Most people associate the concept of "German Reich" with fascist Germany, but this analogy is not entirely accurate. The term "Third Reich" is associated with the Nazi period in the country's history. But when, then, were the other two? Let's find out this, especially in detail dwelling on the concept of "First Reich".
The meaning of the term
What do historians generally understand by the word "Reich"? The translation from German into Russian is as follows: "the territory under the rule of the ruler." The word is derived from rīkz - "ruler", "lord". A more simplified meaning is "empire".
The term itself entered the masses in the 20s of the last century. It was then, after the collapse of Kaiser's Germany in the First World War, that German patriots began to call it the "Second Reich". They believed that the revival of the power of a great country is possible. These hopes were associated with the arrival of the Third Reich. Later, these sentiments were used by Hitler's propaganda, which began to call its state with this term.
But let's look deeper into history and find out what, according to the Germans who lived at the beginning of the last century, the term "First Reich" meant.
Attempts to revive the Roman Empire
During the period when the Roman Empire was falling apart, the barbarian Germanic tribes, although largely contributed to its destruction, nevertheless did not set such goals for themselves. They wanted to live on the lands of the empire, enjoy the benefits, but not liquidate it. Therefore, the leaders of these tribes, settling with their people on Roman lands, quite often accepted the title of federates, that is, allies of the Romans.
Even the German commander Odoacer, who actually liquidated the Western Roman Empire, formally acted on the bail of the eastern emperor. Having created his own barbarian state on the territory of Italy, he recognized it as part of the empire. Odoacer's rival, and later the Ostrogothic successor, King Theodoric, had a similar status. Even the Frankish ruler Clovis took consular insignia from the Emperor of Constantinople, thus formally becoming an official of the empire.
Hundreds of years later, after the fall of Rome, the rulers of numerous Germanic states in Europe dreamed of the revival of an empire in the West. The Frankish king Charlemagne succeeded in doing this. Having defeated the kingdom of the Lombards, then living in Italy, he was crowned in 800 by the Pope, the crown of the Emperor of the West. However, his state did not last very long, torn apart in the internecine wars of Charles's heirs. But the beginning of the revival of the empire was laid.
The beginning of German statehood
The empire of Charlemagne split into three large states, which, in turn, split into many smaller duchies. In 919, the Duke of Saxony Heinrich the Birdcatcher became the ruler of the East Frankish kingdom. The history of Germany, according to a number of experts, dates back to this very date. Henry was able to unite the scattered duchies into a single state, as far as possible in the conditions feudal fragmentation, and even successfully pursued a foreign expansionist policy, mainly against the Slavs.
But in 936 Heinrich the Birdman died. He was succeeded by his son - Otto I the Great. It is believed that it was he who founded the First Reich.
Founding of the Holy Roman Empire
The beginning of Otto's reign, as often happened at that time, was marked by the suppression of a number of internal uprisings and the strengthening of royal power. After that, his gaze turned to lands outside Germany.
One of the most attractive targets for the young German king was Italy. This flourishing country at that time was mired in internal strife and conflicts. The pretext for Otto to start the campaign was the complaint of the widow of the Italian king Lothar Adelheida about the oppression by Berengar, who had established himself on the throne. The German king undertook a successful campaign in Italy in 951, as a result of which her ruler, although he retained his title, had to demonstrate obedience.
True, a little later Berengar showed obstinacy, which was the reason for the next campaign of Otto in 961. It was then that he deposed the rebellious Italian king and married Adelheide. A year later, Pope John XII crowned Otto with the imperial crown. This is how Germany and Italy were united under the scepter of one ruler, and the Holy Roman Empire arose.
Confrontation with the papacy
The further history of the Reich was marked by a sharp confrontation between the emperor and the popes. It was associated with the struggle for primacy between spiritual and secular power, for the right to appoint bishops, for control over Italian cities, as well as a number of other political issues.
