How to Stage (and Win) an International Crisis - Q1 1936

25th April 2026 17 mins Season 9 Episode 13

In early 1936, Adolf Hitler took one of the greatest risks of his rule—sending German troops into the demilitarized Rhineland in direct violation of the Treaty of Versailles and the Locarno Pact. It was a gamble that could have triggered immediate war. Instead, it became a turning point that transformed Hitler from a powerful dictator into a figure many Germans saw as a national savior.

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Season 9 · Episode 14

How to Declare a Live Person Legally Dead - Q2 1936

In Q2 1936, Adolf Hitler consolidated power after the Rhineland gamble, tightening the machinery of dictatorship while projecting strength abroad. As Hermann Göring took control of Germany’s economic lifelines and Heinrich Himmler centralized the police, the regime accelerated its transformation into a fully integrated police state. Behind Olympic pageantry and propaganda triumphs like Max Schmeling’s victory, the Nazi system deepened repression. Courts enforced the Nuremberg Laws with chilling logic, reducing Jewish citizens to a state of “civil death,” while Joseph Goebbels expanded total control over media and public discourse.

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