How far do you agree that the nature of the government of the Federal Republic in the years 1949-1989 was completely different from that of the Nazi period?

The nature of government – comprised of the executive, legislature and judiciary – did change between the two epochs, but not completely.          [...]The executive over both periods was made up of power vested in an individual (i.e. Fuhrer or Chancellor) and the civil service. During the Nazi period the Enabling Act, passed in 1933, allowed Hitler to decree for four years. Moreover, the Reichstag Fire Decree, also passed in 1933, de facto overturned the Weimar Constitution – as it tore up citizens’ legal rights. The FRG experienced a diminished form, albeit significant, of power in Adenauer’s ‘Chancellor Democracy’: he was accused of not listening to advisers and being obstinate in his positions. However, the two periods in terms of executive authority were different: Hitler was not bound by a constitution whereas Adenauer was. This difference manifested itself in the periods’ respective civil services. Hitler’s government passed the Civil Service Law in 1933 that removed non-Aryans from the service. Somewhat similarly, Article 11 of the Basic Law prohibited public employment of people with views contrary to the Basic Law. The key difference, however, is that in the latter case such a prohibition was subject to judicial oversight; whereas Hitler’s decisions and decrees, and the Fuhrerprinzip that naturally followed, were non-justiciable. Therefore, the two periods’ executives were not completely different insofar as they had strong executive authority and limitations on the civil service; however the ability to appeal FRG’s decision to the Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) marks a crucial distinction from the Nazi period.[...]To conclude, the nature of government did completely change in part – notably the legislature – however the slight dissimilarities rather than revolution in the case of the executive and judiciary means I disagree that the nature of government as a whole completely change between the Nazi and FRG periods. Perhaps this fact is to do with their joint inheritances from Weimar: the Nazis never formally overturned the Weimar constitutional settlement and the constitutional architects of the Basic Law drew heavy on the 1919 Weimar Constitution for inspiration.(This extract is part of a larger essay I wrote for a compilation of essays to be used in tutoring. This essay was marked by a teacher and received full marks.)

OD
Answered by Oliver D. History tutor

5357 Views

See similar History A Level tutors

Related History A Level answers

All answers ▸

To what extent were the British Isles converted in the sixth and seventh centuries?


To what extent did the actions of the British government cause the radicalisation of Nationalist ideology 1916-1921


Andrew Jackson’s leadership was the main cause of political conflict in the US in the period 1829-1837. – Discuss


‘Without the Falklands War, Margaret Thatcher would have lost the 1983 General Election.’ Assess the validity of this view.


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

© MyTutorWeb Ltd 2013–2025

Terms & Conditions|Privacy Policy
Cookie Preferences