The confrontation began during the lifetime of Otto I and his immediate heirs, but especially aggravated during the two imperial dynasties: Salicheskaya and Hohenstaufens. After several centuries of struggle, the papacy, with the support of the growing French monarchy in Europe, won a victory in the middle of the 13th century. Representatives of the Hohenstaufen dynasty were practically all exterminated, and the authority of the imperial power was reduced to zero.
New strengthening of the power of the emperors
The history of Germany after these events is known as the Interregnum. It lasted 20 years. During this period, not a single feudal family could firmly gain a foothold in imperial throne... The real power of the emperor often did not extend beyond his own duchy. Moreover, quite often there were several contenders for the crown. Each of them considered himself the true emperor.
The current state of affairs changed in 1273 when Rudolf Habsburg, who was also the Duke of Austria, ascended the imperial throne. He significantly managed to strengthen the power of the emperor. Although he could not pass it down by inheritance, nevertheless, it was his reign that served as an aid for the future rise of the Habsburgs.
During the next dynasty of Luxembourg, who were also kings of Bohemia, the imperial power was strengthened even more. True, for this the rulers of the Holy Roman Empire had to make significant compromises with their vassals. In 1356 Charles IV published the so-called "Golden Bull", which regulated the procedure for electing emperors.
Rise of the Habsburgs
In 1452, a member of the Habsburg family, Frederick III, became emperor. From that time on, representatives of this dynasty almost continuously, with one exception, were at the head of the First Reich until its very death.
The son of Frederick III Maximilian, thanks to successful dynastic marriages, managed to ensure the dominance of the Habsburgs in Europe under his descendants. So, his heir Charles V was simultaneously the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, the ruler of the Netherlands, the king of Hungary, Bohemia, Spain, which put under his control the rich colonies of the New World, as well as a number of other smaller lands. After the death of this ruler, these territories were divided between his son Philip, who became king of Spain, and his brother Ferdinand I, who became emperor.
Thirty Years War
But a whole series of subsequent events, although not leading to the complete collapse of the Habsburgs, significantly weakened their position in Europe. The main event that contributed to this was the Thirty Years War, which began in 1618. It was caused by the desire of the German Protestant princes in the territories under their control to profess the religion they desire. Naturally, this provoked opposition from the Habsburgs, who were Catholics.
The Thirty Years War was one of the longest and bloodiest conflicts in Germany. The Reich of the Habsburgs turned against itself not only the Protestant princes, but also some Catholic kings. For example, France in this war acted as an ally of the Protestants, as it was a longtime rival of the Habsburg monarchy.
As a result, after thirty years of protracted conflict, the Peace of Westphalia was signed in 1648. In accordance with it, the emperor agreed to respect the right of local princes to profess the religion they wish, legally recognized the secession from the empire of Italy, Switzerland and the Netherlands, although in fact this happened even earlier. Thus, the Habsburgs lost their dominance in Europe.
The final stage in the history of the Holy Roman Empire
This defeat did not yet mean the end of the imperial power, although it was significantly weakened and now actually fully extended only to the ancestral possessions of the Habsburgs - Austria, Hungary, the Czech Republic and a number of other lands. After the death in 1742 of Emperor Charles VI, who had no male offspring, the crown even fell into the hands of the Bavarian house of Wittelsbach for three years, but was soon returned to the Habsburgs.
The reign of Empress Maria Theresa can be considered the last attempt to revive the power of the Holy Roman Empire. Under her, some military victories were won, and art also developed rapidly. Reich coins of that time clearly demonstrate the influence of the Enlightenment on the Austrian court.
But it was the heyday before dusk.
End of the First Reich
From the end of the 17th century, a whole series of French revolutionary and Napoleonic wars began, shaking the whole of Europe. The coalition, which included the Holy Roman Empire, suffered one defeat after another. The victory of Napoleon over the Russian-Austrian army at Austerlitz in 1805 was especially significant. The very next year, Franz II was forced to renounce the crown of the Holy Roman Empire, leaving behind only the title of Austrian emperor.
