The rise of the Hitler’s Nazi Party is one of the defining phenomena of the twentieth century. The manner in which National Socialist ideologies took over life in Germany is difficult to comprehend so many years later. This fully illustrated and detailed book is a single volume encyclopaedia on all aspects of this crucial period in modern history. It starts with a shattered post-war Germany and charts the violent political tactics used by the Nazis to seize political control in 1933. The subsequent consolidation of power and brutal suppression of opponents followed as they took over all areas of society. The various military, political and youth organisations are considered, the Nazis’ warped methods for maintaining law and order and their use of the press and propaganda to control the people and introduce their twisted racial ideals. Chapters also cover art, culture, education, the economy, resistance, the church, the Nazi leaders themselves, and more.