Hubert Lanzinger’s allegorical portrait “The Standard Bearer”

PSYOP HISTORY

Creating A Demigod

Nazi Art, Adolf Hitler, and the Cult of Personality

By Robert W. Jones, Jr.

From Veritas, Vol. 4, No. 2, 2020

SIDEBARS

Timeline: The Rise to Power

Painting: "Nazi standard at a Beer Hall"

Painting: "The Munich Putsch"

Painting: "Nazi Vision of Greatness"

Monuments Men

Saddam Hussein’s
“Cult of Personality”

DOWNLOAD

Print version of this article (PDF)

Unless otherwise noted the artwork featured in this article is from the U.S. Army Center for Military History Art Collection. Most of the artists are unknown.

Historically governments have used art as a form of propaganda. Art is usually associated with beauty and inspiration, however totalitarian regimes such as the Nazis, the Soviet Union under Communism, Saddam Hussein in Iraq, and more recently North Korea used art as a propaganda medium. Much of the artwork centering on a “Cult of Personality,” glorifies the leaders of totalitarian regimes and plays an important part in building up a national figure. Perhaps the most intense example is the artwork promulgated by Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Party. While the topic of Nazi art may seem repugnant, it is a classic study of art used as propaganda. Located in Washington DC is a unique collection of such propaganda, specifically from the Nazis of World War II. This article provides a short historical summary on the rise of Nazi Germany and then shows examples of the regime’s artwork currently in the Art Collection at the U.S. Army Center for Military History.1 “Artwork” covers many mediums, from architecture and design to film, painting, and sculpture; however, paintings are the focus of this article.

Germany’s loss in World War I and the onerous provisions of the Treaty of Versailles provided the breeding ground for widespread discontent. Until October 1918, the Imperial German government controlled all news media. Propaganda extolled the fighting capabilities of the individual soldier and the country’s victories over the western Allies. Suddenly, the government announced an armistice in October 1918, which was in effect a surrender.

The Führer, Adolf Hitler, portrayed as the military leader of Germany.
The Führer, Adolf Hitler, portrayed as the military leader of Germany.

Between 1918 and 1923, Weimar Germany was plagued by severe internal crises. From both the left and the right came assassinations, anti-government propaganda, and popular revolts (putsches in German). The already weakened war-damaged economy could not recover; reparations and hyperinflation prevented reconstruction. The period between 1918 and 1923, is described by Professor Claudia Koonz, “The trauma of surrender, economic hardship, and political revolution defined the real world in which most Germans lived. But emotionally they lived in the aftermath of wartime glory … images of brave soldiers and strong women, hymns to a national spirit, and appeals to sacrifice … persisted even as reality left them behind. As Germans experienced hunger, fear of invasion, revolution, and economic disaster, they clung to dreams created by wartime propaganda.”3

PAINTING: Nazi Party membership oath ceremony
This painting depicts the Nazi Party membership oath ceremony. These often were conducted at night using lights and torches dramatizing the significance of the ritual.

New political parties, both right and left, evolved in the chaos of post-war Germany. The rightist Nazi Party (officially the National Socialist German Workers Party, or in German Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei, referred to by the acronym “Nazi”), began with less than a hundred members, but grew rapidly. The Nazi solution to Germany’s problems was unification. They emphasized a trinity – the individual, the people and the nation – united together and led by a visionary leader, Adolf Hitler.

Many of the new political parties in Germany had armed auxiliaries. Hitler created the Nazi Party “Gymnastic and Sports Division” to serve as the party’s military arm. It was a cover name because the Weimar government was cracking down on paramilitary groups. Later this element became the Sturmabteilung (S.A. or Storm Troopers), or “Brown Shirts,” because of their brown uniforms.4 Oaths administered during ritualistic ceremonies bonded the membership and insured loyalty to the leader. As the economy continued to deteriorate, the Nazi Party built its strength in the popularly elected Weimar assembly (the Reichstag).5 This gave them legitimacy in the minds of the people.

This 1938 postcard celebrates the incorporation of Austria as part of Germany.
This 1938 postcard celebrates the incorporation of Austria as part of Germany. The caption, “One People, One Country, One Leader” was the primary theme of the Nazi internal campaign.

