Germany Flashcards

Question

What is the weimar republic?

Answer 1

* Ebert ordered improvements to the Germans social conditions and a declaration that Germany would be governed as a democratic republic. This republic was created at a time of national defeat and disaster. It had many enemies on both the left wing and the right wing. * In late January 1919, an election confirmed the SPD as the most popular party, so Ebert remained Chancellor. With the rest of the newly elected politicians, Ebert held a meeting in **Weimar** (as there was too much violence in Berlin), to discuss how Germany would be run. This was the beginning of the **Weimar Republic**.

Answer 2

In early January 1919, there was **The Spartacist Revolt** (a left wing attempt to take power)**.** The Spartacists were the German Communist party. They believed that the new government was not doing enough for the workers. They wanted a **workers’ state to look after the people, an end to private business, and the sharing out of all profits.** **Chancellor Ebert had to use the army and the** Frei Korps **(or** Free Corps **- a group of ex-soldiers who hated communism) to fight them. After 3 days of street fighting, the Spartacists were beaten.** Their leaders, Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxembourg_,_ **were beaten to death. Their revolt failed because the Frei Korps were better trained and had better weapons, but it did make many Germans afraid of the Communist threat**

Answer 3

**Weimar Constitution** – a formal set of rules for how Germany would be governed. ![]()**The President,** who was head of state, was elected every 7 years by all the German people. Normally, he had little power, but **at a time of emergency, he could rule by decree** (make laws without the agreement of Parliament). **The Chancellor** (Prime Minister) was appointed because he was leader of the main party in Parliament. He was the most powerful person in Germany. **The Parliament** had 2 houses. The one that made the laws was called the **Reichstag**. The **voting system** was very democratic. Everyone over 20 could vote by secret ballot. There was **proportional representation.** This system allowed small parties to get their representatives into Parliament. For example, if a political party won ten per cent of the votes, it was given ten per cent of the seats. This made it difficult for any party to gain a **majority,** making it harder to make decisions and leading to more arguments.Germany’s politicians drew up the **Weimar Constitution** – a formal set of rules for how Germany would be governed.

Answer 4

Strengths ATA **A genuine democracy** - Elections for parliament and the president took place every four years and all Germans over 20 could vote. **The power of the Reichstag** - The Reichstag appointed the government and made all laws. Almost all political power was exercised by politicians in the Reichstag. Before 1918 the Kaiser and the military took most of the important decisions. **A Bill of Rights** - This guaranteed every German citizen freedom of speech and religion, and equality under the law. Weaknesses PA **Proportional representation** - Each party got the same percentage of seats in parliament as the percentage of votes it received in an election. This meant there were lots of small parties in parliament making it difficult to pass laws and led to weak and often short-lived governments. **Article 48** - This gave the president the power to act without parliament’s approval in an emergency. However, it did not clearly define what an 'emergency' was, so the power was overused, which weakened Germans’ confidence in democracy.

Answer 5

the new Republic got off to a troubled start for two reasons: * Many Germans hated the government for signing the **armistice** in November 1918 - they called them the **November criminals**. The defeat in the war came as a huge surprise to the German people, which led to a theory that the brave German army had been ‘stabbed in the back’ by the politicians. * Many Germans felt their country had received a very harsh deal in the **Treaty of Versailles**. They resented the government for agreeing to its conditions and signing it, even though they were forced to by the **Allies**. The **Weimar Republic's** unpopularity meant it faced violent **uprisings** from both sides of the **political spectrum** during 1919 and 1920.

Answer 6

In March 1920, **The Kapp Putsch** was a **right wing** attempt to take power. **Dr. Kapp** and the **Frei Korps** (an informal force of ex-soldiers) **tried to take power in Berlin in order to return to pre-ww1 life.** The government was **so afraid that it actually left Berlin for Dresden,** and called on **all workers to join in a general strik**e. The **left wing unions organised a strike**, which **stopped all gas, transport, electricity and water supplies** and took over several tows. **Without these essential services, Kapp and his supporters were forced to give up and ran away.** Despite the **failure of the Spartacist Uprising in 1919.** **left wing workers in the Ruhr** continued to strike and took over several towns. This became known as the **Red Rising**. The government, now back in Berlin sent in the **Frei Korps**, who succesfully put down the rebellion after killing over 1000 workers. There were many **assassinations** in the early years of the Republic, **reflecting the unhappiness of many people with their government.**

Answer 7

Rebellions during the hyperinflation crisis Unsurprisingly, the hardships of 1923 led to many uprisings as groups struggled to take power from the government. * A nationalist group called **Black Reichswehr** rebelled in September. * **Communists** took over the governments of **Saxony and Thuringia** in October. * **Communists** also took over the Rhineland and declared it independent in the same month. * A **newly-formed** **fascist** **group called the Nazis** attempted a **putsch** in Munich in November. This event brought Hitler to national prominence after he was jailed for nine months for his part in the attempted coup.

Answer 8

**The German Workers’ Party, led by Anton Drexler, was formed in 1919**. Hitler joined it as a spy for the government. He had stayed in the army after the war ended and the government was using the army to spy on suspect political groups. Hitler found that he agreed with many of the party’s ideas. **Hitler soon became its leader and set out to win more support**. He also changed the party name to the National Socialist German Workers Party **(NSDAP) or Nazi Party for short**. ![]()**In 1921, he set up a Nazi Army, the SA** (Stormtroopers): they were also called the Brown shirts because of their uniforms. They were supposed to protect Nazi speakers at rallies. In fact, they often beat up opponents. **- He designed a symbol for the Nazis- the Swastika.** **- He set up a Nazi newspaper to spread their ideas.** **Hitler and the Nazis soon became well known in Bavaria.** Even though they were not well known in the rest of Germany, Hitler thought their ideas would win them support. **As the economic crisis of 1923 swept across Germany, Hitler decided the time was right to seize power by force.** This became known as the **Munich Putsch, in November 1923.**

Answer 9

It was led by Adolf Hitler and the Nazis, who were very angry at the embarrassing **occupation of the Ruhr** and the **hyper-inflation**. **On the night of 8^th November1923** Gustav Kahr, the leader of the Bavarian right wing government, was speaking at a meeting in the Beer Hall. Hitler and General Ludendorff interrupted **with 600 Stormtroopers**. They forced Kahr to help the putsch. The next day the Nazis took control of key buildings in Bavaria, but Kahr had alerted the army and police, who blocked their route. Firing broke out, killing 16 Nazis and 3 policemen. **Hitler’s shoulder was dislocated** as he ran off. **The Nazis were defeated in the fight. Hitler and other Nazis were arrested.** He was put on trial for treason in 1924, but was given only 5 years in prison and was let out after less than 9 months. This shows that the judge was sympathetic with his ideas. His putsch failed because he over-estimated his support, and did not have the support of the army and police. The results of the putsch * **Hitler used his trial to get publicity.** * **In prison he wrote his book, _“Mein Kampf”_ and planned how to make his party stronger. He decided to try to take power by legal methods**

Answer 10

In November 1923, the **Weimar Republic faced its worst crisis with the Ruhr Crisis and hyperinflatio**n. **Gustav Stresemann, leader of the German People’s Party (DVP) helped to save it**. In **1923, Stresemann was elected Chancellor**. He replaced the worthless German mark with a new currency, the Rentenmark. Stresemann saw that the strikes were making things worse. He ordered the workers back to work. **He got the French to leave by promising to begin reparations payments. These actions were essential to stop hyperinflation. However, they made Stresemann so unpopular** **he lost his job as Chancellor**. However, **Stresemann did a lot as Foreign Minister** to improve Germany’s reputation in Europe. This meant that **Germany was allowed to join the League of Nations in 1926 and trade in Europe again**. Stresemann won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1929. Unfortunately, he died four months later.

