This latest addition to the New Studies in Economic and Social History series sheds fascinating light on an essential aspect of the history of Nazism. The social background of the supporters of Nazism has been the subject of intense debate since the early 1930s. Was the Nazi party a predominantly middle-class party or a people's party? Detlef Mühlberger provides a comprehensive summary of the answer to this question, based on extensive sociological and psephological evidence. The data support the claim made by the Nazis in the 1920s and early 1930s that their party was a Volkspartei able to mobilise support from all sections of German society. Lucidly written and clearly illustrated with numerous tables, this book will be essential reading for all those interested in modern German history.
1. Introduction; 2. Historiographic survey; 3. Methodological problems; 4. The social characteristics of the Nazi party in its formative years, 1919-1923; 5. The social characteristics of the membership and leadership of the Nazi party, 1925-1933; 6. The social characteristics of the membership and leadership of Nazi specialist organisations; 7. The social geometry of the Nazi electorate, 1928-1933; 8. Conclusion.
