Decree of the Reich President for the Protection of People and State

Decree of the Reich President for the Protection of People and State
Name	Decree of the Reich President for the Protection of People and State
Native name	Verordnung des Reichspräsidenten zum Schutz von Volk und Staat
Date signed	28 February 1933
Signed by	Paul von Hindenburg
Jurisdiction	Weimar Republic
Status	Repealed / Historical

Decree of the Reich President for the Protection of People and State was an emergency measure issued on 28 February 1933 by Reichspräsident Paul von Hindenburg at the behest of Chancellor Adolf Hitler and Reich Minister of the Interior Wilhelm Frick. It suspended key civil liberties in the Weimar Republic following the Reichstag fire and formed a legal basis for repression by organs such as the Sturmabteilung, Gestapo, and Reich Ministry of the Interior. The decree interacted with institutions including the Reichstag, the Reichsgericht, and state-level administrations like the Prussian Landtag and had profound effects on figures such as Hermann Göring, Joseph Goebbels, and Rudolf Hess.

Background and Legal Context

The decree was issued under Article 48 of the Weimar Constitution by Paul von Hindenburg during a crisis provoked by the Reichstag fire and the arrest of Marinus van der Lubbe. Key actors in its promulgation included Chancellor Adolf Hitler, Interior Minister Wilhelm Frick, Vice Chancellor Franz von Papen, and Defence Minister Werner von Blomberg. It followed consultations at the Reich Chancellery and advice from legal scholars like Hans Frank and influenced by conservative politicians including Alfred Hugenberg and military leaders such as Kurt von Schleicher. The decree suspended protections found in Articles 114, 115, 117, 118, 123, 124, and 153 of the Weimar Constitution and was linked to emergency powers previously invoked by Friedrich Ebert during post‑World War I crises and the Spartacist uprising. International actors such as Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill would later compare emergency measures in different contexts, while contemporaries like Hugo Preuss and jurists at the Reichsgericht debated constitutional limits.

Text and Provisions

The legal language authorized restrictions on personal freedom, freedom of expression, freedom of the press, the right of assembly, and privacy of postal and telegraphic communications. It empowered executive authorities at the Reich Ministry of the Interior and state administrations, including the Prussian Ministry of the Interior, to issue bans, arrests, and censorship affecting organizations such as the Communist Party of Germany, KPD, and opposition parties like the Social Democratic Party of Germany and figures such as Otto Wels. The decree referenced policing agencies including the Reichswehr, Prussian Police, and later formations like the Schutzstaffel. It enabled measures similar to those in other extraordinary statutes such as the Enabling Act of 1933 and echoed provisions from earlier emergency ordinances used during the Kapp Putsch and the Beer Hall Putsch aftermath. Administrative practice invoked principles associated with legal scholars like Carl Schmitt and drew criticism from lawyers such as Hermann Heller.

Implementation and Enforcement

Implementation involved coordination among the Reichstag, the Reich Chancellor, the Reich President, state governments including Prussia, and security forces such as the Gestapo, Kripo, and Sturmabteilung. Key enforcers included Hermann Göring as Prussian Minister President, Heinrich Himmler in later centralization of policing, and regional officials like Gustav Noske. Arrests targeted Communist Party of Germany members, trade unionists aligned with the Free Trade Unions, and political opponents like Rosa Luxemburg's legacy figures and social democrats including Friedrich Ebert Jr. Activities included raids on headquarters such as the KPD Reichstag building, suppression of newspapers like the Vorwärts, and censorship actions overseen by the Reich Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda under Joseph Goebbels. Military and police coordination drew on precedents from the Reichswehr deployments during the Silesian Uprisings.

Political and Social Impact

The decree precipitated mass arrests, closures of political clubs, and the erosion of civil liberties across cities such as Berlin, Munich, Hamburg, Leipzig, and Dresden. It facilitated the removal of local governments including city councils in Prussia and the marginalized roles of parties like the Centre Party and German National People's Party. Social organizations such as the German Trade Union Confederation were disbanded or co-opted into entities like the German Labour Front under figures such as Robert Ley. Cultural institutions—linking to individuals like Thomas Mann, Bertolt Brecht, Mies van der Rohe, and publishers connected to Ernst Rowohlt—faced censorship and exile. International reactions involved diplomats from United Kingdom, France, United States, and Soviet Union and commentary by intellectuals including Hannah Arendt and Lion Feuchtwanger.

Legal Challenges and Judicial Review

Legal responses emerged in the Reichsgericht, from jurists such as Hans Kelsen and Ernst Benda, and in academic debates at universities like University of Berlin and Heidelberg University. Challenges by politicians including Otto Wels and legal counsel for detainees sought remedies but faced obstacles as the judiciary increasingly accommodated emergency rulings and decisions influenced by theorists like Carl Schmitt. State constitutional courts and administrative tribunals encountered pressure from Reich authorities and police leaders including Heinrich Himmler and Gustav Noske. International legal observers from institutions like the Permanent Court of International Justice noted tensions between emergency powers and rule-of-law principles.

Historical Significance and Legacy

Historically the decree is interpreted as a turning point that enabled the Nazi consolidation of power culminating in laws such as the Enabling Act of 1933 and the establishment of the Third Reich. It altered trajectories for figures like Kurt von Schleicher and Franz von Papen and presaged policies implemented by ministries led by Hermann Göring, Joseph Goebbels, and Heinrich Himmler. Postwar jurisprudence in the Federal Republic of Germany and international human rights developments, including instruments influenced by experiences under the decree such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the later European Convention on Human Rights, responded to abuses of emergency powers. Historians including Ian Kershaw, Richard J. Evans, William Shirer, Eugen Kogon, and Hans Mommsen have analyzed its role alongside archival records from institutions like the Bundesarchiv and testimonies at the Nuremberg trials. The decree remains a focal point in comparative studies involving crises responses in democracies and debates about constitutional safeguards linked to figures such as Alexis de Tocqueville and scholars of authoritarianism.

Category:Weimar Republic Category:Nazi Germany Category:Emergency legislation