Answer 11

Stresemann’s single greatest achievement as **Chancellor** was to end **hyperinflation**. He did this in **just three months** by: * Calling off the ‘**passive resistance**’ of German workers in the **Ruhr**. **Production increased.** * **Promising** to **begin reparations** **payments again**. This **persuaded France and Belgium to end the occupation** of the Ruhr by 1925. * Introducing a new currency called the **Rentenmark. This stabilised prices as only a limited number were printed meaning money rose in value restoring confidence in the economy** * **Reducing** the **government budget** (700,000 government employees lost their jobs)

Answer 12

* **Locarno Treaties 1925**. **In October 1925 Germany, France and Belgium agreed to respect their post-Versailles** border**s. Germany had previously complained bitterly about their loss of territory,** but **now the Germans were accepting the loss of Alsace-Lorraine to France.** * **Germany’s entry into the League of Nations 1926**. When the League of Nations was set up as part of the Versailles agreement Germany was initially excluded. **By signing the Locarno Treaties, Germany showed that it was accepting the Versailles settlement and so a year later was accepted as a permanent member of the Council of League, making it one of the most powerful countries in the League.** * **Kellogg-Briand Pact 1928**. Germany was one of 62 countries that signed up to this agreement, which committed its **signatories** to s**ettling disputes between them peacefully.** These developments meant that Germany was accepted into the emerging ‘international community’ that sought to work together during the 1920s to avoid another destructive war. This ethos of collaboration and peaceful cooperation only lasted, however, until the onset of the Great Depression following the **Wall Street Crash** of October 1929. Stresemann had also established the principle of future revision of the Versailles settlement for the German nation, in the ‘open frontiers’ approach in Eastern Europe. He also continued to maintain good relations with the Soviet Union, and signed the **Treaty of Berlin** in 1926. This Soviet-German agreement renewed the **Treaty of Rapallo** that they had signed back in 1922. As well as promoting economic co-operation this treaty set up the opportunity for Germany to secretly build up its armed forces on Soviet territory, so the **Allies** couldn’t find out about this breach of the Versailles treaty. This included the training of German pilots at a Soviet air base.

Answer 13

The payment of reparations, which had caused the hyperinflation crisis in the first place, had to resume, but Stresemann’s decisive actions in the autumn of 1923 gained Germany the sympathy of the **Allies**. They agreed to renegotiate payments and this led to two new repayment plans in the next five years: **Introduced Retenmark** In the Dawes plan, payments were lowered and Germany would **borrow 800m marks from the USA** In the **Young plan, Loan term were increased and amount was reduced by 20%**

Answer 14

Recovery: * By **1928 industrial production was higher than 1913** * Between 1925 and 1929 **exports rose 40%** * Hourly wages **rose every year** from 1924 to 1929

Answer 15

Signs of weakness: * **Agricultural production was lower than pre-WW1** * Germany spent **more on imports than exports** * **Unemployment was 1.9 million in 1929 and increasing** * **Depedency** **on US** loans * The goverment **spent more than it recieved in taxes**

Answer 16

**_How far did Germany recover?_** Germany experienced recovery under Stresemann. - Germany was more prosperous (richer) and more welcome in Europe. There was more investment because of confidence in the currency. - The government gained more support. - Extreme political parties like the Communists and Nazis were still finding it difficult to get support. - However, there were still many political parties in Germany, and no party could get enough votes to rule on their own. This led to coalition governments, where the parties often argued, making it difficult to make any decisions. - The huge US loans made Germany dependent on aid from the USA and also on foreign investment. Even Stresemann feared that Germany relied too much on American loans. - The economy needed more time to recover fully. It also needed a period of steady growth. However, as early as 1927 both industry and farming were in trouble again. Farmers still had low wages and the middle classes had not made up for the loss of savings suffered because of hyperinflation. Also what would happen if America wanted her loans back? This was to prove disastrous in 1929.

Answer 17

**Tight controls on entertainment and culture** These controls were removed under Weimar Germany and there were cultural changes along with economic and political ones. People had **more money to spend** and Berlin became the pleasure capital of Europe. The lack of censorship also attracted writers and artists to Berlin, so German culture boomed. Berlin especially, that saw developments in architecture, art and the cinema. **There was more expressionism and less censorship.** **German reactions** Some Germans hated these cultural changes and thought that they were leading Germany into a moral decline. They wanted art, music, theatre, fil and literature to reflect the traditional culture of Germany. The Nazis openly criticised the nightclubs and art of this time. When Hitler came to power in 1933 (which you will look at later on), many artists, including Fritz Lang, had to flee Germany.

Answer 18

The importance of Berlin **The Greater Berlin Act of 1920 made Berlin the third largest city in the world and established it as the centre of German cultural and intellectual life.** Many of Germany’s most **prominent artists, writers, academics and performers were based in the city.**

Answer 19

Education and intellectual life Berlin was a **melting pot of intellectual development**. Weimar Germany became associated with two areas in particular: * **Science. Towering figures like Max Plank and Albert Einstein** worked in Germany in the 1920s, and Einstein received his Nobel Prize for Physics in 1921. * **Philosophy**. One of the most influential philosophers of the 20th century, **Martin Heidegger,** published his major work ***Being and Time*** in 1927..

Answer 20

Visual arts The most influential visual arts movement in Weimar was the **Bauhaus School, founded by Walter Gropius in the town of Weimar in 1919.** **Bauhaus’ impact on German architecture was limited because the movement only focused on architecture after 1927 and it was then suppressed by the Nazis in 1933**. After this most of its followers fled abroad, where they developed their work further. However, Gropius did design several apartment blocks that are still in use today. In fine art, there were two main movements that influenced German art: * Dada. The Dada movement started in Zurich during World War One. **It was a protest against the traditional conventions of art and western culture, in which the war had begun.** Its output included photography, sculpture, poetry, painting and collage. Artists included **Marcel Duchamp and Hans Arp.** * **New Objectivity**. The New Objectivity movement started in Germany in the aftermath of World War One. It challenged its predecessor, **Expressionism**, which was a more idealistic and romantic movement. **Artists returned to a more realistic way of painting, reflecting the harsh reality of war. Artists included Otto Dix and George Grosz.** This came to an end with the Nazis

Answer 21

Music Music in Weimar was dominated by three themes: * **Modern classical**. **Composers** like **Kurt Weill and Alan Berg** composed classical pieces and operas. * **Jazz**. The increasing influence of American culture brought jazz music to Berlin and Munich, with classical composers often crossing over into what was known as ‘atonal’ music, or jazz. * **Cabaret.** This became popular in Berlin, where young people could sit around in clubs, drinking and watching musical performances.

Answer 22

Cinema The German film and cinema industry boomed during the 1920s. The main features of the industry were as follows: * The economic disruption of the Weimar period produced an expressionist style in German film-making, with films often having unrealistic sets and featuring exaggerated acting techniques. The shortage of funding gave rise to the **Kammerspielfilm movement, with atmospheric films made on small sets with low budgets.** * **Expressionist** **film-makers favoured darker storylines and themes, including horror and crime.** * The most prominent film directors of the time were **Fritz Lang and F.W. Murnau.**

Answer 23

Reputation for decadence After World War One, Berlin became a place where behaviour previously thought of as immoral flourished: * **cabarets** became known as places where **transvestites and** **openly gay men and women could visit, despite homosexuality being illegal** at the time * **prostitution flourished** * **Drug Dealing increased** * organised crime, and gangs called **Ringvereine**, grew Weimar’s reputation for decadence and excess did not continue into the Nazi period. The Nazis disapproved of what they viewed as the immoral behaviour flourishing in Germany’s cities. The totalitarian nature of the regime meant that cultural life, such as the theatre, music and film, came under the control of Goebbels’ Ministry of Propaganda. In addition, many of the leading lights of German cultural and academic life were Jewish, and thus left Germany as the Nazis began to restrict Jews’ rights.

Answer 24

**_The Growth of the Nazi Party in the 1920s_** **When Hitler went to prison the Nazi Party was banned.** When he was let out **in 1924 it was re-formed**. Even so, the Nazis were not yet a strong political group. Hitler had decided while he was in prison that the best way for the Nazis to seize power was not by a putsch but legally, in elections. At first **the Nazi Party found it difficult to get support**. Germany’s economy was recovering under **Gustav Stresemann’s** leadership and people were less willing to listen to the Nazis. **They began to lose seats in the Reichstag**. (German Parliament) as shown in the following election results: - However, **Hitler worked hard at gaining the Nazis more support**. He set up meetings and **mass rallies** **to increase membership**. He wanted as many people as possible to hear him make rousing (exciting) speeches. Membership rose from 27,000 in 1925 to 100,000 in 1928. **The Nazis formed a youth league and a teachers’ league.** The **SS was founded by Hitle**r as an elite private army within the larger SA. The first annual rally was held at Nurmberg in 1927. Despite all these measures, the Nazi party remained a minority party until the Great Depression hit Germany in 1929.

