‘Machtergreifung’. The Nazi Seizure of Power in 1933

‘Machtergreifung’. The Nazi Seizure of Power in 1933

Veranstalter
Claus-Christian Szejnmann; Benjamin Ziemann
Veranstaltungsort
Ort
Loughborough / Sheffield
Land
United Kingdom
Vom - Bis
01.10.2011 -
Deadline
01.10.2011
Von
Benjamin Ziemann

The journal Politics, Religion & Ideology (formerly Totalitarian Movements and Political Religions) will publish a theme issue on ‘The Nazi Seizure of Power in 1933: Contexts, Dynamics, Implications’ in 2013. It will take the 80th anniversary of the formation of a government under Adolf Hitler as Reich chancellor as a starting point for reflections on the historical significance of this momentous event. The contributions to this special issue will discuss the historical context for the handover of legitimate power to the Nazi party and its conservative allies, will reflect upon the dynamics and on the contingency of this particular historical juncture and they will chart, also in a comparative perspective, some of the key implications of this crucial decision. The overall aim of this special issue is to reconsider the importance of the sequence of decisions and historical events which are encapsulated in the date ‘30 January 1933’ for the historical dynamics of fascism and anti-fascism, and for German and European history more generally.

Four specific aspects and dimensions of 30 January 1933 as a historical juncture are of specific interest for this theme issue.

1.) The Nazi movement and its quest for power
From its inception in 1919/1920, the Nazi movement was characterised by an extremely high level of political mobilization and a relentless, often violent drive to increase its power within and beyond the system of parliamentary democracy. Contributions could reflect upon the ideological and material basis for this drive and how this was embedded within contemporary political culture. Other areas of interest include spatial dynamics in the growth of Nazism and the diversity of the Nazi movement itself.

2.) Contingencies and Options
There have been extensive historiographical debates about the inevitability and the precise sequence of the events leading up to 30 January 1933 and the subsequent Nazi seizure of power. This debate is open for a reconsideration, both in empirical and in conceptual terms, for instance with regard to the concept of ‘charismatic power’ in its application to symbolic integration throughout the Weimar Republic. Revisiting the options of contemporary actors also implies an assessment of possible alternatives, for instance the situation and the strategies of the organized labour movement, and the background of German political culture which framed the Nazi seizure of power, such as ‘community’, ‘nation’ or ‘leadership’. Also, how does recent emphasis on the openness and diversity of Weimar society, culture and politics, including a rich intellectual discourse, fit into the context of 1933?

3.) Anti-Semitism and Racism
A radicalization of anti-Semitic and racial practices was one of the very first material results of the Nazi seizure of power. Yet, recent scholarship has argued that anti-Semitic rhetoric and violence before 1933 were more widespread and more widely accepted than previously believed. Contributions to this theme could consider the significance of 30 January 1933 in context of developments in the short- and medium-term, including the radicalization of German anti-Semitism up until 1941. Other important aspects of this dimension include the contemporary perceptions within the Jewish community, and the political and religious conclusions they arrived at when observing the Nazi seizure of power.

4.) Comparative Dimensions
Seen in a comparative perspective, the Nazi seizure of power was only one among many instances in Europe where fascist movements or authoritarian currents gained power and established a dictatorship during the 1920s and 1930s. Other examples range from the formation of Mussolini’s Fascist government in Italy in 1922 to the establishment of a dictatorship in Poland in 1926 or the formation of the ‘Austrofascist’ regime under Engelbert Dollfuss in 1933/34. What is the historical significance of 30 January 1933, compared with these other examples, most of which occurred in Central-Eastern Europe? Is it possible, and how, to analyse the Nazi seizure of power in the broader context of the widespread instability of democratic regimes in interwar Europe, and as one manifestation of the fascist assault on democracy, using fascism as a generic term for a new and particularly militant form of political mobilization? To what extent does National Socialism fit into the mainstream of Modern European history?

It should be noted that the memory and subsequent remembrance of 30 January 1933, although an important topic in its own right, is not among the focal points of this special issue, and that suggestions for papers which are entirely focused on these themes will not be considered.

We invite abstracts of potential articles for this theme issue. The abstracts should outline the key questions addressed by your piece, its overall contribution to the theme issue, and should also hint at the material basis for your argument, i.e. the primary sources you interrogate. A very short biographical information should be included, giving your institutional affiliation and the most relevant recent publications. Abstract and bio should not exceed 500 words in total.

Commissioned articles will be subject to a peer-review process. They should be between 8,000 and 10,000 words long, including footnotes, and must be submitted in a final version by 1 November 2012. Please note that subject to interest in this call for papers we might also consider to organise a workshop on the subject in 2013.

For information on the journal see: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/ftmp

Please send your abstract by 1 October 2011 to:

Professor Claus-Christian Szejnmann, Loughborough University, Department of Politics, History, and International Relations; email: c.w.szejnmann@lboro.ac.uk

and

Professor Benjamin Ziemann, University of Sheffield, Department of History, email: b.ziemann@sheffield.ac.uk

Programm

Kontakt

Professor Claus-Christian Szejnmann
Loughborough University, Department of Politics, History, and International Relations
email: c.w.szejnmann@lboro.ac.uk

and

Professor Benjamin Ziemann
University of Sheffield, Department of History
email: b.ziemann@sheffield.ac.uk

http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/ftmp
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