hitler dead in 1932, what next?

What do you mean by "shortly"? Things moved pretty quickly between Nov '32 and Jan '33, recall that Schleicher only took the chancellorship in Dec '32.


The most pressing short-term concern is a Reichswehr coup against parliament, possibly leading to civil war.

Christmas
 
The most pressing short-term concern is a Reichswehr coup against parliament, possibly leading to civil war.
von Schleicher and von Bredow wanted a monarchical restoration not a military junta, von Blomberg wasn't a tower of principle but he did want a regime with popular consent. Von Seekt and Hammerstein-Equord wanted the Army to stay out of politics unless it was necessary to forestall a Communist takeover and Eugen Ott drew up his plan on that basis. So who is going to lead the Reichswehr coup?
 
von Schleicher and von Bredow wanted a monarchical restoration not a military junta, von Blomberg wasn't a tower of principle but he did want a regime with popular consent. Von Seekt and Hammerstein-Equord wanted the Army to stay out of politics unless it was necessary to forestall a Communist takeover and Eugen Ott drew up his plan on that basis. So who is going to lead the Reichswehr coup?

What did Hindenburg want?
 
What did Hindenburg want?
Probably a monarchist restoration but shrewd enough to know that this wouldn't be possible in the old Kaiser's lifetime (due to a combination of Wilhelm's personal failings and his perception by the former Entente nations). Not a big fan of the Nazis - when the SA did a march past he sarcastically observed "I didn't realise we had taken so many prisoners on the Eastern Front"
 
Probably a monarchist restoration but shrewd enough to know that this wouldn't be possible in the old Kaiser's lifetime (due to a combination of Wilhelm's personal failings and his perception by the former Entente nations). Not a big fan of the Nazis - when the SA did a march past he sarcastically observed "I didn't realise we had taken so many prisoners on the Eastern Front"

Lol, and interesting if Wilhelm II himself died during this time period? Was the Crown Prince viewed more favourably?
 
Was the Crown Prince viewed more favourably?
A bit of a womaniser as I recall but not the bogeyman "Kaiser Bill" was. Allied propaganda painted him as a decadent sybarite during the War so probably a restoration wouldn't cause serious popular disquiet in France, Britain or the US.
 

Anchises

Banned
von Schleicher and von Bredow wanted a monarchical restoration not a military junta, von Blomberg wasn't a tower of principle but he did want a regime with popular consent. Von Seekt and Hammerstein-Equord wanted the Army to stay out of politics unless it was necessary to forestall a Communist takeover and Eugen Ott drew up his plan on that basis. So who is going to lead the Reichswehr coup?

I would argue that von Schleicher might have desired a monarchist restauration but was smart enough to go for something else.

Just look at his Querfrontkonzept. The man wanted power first and foremost.
 
I would argue that von Schleicher might have desired a monarchist restauration but was smart enough to go for something else.
Fair point but, he wasn't personally that popular or well trusted. He would have needed the other big players in the Reichswehr onside to organise a military coup.
 

Anchises

Banned
Fair point but, he wasn't personally that popular or well trusted. He would have needed the other big players in the Reichswehr onside to organise a military coup.

The German language sources I have seen about the subject always indicated that Schleicher had a fairly accptable image in the leftist press and that von Hammerstein-Equord actually wanted him to use the Reichswehr to overthrow the government.
 
Interesting, I don't read German and most English sources don't go into that. I do know that Schleicher means something like "crawler" or "snooper" in English and that the standing joke in the Army was apparently "Schleicher by name, schleicher by nature". From what I have read Von Hammerstein-Equord did want the monarchy back.

The Social Democrats might have been prepared to cut a political deal with Schleicher but would hardly have supported him in closing down the Reichstag in a military coup. The Reichswehr might have been prepared to overthrow the Government but would have wanted political cover and a game plan for afterwards. I don't think he could have squared the circle.
 

NoMommsen

Donor
Hindenburg would never have appointed the much more left wing Strasser as Chancellor, ...
Once again mixing up Gregor Strasser with Otto Strasser and the "Beefsteak Nazis" of the latter.
In late 1932 Otto Strasser and his national-bolschewists were already an obscure nonety faction.
In late 1932 Gregor Strasser was the "buddy" of the trade unions AS WELL as of the industrialists with his deficit spending policy he was advocating since spring 1932, though he called it "productive credit creation" ("produktive Kreditwschöpfung").
Her was also once received - through his connections with Brüning - by Hindenburg, who rather liked the capable "Oberleutnant" (officer rank short of captain). .. at least much more than the "Gefreiter" Hitler.

