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German History in Documents and Images
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The Swastika Rises like the Sun over the Reichstag and the Bismarck Memorial, Postcard (undated)
The "awakening" and "strengthening" of Germany was a constant theme in Nazi propaganda. According to the National Socialists, it was only when they seized power that the country finally awoke from the nightmare of the Weimar Republic and embarked on an era of national greatness and strength. As this postcard shows, National Socialist propaganda often made reference to Otto von Bismarck and his legacy. These references frequently placed Hitler in a direct line of great German leaders that started with Frederick II ("the Great") of Prussia, continued through Bismarck, and ended with the Führer himself.