“Is Hitler Racist Enough?” The Struggle for Hegemony within the völkisch Movement in the North German Countryside

Who were the German Racists? Deutsch-völkisch Freiheitspartei (DVFP), founded December 1922 after radical anti-Semites ejected from German Nationalist People’s Party, banned 1923 February 1924 electoral alliance with NSDAP as Völkisch-Sozial Bloc (VSB) After successful May 1924 election campaign, DVFP tried to gain hegemony within the racist movement while Hitler loyalists tried to maintain their independence In run up to May 1928 election, DVFP tried to exploit rural unrest through alliance with Landvolk- und Mittelstandspartei as the Völkisch-National Bloc (VNB)

Locating the study

Percentages of votes cast for the competing völkisch parties, May 1928

German Racist/Nazi competition, May 1928 VotesPercentage of total vote Percentage of Racist vote NSDAP30,1957.8%69.3% VNB13,3793.5%30.7% Polling place leader 100% of vote 0% with competition 0% both parties NSDAP VNB tied12 Not available places with vote range % 37 places with vote range 45-55%

The “Noakes” Thesis The German Racists tried to exploit concerns about Point 21 in the Nazi Party program Consequently, the German Racists did best among well-to-do farmers in the fertile Marsch areas, while the Nazis did better among poor farmers on the less fertile Geest

Leaflet Racists as a matter of course recognize private property as the essential basis of any culture. Is it völkisch when the program of the NSDAP demands a law for the uncompensated nationalization of land? Or is that Marxism? To be völkisch is to fight all three super- national powers: the Free Masons, the Jesuits, and the Jews. Hitler does not fight against Rome and the Jesuits. … He is only interested in the Jews.

Data analysis of the “Noakes” Thesis PartyP-value VNB0.243 NSDAP0.015 Correlation of land tax/hectare to percentage of votes cast for the Völkisch-National Bloc and the NSDAP

Data analysis of the “Noakes” Thesis PartyP-value VNB0.243 NSDAP0.015 Pop/denP-value VNB0.001 NSDAP0.000 AgrarianismP-value VNB0.000 NSDAP0.003 LiberalismP-value VNB0.159 NSDAP0.000

Regression analysis VNB NSDAP P-valueR-squaredP-valueR-squared Tax/Den % % Tax/Liberal % % Tax/Agrarian % % Tax/Den/Agrarian % % Tax/Den/Liberal % % Den/Agrarian % % Den/Liberal % %

Mapping the “Noakes” Thesis

The Hamilton Thesis In his extensive statistical analysis of Weimar voting patterns based on county-level data, Richard Hamilton argued that within majority Protestant areas, the major factors determining the growing support for National Socialism were – Innovative, energetic local activists – Support from the “establishment” press Establishment press support was non-existent in northwest before 1932, only one Nazi newspaper in study area

Leading party within the völkisch block by polling place, May 1928

Areas exhibiting National Socialist dominance

Areas exhibiting German Racist dominance Voß Fetz Bohnens

Carolinensiel Wilhelmshaven was a center of anti-Semitic agitation since 1919 Carolinensiel 1925: 1530 inhabitants Votes/percentages 1924 (283/49.9%) 1928 VNB (204/39.8%) NSDAP (44/8.6%)

Carolinensiel Wilhelmshaven was a center of anti-Semitic agitation since 1919 Carolinensiel 1925: 1530 inhabitants Votes/percentages 1924 (283/49.9%) 1928 VNB (204/39.8%) NSDAP (44/8.6%)

Carolinensiel Heinrich van Dieken Son of a school teacher War veteran School teacher in Carolin- ensiel since 1918 Well-liked, active in DVSTB and DVFP Member of the Prussian Landtag, Refused to join NSDAP

Conclusions The “Noakes” Thesis does not stand up to statistical or spatial analysis GIS helps us understand what other factors were perhaps more important – Existing historical political patterns – The importance of strong personalities who were able to bend local voting behavior to their will