Answer 25

America had become rich after the First World War, through manufacturing and selling their goods around the world. Many Americans bought **shares** in companies, hoping to make more profit. Some even borrowed money from banks so they could buy shares. However, many Americans did not make as much money as they had hoped. In October 1929, shares were sold quickly, which created a panic. This meant others felt they had to sell their shares. This created a drop in the value of shares. In the end many people lost money and were ruined. This became known as the **‘Wall Street Crash’**. The **crash** started the Great Depression and stock prices did not reach the same level until late 1954.

Answer 26

In October 1929, Stresemann died and, shortly after, the USA stock market collapsed in the Wall Street Crash. This led to a worldwide downturn in trade, industry and agriculture (farming). Germany was hit hard because of two factors: * firstly the **USA demanded repayment of the loans to Germany** through the **Dawes and Young Plans;** * secondly, **international trade collapsed as the USA** and **other countries stopped importing goods** in order to keep their own industries going. In Germany the effects were disastrous. Businesses and factories closed, **industrial production fell by 50%**, and **unemployed people grew rapidly** then to **6 million by the end of 1932**. Long queues of hungry and despairing people lined up for help from charities. Proud parents searched through piles of rubbish for scraps of food or lumps of coal to heat their homes. Food prices collapsed as people could not afford to spend so much. Farmers were very badly affected.

Answer 27

1. Unemployment 2. Rise of Extremism 3. Political Failure

Answer 28

**Political failure** In March 1930 the German Chancellor, **Hermann Müller, resigned when his government could not agree on how to tackle the rise in government spending caused by the rise in unemployment.** He was replaced by Heinrich Brüning. His **policies were ineffective in dealing with the unemployment crisis and further undermined Germans’ faith in democracy**: * In July 1930 Chancellor Brüning **cut government expenditure, wages and unemployment pay.** This added to the **spiral of decline and unemployment continued to rise, as well as making those who had lost their jobs even poore**r. * However, **Brüning could not get the** **Reichstag** to agree to his actions, **so President Hindenburg used** **Article 48** of the Weimar constitution. This **undermined democracy and weakened the power of the Reichstag** – arguably opening the way for Hitler’s later dictatorship.

Answer 29

* The rise in unemployment **significantly raised government expenditure on unemployment insurance and other benefits.** * Germans began to l**ose faith in democracy and looked to extreme parties** on the both sides for easy solutions.

Answer 30

1. Depression 2. Failure of Weimar government 3. Appeal of Adolf Hitler 4. Fear of Communists 5. SA,SS & Gestapo 6. Propaganda

Answer 31

**The Depression** Hitler exploited (used) the misery of the German people. With 6 million Germans out of work, the Nazi slogan was **“Work, Freedom and Bread”**. They **scapegoated communists, socialists, trade unions and Jews.** I**nstead of soup queues, and rioting while people were hungry,** t**hey offered a strong government,** which would bring back law and order.

Answer 32

**Factor 2 – Germans unhappy with Weimar Government** The only successful politician of the Weimar years had been Gustave Stressemann. With his death in 1929, the period of stable coalition governments came to an end. The Weimar politicians could not agree on how to help the unemployed and get Germany out of the Depression. Decisions taken by **Chancellor Bruning** to **seize land from the rich to help the poor, lost support and he had to resign.** **For many Germans, democracy was not working.** Hitler played on the German people’s feelings that the Weimar Government was indecisive.

Answer 33

**Factor 3 – The appeal of Adolf Hitler** Hitler himself had a lot to do with his increasing popularity. He had a c**harismatic personality** and could make people believe that he could be trusted to make Germany a great nation. **As a powerful and inspiring orator (speaker); he was able to fill his audiences with hope.**

Answer 34

**Factor 4 – Fear of the rise of other extremist parties e.g. Communists** The German government had suppressed (put down) the communist Spartacist Rising in early 1919 (see booklet one). However, after the Wall Street Crash, the Communist Party had seen its support increase, especially amongst the poor and working class. The middle and upper classes felt threatened by this, because communists across Europe wanted workers’ revolutions. Also the **communists did not believe in religious organisations,** **which worried church goers.** Hitler promised to fight communism. He sent the **Nazi Army, SA (also known as Stormtroopers)** to fight with communists.

Answer 35

**Factor 5 – The Role of the SA** During the Depression years, the SA was reorganised under Ernst Roehm. There were **100,000 men in the SA by 1931, this grew to 400,000 by 1932.** SA men drove round the cities in lorries, armed with knives and knuckle-dusters, looking for trouble. Sometimes shots were fired. Their role was to keep order on the streets and **to beat up opponents (enemies) of the Nazis,** especially the Communists, and smashed up their election meetings. This made it very difficult for the Communists to run a free election campaign. They were also used to intimidate voters at election time.

Answer 36

**Factor 6 - Nazi Party structure, methods and tactics**. **Joseph Goebbels** was in charge of **propaganda,** which was used to influence Germans in their way of thinking. This was done through posters, and millions of leaflets. 1. Hitler also used his speeches and **mass rallies, such as the annual Nuremberg rally,** to raise support. 2. **Flags and parades repeated the message of strong, disciplined rule**, with Hitler as a superman who would rescue Germany from despair. 3. The targets of the propaganda **were the Social Democrats, communists and Jews,** who were blamed for signing the humiliating Treaty of Versailles, and for failing to restore German pride and wealth in the Depression years. 4. The **Hitler Youth** was also set up to encourage young followers to support the Nazis. They organised fun camping trips that would appeal to young people.

Answer 37

**Farmers –** they had been hit hard by the Depression and the Weimar Government had done nothing for them. They also saw communists as a threat if they took their farms from them. The Nazis hated the communists and would deal with them. They also promised high price for crops. **Women** – The Nazis said that women had a very important role in family life and promised to deal with the worries that women had about the decline in **moral values** (see culture section in previous booklet). **Young Voters -** They wanted to make Germany strong again. Hitler’s speeches about ripping up the Treaty of Versailles, making jobs available through building hospitals and motorways and strengthening the military appealed to them. **Middle Classes and industrialists /Upper Class** –Business owners and workers such as doctors and bankers wanted a strong government that could make decisions. They thought the Weimar Republic was weak and indecisive. Hitler and the Nazis showed order and discipline. The middle/upper classes were also worried about the the threat of communists taking over their businessess and way of life. Hitler promised that businesses could do what they liked and he would like to use their factories to make products such as weapons. This would make them money and make Germany strong again. **Hitler also promised to deal with the communists as the SA were not afraid of them.** The support of the industrialists was critical to Nazi success as they gave massive donations, which helped to fund the successful election campaigns in 1930 and 1932.

Answer 38

1. Farmers 2. Young people 3. Middle/Upper Class 4. Business owners 5. Nationalists 6. Churches(communists)

Answer 39

**_Election Results_** The election results of 1930 and 1932 proved the success of Nazi promises and propaganda. The new Chancellor Bruning called an election in 1930, hoping that he would get more support – in fact it was the Nazis who gained most. In 1928 the Nazis gained only 12 seats in the Reichstag: just two years later in 1930 they gained 107, whilst in July 1932 they gained 230. The Nazi share of the vote shot up from * *810,000** in 1928 to * *6,406,600** in 1930 * *13, 745,700** in 1932. By 1930 they were the second largest party in the Reichstag: by 1932 they were the largest. The support fell slightly in the second election of 1932, because funding had fallen slightly for the election campaigns.

Answer 40

The effects of propaganda Nazi propaganda was controlled by Joseph Goebbels and had three mains themes: * **The Führer cult.** Hitler was always portrayed as Germany’s saviour – the man who would rescue the country from the grip of depression. * **Volksgemeinschaft** (people’s community). This was the idea that the Nazis would create one German community that would make religion or social class less relevant to people. * **Scapegoating the Jews (and others) for Germany’s ills**. Jews were often portrayed as sub-human, or as a threat to both the racial purity and economic future of the country.