This is how the First Reich ended its history.
Next Reichs
Meanwhile, after the fall of Napoleon, the kingdom of Prussia, which was located in the north of Germany with the capital in Berlin, especially strengthened. This state has conducted a number of successful wars. During one of them in 1870, France was defeated. After that, the Prussian king Wilhelm united under his rule almost all Germanic lands with the exception of Austria and took the title of emperor (kaiser). it public education commonly referred to as the "Second Reich". However, already in 1918, due to the defeat in the First World War, the imperial power in Germany was replaced by the Weimar Republic.
In the German state of the 20s of the XX century, revanchist sentiments were quite strong, which were expressed in the hopes for the creation of the Third Reich. It was on the wave of these aspirations that the National Socialist Party, led by Adolf Hitler, came to power. He managed to create an almost perfect enslavement machine, plunging the whole world into the chaos of war. Nevertheless, the forces of the allies managed to turn the tide of hostilities and gain an unconditional victory over Nazi Germany.
Since then, the term "Reich" is primarily associated with Nazism.
And the history of Russia in the twentieth century is closely related to such events as the First world War, October Revolution, Great Patriotic War, stagnation, perestroika, collapse of the USSR. The most significant and terrible event in history, of course, was the war of 1941-1945, in which a victory was won over Nazi Germany, headed by Hitler and a rule closely related to the concept of the Third Reich. But if we are talking about the third, then earlier, there were the first and second Reichs, about which practically nothing is known.
The first and, according to historians, the most powerful Reich existed in the period from 962, when the East Frankish king Otto I proclaimed the territory of Germany as the Holy Roman Empire. This happened after the Germans captured Italy and, according to Otto I, it was his state that should bear the name and continue the great traditions of the Romans. It is worth recognizing that the subsequent generations of the Germans did not destroy the hopes of the great king. They continued their victorious march, annexing new territories to Germany across Europe. In particular, they were occupied and called the territory of Germany - Italy, Burgundy, Belgium, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Alsace, Silesia, Netherlands, Lorraine. Unlike other countries, where power, as a rule, was transferred either by inheritance or as a result of coups in the new Roman Empire created by the Germans, the new emperor was elected by a college of electors and, by the way, had very limited rights. Starting from the end of the 15th century, the Reichstag became the main authority - the highest body of the imperial estates, which performed judicial and legislative functions. In the same period of time, a postscript was made to the name "Holy Roman Empire" - "German nation", obviously, so that the Germans would not be confused with representatives ancient rome... But gradually Germany, like many empires before that, increasingly lost its supremacy in the world, and with this the majority of territories that were trying in every way to get out of the occupation yoke. Finally destroyed the Holy Roman Empire of the German nation or the First Reich - Napoleon.
The history of the Second Reich begins in 1871, 65 years after the collapse of the First. It was in this year that King Wilhelm I of Prussia and Chancellor Otto von Bismarck announced the beginning of the creation of a new German Empire. The motive for this was the defeat of the French army in the Franco-Prussian war in the period 1870-1871. First, defeated France paid an indemnity of five billion francs, which significantly strengthened the Prussian economy and increased military power. Secondly, the victory won raised the authority of Prussia by high level, and other German states began to join it. Even Austria, which at one time refused to become one of the components of the German Empire, subsequently entered into a long-term military alliance with her. But during this period of time, the economies of European states largely depended on the number of colonies they captured. Despite the fact that by the end of the 19th century Germany had established its own colonies in Africa and Asia, this was not enough, and the young empire found it extremely difficult to compete with the powerful England, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Portugal, Italy and other states that much earlier began to colonize territories around the world. The desire of the German Empire for economic and political dominance in Europe was the main reason for the outbreak of the First World War in 1914. But we must admit that the beginning of the war was at the same time the beginning of the collapse of the Second Reich, which ceased to exist four years later in 1918.
