Chapter 78 Chapter 12 The Second Revolution (6)

A month earlier, during his failed trip to Italy, the Führer had assured Mussolini of respect for Austria's independence.That's a pretty big concession.Because "uniting" his own homeland into Germany to create a Greater Germany was one of his most important goals.Despite his promise, his own SS did not stop providing financial and moral assistance to the Nazis in Austria.The Austrian Nazis were terrorizing, bombing railways and power stations with German explosives, and murdering supporters of Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss with German weapons.Ironically, the diminutive Dollface was a nationalist and an authoritarian reactionary.He fought back against Nazism and socialism by ending parliamentary government.Earlier in the year, Dolphus crushed a leftist uprising, shelling socialists who occupied a property development company building until they surrendered.Since then, he has concentrated on exterminating the local Nazis.Dolphus' crackdown on the Nazis was fueled by Mussolini's pledge to keep Hitler in check against retaliation.

After the Roma incident, legends abounded.The Austrian Nazis were perhaps inspired by legend to take direct action.More likely, it was approved by Hitler, although there is no evidence to prove it.In any case, they suddenly launched an uprising on June 25, which was code-named "Operation Summer Festival".At noon, 150 Nazi commandos wearing Austrian military uniforms rushed into the Prime Minister's Office on Ballhaus Square in an attempt to arrest Dolfes and his advisers.But because of the leak, all the cabinet members escaped except two, but the brave Dolphus stayed.He was shot in the throat and the bullet was fired from a distance of 6 inches.As he lay in a pool of blood and was ignored, other rebels broadcast on the radio the lie that he had resigned.

When news of the uprising reached Berlin, it was welcomed by the officers.The German Press Bureau drew up a statement to the effect that the people had risen with dignity and justice. "The inevitable happened. The German people in Austria rose up against their oppressors, their prisoners and their executioners." Hitler, who was attending the Wagner celebration in Bairet at the time, initially pretended to be indifferent when he heard the news. , and by the afternoon he worried about the possible repercussions of the uprising.Would Mussolini have doubted his own words and used superior forces? (The fact is that Mussolini was furious. Not only because of Hitler's own words, but also for personal reasons: Mrs. Dolphus and her children were guests at his home, and the news that Dolphus was dying by him to her).That night, Hitler and Wagner's family members appeared in his box to watch the performance of "Rhine Gold".But it is doubtful whether he enjoyed it, because Schaub and Bruckner, who were hiding on the phone in the living room, were always passing by his ears the contents of a communique that disturbed him: Mussolini had ordered the Masses of infantry and aircraft on the frontier to fulfill its promise to aid Austria.As the curtain fell, it became clear that the Viennese uprising was failing.When Hitler returned to Wagner's home, the young Friedlin found him "fidgeting" and speaking incoherently.His main purpose seems to be to rush to the nearby actor's restaurant, mingle with celebrities, and create the impression that the defeat of the Austrian Nazis has nothing to do with him.

Later that night, news came from Berlin that Chancellor Tollfuss had died at 6 p.m., but that the rebellion had been put to rest.Hitler hurriedly called Wilhelmstrasse and asked State Secretary Blau for details.When Burlau replied that Minister Ritter, the German representative in Austria, was negotiating for the safe transport of the captured murderer to the German border, Hitler shouted that why Ritter acted as a mediator was none of his business.At 11 o'clock in the evening, the head of state called Blau again to learn more about the situation of the arrested insurgents. The "Reich Chancellor," Blau wrote in an official memorandum, "replied that the deported conspirators could be taken into custody and transferred to a concentration camp."

Desperate, Hitler turned to Papen (who had recently been disgraced by arrests in his home) to replace Ritter.Papen disagreed, but Hitler persisted and begged him in the name of patriotism.Papen could at least talk about it.Why can't they fly to Bai Wright on the special plane of the head of state?Unable to resist the Führer's insistence, Papen took off from Tamberhof Airport with his son the next morning.During the flight south, Papen was distraught.With so many people, why did Hitler only look for him?Was it because he had opposed the terrorist activities of the Austrian underground Nazis, or was it because Dolphus was a personal friend of him?Upon arrival, Papen found the Führer "distraught to the point of hysteria, constantly condemning the stupidity and recklessness of the Austrian Nazi Party for bringing him into such a lucrative situation." At first, Hitler rejected Papen's terms of acceptance: relieve him He sent someone to serve as the instructor of the Austrian Nazi Party.But when Papen suggested a choice between "he and I," Hitler backed down.Papen accepted the post.

