World History Minute: The Reichstag fire (Feb. 27, 1933)

World History Minute: The Reichstag fire (Feb. 27, 1933)
World History Minute: The Reichstag fire (Feb. 27, 1933)

World History Minute: The Reichstag fire (Feb. 27, 1933)

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On February 27, 1933, a week before a crucial parliamentary election, a fire broke out in the German Reichstag. A young Dutch communist was thought to have started the fire, and newly elected Chancellor Adolf Hitler took the opportunity to round up members of the opposing communist party. Historian John Schmidt gives us a look at how this single event set the stage for the Nazi party to take power in Germany. (Photo: Wikicommons/ National Archives and Records Administration)