In 1934, Adolf Hitler came to power in Germany, who pursued one goal - world domination of Germany. He believed that there is only one race on the planet that is worthy to exist - the Aryan, all other peoples, according to the Fuhrer, were created to serve. Hitler was prompted to create a unified German state by the book The Third Reich, published in 1922, by Arthur Meller van den Bruck. This idea was painful and extremely important for Germany at that time. The defeat in the First World War, started by the Germans themselves, gave rise to an economic crisis in Germany, which dragged on for many years. Weakened by the war, the country lost most of the territories of organized colonies, production collapsed into decline agriculture... At the same time, according to the Versailles Peace Treaty, the Germans were forced to pay huge reparations to the victorious states every year. The economic crisis that took place all over the world in the late 1920s and early 1930s brought famine, poverty, and unemployment to an already weak Germany. But nevertheless, the once great people did not give up hopes of taking revenge for such a shameful defeat. Radical sentiments formed and grew in the state. Perhaps for this reason, in 1932, for the first time in elections in the Weimar Republic, the Communist party won the majority of votes, and more and more people showed a desire to join the National Socialist Workers Party (NSDAP). One thing was obvious - the days of the Weimar Republic were numbered. Now Germany had to make a choice on which path of development to go further: the National Socialist or the communist. The main influence on the choice was made by the fire that happened at the end of the winter of 1933 in the Reichstag building. The communists were accused of organizing the arson, which practically knocked the Communist Party out of the political race, as a result, in 1934, power was completely in the hands of representatives of the NSDAP, headed by the inadequate and, in the opinion of most modern scientists, mentally ill Adolf Hitler. From that moment on, the history of the formation of the Third Reich began, which lasted until 1945.
But all of the above is real historical facts, but today there are versions about the possibility of the emergence of the Fourth Reich. For the first time they started talking about it in 1990 after the famous Berlin Wall was destroyed and the unification of the FRG and the GDR began. This fact caused serious concern and many were interested in the question, but will the unification become the first step towards the creation of the next Reich and subsequently to the Third World War? Literally two months before the fall of the Berlin Wall, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, in a personal conversation with Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, expressed frank fears about this. But the current policy of Germany is not hostile, and this to some extent reassured everyone and now almost no one talks about the creation of the Fourth Reich.
In the story of the Fourth Reich, there is also a mythical version, which most experts call absurd, but there are those who not only believe in it, but also provide reasoned evidence that the Fourth Reich exists. The founders of the new German empire are called the Nazis, who managed to avoid death after the fall of Nazi Germany.
Unconfirmed rumors that the Germans were building a secret base in Antarctica appeared in the late 1930s. Germany then organized expeditions to the continent covered with people, and during the Second World War German ships, including submarines, were often sent there. For what? Many were convinced that the Third Reich was developing territories to create the so-called New Swabia, where scientists, service personnel, military personnel, as well as prisoners of war who were used as labor were brought in. According to supporters of the creation of such a base, it was here at the South Pole that the Nazis who fled in 1945 found their refuge.
According to unconfirmed officials, in 1946, the United States attempted to destroy New Swabia, for which a squadron of warships was sent to the shores of Antarctica. But a year later, the United States refused to continue the operation and their ships returned to their main bases. There is information that not all ships have returned. Perhaps the Americans were met by significant German forces who fought back. There is also an incredible version according to which the US government made a deal with the elite of New Swabia and, as a result of this agreement, the Americans gained access to new technologies, and the Nazis were guaranteed that they would not be disturbed.