In the living room, he bumped into an old friend, Hejama Shahit, the governor of the Reichsbank, who was next to meet the Führer.He also got an important job - as Minister of Economic Affairs.Shahit is dissatisfied with the progress of the Empire, especially the expansion of the recent purge.But like Papen, he convinced himself—he wrote later—that he should accept the job to help the empire. "There is only a possibility of working from the inside out, using every activity of the government to combat the excesses of the system and to set its policies on the right track." Like Papen, he declared his It's a temporary job.His condition was expressed in the form of a question: "Before I take office, I would like to know how you want me to deal with the Jewish problem?"

"In economic affairs," said the watchful Hitler, "the Jews can carry on as they have always done." With Papen's help in diplomacy and Sahit in the acceleration of armaments, Hitler felt that he could safely overcome the difficulty of foreign criticism caused by the murder of Dollfuss.The most severe attack was Mussolini.Not only did he call Austrian Deputy Chancellor Ernst Ludiger von Stachemburg to say that Italy would fight for Austrian independence, but he also traveled to Vienna to express this sentiment in person. "If this country of murderers and sodomites ravages Europe, the whole civilization of Europe is ruined," he told Stachemburg.He then attacked Hitler for instigating the Vienna Rebellion.According to Stachemburg, his eyes were rolling with excitement. "Hitler was responsible for the murder of Dolphus. Hitler was a sinner and was responsible for it." He called Hitler a "terrible sexual degenerate, a dangerous fool"; A revolution against the Latin civilization of Rome." Nazism was no match for Fascism. "Of course, there are similarities in appearance. Both are authoritarian, both are collectivist, socialist. Both systems are opposed to liberalism. But the fascist regime is in the great cultural tradition of the Italian people. Deep rooted. Fascism recognizes individual rights, recognizes religion and the family. National Socialism, on the other hand, is brutal barbarism. Like the barbarian crowd, it does not give rights to the individual, and the chief decides the life and death of his people. It can What is produced is nothing more than burning, killing, looting and blackmail." He shouted, "The terrible and abominable scene that Hitler performed to the world on June 30 cannot be tolerated by any country in the world. Only these primitive people who are ready to kill The Germans put up with such things!" He went on to say that there might be some advantage in Dollfuss being killed.The great powers might recognize the danger in Germany and form a grand anti-Hitler coalition.The United Front, he said, was the only answer. "Hitler is going to arm Germany and go to war—maybe in two or three years. I can't deal with him alone. We've got to do something, and we've got to do it fast."

Mussolini disliked Hitler and Germany to such an extent that he showed it in public. "Three thousand years of history have enabled us to view with supreme privilege certain dogmas beyond the Alps. Are these dogmas the descendants of Caesar, Virgil, and Augustus when Rome prospered*? Taught them,” he declared, standing atop a tank at the opening of the Fifth Mediterranean International Exposition.His private insults, such as "sodomite" and "murderer" when describing Germans, also began to appear in the Italian press. The shock of the purges, followed so quickly by Dollface's murder, had a marked effect on Hindenburg, whose health rapidly deteriorated to the point where he was bedridden.His bed was a simple iron bed, but he refused to sleep on a more comfortable bed, on the grounds that he had always slept on a camp bed.Although he felt cold, he was reluctant to buy a robe.Soldiers don't wear robes, he muttered.He has no money for these things, and is dying again.

When the Führer learned of Hindenburg's rapidly deteriorating health, he was still at Bratt.He arrived in Neudecke on August 1.There are very few colleagues, including two public relations experts.A group of people were treated coldly.Oskar von Hindenburg ushers the Führer into the President's bedroom. "Father," he said, "the Reich Chancellor is here." Lying on the bed, Hindenburg did not respond with his eyes closed.Oscar repeated the previous words again.The marshal didn't even open his eyes and said, "Why didn't you come early?" "What do you mean by the president's words?" he asked Oscar in a low voice.

"The Reich Chancellor has never been free until now," Oskar told his father.Hindenburg only murmured: "Ah, I see." After a moment of silence, Oskar said: "Father, Reich Chancellor Hitler would like to consult with you on one or two matters." This time, the old man suddenly opened his eyes, stared at Hitler, and then closed his eyes again without saying a word.Perhaps the President had thought it was his Reich Chancellor, his - Papen. When Hitler came out of the room, he "closed his lips" and refused to talk about what he saw.That night, the group stayed overnight at Finkenstein Manor—the place where Napoleon and Countess Varuska were tender and affectionate.The owner suggested that Hitler sleep in the bed of the "little corporal", but he flatly refused the honor.

