Veteran Member
Posts: 139
(10/2/01 10:36:51 am)
Reply Corruption in the Third Reich
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
How corrupt were officials in Hitler's government (down to the lowest levels). How would it measure against Britain and USA (today).
pdhinkle
Veteran Member
Posts: 601
(10/2/01 11:30:31 am)
Reply Corruption in the Third Reich
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Corruption was the rule, not the exception. But first what is your definiton for Corruption!
weiwensg
Veteran Member
Posts: 141
(10/2/01 2:18:15 pm)
Reply Re: Corruption in the Third Reich
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The accepting of bribes, etc.
Kaschner
Veteran Member
Posts: 274
(10/2/01 11:14:39 pm)
Reply Re: Corruption in the Third Reich
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In my view, the experience of the Nazi régime in the Third Reich demonstrates the accuracy of Lord Acton's observation that "All power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely."
The most well known example of course was Hermann Goering: Prime Minister of Prussia, Commissioner of the Four Year Plan, Airminister, Speaker of the Reichstag, Marshal of the Air Force, National Master of the Hunt. Added to these 6 salaries he had the income from directorships and investments in numerous enterprises, probably most importantly the Reichswerke Hermann Goering. His annual declared income for income tax purposes was about 1,250,000 RM. But in addition he garnered huge sums in bribes. As just one example he stayed tax evasion proceedings against a major tobacco firm for a bribe of 3 million RM. For his wedding in 1935 to Emmy he demanded tribute by way of wedding gifts; the cheapest item on his wish list was 30,000 RM, and all of his thousands of ministerial employees had small amounts automatically deducted from their salaries to purchase him a suitable wedding gift. His plunder of art work through out Europe is notorious. An exhaustive description of his corrupt activities would fill volumes.
Joseph Goebbels was not in a position to match Goering in corruption, but he he did his best by "aryanizing" Jewish apartments and estates in and around Berlin. And this was a technique employed by many in the Third Reich hierarchy; von Neurath, Foreign Minister until 1938, "aryanized" an expensive Jewish villa in Dahlem, a posh Berlin suburb; his successor, von Ribbentrop, had one Herr von Remnitz sent to Dachau and murdered, and then took over his castle and estate at Bad Fuschl, Austria.
The list goes on, and on, and on. For dozens of other examples, see the chapter on corruption in Richard Grundberger's "The 12-Year Reich: A Social History of Nazi Germany 1933-1945", Ballentine Books (paperback ed.) 1972, which is an excellent overall study of what life was like in Germany during the Third Reich. Corruption was IMHO far more pervasive than currently in the US, and permeated down at least through the upper and middle levels of the Nazi hierarchy, although as power lessened the degree and extent of corruption lessened with it. In democracies it seems to usually be the other way around, although there have been obvious exceptions. Indeed in a general sense I believe that totalitarian régimes tend by their nature to be far more corrupt, or at least far more unchallengedly corrupt, than modern democracies, in that in the latter (to steal a thought from Robert Conquest) the community as a whole posseses the means to exert the necessary pressures to overcome, or at least exert against, corruption, "albeit in an untidy, belated and incomplete way".
Hope the above is of interest.
Angelo 2000
Veteran Member
Posts: 128
(10/3/01 1:40:55 am)
Reply Re: Corruption in the Third Reich
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi Kaschner,
And thanks for the enlightening bit on such a scourge of all kinds of administrations and societies. Lord Acton's quote is surely one of the best I ever read on that topic
.I never digged this aspect of the Third Reich, but it's no surprise, considering that the huge powers these high ranking officials had, actually allowed them to run free where less powerful party members could never hope to walk through.
Now, be prepared to a number of arrow flights from the purists side who'll start yelling about throwing other stones on dead horses that should rest in peace (smiling) .
(Between me and you, now that they read this anticipation, they might even change their minds) --Laughing out loud !
Have a nice day.
Angelo
dan
Visitor
(10/3/01 2:50:54 am)
Reply old timers
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I doubt that any long time users of this great website will treat Kaschner as you suppose.
Angelo 2000
Veteran Member
Posts: 130
(10/3/01 4:19:32 am)
Reply Re: old timers
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'm sure he understood I was kidding and I guess you did too
I honestly share your feeling, Dan.
I'm just learning through his contributions and I only started reading just a few of them.
Angelo