In the version with the Fourth Reich in Antarctica, there are many inaccuracies and obvious conjectures that completely refute even the theoretical possibility of the existence of New Swabia. First of all, this is the statement that the Wehrmacht, hidden in the ice of Antarctica, is led by no one else but Adolf Hitler. But this cannot be. The point is that when soviet troops entered Berlin in 1945, the body of the Fuhrer was never found. In the garden of the Reich Chancellery, two burnt corpses were found, which supposedly belonged to Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun. But a year later, there were rumors that Hitler managed to escape. In order to confirm or refute such rumors, Soviet scientists carried out a thorough excavation at the alleged place of the Fuhrer's death and revealed a jawbone, as well as a fragment of a skull. Having consulted Hitler's available medical record, the researchers came to the conclusion that the bones belonged to the Nazi leader. And not so long ago, information was published that shocked the world: in fact, the discovered remains, which are stored in the FSB archive, belong to a woman! This is the conclusion reached by archaeologist from the United States Nick Bellantoni, who analyzed the DNA of the bones. Perhaps in 1946, Soviet scientists deliberately manipulated the facts with the sole purpose of stopping the spread of rumors about the possibility that Hitler had survived and thereby appease the people.
Historical dates of the collapse of the existing Reichs:
The glorious history of the First Reich ended in 1806, shortly after French troops led by Napoleon defeated german army in the battle of Austerlitz, as a result of which the last emperor of Germany, Franz II, was forced to formally abdicate.
The Second Reich ceased to exist in November 1918. This happened as a result of the fact that Germany lost in the First World War and, the people raised a revolt to overthrow Emperor Wilhelm, who was forced to leave the country, and the German Empire was renamed the Weimar Republic.
In May 1945, the end of the Third Reich came. Germany lost the outbreak of World War II, and its territory was divided among the allies. As a result, two states of the FRG and the GDR appeared on the map of Europe.
John Woods was a good executioner. When his victim hovered in the air, he grabbed her legs and hung with her, reducing the suffering of the dangling in the noose. But this is in his native Texas, where he has already executed more than three hundred people.
On the night of October 16, 1946, Woods backed down from his principles.
The American pro had to hang the bosses of the Third Reich: Goering, Ribbentrop, Keitel, Kaltenbrunner, Jodl, Sauckel, Streicher, Seis-Inquart, Frank, Frick and Rosenberg. In this group prison photo, they are almost in full force.
The Nuremberg Prison, which held the Nazis, was located in the American zone, so the executioner was also provided by the US government. In this picture, US Sergeant John Woods demonstrates the know-how - his legendary 13-knot loop.
The first to climb the scaffold was Goering, followed by Ribbentrop, but two hours before the execution, the Reichsmarshal committed suicide by taking a capsule of potassium cyanide, which (according to one of the possible versions) his wife gave him at the last meeting in prison in a farewell kiss.
It is not known how Goering learned about the upcoming execution; its date was kept in strict secrecy from the convicts and the press. Before their death, the convicts were even fed, offering one of two dishes to choose from: sausages with salad or pancakes with fruit.
Goering bit through the ampoule during dinner.
He was executed after midnight in the gym of the Nuremberg prison. Woods built the gallows in just a day: literally the day before, the soldiers were still playing basketball in the hall. The idea seemed to him not bad: three gallows, removable ropes, bags for bodies and, most importantly, hatches in the platforms under the feet of the guilty, into which they should immediately fall when hanging.
The entire execution was allotted no more than three hours, including the last word and a conversation with a priest. Woods himself then proudly recalled that day: "Ten people in 103 minutes. It's fast work."
But the minus (or plus?) Was that Woods hastily miscalculated the size of the hatches, making them very small. Falling inside the gallows, the executed man touched the edges of the hatch with his head and died, let's say, not right away ...
Ribbentrop wheezed in the loop for 10 minutes, Jodl - 18, Keitel - 24.
After the execution, representatives of all Allied powers examined the corpses and signed death certificates, and journalists photographed the bodies with and without clothing. Then the executed were loaded into spruce coffins, sealed and, under reinforced escort, transported to the crematorium of the Eastern Cemetery in Munich.
