From my understanding, the Chancellor wasn't a very powerful position in comparison to the president during the Weimar Republic Era. If this was the case, I just don't understand why Hindenburg allowed Hitler to have so much power while he was still the president. It seems that he just totally let Hitler take the reins with the passage of the Reichstag Fire Decree and then especially the Enabling Act. Basically why was Hitler the one calling the shots when Hindenburg was still alive?
I apologize if this is a dumb question. I'm not much of a history buff.
Hindenburg and von Papen seriously underestimated Hitler. They thought he was a shouty idiot (but usefully with a populist following) who could be influenced and ultimately controlled once they brought him into the government. Germany was also experiencing a vast outbreak of civil unrest, with putsches, mutinies, riots and militias having running battles in the streets. The Nazis and the SA were involved in this, but had the support of key military figures past and present, and the backing of industrialists. Hitler, then, had a chance at taming the wild streets. Of course, he could exert influence on Hindenburg by creating violent episodes himself, as is suspected he did with the Reichstag fire.