Answer 41

The story of the events of 1932 and early 1933 that led to Hitler’s appointment as **Chancellor** on 30 January 1933 is a complicated one. Central to the story is the role of President Hindenburg and the fact that throughout the Depression Germany had not had a strong government, with a Chancellor who enjoyed majority support in the **Reichstag**. By 1932 President Hindenburg had to use **Article 48** to pass almost every law. Major events leading to Hitler becoming Chancellor: 1932 **April -** Presidential election. Hitler came second to Hindenburg, who won 53 per cent of the vote to Hitler’s 36.8 per cent. **May -** Brüning resigned as Chancellor. Hindenburg appointed Franz Von Papen, a conservative, as his replacement. **July -** Reichstag elections. The Nazis became the largest single party with 230 seats, but still did not have a majority. Hitler demanded to be made Chancellor but Papen remained. **November -** Reichstag elections called by Von Papen to try to win a majority in parliament. Nazis lost 34 seats but remained the largest party with 196 seats. **December -** Von Papen resigned. Hindenburg appointed Kurt Von Schleicher, an army general, as Chancellor. Von Schleicher tried to split the Nazis by asking a leading Nazi called Gregor Strasser to be his Vice Chancellor. Hitler forced Strasser to decline. 1933 **January -** Von Papen and Hindenburg turned to Hitler, appointing him as Chancellor with Von Papen as Vice Chancellor. They believed they could control Hitler and get him to do what they wanted.

Answer 42

REEFEND * **Reichstag Fire** 5 Mar 1933 * Elections * **Enabling act** 23 Mar 1933 * **Full censorship** * **Elimination of trade unions and all other political parties** * **Night of the Long Knives** 1934 – 29-30 June – * **Death of Hindenburg**

Answer 43

**Reichstag Fire – 27^th February 1933** The Reichstag building in Berlin was destroyed by fire. A Dutch communist, **Marinus von Lubbe** **was arrested and** **blamed for the fire.** He gave a full confession. The Nazis claimed that this was the **start of a Communist plot to take over Germany**. **That night 4000 Communist leaders were arrested by the police.** **The next day Hitler persuaded Hindenburg to grant him** **emergency powers**. This gave the police the power to arrest people and hold them for as **long as they wanted,** **without trial.** Thousands of people who opposed the Nazi party were arrested. The Nazis also banned meetings held by their political opponents and closed down their newspapers. **Hitler used the fire to persuade Hindenburg to pass an emergency law restricting personal liberty.** This **enabled him to imprison many communist leaders**, which stopped them **campaigning during the election**. Although **the Nazis did not gain the overall majority that Hitler had hoped for** in the Reichstag, **it gave them enough seats** - a**fter Hitler had arrested** **all the communist deputies** and the **other parties had been intimidated by the SA - to pass the Enabling Act.**

Answer 44

**5^th**March **1933 – New Elections** The Nazis used the police and the **SA** to put pressure on their political opponents. More than 50 opponents of the Nazis were killed and many more were injured. The Nazis used radio to broadcast their anti-Communist message. This helped **the Nazis** achieve their best ever election result, with **17 million votes and 44 per cent** of the vote. However, they **had to join with the Nationalist Party** who controlled **52 seats in the Reichstag;** **this gave the Nazis a** **majority.** **23^rd March 1933 – The Enabling Act** H**itler still wanted more. The Enabling Act was a law which allowed the Chancellor to rule without the Reichstag.** It would give Hitler the all the power and to pass laws without going through the Reichstag or the President**. In order to achieve this passing this law, he needed to get two-thirds of the Reichstag to support it.** They had to be persuaded to give up their power and hand it to Hitler! How did he achieve this? First the 81 members of the Communist Party were banned from voting. Secondly, the Centre Party were persuaded to vote in favour of the law as Hitler promised to protect the Catholic Church. The **Enabling Law** was passed by 444 votes to 94. Only the Socialist Democrats voted against it. Hitler now had the power to make Germany a one-party state. The **Weimar Republic and the democracy** it brought to Germany **had ended.** The Reichstag had voted itself out of existence. **Germany was now a dictatorship. All important decisions would be made by Hitler and his closest advisers.**

Answer 45

**_The Elimination fo Political Opposition and the trade unions_** **7^th April 1933 – the Gestapo is formed** With the new powers that Hitler had, he put Nazis in charge of all local government, councils and the police. The **Gestapo** (secret police) was formed and the **first concentration camp at Dachau** was opened for political prisoners. **The end of freedom of speech** Full censorship was introduced: all newspapers were expected to follow the Nazi party line. In May 1933 Goebbels organised a ceremony in Berlin, which became known as the **burning of the books. Any books which presented non-Nazi views were burned.** **July 1933 – All political parties banned** A law was introduced that banned people from forming new political parties. By this stage the Social Democratic Party and the Communist Party had already been banned. Other political parties had broken up. This new law meant that **new parties could not be set up to challenge the Nazis.** There was now only one party in Germany.

Answer 46

**2 May 1933 – Trade Unions taken over** Trade union offices were taken over and union leaders arrested. A**ll trade unions were replaced by the** **GERMAN LABOUR FRONT (DAF)**. The DAF was controlled by the Nazis. It set wages and nearly always followed the wishes of employers, rather than employees.

Answer 47

**1934 – 29-30 June – Night of the Long Knives** The last threat to Hitler’s power came from within his own party in the form of the **SA**. Even though he had created this army for his own purposes, and it had grown to 3 million men, Hitler no longer needed them. He now had control of the police and the army, and he considered the SA dangerous for a number of reasons: * The **SA was undisciplined**, and its members often acted like thugs. This was giving the Nazis a bad image which could damage its support. * The SA wanted **more power in return for its help in forcing the Enabling Law** through the Reichstag. Rohm wanted the SA to take control of the German army, which could make Rohm even more powerful than Hitler. There were rumours of an SA plot to take more control. * The SA leader **Ernst Roehm and his supporters were more socialist than Hitler**: they wanted the government to control industry, **giving more power to the workers. This would have lost the support of leading businessmen**, who were important Nazi followers. Army **leaders feared being taken over by the SA** and **resented the violence used**. On the **Night of the Long Knives**, **SA leaders** were **dragged from their beds**, **taken to Nazi headquarters** and shot dead. **Roehm too was arrested. When he refused to commit suicide, he was shot in prison**. The **purge took place across German cities**. It is **believed that 400 people** were **killed**. In addition to the SA, other opponents were also killed, for example, von Schleicher, the former Chancellor. **The Night of the Long Knives sent a warning to the rest of Germany about how ruthless Hitler was in his pursuit of power.**

Answer 48

**2nd August 1934 – Death of Hindenburg and the Army Oath** **Hitler was still only Chancellor.** Hindenburg was President, although Hitler had managed to take away most of his political power. When Hindenburg died, Hitler made himself President as well as Chancellor. Hitler was now head of state, and called himself the **Fuehrer!** On the same day, the German army took an **oath** of personal loyalty to Hitler. Hitler was now Supreme Commander of the armed forces. All German soldiers swore to obey Hitler and to risk their life for him at any time.

Answer 49

Hitler also extended his power in other ways: * **Local government** was reorganised – **with Nazi Party officials put in charge of each area of Germany.** * A **Concordat** (agreement) was **signed with the Pope, which allowed Hitler to increase his power in Germany without opposition from the Catholic Church**, as long as he left the Church alone. * **People's courts:** Hitler **set up the Nazi people's courts where judges had to swear an oath of loyalty to the Nazis.** By the autumn of 1934 Hitler was in complete control of Germany.

Answer 50

The Depression had led to the **closure of businesses, leaving 6 million people unemployed.** Food prices had fallen, with **famers suffering from terrible poverty.** The Nazis promised to solve these problems and to make Germany great.. Nazi election posters like this one had promised people **‘Work and Bread’.** he German people had suffered terribly during both the First World War and the **Depression** and a huge part of the Nazis’ appeal was that they promised to make Germany’s economy strong again. Hitler **aimed for full employment and by 1939 there was virtually no official unemployment** in Germany. He also **wanted to make Germany self-sufficient** (a concept known as **autarky**), but the a**ttempt to do so was ultimately unsuccessful.**

Answer 51

1. **Rearmament(conscription and contracts)** 2. **Public Works** 3. **Invisible Unemployment** 4. **National Labour Service** RINP

Answer 52

In the four years from 1933 – 1936, the Nazis created 4 million new jobs. This is one of their main achievements, and one of the main things that made them popular with the German people. Unemployment was reduced by: PINR ![]()**Public Works** programmes were planned to put men back to work. This meant the building of new motorways (**autobahns**), hospitals, schools, sports stadiums and other public buildings created thousands of jobs. 4000km of autobahn were built, 20 years before there were any motorways in Britain. These projects were on a huge scale and made Nazi Germany look an impressive place. **Invisible unemployment - Fewer people were officially “available for work”** – This reduced the official unemployment figures. Women were forced out of work and encouraged to stay at home, part time work was classed as full time and Jews lost jobs, but were not classed as “unemployed”. **National Labour Service (RAD), was** set up for men aged 18 – 25 in 1933. It was compulsory for 6 months, before the men went to join the armed forces. The men wore uniforms and lived in camps. They did work like digging ditches, and planting forests. **Rearmament** is when a country rebuilds its armed forces. This created the most jobs, either in the armed forces or in the armaments and supporting industries. Hitler also introduced **conscription,** from 1935 all males aged between 18 and 25 were forced to join the armed forces. The army alone had increased from **100,000 to 1.4 million men** within 5 years. Rearmament produced demand for other goods. The need for weapons, equipment and uniforms created jobs in the coal mines, steel and textile mills. There were also more jobs for engineers and designers. ![]()

