Ludendorff's warning to von Hindenburg when he appointed Hitler Chancellor

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Published 2024-03-08
On 30 January 1933, the President of Germany, Paul Hindenburg, appointed Adolf Hitler as Chancellor. Hitler had not won an election, nor any form of parliamentary majority, Hindenburg was persuaded to do this above all by three conservatives, business magnate Alfred Hugenberg, right wing politician Franz von Papen and Hindenburg’s own son Oskar. Hindenburg had allowed the conservatives to persuade him to do this against his better will. The appointment did not please everyone. One person it did not please was Hindenburg’s former colleague in arms from WW1. Erich Ludendorff. Ludendorf showed his displeasure in the following letter to Hindenburg, dated two days later :

I solemnly prophesy that this accursed man will cast our Reich into the abyss and bring our nation to inconceivable misery. Future generations will damn you in your grave for what you have done.

That is the translation of the message given in Ian Kershaw’s book on Hitler.

This is what is left of what I think was the largest war memorial in the world at the time Ludendorf sent the message to Hindenburg. This is the exact spot of the centre of the Tannenburg Memorial, built to commemorate the Second Battle of Tannenburg in 1914. Today very little is left of it. However this memorial was in the 1930s the very focal point of the cult around Hindenburg and Ludendorf as the men who had jointly saved Germany from Russian invasion. They were the two greatest living Germans, the best known leaders of WW1, men who had worked closely together to foil invasion in 1914. That was the legend, and that in my opinion was precisely a legend but, as we shall see, it was not the only one.

Ludendorf had clearly fallen out with Hitler but that was not always so. In 1923 Hitler had planned a putsch against the German state. This putsch was carried out in a Munich drinking establishment. A Munich drinking establishment may seem like a good place to start a putsch as if it fails at least you can get yourself totally sloshed in order to drown your sorrows. Ludendorf, at the time denied having been involved in the planning stage, although his son later admitted that he had. It is of course, somewhat hard to believe that the man who had allegedly planned the battles at Liege and in East Prussia in 1914, some of the great battles in the east and the western front offensives in 1918 could have been involved. That was possibly the way it appeared at the time. The putschists had managed to take over a beer hall where the leaders of Bavaria were meeting, together with an army barracks and kidnap a number of prominent politicians. For good measure they also terrorised a number of the citizens of Munich and robbed a number of businesses, netting a fortune – most of which was never seen again. It seems as though their plans were then to march on Berlin. After all, the previous year, Mussolini had marched on Rome and seized power and Hitler and his cronies had gone on a weekend out to Coburg so it might have seemed possible. Possibly they did not realise that despite what the propaganda might have said, Mussolini went to Rome in the train and the king instead of turning the army and police against the rebels had given in. The march on Coburg did not result in anything more than a handful of new supporters for the National Socialist party. If you get a globe, the whole world, and look up Munich and Berlin, you will see that there is some distance between the two. Nearly 600km. That is a long way to march. Once the beer hall had run out of beer, hundreds of tired and hung over Nazi rebels needed to do something whilst the authorities organised themselves to counter the rebels. Whilst stewing about what to do next, Ludendorf had insisted on a march to the centre of Munich. The point of this was, I think, to see if the army and police would stop them and to make a demonstration of force to the locals. The police did stop them. A confrontation with the police took place which resulted in 20 deaths (possibly more) and many injured.

Ludendorf had been involved in far right politics for some time. He was effectively the leader of Germany in 1917 – 1918 and had to flee the country at the end of WW1 with a false beard and probably a silly hat. He did not stay out of the country for long, he returned and was involved in the Kapp Putsch in 1920. This failed but it did not effect his liberty. He went to live in Munich, a curious choice given his hatred of Catholics. Around this time, he met Hitler for the first time, introduced to him probably by early Nazi Max Erwin von Scheubner Richter.

Legends were built around the Beer Hall Putsch by the Nazis.
All Comments (21)
  • @be9em0t
    This note or telegram is probably an urban legend. Ludendorff was one of the early supporters of Hitler, and later became opposed not because he saw the criminality of Nazis, but because he was even crankier.
  • @joachimgoethe7864
    January 30th 1933. Hitler comes to power. Exactly 10 years later, February 2nd 1943, His forces suffer a catastrophic defeat at Stalingrad. That was the beginning of the end for Hitler.
  • @FieldDay-cj3tv
    He knew but there wasn't much he could do about it at the time The plan was already in motion and could not be stopped at that point
  • @stevehartman1730
    Von hindenburg told his staff dont ever leave him alone with Hitler
  • @pimpernelsmith3798
    Too bad no such Ludendorf to Hindenburg letter exists, another hearsay rumor. The real hero of Tannenberg was Colonel (later General) Max Hoffman.
  • @rossmandell8304
    I remember seeing the CBS Miniseries "Hitler The Rise of Evil," co-starring Peter O'Toole as president Hindenberg. Ludendorff was portrayed as politically allied with Hitler during the 1923 Munich Putsch. Hitler was shown to be hysterically blaming Ludendorff for the putch's failure to his face, leading to the falling out of their relationship. Hitler's temper, among some other qualities, no doubt fed Ludendorff's prophetic note to his beloved co-World War I veteran, Hindenberg. How consequential that he didn't seem to warn him sooner! It's amazing Ludendorff wasn't killed on the 1934 Night of the Long Knives mass assassination of Hitler's alleged political opponents. Hindenberg still being alive for two more months was probably the sole reason Hitler spared Ludendorff's life on that night.
  • @jacobrosa7653
    Fantastic presentation, I love what you do. Thank you.
  • @mohammedsaysrashid3587
    Nice introduction video shared by an amazing ( history on YouTube) channel.. introduced by 🙏 Sir Alan .... thanks for sharing
  • @critcalreader4160
    Well, I've FINALLY learned how Hitler became Chancellor of Germany. Thank you.
  • @roberttelarket4934
    I doubt he ever warned von Hindenburg. Many have used and still do nowadays for political purposes,
  • @atunis5804
    Another very interesting, educational and EXCELLENT video!
  • @gabrieltilahuinbehabtu5592
    Both Ludendorff and Hindenburg inorder to avoid the blame for their handling of the WW1 came up with the back stab theory whom Hitler used extesivily they also helped his ascendency to power, with out these tree people Germany would have been in a much better position in every way.
  • @robertsansone1680
    Interesting again. Thank You. Wasn't it Max Hoffman who planned the counterattack at Tannenberg?
  • @rbir2653
    You said it was dismantled after the war? I thought hitler had it blown up and Hindenburg's body removed?