In 1932 Hitler ran for the presidency of Germany, coming in second to General Paul von Hindenburg (the WWI military hero). The next year, on 30 January 1933, Adolf Hitler became the Chancellor of a coalition government under the aged von Hindenburg (84 years old, in very poor health, and perhaps in the early stages of senility).6 On the evening of 27 February 1933 arsonists destroyed the Reichstag.7 A “half-witted Dutch Communist” pyromaniac and others were arrested, tried, and executed for the crime.8 The Reichstag fire gave the Nazis an excuse to make a power grab. On 28 February, at Hitler’s bequest, President von Hindenburg signed a decree “for the Protection of the People and the State” that suspended many civil liberties within Germany.9 By 5 March 1933 the Nazis were the majority party in the Reichstag. During the summer of 1933 it became the only legal political party in Germany.

From the creation of the Nazi Party, Adolf Hitler employed sophisticated propaganda. That propaganda apparatus was institutionalized as a government department shortly after Hitler was elected Chancellor on 31 January 1933. On 13 March 1933, he established the Ministry for Public Enlightenment and Propaganda (Reichsministerium für Volksaufklärung und Propaganda or Propagandaministerium).10 His propaganda chief, Dr. Paul Joseph Goebbels, was named its minister.11

Stamp to commemorate the 1923 Munich “Beer Hall Putsch”
A German stamp to commemorate the 1923 Munich “Beer Hall Putsch”. Learn more about the Munich Putsch

The Propagandaministerium became the largest of all Nazi Ministries. It was charged with controlling public opinion and enforcing Nazi doctrine. In a symbolic move, the new ministry building was placed in a prominent position on the Wilhelmplatz, directly across from the new Reich Chancellery building. This emphasized its important place in the hierarchy of the new “Third Reich.”12 The Propaganda Ministry infused Nazi ideology and doctrine into every aspect of daily life. Author Peter Adam explained: “National Socialist [Nazi] doctrine lived in almost every painting, film, stamp, and public building, in the toys of the children, in people’s houses, in tales and costumes, in the layout of villages, in the songs and poems taught in schools, even household goods. The cultural infiltration of every sphere of life never ceased.”13 Art was an important weapon in the arsenal of the Nazi regime.

The Reich Culture Chamber (Reichskulturkammer) of Goebbels’ Propaganda Ministry controlled German art.14 Membership was mandatory for all those “who participated in the creation, reproduction, intellectual or technical processing, dissemination, preservation, and sale of cultural goods.”15 All forms of art had to promote Nazi ideology and racial consciousness. The German people were to be portrayed as peaceful or struggling to defend their country.

PAINTING: “Die Schmiede Grossdeutschland” (The Forge of Greater Germany)
PAINTING: “Die Schmiede Grossdeutschland” (The Forge of Greater Germany)

The Reich Culture Chamber issued licenses to the press, radio, arts, film, literature, and music. All aspects of culture were regulated by the Nazi “stamp of approval.” Artists were investigated to ensure racial purity and adherence to Nazi ideals. They faced three choices: follow the Nazi licensing procedures; choose another profession; or flee the country. Party members could pursue art as a vocation, but only according to the rules of the Reich Culture Chamber.

Very quickly Nazism became an integral part of everything German. “Gleichschaltung,” literally meaning “synchronization” or “coordination” was how the Nazi regime systematically established total control over Germans as individuals and how they coordinated all facets of societal life. The span of control covered the gamut from daily living to the economy to the arts.16

Painting of Hitler on a matchbook cover.
This painting was reproduced on everything from matchbooks to postcards and distributed throughout Germany. A fearless Adolf Hitler, in the forefront of massed party members, is mantled by sunlight from the heavens. The dove descending on him connects him religiously to the baptism of Jesus Christ by John the Baptist. The caption reads “Es lebe Deutchland” (Germany Lives!). (The artist is K. Stauber).

To expand control of Germany, Hitler and Goebbels used art as a propaganda tool. Artistic expression and political goals were combined. As an artist Hitler defined true art as being linked to the country, life, health, and the Aryan race. In a 1935 party speech, Hitler declared, “We shall discover and encourage the artists who are able to impress upon the State of the German people the cultural stamp of the Germanic race … in their origin and in the picture which they present, they are the expressions of the soul and the ideals of the community.”17

Hitler and Goebbels knew the importance of image. The Führer (leader) had to be personified as a god-like figure. This was integral to Nazi propaganda. As the party grew in popularity, the “cult of personality” depicting Hitler as Germany’s leader grew exponentially.18 A vigorous national program of artwork featured Hitler as the leader and extolled the mystical strength of the Nazi Party. Painters portrayed him as the healer who would cure all of Germany’s problems.

