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

COUP D'ETAT BY INSTALLMENTS 597the movement of the armed intellectuals. Whether all too humanmotives played a part in this renegacy may later become clear; but thereis no doubt that, like Blomberg, Seldte was a personal victim of Hitler,an admirer and convinced retainer. The German Nationalists, who hadformerly regarded the Stahlhelm as their private army, no longer trustedit and tried to build up a small private army of their own, the 'GermanNationalist Combat Ring (Kampf-ring)' This group also accepted SocialDemocrats as members; but its leadership proclaimed that it was the'duty and responsibility' of the new state to restore the monarchy —aimlessness and hopelessness all along the line. At the end of March,Goring began to arrest leaders of both the Stahlhelm and the CombatRing and to disband entire groups; always on the ground that they hadaccepted 'Marxists' as members — at the very time when the NationalSocialist shop cells were taking in 'Marxists' by the hundreds ofthousands.For Seldte these 'Marxists' were the most effective bribe. NationalSocialism was in the process of capturing the working masses, andSeldte, as Minister of Labor, hoped to become the leader of thesemasses in the National Socialist state. But for that his relation to theNational Socialist Party must become clear. In these negotiations Rohmagain demonstrated his diplomatic gifts. Rohm had in good part beenresponsible for the founding of National Socialism; a year before, hehad engineered the understanding with Schleicher and the fall ofBruning; now he had brought about the party's first serious inroad intothe conservative world. Since the beginning of April Rohm had beenholding secret talks with Seldte; by about the twentieth, the two reachedan accord. In Seldte this was a conspiracy against his followers; onApril 26, he announced that he had dismissed his comrade and secondin-command,the great-grandson of Abraham Duesterberg (which theby-laws of the Stahlhelm gave him no right to do). On the next day,Seldte joined the National Socialist Party and presented his astonishedfollowers with the accomplished fact that their Stahlhelm was nowtaking orders from the Chancellor. 'Heil Hitler!' was the party greetingof the National Socialists; 'Front Heil!' that of the Stahlhelm. Seldteconcluded his radio speech with 'Front Heil Hitler!' It was a politicalcoup and a human betrayal.