Nazi Germany officially the Greater German Reich or the Third Reich is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945 when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by Adolf Hitler and his Nazi Party. On 30 January 1933 Adolf Hitler legally became Chancellor of Germany appointed by President Paul von Hindenburg. Although he initially headed a coalition government he quickly made Hindenburg a figurehead and eliminated his non-Nazi partners.
