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One goal of all this propaganda was to create the Fuhrer Myth (in German Fuhrerprinzip). The idea that all good had come from Hitler and his policies, that he single handedly had restored Germany, created jobs for everyone… he can tell you himself, see Source 1. Hitler remained very popular for his entire leadership
Source 1- Hitler, in a Reichstag speech of 28 April 1939
"I overcame chaos in Germany, restored order, enormously raised production in all fields of our national economy...I succeeded in completely resettling in useful production those 7 million unemployed who so touched our hearts...I have not only politically united the German nation but also rearmed it militarily, and I have further tried to liquidate that Treaty sheet by sheet whose 448 Articles contain the vilest rape that nations and human beings have ever been expected to submit to. I have restored to the Reich the provinces grabbed from us in 1919; I have led millions of deeply unhappy Germans, who have been snatched away from us, back into the Fatherland; I have restored the thousand-year-old historical unity of German living space; and I have attempted to accomplish all that without shedding blood and without inflicting the sufferings of war on my people or any other. I have accomplished all this, as one who 21 years ago was still an unknown worker and soldier of my people, by my own efforts..."
The Fuhrer Myth
The Fuhrer Myth
The broad reaches of the propaganda machine were utilised by the Nazis to promote their project of national binding, Volksgemeinshaft (national community), and to remove political opposition. This 'community' was to be harmonious and classless of racially pure Germans serving common goals. This was compounded by the construction of The Fuhrer Myth, projecting Hitler as the saviour of the German people, therefore alleviating uncertainty over the party's leadership.
This is demonstrated in the Nazi Slogan: 'Ein Reich, Ein Volk, Ein Furher' ('One Nation, One People, One Leader').
The Fuhrer Myth was a term used by Joseph Goebbels to describe the 'heroic' leader image he created and which he claimed (in 1941) as his greatest propaganda achievement. The German people were attracted to this image and Hitler was a contrast to the leadership they experienced during the Weimar years. Hitler represented a strongly authoritarian regime based on national superiority.
This belief in the Fuhrer, and by extension, the state, was the primary goal of Goebbel's ministry. As Ian Kershaw argues, this could only be reached by 'blindly following the Fuhrer'. Hence, expert construction of the Fuhrer myth and accompanying propaganda was significant in maintaining power as it sought to remove opponents through the indoctrination of the German population.
The Fuhrer Myth KW.pdfRead through the Ken Webb information and complete exercise 12.2
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