The next day, even with Hindenburg still alive, Hitler's cabinet passed a decree merging the office of the president with the office of the chancellor.The vote was unanimous; Papen was absent, and the name was signed on behalf of others.This measure came into effect on the date of Hindenburg's death—only a few minutes later, in fact.When the old man died, the words on his lips were: "My Caesar... my country!" He died on the iron bed, holding the "Bible" in both hands. Thanks to this legal coup, Hitler now wears two titles: Fuehrer and Reich Chancellor.This means that he is also the supreme commander of the armed forces.His first act was to summon General von Blomberg and the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. "We went to his study," Admiral Erich Laed later testified. "Hitler called us to his desk and said it was all right and no pretense. We swore there that he As the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces and the head of state, read an oath, and we will follow." The oath read by the four was: "I swear before God that I will unconditionally obey the Reich Head of State and Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Adolf Hitler and the people of the Reich. As a brave soldier, I pledge to obey the oath to the death." This is unprecedented.The previous oath required only obedience to the Constitution and the President.This oath, made to someone by name, establishes a personal link between the Führer and every soldier on land, sea and air.However, no officer raised the slightest objection or questioned the unique wording.At the end of the day, each member of the armed forces took the same oath of personal allegiance. The first stage of Hindenburg's funeral took place on August 6 at the Kroll Theater.People carried Hindenburg's coffin past the ranks of SA and SS in gray, brown and black.These divided ranks were also united under a similar oath of loyalty to the Führer.The music played at the funeral was Gode Dameron's Funeral March—which is quite symbolic. At noon the next day, Hindenburg was buried. The location was not in Neudecke, which Hindenburg had expected during his lifetime. Due to Hitler's repeated insistence, he was in Danenburg, where the Marshal had won the greatest victory.Hindenburg's body was placed on the altar, in the middle of the Battle Memorial - a huge structure with eight square towers, 60 feet high, each with a torch.This reminded Ambassador François Bence of castles built by Teutonic warriors. Hitler stepped forward to greet the spirit.It wasn't until he was on the podium that Hitler realized that one of his adjutants had made a mistake in the speech.As a result, there was a scene of embarrassing pause.Radio listeners across Europe must have been baffled as to why there was a pause.But Hitler soon calmed down and delivered an impromptu speech.The speech was one of the briefest that reporter Rotzner has ever heard him give.Hitler concluded his speech with a comprehensive tribute to Hindenburg's military and political achievements.His phrasing is arguably more heroic to Wagnerian followers than to Lutheran orthodoxy: "Now, let you enter Valhalla!" After the funeral, Hitler kissed the hands of Hindenburg's daughters.Inspired, if not opportunistically, by the awe-inspiring funeral, General von Blomberg impulsively suggested that, henceforth, soldiers of the armed forces should address him not as "Herr Hitler" as usual, but as "I head of state".Hitler accepted this suggestion and returned to Berlin.In Berlin, to further consolidate his power, he called Papen to ask if the Don had any political last words.Papen said he would ask Little Hindenburg.Hitler said: "I would be very grateful if this document could be guaranteed to be in my hands as soon as possible." Papen immediately sent a personal secretary to Neudecke.He came back with two sealed letters.Papen immediately forwarded the letter to the Führer.Papen could see that Hitler was not happy with the contents of the letter.Hitler said coldly: "These two letters were written to me personally by the late president. I will decide whether and when to publish them later." Rumors arose that Hitler intended to seize the will. Due to the uproar among the foreign journalists, Hanfsteinl was obliged to ask this question over tea. "Tell your foreign friends to wait patiently until we publish it officially," Hitler retorted. "I don't care what the liars think." On August 15, the last words were finally published.It praised the achievements of Hitler and his government, and also emphasized the importance of the military as a "symbol and staunch supporter" of the new regime.There was talk in the capital that the document had been falsified by the editor of Hindenburg's memoirs, and that Oskar von Hindenburg and his father's adviser, Messner, were in collusion in this one.Oskar later addressed the nation on the radio, swearing that his father had always supported Hitler—which only made the rumours sound a little more believable.It was ironic, but Oscar wasn't lying.Despite his distaste for certain aspects of Hitler's regime, Hindenburg saw Hitler as his successor. Oscar's speech was unnecessary, because Hitler at this time had already received strong support from all social classes in Germany.Even the "National Association of German Jews" issued a statement supporting him.Thus, by August 19, almost 90 percent of Germans freely voted for Adolf Hitler as Hindenburg's successor.In doing so, they also approved his program and leadership, pushing him one step further in the direction of dictatorship.