On the evening of October 18, the mixed ash of the criminals was dumped into the Isar Canal from the Marienklausen Bridge.
An interior view of a solitary confinement cell where the main German war criminals were held.
Such as Goering
Lunch of the defendants of the Nuremberg Trials.
Goering at lunch in a cell.
Goering during a lunch break at the Nuremberg Trials in the common dining room for the accused.
Opposite him - Rudolf Hess
Goering, who lost 20 kg during the process.
Goering during a meeting with his lawyer.
Goering and Hess
Goering on trial
Kaltenbrunner in a wheelchair
Third Reich Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop was the first to be hanged.
Colonel General Alfred Jodl
Chief of the SS Imperial Security Directorate Ernst Kaltenbrunner
Chief of the High Command of the Wehrmacht Wilhelm Keitel
Reich Protector of Bohemia and Moravia Wilhelm Frick
Gauleiter of Franconia Julius Streicher
Head of the Foreign Policy Department of the NSDAP Alfred Rosenberg
Reichskommissar of the Netherlands Arthur Seyss-Inquart
Gauleiter of Thuringia Friedrich Sauckel
Governor-General of Poland, lawyer of the NSDAP Hans Frank
Corpse of Heinrich Himmler. The Reichsfuehrer SS committed suicide on May 23, 1945 during his arrest in the city of Luneburg, taking potassium cyanide.
The corpses of the leader of the National Fascist Party Benito Mussolini and his mistress Clara Petacci, who overshadowed Duce during the execution on April 28, 1945, on the outskirts of the village of Mezzegra.
The dead bodies of Mussolini and Petacci, along with six bodies of other fascist hierarchs, were transported to Milan and hung by their feet from the floors of a gas station in Piazza Loreto.
Deputy Fuhrer for the party Rudolf Hess. The only one of the three defendants sentenced to life imprisonment, who served the entire term - 41 years. In August 1987, 93-year-old Hess was found hanged from an electric wire in the courtyard of the Berlin prison Spandau.
P.S. Nuremberg executioner John C. Woods was killed on July 21, 1950. According to legend, from an electric shock when testing an electric chair of his own design. In life, everything is more prosaic: he really died from an electric shock, but when repairing electrical wiring in his own house.
The Third Reich is the informal name for Germany in a chronological period from the spring of 1933 to May 1945. Despite such short life, he played a significant role in the history of the last century, leaving behind many still unsolved mysteries. Let's try to briefly describe the most significant stages in the fate of the state during that period. Naturally, one should start from the moment when Hitler came to power, remember with what ideas he won the hearts of many Germans and poisoned their minds. But the war is not the only thing that distinguished this politician. Under his wing, he gathered many eminent scientists and gave them the opportunity to work and invent. This decision allowed Germany to acquire the most extraordinary technical devices, thanks to which the country quickly recovered from the terrible destruction.
origin of name
The phrase Drittes reich in translation from German means "Third Empire". Interestingly, it is translated into Russian in different ways. The term "Reich" can be interpreted as "state" and "empire", but it is closest to such a concept as "power". But back in german it can take on a mystical meaning. According to him, the Reich is a "kingdom". By this concept became the German activist Arthur Möller van den Broek.
First and second reichs
Third Reich ... This term is familiar to almost everyone. But few can explain why the state was named that way. Why the third one? The fact is that van den Broek understood by this word an indivisible power, which was conceived as a haven for the entire German people. According to him, the First Reich is the Roman Empire of the German nation.
Her fate began in 962 and was interrupted in 1806 as a result of the defeat that Napoleon inflicted on her. The Second Reich was called the German Empire, created in 1871, during the period when its history ended after the 1918 revolution. This is the so-called Kaiser Germany. And the Third Reich, according to van den Bruck, would be the successor of the weakened Weimar Republic and should have become an ideal integral state. Adolf Hitler took this idea from him. Thus, the history of Germany, briefly speaking, just fit into the successive Reichs.