Photographs of Hitler had to receive his personal approval before public release. Art was even more closely scrutinized. The Nazi art magazine, Die Kunst im Dritten Reich (Art in the Third Reich) was printed on the best paper to ensure high quality reproductions.19 Hitler’s portrait was usually the cover or the frontis piece of these magazines. Art contests were held throughout Germany. Paintings of the Führer were prominent winners. Since artists had to be licensed by the Propaganda Ministry, what better way for an artist to demonstrate solidarity or “good faith” with the party than to paint a portrait of Hitler? While most of the artwork was hung in public galleries, Hitler and Goebbels wanted to spread Nazi art to all levels of society. The German leader was the center piece of Nazi Party themes that became small portraits, busts, posters, postcards, even matchbook covers. These were all meant to inspire the German people and to glorify Hitler as the leader of the country and party.

Bust of Hitler
A bust of Hitler in the 82nd Airborne Division War Memorial Museum at Fort Bragg, NC, was shot full of holes by an unknown Allied soldier.

Works of art and literature that did not fit into the Nazi ideology were labeled “degenerate.” Much of the so-called degenerate artwork and books were destroyed. In some cases, they were burned publicly to show political strength. However, a lot ended up in the private art collections and libraries of Nazi Party elite, like Hermann Göring, Reichsmarschall (second only to Hitler) and Commander of the German Air Force (Luftwaffe).

Throughout the life of the Third Reich the Nazi regime used art as propaganda. Artists labored under strict regulatory standards, and many worked directly for the Propaganda Ministry. The majority of the Nazi effort was internal. It focused on the German people to reinforce the Hitler myth (image) and promote the Nazi ideology. The Propaganda Ministry mass produced motivational posters and post cards until the German surrender on 8 May 1945.

This painting depicts a ceremony honoring the Nazi dead from the Beer Hall Putsch.
This painting depicts a ceremony honoring the Nazi dead from the Beer Hall Putsch.

During the 1945 Potsdam Conference the Allies agreed that all reminders of the Nazi regime, including artwork, would be removed from public view to hasten the denazification process in Germany.20 In the American zone, artwork with Nazi symbols and military motifs were confiscated. This included state-owned and Nazi Party art that portrayed the leaders or symbolized Nazi ideology or doctrine. Between 1945 and 1950, the U.S. Army collected some 8,000 pieces of Nazi art and shipped them to the U.S. Army Center for Military History, for safekeeping in the Army Art Collection. Some of the art in that collection is temporarily displayed in U.S. Army military museums and offices around the country, including the Pentagon and in the major Army Command headquarters buildings. However, the majority is in storage. In late 1950 about 2,000 pieces of art were determined by the Department of the Army to be non-military and returned to the West German government. Over the next forty years more artwork was returned. Approximately 450 pieces of Nazi art remain in the U.S. Army Art Collection. Under German law, private individuals cannot own Nazi symbols, memorabilia, and art. However, state-supported museums and educational institutions in Germany may display Nazi items for educational purposes.21

The standard question is: “Why not destroy the artwork created to promote one of the most despicable regimes in history?” The Nazi art collection at the U.S. Army Center for Military History enables the viewers to gain the German perspective of World War II.22 Worldwide, dictators have used and continue to use, the Nazi model to promote cults of personality, using art as a propaganda tool. Fidel Castro and Che Guevara in Cuba, Kim Jong-il in North Korea, and Mao in China continue to be portrayed as national heroes.