... Strasser looks the most likely but he wasn't charismatic or a good speaker apparently. ...
Sry but ... not only having been the one responsible for propagande and tghe training of each and every orator of the party since 1926 he was - as a speaker hiomself - only second to Hitler himself. ... even Goebbels didn' t reached his abilities as long as Strasser was still an active orator. Strasser was the 'official' party voice in public and especially in the Reichstag. Goebbels actually learned his stuff from Gregor Strasser.

... Goeringite Nazis ...
x'D, ... sry, but ... what 'Goeringites' do you speak of ?
There simply weren't any.
In late 1932, beginning 1933 Göring was nothing more than an appendix to Hitler. He didn't had any power base at all of his own within the party. He was nothing more than Hitlers 'link' to the 'better' circles of society by then, nothing more.
 
Her was also once received - through his connections with Brüning - by Hindenburg, who rather liked the capable "Oberleutnant" (officer rank short of captain). .. at least much more than the "Gefreiter" Hitler.
I wasn't aware of that, but my point was that Hindenburg and von Papen were looking for a puppet rather than an ally. They realised (quite correctly it must be said) that Hitler didn't care about the ownership of banks and industrial concerns provided they delivered the goods for him and his great priority was rebuilding Germany as a military force. What they got wrong was that Hitler was not the malleable front man they hoped for, they did not hugely misread his policy priorities and would have no huge objections to them in any case.
Once again mixing up Gregor Strasser with Otto Strasser and the "Beefsteak Nazis" of the latter.
In late 1932 Otto Strasser and his national-bolschewists were already an obscure nonety faction.
No, I can distinguish between the two Strassers but my understanding (and I don't read German so you will no doubt be better informed than me about original sources) was that Gregor wanted state control of the banks and major industrial concerns. What, in Britain, were sometimes described as "the commanding heights of the economy". That he was not as left wing as Otto Strasser (nor indeed would have more than half of the SPD have been) does not necessarily mean that he was as (comparitively) right wing as Adolf Hitler. That Gregor would have been an Attlee to Otto's Lenin and would have nationalised rather than expropriated does not mean that Thyssen, Flick, the Krupps von Bohlen or the von Schroeders would have been happy to relinquish control. It was also my understanding that Strasser agreed with Bruning on an agricultural policy that was unfavourable to large estates. As this appears to have been the reason for Bruning's dismissal, I cannot see this as being appealing to Hindenburg or von Papen either.
Sry but ... not only having been the one responsible for propagande and tghe training of each and every orator of the party since 1926 he was - as a speaker hiomself - only second to Hitler himself. ... even Goebbels didn' t reached his abilities as long as Strasser was still an active orator. Strasser was the 'official' party voice in public and especially in the Reichstag. Goebbels actually learned his stuff from Gregor Strasser.
Thanks. I have obviously been misled by accounts of Hitler running rings around "the honest Strasser" in internal NSDAP debates about party policy.
x'D, ... sry, but ... what 'Goeringites' do you speak of ?
There simply weren't any.
In late 1932, beginning 1933 Göring was nothing more than an appendix to Hitler. He didn't had any power base at all of his own within the party. He was nothing more than Hitlers 'link' to the 'better' circles of society by then, nothing more.
I am aware, but this speculation was predicated on the death of Hitler in 1932 to whom he would no longer be an appendix. In TTL, the right of the party, the mystics, the racialists, all those for whom the "N" was the most important letter in the "NSDAP"- Hess, von Ribbentrop, Himmler, Rosenberg etc. would have rallied around someone as a candidate for the new party leader. Goebbels and Best (who would have been very young for the post at this point anyhow) would have supported Strasser so I considered Goering as a possible candidate for the right. No idea how Burkel or Kerrle would have jumped, are they likely alternatives? But the reason I picked on Goering was his public persona and reputation as a WWI air ace. Ribbentrop hadn't the brains and Himmler hadn't the charisma.
And I think you underrate Goering's importance at this point in that the NSDAP was virtually bankrupt. The unions may have liked Strassers policies but their donations still went to the SPD. Goering was the man who drummed up the cash donations from bankers and industrialists that kept them afloat.
 
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