Führerprinzip

thumb|right|250px|Official poster from the Wochenspruch der NSDAP series, 16 February 1941. The inscription reads: "The Führer is always right".|alt=Blank poster with German-languge text.

The '''''' ( ) was the basis of executive authority in the government of Nazi Germany. It placed Adolf Hitler's word above all written law, and meant that government policies, decisions, and officials all served to realize his will. In practice, the Führerprinzip gave Hitler totalitarian power over the ideology and policies of his political party; this form of personal dictatorship was a basic characteristic of Nazism. The state itself received "political authority" from Hitler, and the Führerprinzip stipulated that only what the Führer "commands, allows, or does not allow is our conscience," with party leaders pledging "eternal allegiance to Adolf Hitler."