Paul von Hindenburg

Paul von Hindenburg (1847–1934) was a German field marshal and politician who served as president of Germany from 1925 until his death. His presidency spanned the Weimar Republic’s crisis and Adolf Hitler’s appointment as chancellor.

Erich Ludendorff: A German general who became Hindenburg’s close military collaborator during World War I. Their wartime partnership made Hindenburg the public face of Germany’s military leadership.
Battle of Tannenberg: An August 1914 battle in which German forces defeated a Russian army in East Prussia. Hindenburg’s victory there made him a celebrated national military figure.
Weimar Constitution: The constitution that established Germany’s democratic republic from 1919 to 1933. It defined Hindenburg’s office and supplied the emergency powers used during political crises.
Kingdom of Prussia: A German kingdom that became the dominant state in the German Empire and was abolished in 1947. Hindenburg’s military career began in the Prussian state and its army.
Weimar Republic: Germany’s parliamentary republic, established after World War I and ended by Nazi dictatorship. Hindenburg served as its president during years of growing political instability.
Adolf Hitler: The leader of the Nazi Party who became chancellor of Germany in 1933 and dictator after Hindenburg’s death. Hindenburg appointed Hitler chancellor, enabling the Nazi takeover of state power.
Battle of the Masurian Lakes: A September 1914 German victory that drove Russian forces from much of East Prussia. The victory reinforced Hindenburg’s reputation after Tannenberg.
Article 48 of the Weimar Constitution: A constitutional provision allowing the German president to take emergency measures in a crisis. Hindenburg increasingly relied on presidential decrees under this provision as parliamentary government weakened.
Prussian Army: The armed forces of Prussia, which became a leading component of the German imperial army. Hindenburg’s professional identity and advancement were formed within this institution.
Dolchstoßlegende: The false claim that Germany’s army was undefeated and betrayed by civilians in 1918. Hindenburg endorsed this narrative, helping discredit the republic’s founding leaders.

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