“Bird in a Guilded Cage” The branch insignia for some MFAA Officers

The author wishes to thank Ms. Renee Klish, Curator, the U.S. Army Center for Military History Art Collection for her assistance in researching this article and Master Sergeant (Ret.) Carlos Jaramillo, Jr. for this insignia:

ENDNOTES

  1. The U.S. Army Art Collection is part of the U.S. Army Center for Military History; Renee Klish, Curator, Army Art Collection, the Center for Military History, interview by Lieutenant Colonel Robert W. Jones, Jr., 16 January 2008, Washington DC, digital recording, USASOC History Office Classified Files, Fort Bragg, NC. [return]
  2. William L. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. A History of Nazi Germany (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1960), 31-32. [return]
  3. Claudia Koonz, Mothers in the Fatherland. Women, the Family, and Nazi Politics (New York: Saint Martin’s Press, 1987), 23. [return]
  4. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, 42-43. [return]
  5. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, 190. [return]
  6. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, 190. [return]
  7. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, 192. [return]
  8. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, 192. [return]
  9. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, 194. [return]
  10. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, 190. [return]
  11. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, 148, 196. [return]
  12. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, 167, 201; The First Reich refers to the unification of Germany; the Second Reich is the Weimar Republic following the First World War; therefore the Nazi Regime was the Third Reich. [return]
  13. Peter Adam, Art of the Third Reich (New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1995), 21. [return]
  14. The Reich Culture Chamber (Reichskulturkammer) was directly under the Propaganda Ministry in the chain of command. The Chamber had seven subchambers; Toby Clark, Art and Propaganda in the Twentieth Century (New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1997), 61 [return]
  15. Jonathan Petropoulos, The Faustian Bargain: The Art World in Nazi Germany (Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2003), 215. [return]
  16. Gleichschaltung literally means the “synchronization” or “coordination” (or “bringing into line”). This is the term by which the Nazi regime systematically established a totalitarian control system over the individual, and tight coordination over all aspects of society, ranging from everyday life to the economy, and to art. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, 196-7; Clark, Art and Propaganda in the Twentieth Century (New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1997), 61. [return]
  17. Adam, Art of the Third Reich, 15-16. Hitler, Party Day speech, 1935. [return]
  18. John Keegan, The Second World War (New York: Viking Penguin, 1989), 33, 35; R. Ernest Dupuy and Trevor N. Dupuy, The Encyclopedia of Military History, second revised edition (New York: Harper & Row, 1986), 1034. [return]
  19. Anthony Rhodes, Propaganda. The Art of Persuasion: World War II (Leicester, United Kingdom: Magna Books, 1993), 25. [return]
  20. Renee Klish, Curator, Army Art Collection, the Center for Military History, interview by Lieutenant Colonel Robert W. Jones, Jr., 16 January 2008, Washington DC, digital recording, USASOC History Office Classified Files, Fort Bragg, NC; Earl F. Ziemke, The U.S. Army in the Occupation of Germany 1944-1946 (Washington DC: Center for Military History, 1990), 270. [return]
  21. Klish interview; Stratton Mammon, “Memoir of the Ranking Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives Officer in the ETO in World War II,” Military Affairs, April 1988, 61. [return]
  22. Klish interview. [return]
  23. William L. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. A History of Nazi Germany (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1960), 43-44: Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf {English edition} (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1943), 218-219. [return]
  24. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. A History of Nazi Germany, 43-44. [return]
  25. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. A History of Nazi Germany, 66-68. [return]
  26. Sometimes also called the “Munich Putsch; Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. A History of Nazi Germany, 66-68. [return]
  27. John Keegan, The Second World War (New York: Viking Penguin, 1989), 33; Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. A History of Nazi Germany, 77-79. [return]
  28. In 1935 as the Chancellor of Germany, Hitler presided over a ceremony placing the sixteen dead in a national shrine. [return]
  29. Adolf Hitler started developing his cult of personality before the Munich “Beer Hall” Putsch in November 1923. His publication of Mein Kampf helped his rise to popularity and power. Most historians consider the life of the Third Reich to be 12 years; from his assumption of power as the Chancellor in 1933 until the end of the war in 1945. [return]
  30. Eric H. Cline, “Saddam Hussein and History 101,” BY GEORGE! Online, http://www.gwu.edu/~bygeorge/030403/clineedit.html accessed on 20 April 2008; Charles H. Briscoe, et al, All Roads Lead to Baghdad. Army Special Operations Forces in Iraq (Fort Bragg, NC: USASOC History Office), 16; This is a reference to the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II of the sixth century BC, and the 12th century Moslem warrior-king Saladin, (who took Jerusalem from the crusaders). Neither of these two historical figures is Iraqi or Arab. Nebuchadnezzar II was Babylonian, and Saladin was Kurdish. [return]