Short story
By the late 20s - early 30s. world economy was under the rule of a global crisis, which also weakened Germany. This is connected with the beginning in 1934 of the fate of the Third Reich. The political situation in the state has become extremely aggravated. At the same time, the importance of the National Socialist Labor Party increased. In the July 1932 elections, she won 37% of the vote. But, although she surpassed the other parties, it was still not enough to form a government.
In the next elections, the result was even lower (32%). Throughout this year, President Hindenburg called on Hitler to become a member of the government, offered him the post of vice-chancellor. However, he agreed only to the post of Reich Chancellor. Only the following winter did Hindenburg succumb to these conditions. And already on January 30, Adolf Hitler took over as Reich Chancellor.
Already in February, the Communist Party was banned, and harsh persecutions began against its leaders, to which almost half of its members were subjected.
The Reichstag was immediately dismissed, and the NDSAP won the elections in March. The newly created government already at the first meeting, on March 23, approved Hitler's extraordinary power rights.
In July, all existing parties were banned with the exception of the Nazi. The trade unions were also dissolved, and the German Labor Front was formed in their place. initiated the arrest and extermination of Jews.
Hitler's popularity grew steadily. Propaganda played a noticeable role in this: Kaiser's Germany and the weak were condemned, and they also remembered the defeat in the First World War. Also, the growth in popularity of the Fuhrer was explained by the end of the Great Depression and significant economic development. Particularly noteworthy is the fact that it was during this period that the country took a leading position in the production of metals such as aluminum and steel.
Austria joined the Reich in 1938, followed by Czechoslovakia in 1939. The following year, the heads of the USSR and Germany signed the Non-Aggression Pact.
World War II and the Third Reich
In September 1939, Reich soldiers entered Poland. France and Britain responded by declaring war on Germany. Over the next three years, the Reich defeated part of the European countries. In June 1941 Germany attacked the USSR, occupying some of its lands.
An intimidation regime was established in the conquered areas. This provoked the emergence of partisan detachments.
In July 1944, an attempted coup (failed) and a failed attempt on Hitler's life. Partisan underground detachments were organized in the state.
On May 7, 1945, the act of unconditional surrender of Germany was signed. May 9 became the day of the end of hostilities. And already on May 23, the government of the Third Reich was arrested.
State and territorial structure of the Third Reich
The head of the empire was the chancellor. Executive power was concentrated in the hands of the government. The legislative body was the imperial Diet, which was elected by the people. Within Germany, only the National Socialist Workers' Party was permitted.
The Third Reich was subdivided into fourteen lands and two cities.
Countries that entered the state as a result of expansion, and those in which mainly ethnic Germans lived, were included in it as imperial districts. They were called "Reichsgau". Thus, Austria was divided into seven such entities.
On the remaining occupied lands, the Reichskommissariat was organized. In total, five such formations were created, four more were planned to be formed.
Symbols of the Third Reich
Perhaps the most famous and familiar symbol that characterizes the Third Reich is the red flag with a swastika, which is still banned in many countries. By the way, she was depicted on almost all state attributes. It is interesting that the weapons of the Reich, primarily cold ones, were created taking into account the peculiarities of uniforms and national symbols. Another attribute was an iron cross with flared ends. The coat of arms was the image of a black eagle, in whose claws there was a swastika.
"Song of the Germans"
The Anthem of the Third Reich is the Song of the Germans, created almost a century before Hitler's rule. The author of the text was Hoffmann von Fallersleben. Music score was written by Joseph Haydn. The Anthem of the Third Reich is now the main composition of the united Germany. It is interesting that the "Song of the Germans" today does not evoke such strong negative associations, for example, as the swastika. However, this does not apply to military marches of the Third Reich.
Anyway, some of them. So, for example, the composition, written by Horst Wessel, was the march of the storm troops and the anthem of the ruling party. Today it is prohibited by the criminal law of Germany and Austria.