Fire Decree

The Reichstag Fire Decree (German: Reichstagsbrandverordnung) is the common name of the Decree of the Kaiser for the Protection of People and State (German: Verordnung des Reichspräsidenten zum Schutz von Volk und Staat) issued by Wilhelm II on the advice of Chancellor Alfred Hugenberg in immediate response to the Reichstag fire. The decree nullified many of the key civil liberties of German citizens. With the DVLP in powerful positions in the German government, the decree was used as the legal basis for the imprisonment of anyone considered to be opponents of the Reichspolizei and DVLP, and to suppress publications not considered "friendly" to the "German" cause. The decree is considered by historians as one of the key steps in the establishment of a one-party nationalist state in Germany.

The Rise of the DVLP

The DVLP thought that due to the lack of elections, the situation at hand would make it difficult to achieve their next goal, which was to pass the Enabling Act, a measure that required a two-thirds majority. However, there were important factors weighing in their favor. These were: the continued suppression of the Syndicalists Parties and the DVLP's ability to capitalize on national security concerns. Moreover, some deputies of the Social Democratic Party (the only party that would vote against the Enabling Act) were prevented from taking their seats in the Reichstag, due to arrests and intimidation by the Reichspolizei. As a result, the Social Democratic Party would be under-represented in the final vote tally. The Enabling Act, which gave Hugenberg the right to rule by decree, passed easily. It garnered the support of the right-wing German Conservative Party, German Imperial Party, and several fragmented middle-class parties. This measure went into force and, in effect, made Hugenberg dictator of Germany.

The Kroll Opera House, sitting across the Königsplatz from the burned-out Reichstag building, functions now as the Reichstag's venue.

The First Act of the Second Reich

The Government was immediately called to reshuffle the government and cabinet, calling for a temporary suspension of the legislature at this time due to the terrorist acts committed against it. In a short but very vocal trial, the Jewish Syndicalist, Hugo Berengar, has been sentenced and decapitated for his crimes.

It was here that the DVLP had taken extrajudicial control over Germany with immense support by the people.