Once in control, Hitler used his power and took control over the state to bring the Nazi Party and its ideas into every aspect of life. Whether at work or at home, people couldn’t avoid being involved with the Nazi movement and being force fed its ideas. Here’s the main methods the Nazis used to do this:

*Lots and lots of very Effective Propaganda – The Nazis harnessed the power of the radio, cinema, posters, public rallies and newspapers to continually promote its key messages about Lebensraum; attacks on Jews, Communists and other enemies; the superiority of the German race; the Treaty of Versailles; the greatness of the Fhrer.

* Control Over the Education System – The Nazis controlled who could be a teacher, what was taught in the classroom and what the content of the text books was. Teachers who were suspected of being involvement with opposition groups were imprisoned. All the text books preached the Nazi message. Combined with control over the press – and bearing in mind this was long before things like the internet made accessing alternative forms of information possible – the result was that the Nazis’ message was the only one children ever heard. It was the only way they were allowed to understand the world around them.

* Youth Groups – Young people were encouraged to become involved with the Nazis through being offered all sorts of opportunities for fun if they joined the Hitler Youth. Being in the Youth meant you could play sports, take exciting trips, learn how to use guns, and loads of other things besides. In return, the children were constantly exposed to Nazi propaganda, and moulded into loyal servants of the Nazi regime who were willing to sacrifice everything for Hitler and Germany.

* At Work – With the trade unions gone and the Labour Front in its place, the Nazis had a monopoly on representing the interests of workers. All work-related issues were handled by the Labour Front, and it had the job of making sure people linked the idea of work with serving their country and the Fhrer.

* Through Spreading Terror – the Gestapo grew and grew as time went on, and as it did it was able to monitor more and more aspects of people’s lives. In addition to its thousands of agents, it also built up a massive network of informants – ordinary people who warned it about people who were allegedly opposed to Hitler. And it had pretty much unlimited power to arrest and imprison people. People came to realize that, even if they thought they were in the company of friends, anything critical of the Nazis could lead to them being arrested and placed in the concentration camps where the regime imprisoned thousands of its enemies.