Answer 53

![]() Hitler tried to make sure Germany did not rely on other countries for food and supplies. This would be a problem if war broke out. **In 1933 Hitler appointed Hjalmar Schacht as Minister of the Economy.** Schacht knew that Hitler’s plan to build more weapons would cost lots of money and resources. Schacht signed deals with countries such as South America and south-east Europe to supply Germany with raw materials (iron, steel, rubber, wood) in return for German made goods. Farmers received government help in increasing production of food: this too created new jobs and raised incomes on farms (details later!). ![]()As a result, production in Germany increased which led to more jobs and a decrease in unemployment. However, Germany was still dependent on other countries for raw materials. Hitler was not happy about this and Schacht was dismissed. Hitler then appointed **Hermann Goering** to take took over. In 1936 he introduced a ‘**Four Year Plan’.** Its aim was to prepare Germany for war within four years by re-armament and achieving self-sufficiency. Industrialists were urged to find substitutes for goods which had to be imported (brought in from other countries).. Raw materials such as coal, oil, iron continued to be used, whilst synthetics (artificial substitutes) such as rubber, fuel and textiles were developed, and new factories set up. The production of industrial goods rose, but **Germany was not self-sufficient when war broke out in 1939, the country still relied on imports.**

Answer 54

German farmers helped Hitler get into power, as he promised to help them raise prices during the Great Depression (see previous booklet). Once in power, **Hitler brought measures to help them** as he also **needed them to make Germany** **self-sufficient**. **Hitler cut taxes that farmers had to pay and set up the Reich Food Estate** in 1933. It set up central boards to buy food from farmers at a guaranteed price; then sell it on. **The Reich Entailed Farm Law** also **stopped banks from taking peasants’ land if they could not pay back loans.** A law was also introduced to stop large farms being divided up and to stay under the control of the same family.

Answer 55

**These measures were popular with some farmers, but were only a partial success.** The Reich Food Estate actually stopped some farmers selling food at higher prices, while the Reich Entailed Farm Law meant it was difficult for some peasant farmers to get bank loans. Farmer had less independence. Many were angry that they were no longer able to divide their land and give parts of each to their children. **People actually left the countryside at a rate of 3% per year in the 1930s.** This was the opposite of Nazi aims

Answer 56

**Many working class people had not supported the Nazis before 1933, they had voted for the communists. Now the Nazis were in power they needed to control the workers.** To help gain the support of the workers two organisations were set up within the DAF. These were: 1. The **Beauty of Labour (SDA)** movement. This improved working conditions in factories. It introduced things not seen in many workplaces before, such as washing facilities and low-cost canteens. 2. The **Strength through Joy** **(KDF)** scheme. This organised the free time of workers. It gave workers cheap theatre and cinema tickets and organised courses, trips and sports events. Workers were offered low-cost cruises on the latest luxury ships. Under a KDF scheme, thousands of workers saved 5 marks a week in the state scheme to buy the **Volkswagen Beetle**, the ‘people’s car’. It became a symbol of the new Germany but in the end no workers received a car because all car production was stopped by the war in 1939.

Answer 57

The German Labour Front **(DAF),** was meant to improve conditions for workers by breaking down the barriers between employers and their workers. In fact, there were many drawbacks; - * **Workers had no rights.** Remember – Hitler had banned the Trade Unions. * **DAF did what employers asked,** it did not work on behalf of the workers. * As a result, **wages were lower in 1938 than in 1928** * **Working hours were longer** **by 10%.** * Everyone had to work and skilled men could be sent to do heavy labour on schemes like autobahn building. * People who refused to work under these conditions could be arrested and sent to forced labour camps.

Answer 58

KDF (Strength Through Joy) DAF (German Labour Front) SDA (Beauty of Labour)

Answer 59

Many industrialists (owners of large businesses) gained a lot from Nazi policies. Many profited from the Nazi rearmament programme. **Companies such as chemicals giant IT Farben secured huge government contracts to make explosives, fertilisers and even artificial oil**. Other big companies that benefited included Mercedes and Volkswagen. Industrialists were also happy that the **threat of communism** was ended by Hitler. Profits for the owners of small businesses were a lot more mixed. Those who produced consumer goods or owned small shops often struggled. **Small business -** Rules on opening and running small businesses were tightened, which resulted in 20 per cent of them closing.

Answer 60

The living standards of German workers in the non-armaments industries did not really improve under the Nazis. From 1933 to 1939: * **wages fell** * **the number of hours worked rose** by 15 per cent * **serious accidents in factories increased** * **workers could be blacklisted** by employers for questioning their working conditions

Answer 61

Initial reaction to the outbreak of war ## Footnote World War Two began on 3 September 1939, when Britain and France reacted to the German invasion of Poland two days earlier by declaring war on the Nazi state. Most Germans believed the attack on Poland was a reaction to Polish aggression and was designed to reclaim territory lost in the **Treaty of Versailles**, particularly the city of Danzig on the Baltic. A little over a month later, with Poland defeated and occupied, Hitler publicly offered to make peace with the western allies, while secretly ordering his generals to prepare for an invasion of France that winter. Britain and France refused to trust Hitler this time and the war continued. The German people reacted to the outbreak of war with resignation. In 1914, at the outbreak of World War One, there had been much enthusiasm but not this time. Germans in 1939 could still remember the pain of 1918, their surrender and the subsequent punishment at Versailles. However, the vast majority of Germans reluctantly supported the war and signed up to play their part in the war effort.

Answer 62

RARE **R**ationing **A**rea Bombing **R**efugees **E**mployment * **Rationing** of food was introduced on 27 August 1939 and a points system for clothing was introduced in October 1939. * **Autarky** and **rearmament** meant consumer goods were already expensive due to low supply. * Germans’ diets became more monotonous, with lots of bread, potatoes and preserves. * There were meat shortages due to lack of imports from the USA. * Many Germans feared a repeat of the shortages experienced during World War One. * Food entitlements depended upon the importance of individuals to the war effort: 'normal consumers', 'heavy workers' 'very heavy workers' – there were also categories for children, pregnant women. * Jews' food entitlements were set below **Aryans'**. * The winter of 1939-40 was exceptionally cold and there were shortages of coal.

Answer 63

**Employment** * **13.7 million German men served in the army during the war,** and this **created a huge labour shortage on the home front.** * As they **did during World War One**, women **entered the workforce in large numbers,** **working in armaments** **factories and as medics**. * The Nazis **also made extensive use of forced labour,** **transporting hundreds of thousands of civilians and prisoners of war from Eastern Europe** and **elsewhere to Germany to keep the war effort going.** * At the end of the war, **eight million enslaved labourers** and o**ther ‘displaced persons’ became refugees inside Germany**. In addition**, 11 million ethnic Germans were either refugees or had been expelled from the countries surrounding Germany in the East.**

Answer 64

Refugees * The intensive **British ‘area’ bombing campaign from May 1942 onwards, targeted at the industrial Ruhr region, created thousands of refugees as whole cities** were **flattened or burnt down.** * **During the advance of the Soviet army** through **Poland and eastern Germany during 1944** and 45, much of the **civilian population fled westwards to avoid the brutality of the Russian soldiers.**

Answer 65

Area bombing * The British **stopped targeting the German Military and started bombing the cities.** * On 30 May 1942 the first British ‘thousand bomber raid’ was launched against the German city of Cologne. * Over the next 3 years: 61 German cities, with a combined population of 25 million, were attacked; **3.6 million homes were destroyed**; * *7.5 million people were made homeless;** **300,000 – 400,000 Germans were killed in the raids**; and 800,000 people were wounded. However, German industrial production continued to increase until mid-1944. * The raids had a mixed impact on the morale of the German population as Nazi **propaganda** tended to downplay their impact and the number of deaths.

