Why were the Nuremburg Rallies So Effective?
The Nuremburg Rallies were used by the Nazis and Goebles as a method of propaganda. On the day of a rally, Hitler would give a speech, there would be parades and in effect, the Nazi beliefs would spread. Most notable of these occurred in 1934, soon after Hitler was elected Chancellor.
So why were the Nuremburg rallies so effective? Well, a part of the answer to that question is hidden in the name of the event, ‘Reichsparteitag’ means ‘The Day of the National Party’. This is effective in itself as a propaganda method because even by just hearing the name of the event, an average German could understand what was going on, and thus word about the party would spread. This fell in line with Goebles’ first rule of propaganda – to simplify it. The rallies names changed again, almost every year. In 1934 it was called the ‘Rally of Unity & Strength’, which helped raise national spirit within Germany by highlighting how strong they were, and in 1935 it was called the ‘Rally of Freedom’ which signified to the German people that the Nazi Party were not the oppressors but the liberators.
Secondly, the Nazis did not only celebrate their already achieved success at the rallies. They also stated future intentions. The rallies were not only viewed by attendants but also via radio and other means of communication. This was one of the most viewed events in Nazi Germany, partly due to the mass publicity. This made it effective because everyone was not only notified by this but they were also in complete support of the ideology mainly due to the fact that they were brainwashed prior to the speaking about a particular thing. So in other words, anything Hitler said