myth that Germanys failure in WWI entailed. Mussolinis personal image prevailed over his partys. The Fascist party hardly produced any powerful public personalities as Goebbels or Himmler. The presence of Church as a counterforce of the Fascist dictatorship was also a major difference between the two dictatorships. This limited Fascist control over civilian cultural, religious and intellectual life. Unlike Mussolini whose whole image was no much more than rhetoric and glamour, Hitler viewed himself as a profound intellectual thinker and substantially influenced social ideology through his thoughts like expressed in his lectures and Mein Kampff. The overall force that united Italian people was not the negative resistance and a lust for revenge like that Nazi society embodied, but a positive ambition of less depth and weight. Nazism is but a variant of fascism in a heterogeneous circumstance. The political and ideological natures of them are essentially of the same origin: the fin-de-sià ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½cle philosophies of Social Darwinism, Nietzschean humanism, and revolt against liberal democracy as a continuum of Marxist thoughts. Nazi dictatorship extended the social implantation of fascism because of Germanys different post-war circumstance and social constitution. The difference in the leaders personalities was in minor importance but it differed the practice of certain policies, for example Hitlers invigoration of Anti-Semitism.