Answer 66

Opposition within the army There were two main efforts to remove Hitler during the war, one near the beginning of the conflict and one towards the end, when it was becoming clear that Germany would be defeated: * In October 1939, **after the successful invasion of Poland, Hitler ordered plans to be drawn up for the invasion of France,** via Belgium. **Fearing a repeat of the failure of the** **Schlieffen Plan** of 1914, the head of counter-intelligence, **Admiral Canaris, attempted to gain the support of the heads of the army for a coup against Hitler**. However, when a **harsh winter postponed the plan,** support for the idea dissolved. * In **July 1944,** a **group of army officers tried to assassinate Hitler.** **A bomb was planted by Colonel Stauffenberg at a meeting attended by the Fuhrer.** It **exploded**, but Hitler **survived**. In retaliation, Stauffenberg was **shot the same day and 5,000 people were executed in the crackdown on opposition that followed.** The great German **general Field Marshal Erwin van Romell was implicated in the plot and was forced to commit suicide as punishment for his involvement.**

Answer 67

Opposition from the young The main youth opposition group during the war was the **Edelweiss Pirates**, who were fond of singing **anti-Nazi songs.** In 1942 over **700 of them were arrested**. In 1944, **12 members were publically hanged after the Pirates in Cologne killed the Gestapo chief.** The **White Rose group** was formed by students at Munich University in 1943, led by brother and sister **Hans and Sophie Scholl.** They published a**nti-Nazi leaflets and marched through the city in protest at Nazi policies. Its leaders were eventually arrested and sentenced to the guillotine.** During the war, **‘Swing Youth’ and ‘Jazz Youth’** groups were formed. **These were young people who rejected Nazi values**. They drank alcohol and danced to jazz music. The Nazis rejected jazz as **degenerate** and called it 'Negro music', using their racial ideas against this cultural development.

Answer 68

Phase one - Polish ghettos The German **conquest of Poland in autumn 1939 brought three million more Jews under Nazi** control. **Polish Jews were confined to ghettos** and **camps in terrible conditions,** where **hundreds of thousands died of starvation and disease.** Hitler is believed to have given the order to begin the attempted extermination of Europe’s 11 million Jews in 1941. This so-called ‘Final Solution’ to the question of what to do with Europe’s Jews led to phase two. Phase two - mass killings begin During the German invasion of the USSR (June 1941), four specially created SS units called **Einsatzgruppen** followed behind the German army. Their task was to round up Jews, as well as communist officials and Russian army officers, and execute them. The victims were taken to the edge of towns and villages, forced to dig mass graves and then shot and buried in huge numbers. By the end of 1941, 500,000 Jews had been killed in this way and in total the victims of **Einsatzgruppen numbered around 1.2 million.** These **mass killings were expensive and time consuming**. The need to make the extermination process more efficient led to phase three. Phase three - extermination camps ![]() Reinhard Heydrich On 20 January 1942 **Reinhard Heydrich**, the head of the **Sicherheitsdienst**, held a conference in the Wansee suburb of Berlin. At this meeting it was agreed that all Jews under German occupation would be brought to Poland, where **those fit enough would be worked to death and the rest exterminated.** This led to the **horror of the Nazi death camps, six of which were built specifically to murder those brought to them.** The **biggest and most notorious camp was Auschwitz-Birkenau, where 2.5 million Jews were murdered.** Jews arrived at the camps on trains, where they were separated into two groups: those fit enough to work and those to be killed immediately – usually women, children and the elderly. The latter group were ushered into what they thought were showers, where they were gassed to death using pellets of cyanide known as Z**yklon B.** Altogether, it is thought aroun**d six million Jews were murdered during the Holocaust, as we**ll as s**everal million others, including gypsies, homosexuals, Soviet prisoners of war, Jehovah’s Witnesses** and other ‘undesirables’. Up to 88 per cent of Polish Jews were killed and Jews from all over Nazi-occupied Europe were sent to the camps

Answer 69

Germany's defeat and the aftermath The first German defeat in Europe came at Stalingrad in February 1943. Later, in 1945, Germany was invaded from both the east and west. The allied forces in the west, led by American divisions, crossed the Rhine into Germany from the beginning of March. By April the Soviet forces had encircled Berlin in the east, and Hitler committed suicide there on April 30. Germany surrendered to the Allies a few days later. Germany was then occupied and divided into four military zones, each controlled by one of the four allied powers: USSR, USA, Britain and France. Its capital Berlin was similarly divided amongst the occupiers.

Answer 70

**Reasons for the policies** ![]()The Nazis wanted to raise the birth-rate, which had been falling before they took power. Nazipropaganda put women at the centre of domestic life. The Nazis wanted to create full employment for men, with women staying at home to look after their husbands and children. They were expected to contribute to German society by having lots of children, and nurturing them The Nazi ideal for women was summed up in 3 words; also known as the **three ks:** **Kinder, Kuche, Kirche** (children, kitchen, church).

Answer 71

The Policies and Practices Women were encouraged to stay at home. Women in **positions of responsibility were sacked, for** example thousands of doctors, civil servants and teachers lost jobs. **Propaganda taught them how to act and how to look and celebrated the ideas of motherhood and homebuilding.****Make-up was not allowed.** The fashion was for long hair in a bun or plaits, and big hips to bear children. In **1933 marriage loans started for couples of German nationality as long as the woman agreed to give up work.** The **more children they had the less they had to pay back.** **Maternity and family allowances went up. Advice on contraception was hard to get, and anti-abortion laws were passed**. In 1939 p**roductive mothers were given medals; Mother’s Cross Medals, on Hitler’s mother’s birthday**. A gold medal was given for mothers of 8 children, silver for mothers of 6, and bronze for mothers of 4 From 1936 the Nazis opened special maternity homes – **lebensborn** (springs of life). These were homes, designed to be breeding centres for the production of ‘pure **Aryan’** children. Young women, who were racially pure, could be selected and sent there to have a child with an SS man. Young women who had a child out of marriage, could be sent there so that the SS could bring up the children to be good Nazis. This programme took place in secret at first: it was not popular due to children being born to unmarried parents. However, **not all women were encouraged to have children.** The Nazis thought that some women were not fit to be mothers, especially those who had a history of mental illness, inherited diseases or issues such as alcoholism. Under the law of ‘Prevention of Diseased Offspring’ these women would be forcibly sterilised (no longer able to have children)

Answer 72

The policies were partially successful. * The main aim of raising the birth rate was achieved: **it went up from 15 per thousand in 1933 to 20 per thousand in 1939.** * **8000 children were born through the lebensborn programme.** * Many women would have agreed with Hitler’s policies, and enjoyed the opportunity to take on a valued maternal role. * The policies that encouraged women to stay at home allowed the Nazis to put more men into employment: this gave them back their pride, and made them loyal supporters of the Nazis. However the Nazi ideal was not fully met because: * In the lat**e 1930s, the Nazis had to relax their policy because they needed more women workers** * There was an **increase in pregnancies outside marriage. These girls were looked after in state maternity hostels.** * Some **women hated losing the freedom of choice** – married professional women were forced to give up their jobs. ![]()There were a few prominent (important, well-known) women in Nazi Germany, e.g. the film producer, **Leni Riefenstahl** who famously filmed Nazi Rallies and Gertrude Scholz-Klink who was head of the Nazi Women’s Bureau, but was not allowed to have a say in important decisions.

Answer 73

A good mnemonic to help you remember the facts about Nazi women is: * **C** - Children * **H** - Home * **A** - Appearace * **R** - Rewards * **M** - Marriage * **E** - Employment * **D** - Domestic

Answer 74

**Hitler knew that it was important to control young people. If they were brought up in the right way, they would always defend Nazi Germany.** He believed **he needed loyal Nazis if he was to build Germany up again – a Third Reich (great German Empire) that would last for a thousand years.** The Nazis tried to indoctrinate young people (persuade them how to think). This was done through the education system in schools, universities and Youth Movements. Young people were very important to Hitler and the Nazis. Hitler spoke of his **Third Reich** lasting for a thousand years and to achieve this **he would have to ensure German children were thoroughly indoctrinated into Nazi ideology.** To this end, **from the age of 10 boys and girls were encouraged to join the Nazis’ youth organisation, the Hitler Youth (the girls’ wing of which was called the League of German Maidens). Membership from age 10 was made COMPULOSRY in 1936 and by 1939 90 per cent of German boys aged 14 and over were members.**

Answer 75

As well as influencing the beliefs of young Germans through the Hitler Youth, schools indoctrinated young people into the political and racial ideas of Nazism. All teachers had to join the Nazi Teachers’ Association, which vetted them for political and racial suitability. The curriculum was altered to reflect Nazi ideology and priorities: * **History -** lessons **included a course on the rise of the Nazi Party.** * **Biology -** lessons were used to **teach Nazi racial theories of evolution in** **eugenics**. * **Race study and ideology -** this became a **new subject, dealing with the Aryan ideas and anti-Semitism.** * **Physical Education -** German **school children had five one-hour sports lessons every week.** * **Chemistry and Mathematics -** were **downgraded in importance** The Nazis also set up special schools **called Napolas** (National Political Institutes of Education) **for boys whom they believed would become the next generation of leaders. These schools were run by ex-SS member**s. The boys chosen **were fit and brave**, not necessarily very academically able. Boys who wore glasses were not allowed to go. Nazis also **controlled the universitie**s. They changed the courses to reflect Nazi beliefs and **dismissed lecturers and professors based on their race or political beliefs.** Many academics fled the country to escape, including Albert Einstein, who was Jewish.

