Der Fuehrer - Hitler's Rise to Power (1944) - Heiden

ADOLPHE LEGALITE 395age. He had started on this course half unawares, followed only by asmall group of his closest co-workers, and by them with hesitation. Hehad to promulgate his laws in opposition to parliament, as presidentialdecrees. To be sure, the largest democratic party of the Reich, the SocialDemocratic Party, felt constrained not to overthrow him; for Bruningseemed the last defense against Hitler. But in this hopeless attemptSocial Democracy used itself up, without in the end averting thecatastrophe. While half Europe was already under the domination ofdictatorship, Bruning called himself Germany's 'last parliamentarianchancellor.'The German collapse, which tore down the authority of the laws,raised up the authority of violence in its stead. A new Reichswehrdictatorship seemed to be arising, similar to the one which, simply,inconspicuously, inexorably, had for a short time been exerted bySeeckt in 1923. People should not be so afraid of this hobgoblin ofdictatorship, said the retired general, who had defeated Hitler. He hadgone into politics, and had even permitted Stresemann's party to electhim to the Reichstag. No one was thinking of bloody tyranny, heinsisted; dictatorship was only the 'natural reverse side of democracyand parliamentarianism in the event that the forces in this parliamentcannot agree; but it must be limited to emergency.' What theReichswehr really wanted was a functioning but obedient democracy.When the democracies had won the World War, the generals found ittimely that Germany should have a try at this victorious state form.When Seeckt spoke of dictatorship, he meant that the Reichswehr mustforce the disintegrating parliament to perform its political function; andthe foreign policy of Germany, said the general, who had learnt thateven victorious war not always pays, should be 'reconciliation, peace,co-operation.'Against the Reichswehr, if things grew serious, there could be noresistance; on this friend and foe were agreed. It was all very well forthe political parties, sensing the new conditions, to arm their privatearmies with pistols and infernal machines, and have them march andswagger; but once force began to speak, only the machine guns andartillery of the army would be heard. To be sure, there was a secondarmed force that was not to be despised: the police of the various states,especially Prussia, which disposed