Nazism refers to the political movement and doctrine of the National Socialist Party (Nationalsozialismus), which began in 1919 as a unionist labor movement known as the National Socialist German Workers’ Party (Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei). During the years between its creation and the early 1930s, the organization addressed a number of political issues and ran for governmental positions. By 1933, the party was elected by 44% of the electorate to positions in the Reichstag (the German Parliament).

Specific events that aided the Nazi movement were Germany’s defeat in World War I in 1918 and the military’s belief that government politicians committed treason by signing the Versailles Treaty [Page 1201]of 1919, which ended the war. Other factors included the War Guilt Clause in the Versailles Treaty, which identified ...