Answer 76

Many school textbooks were banned or burned. New ones were written. The Nazis didn’t want young people to read just any book.

Answer 77

**Nazi policies towards the Catholic and Protestant Churches** ## Footnote There were approximately **45 million Protestants and 22 million Catholic Christians** in **Germany in 1933.** Hitler saw Christianity as a threat and a potential source of opposition to Nazism because it emphasised peace. The Nazis tried to control the Churches with policies and bargaining. **Control of the Churches** A **state Reich Church under the leadership of the Nazi Bishop Ludwig Müller** was **established to unify the different branches of Protestantism**. This enabled the Nazis to use a group called the ‘German Christians’ within the Reich Church to **promote Nazi ideas.** In **1933 Hitler agreed a Concordat with the Pope.** Hitler d**idn’t keep his side** of the bargain, however, as the **Nazis attempted to infiltrate the Church and spread their propaganda.** **Nazi attempts to supress the Churches** The Reich Church **attempted to ban the use of the Old Testament** in **religious services as it was considered a ‘Jewish book’.** **Eight hundred Pastors of the Confessional Church**, a **non-conforming Protestant group,** were **arrested and sent to concentration camps.** The Nazis attempted to stop Catholics using the crucifix in church, though this attempt was not successful. Catholic schools and youth organisations were supressed, with German children being educated in state schools and taught a Nazi curriculum, as well as being expected to join the various branches of the Hitler Youth. Catholic newspapers were banned and four hundred Catholic priests were sent to Dachau concentration camp. I**mpact of the Nazis actions** In 1937 Hitler was forced to return control of the Church to the old Protestant leadership, in return for a promise that the Church would stay out of politics. Attendance at Catholic churches increased substantially under the Nazis, especially during World War Two, showing that **Hitler’s attempts to reduce the influence of religion in Germany was ultimately unsuccessful.** Both Protestant and Catholic **clergy** **played a large role in opposing Hitler and the Nazis, for which they often paid a high price.**

Answer 78

**Hitler had hated Jewish people since he was a young man. Why?** - He blamed them for the defeat of Germany in the First World War - Germany and Austria had a history of antisemitism. (Hatred of Jewish people) - The Nazis wanted to fill Germany with ‘Aryans’- they said these were people with pure German blood. The perfect Aryan was tall and strong with blonde hair and blue eyes. Jews along with black people and people from other races were not Aryan. The Nazis felt that they should be driven out of Germany. - Jewish people made up less than 1% of the German population (100,000 people). But many of them were professional people- bankers, lawyers, doctors and teachers. Hitler said that they took jobs from other people.

Answer 79

1. **_Aryan ideas, racial policy and persecution_** **The Nazis believed in the Aryan ‘master race’,** who were **believed to be stronger and more intelligent than other races, wi**t**h a natural right and ability to rule over them**. The Nazi persecution of these minority groups varied: - abou**t 375,000 people were sterilized because of problems such as alcoholism** or **hereditary diseases**. - **5000 severely mentally handicapped babies were killed** between **1939 and 1945** either by injection or by starvation. - so called **‘asocials’ – homosexuals, alcoholics, the homeless, prostitutes, criminals and beggars were sent to concentration camps.** - **Five out of six Roma people living in Germany in 1939 were killed by the Nazis**. - Between 1939 – 41 the Nazi’s **took Aryan disabled people (72,000) into ‘care homes’ where they were killed. This euthanasia was stopped in 1941 due to public outcry, led by Catholic Archbishop Galen – this outcry did not happen for the other victims of the Nazis**. Galen was put under house arrest for the rest of the war.

Answer 80

The Nazis’ persecution of the Jews The group most heavily targeted for persecution by the Nazis were the Jews of Germany. The outbreak of World War Two brought the horror of mass killings and the Final Solution, but the period 1933 saw a gradual increase in persecution, reaching a turning point during Kristallnacht in November 1938: **1933** * Nazis o**rganised a boycott of Jewish businesses.** * **Books by Jewish authors were publicly burnt.** * **Jewish civil servants, lawyers and teachers were sacked.** * **Race science lessons were introduced** **1935** The **Nuremberg Laws** formalised anti-Semitism into the Nazi state by: * **Stripping Jews of German citizenship.** * **Outlawing marriage and sexual relations between Jews and Germans.** * Taking away from **Jews all civil and political rights.** **1938** * Jews could not be doctors. * Jews had to add the name Israel (men) or Sarah (women) to their name. * Jewish children were forbidden to go to school. * **Kristallnacht - 9 November**. **The SS organised attacks on Jewish homes, businesses and synagogues in retaliation for the assassination of the German ambassador to France by a Jew.** **Many Jews saw the events of Kristallnacht as a turning point. Up until then there had been a progressive erosion of their rights but Jews had not been physically threatened or attacked. When their businesses and homes were destroyed and their synagogues were burnt down, many concluded that their time in Germany was up. Those who were able to fled and a scheme to evacuate Jewish children to Britain, called the Kindertransport, began.** **1939** * Jews were forbidden to own a business, or even a radio By the outbreak of World War Two in September 1939, the Jews were stateless, their employment options in Germany were severely restricted and they feared for their safety.

Answer 81

Nazi racial beliefs The Nazis’ racial philosophy taught that Aryans were the master race and that some races were ‘untermensch’ (sub-human). Many Nazi scientists at this time believed in **eugenics**, the idea that people with disabilities or social problems were **degenerates** whose genes needed to be eliminated from the human bloodline. The Nazis pursued eugenics policies vigorously. Policy of persecution * **Sterilisation** - In order to keep the Aryan race pure, many groups were prevented from reproducing. The mentally and physically disabled, including the deaf, were sterilised, as were people with **hereditary** diseases. Children born to German women and French African soldiers in the Rhineland at the end of World War One were called 'Rhineland Bastards' and also sterilised. * **Euthanasia** - Between 1939 and 1941 over 100,000 physically and mentally disabled Germans were killed in secret, without the consent of their families. Victims were often gassed - a technique that was later used in the death camps of the Holocaust. * **Concentration camps** - Homosexuals, prostitutes, Jehovah's Witnesses, gypsies, alcoholics, **pacifists**, beggars, hooligans and criminals were often rounded up and sent away to camps. During World War Two 85 per cent of Germany's gypsies died in these camps.

Answer 82

**Once the Second World War broke out in 1939, the Nazis were even harder on the Jewish people.** When they occupied Poland, they found a population of around 3 million Jewish people, far larger than the German Jewish population. Across Eastern Europe, there were large Jewish communities in all of the cities: at first they were forced into **ghettos.** Over time the ghettos were liquidated and the Jewish people were deported to concentration camps. Thousands of Roma, homosexuals and political opponents of the Nazis were also sent to the camps. As there were too many to live and work there, the Nazis appointed groups of SS men as killing squads called “Einsatzgruppen”, to shoot hundreds of thousands of Jewish people, forcing those still alive to bury them. Some Jewish people fought back or escaped, but were hunted down ruthlessly. One notable example is the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising of 1943, which lasted for 43 days before the Nazis finally regained control, executing all those involved. At the Wansee Conference in January 1942, Himmler, head of the SS and Gestapo, was put in charge of the systematic killing of all Jewish people within Germany and German-occupied territory. Six death camps, including Auschwitz and Treblinka, in Poland were now equipped with gas chambers and ovens to murder Jewish people on an industrial scale. The old, the sick and young people were killed immediately. Some of able-bodied were first used as slave labour and some had medical experiments carried out on them. This was known as the **‘Final Solution’**. In total around 6 million Jewish people were killed in this Holocaust.

