Picture Postcard of Aftermath of Reichstag Fire

Authors

Object ID

2020.1.2

Object Name

Postcard

Date

1933

Files

Content Warning

The Bulmash Family Holocaust Collection consists of images, documents, and artifacts related to the Holocaust. The collection contains materials that depict a number of topics that may be difficult for viewers to engage with, including: antisemitic descriptions, caricatures, and representation of Jewish people; Nazi imagery and ideology; descriptions and images of German ghettos; graphic images of the violence of the Holocaust; and the creation of the State of Israel. For more information, see our policy page.

Description

Postcard with image of burning building. German text printed below reads "Berlin, Reichstagsgebäude in Flammen"

Information Provided by Michael D. Bulmash:

On January 30, 1933, President of Germany Paul von Hindenburg appointed Adolf Hitler Germany’s chancellor. Hitler, head of the Nazi Party, took the oath of office and convened his cabinet. In less than one month, on February 27, 1933, the German parliament building in Berlin – the Reichstag- was set ablaze. Hitler blamed the Communists for the fire, cynically claiming that this was part of an attempt to overthrow the government. The fire became for Hitler a rationale to seize absolute control of the government, suspending civil liberties and constitutional protections on the news media, free speech, and political assembly, and conducting raids and arrests on offices of political opponents. While a young Dutchman with communist sympathies was tried and eventually executed for the arson, many believed that Hitler and the Nazis had contrived and participated in the arson. On March 23, the Reichstag passed the Enabling Act, giving full powers to Hitler. By the end of the year, all non-Nazi political parties, labor unions and other organizations had ceased to exist. Hindenburg died in 1934, and the German Army sanctioned Hitler’s decision to combine the posts of president and chancellor, thus cementing Hitler’s absolute power over Germany.

Dimensions

5 5/8 x 3 5/8"

Keywords

Reichstag fire, Enabling Act

Subcollection

Early

Recommended Citation

"Picture Postcard of Aftermath of Reichstag Fire" (1933). Bulmash Family Holocaust Collection. 2020.1.2.
https://digital.kenyon.edu/bulmash/1686