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Nazi Germany,[h] officially known as the German Reich[i] from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich[j] from 1943 to 1945, was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a dictatorship. Under Hitler's rule, Germany quickly became a totalitarian state where nearly all aspects of life were controlled by the government. The Third Reich,[k] meaning "Third Realm" or "Third Empire", alluded to the Nazi claim that Nazi Germany was the successor to the earlier Holy Roman Empire (800–1806) and German Empire (1871–1918). The Third Reich, which Hitler and the Nazis referred to as the Thousand Year Reich,[l] ended in May 1945 after just 12 years, when the Allies defeated Germany, ending World War II in Europe.

German Reich
(1933–1943)
Deutsches ReichGreater German Reich
(1943–1945)
Großdeutsches Reich

1933–1945

Flag
(1935–1945)

Emblem
(1935–1945)

Anthems: 
Das Lied der Deutschen
("The Song of the Germans")

Horst-Wessel-Lied [a]
("The Horst Wessel Song")

3:21

Germany's territorial control at its greatest extent during World War II (late 1942):

  German Reich[b]  Civilian-administered occupied territories  Military-administered occupied territories

Capital

and largest city

Berlin
52°31′N 13°23′ECommon languagesGermanReligion

54% Protestant40% Catholic3.5% Gottgläubig1.5% Irreligious1% Other

[1]Demonym(s)GermanGovernmentUnitary Nazi one-party fascist state under a totalitarian dictatorshipHead of state 

• 1933–1934

Paul von Hindenburg[c]

• 1934–1945

Adolf Hitler[d]

• 1945

Karl Dönitz[c]Chancellor 

• 1933–1945

Adolf Hitler

• 1945

Joseph Goebbels[e]

• 1945

Lutz von Krosigk[f]LegislatureReichstag

• Upper house

Reichsrat (dissolved 1934)Historical eraInterwar • World War II

• Seizure of Power

30 January 1933

• Enabling Act

23 March 1933

• Anschluss

12 March 1938

• WWII began

1 September 1939

• Death of Hitler

30 April 1945

• Fall of Berlin

2 May 1945

• Surrender

8 May 1945

• Berlin Declaration

5 June 1945Area1939[g]633,786 km2 (244,706 sq mi)1940[2][b]823,505 km2 (317,957 sq mi)Population

• 1939[3]

79,375,281

• 1940[2][b]

109,518,183CurrencyReichsmark (ℛℳ)

Preceded bySucceeded byWeimar RepublicFederal State of AustriaEast GermanyWest GermanyAustria

On 30 January 1933, Hitler was appointed chancellor of Germany, the head of government, by the president of the Weimar Republic, Paul von Hindenburg, the head of state. The Nazi Party then began to eliminate all political opposition and consolidate its power. Hindenburg died on 2 August 1934 and Hitler became dictator of Germany by merging the offices and powers of the chancellery and presidency. A national referendum held 19 August 1934 confirmed Hitler as sole Führer (leader) of Germany. All power was centralised in Hitler's person and his word became the highest law. The government was not a coordinated, co-operating body, but a collection of factions struggling for power and Hitler's favour. In the midst of the Great Depression, the Nazis restored economic stability and ended mass unemployment using heavy military spending and a mixed economy. Using deficit spending, the regime undertook a massive secret rearmament program, forming the Wehrmacht (armed forces), and constructed extensive public works projects, including the Autobahnen (motorways). The return to economic stability boosted the regime's popularity.

Racism, Nazi eugenics, and especially antisemitism, were central ideological features of the regime. The Germanic peoples were considered by the Nazis to be the master race, the purest branch of the Aryan race. Discrimination and the persecution of Jews and Romani people began in earnest after the seizure of power. The first concentration camps were established in March 1933. Jews and others deemed undesirable were imprisoned, and liberals, socialists, and communists were murdered, imprisoned, or exiled. Christian churches and citizens that opposed Hitler's rule were oppressed and many leaders imprisoned. Education focused on racial biology, population policy, and fitness for military service. Career and educational opportunities for women were curtailed. Recreation and tourism were organised via the Strength Through Joy program, and the 1936 Summer Olympics showcased Germany on the international stage. Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels made effective use of film, mass rallies, and Hitler's hypnotic oratory to influence public opinion. The government controlled artistic expression, promoting specific art forms and banning or discouraging others.

From the latter half of the 1930s, Nazi Germany made increasingly aggressive territorial demands, threatening war if these were not met. The Saarland voted by plebiscite to rejoin Germany in 1935, and in 1936 Hitler sent troops into the Rhineland, which had been de-militarized after World War I. Germany seized Austria in Anschluss. (some lore of naz! germany)