Answer 83

1. **Goebbels, the use of propaganda and censorship** Dr Joseph Goebbels was Minister of Enlightenment and Propaganda from 1933. Goebbels was a loyal follower of Hitler and believed he was the saviour of Germany. His job was to convince the whole German population to think the same way as he did. . Propaganda was used to advertise all Nazi ideas and policies, while those whom the Nazis hated were made to look evil.` **Broadcasting and the press were brought under Nazi control.** Over **1500 newspapers were closed down**. The Nazis c**reated their own newspaper called, “DER STURMER”**. There were frequent political broadcasts in public places. **Radios, known as “Peoples’ Receivers”**, were **sold cheaply, so that all families could listen to Nazi broadcasts at home**. **70% of homes had a radio by 1939.** The radios could not pick up foreign radio stations. **Cinema** was used to **reach mass audiences**. Most of the feature films were not directly political, but were love stories and comedies to make audiences feel good. **Mass rallies** were a popular form **of propaganda, especially the Nuremberg rally held for a week every August. There were army parades, aeroplane displays, gymnastics, bands, choirs and fireworks.** The **Berlin Olympics of 1936** was the biggest chance for the Nazis to impress, but the winning of **4 gold medals by black American athlete Jesse Owens proved that black people could be stronger and fitter than white Aryan people.**

Answer 84

Aryan Art depicted strong Aryan men and was promoted instead of the regular expressionist art. Anyone's culture who opposed Hitler was banned. (Jews, socialist, anarchist or communist)

Answer 85

By August 1934 Hitler was a dictator with absolute power. In order to maintain this power he needed organisations that could control the population to ensure absolute loyalty to the Führer. After the demise of the **SA** on the Night of the Long Knives, there were three main interlinked organisations (in addition to the regular German police force) involved in controlling the German people through spying, intimidation and if necessary imprisonment: **Legal System** **Schutzstaffel (SS)** **Gestapo** **Sicherheitsdienst (SD) -** This was the intelligence gathering agency of the SS. It was responsible for the security of Hitler and other top Nazis and was led by Himmler’s right hand man, Reinhard Heydrich.

Answer 86

**Gestapo -** This was the Nazis’ **secret police force. Its job was to monitor the German population for signs of opposition or resistance to Nazi rule. It was greatly helped by ordinary German people informing on their fellow citizens.**

Answer 87

* **Schutzstaffel (SS) - Led by Heinrich Himmler, the SS was the most important of these organisations and oversaw the others.** Initially set up as Hitler’s personal bodyguard service, the **SS was fanatically loyal to the Führer.** It later set up concentration camps where ‘enemies of the state’ were sent

Answer 88

Nazi control of the legal system The Nazis quickly swept away many of the freedoms that Germans had enjoyed under the Weimar constitution. The party’s control of the legal system made opposition to the regime very difficult indeed: * **Judges had to swear an oath of loyalty to Hitler** and were expected to act always in the interests of the Nazi state. * **All lawyers had to join the Nazi Lawyers' Association**, which meant they could be controlled. * These changes more than halved the number of criminal offences between 1933 and 1939, **whilst the number of crimes that carried the death penalty increased from three to 46**. Many convicted criminals were not released at the end of their sentences but instead were moved to the growing number of concentration camps being established by the SS.

Answer 89

The Catholic church had signed the Concordat in 1933, and generally did not openly oppose **Hitler**. Few Christians spoke out against Nazi antisemitism or other policies. One exception is the C**atholic Bishop Galen criticized the Nazis throughout the 1930s. In 1941 he led a popular protest against the Nazi policy of euthanasia – the killing of mentally ill and physically disabled people**. His campaign forced the Nazis to temporarily stop. Galen had lots of support and it was thought too risky to silence him whilst Germany was at war. Christian ministers who spoke out against the Reich church, such as **Martin Niemoller and Dietrich Bonhoeffer were arrested and sent to concentration camps.**

Answer 90

July 1944 Bomb Plot Youth Groups Christians

Answer 91

**Question 1** Focus is only on content. **No contextual Knowledge required.** 1 Paragraph in which you identify a feature of the source and then explain what this tells you about the content asked. Eg Content = Life in Nazi Germany “Interpretation A suggests that life in Nazi Germany was….” Purpose then in the same paragraph “Whereas Interpretation B portrays that life in Nazi Germany as…” purpose The Comparison should be clear and concise.

Answer 92

**Question 2** Focus on Provenance and **use contextual knowledge** 1 paragraph which explains why the interpretations are different based on Authors due to their location, experiences, knowledge, belief, circumstances, access to information, purpose and target audience. You must place the purpose of the source in historical context “Interpretations's A and B are different because interpretation A comes from…During this time….. The purpose of this source…” "Whereas, Interpretation B comes from… During this time….. The purpose of the source is to…

Answer 93

Only focus on **Content** and Contextual knowledge. **IGNORE PROVENANCE** **3 Paragraphs** The first two Paragraphs should be on how the content makes the interpretation convincing then support that with 2-3 pieces of contextual knowledge. **Paragraph 1** “Interpretation A is convincing because it makes reference to….” “During this time,…..(First piece of knowledge)” "Furthermore, ….(Second piece of knowledge) **Paragraph 2** “Interpretation B is convincing because it makes reference to….” “During this time,…..(First piece of knowledge)” "Furthermore, ….(Second piece of knowledge) **Paragraph 3** Then in the last paragraph is a brief judgement and you should say which interpretation is better while referring back to the question. “Overall, interpretation ___ is more convincing of ___ as \_\_\_"

Answer 94

1 Paragraph with no source. **Only contextual knowledge** Identify one feature then explain it in a lot of depth. “The first (problem/feature) was ___ this is because \_\_\_\_” then do that again “The second (problem/feature) was ___ this is because \_\_\_\_”

Answer 95

**Question 5** **This is gonna be based on social policies** 2-3 PEEL paragraphs in chronological order e.g. Jews, Nuremberg laws, The Ghetto and then the Final Solution “One way in which(Question focus) changed was …. The consequence of this was……” “Another way in which (Question Focus) changed was… The consequence was…." “A final way in which (question focus) changed was…. This therefore led to” Use the PEEL structure **P**oint **E**vidence(To back up your point) **E**xplanation("because" and “therefore” and “ as a result”) **L**ink back to Q

Answer 96

You need to write at least 3 paragraphs but aim for 5 Use the PEEL for the first 2-4 paragraphs. **Paragraph 1 & 2** **P1 - “To some Extent, A very Important reason xxx happened because….”** “This led to…..” “Another example of…” “As a result this meant that…” P2 - “Additionally …..” (Then do the same thing) P3 - “However, B also had an impact on why XXX happened because…” “This led to….” “Another example of……” “Therefore this meant that…” P4 - “Additionally…." (Then do the same thing) **Then we make our comparative judgement** P5 - “Overall, in my judgement, I think… because….." “Although others may argue that… because…..” “This argument is weakened owing to the fact that…..” “Therefore…..”

Answer 97

## Footnote When the war began in 1914 Germany was a powerful country. There was a strong feeling of pride in the German armed forces and industrial might. The people were supportive of the Kaiser and the German war aims: even the Social Democratic Party supported the government’s war plans at the start of the war. The German people expected victory in war. However, four years later by November 1918, Germany was close to collapse: its army was beaten, its navy destroyed, with the people living on bread and turnips. In fear for his safety, the Kaiser fled from Germany. During the war, Germany struggled to cope with a two-front war (a war on two sides). By the end of 1914, it became clear that there would be no quick victories: trench warfare had set in. German armies fought against the Allies in the West against France, Britain and Belgium; and in the East against Russia. German submarines were active in trying to destroy Allied shipping throughout the war years, while its battleships were involved in only one battle, at Jutland in 1916, when they were forced back to their base, never to come out again. The war against Russia ended in 1918 with the signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. This gave Germany massive gains of land. However, in the West the German forces suffered a setback with the arrival of American troops in early 1918. They were unable to defeat an Allied offensive in spring 1918, and by the autumn as their allies (Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey) were also collapsing, Germany was forced to surrender.

Answer 98

July 1944 Bomb Plot Youth Groups Christians

Germany Flashcards

(126 cards)