Nazism inverted the Prussian ideal by prioritizing party membership over state office

Evidence

Hitler frequently commented on the relationship between state and party, and always emphasized that not the state, but the race, or the “united folk community,” was of primary importance (cf. the afore-quoted speech, reprinted as annex to the Tischgespräche). In his speech at the Nuremberg Parteitag of 1935, he gave this theory its most succinct expression: “It is not the state that commands us, but we who command the state.” It is self-evident that, in practice, such powers of command are possible only if the institutions of the party remain independent from those of the state. — Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, 2780 (#expands, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Hitler pioneered dividing propaganda-won masses into sympathizers versus limited party members; Nazi ideology subordinated the state to the racial folk community — Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, 2780; Nazi party functionaries were kept perpetually superior to state ministers (+3 more)

Related

• Nazism exploited a breakdown of state worship, not excessive state-worship. (similarity 0.95)
• Nazi ideology subordinated the state to the racial folk community (similarity 0.90)
• Pan-German ideology replaced universal humanity with tribal solidarity (similarity 0.83)
• German race-thinking arose as a substitute for missing political nationhood (similarity 0.83)
• Nazi party functionaries were kept perpetually superior to state ministers (similarity 0.82)
• Nazi power structures overlapped deliberately, letting subordinates challenge rival fiefdoms. (similarity 0.80)
• The Nazi state distributed the sovereign power to kill across all citizens (similarity 0.79)
• Nazi power flowed through party position, not ministerial office (similarity 0.78)

Broader Connections

• Nazi party functionaries were kept perpetually superior to state ministers #expands (0.85)
• Nazi ideology subordinated the state to the racial folk community #expands (0.82) — Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, 2780
• Nazism exploited a breakdown of state worship, not excessive state-worship. #complicates (0.78)
• Nazi power structures overlapped deliberately, letting subordinates challenge rival fiefdoms. #expands (0.75)