Resistance to the Regime, 1933-1939. Flashcards
1
Q
4 ways to define Resistance:
A
- Active
- Non-conformity
- Private dislike (humour etc.)
- Helping the opposition.
2
Q
4 limits to Resistance:
A
- Terror
- Propaganda & Genuine popularity
- Concordat
- Divided Left
3
Q
How did Terror limit Resistance?
A
- Sondergerichte or ‘Special courts’ were made for political crimes. These had predetermined verdicts and created an extremely flawed justice system.
- 80% of Gestapo investigations based on informants.
- SS and concentration camps
- SA (esp. before Night of the Long Knives)
- “its opponents were organisationally weak because it is the essence of a fascist system that it does not allow its opponents to organise collectively.” -SOPADE, Jun. ‘34.
4
Q
Catholic Church Resistance
A
- Increased due to the sterilisation campaign. (specifically Galen)
- Galen publicly opposed Nazis since ‘34 yet remained bishop of Munster until ‘46.
- in ‘37 Pope Pius XI wrote an encyclical tilted ‘Mit brennender Sorge’ (My Burning Grief) despite also signing the concordat. This was drafted with the help of Galen.
- up to 1/2 of Catholic priests were harassed
- Catholic parents protested the removal of crucifixes from classrooms and succeeded in getting them returned.
5
Q
Confessional Church Resistance
A
- Broke away form the protestant church
- Believed Nazism to be incompatible with Christianity.
- e.g. Bonhoffer and Niemoller.
- in contact with Oster and Beck (Army)
- Bonhoffer was executed in ‘45 at Flossenburg concentration camp.
6
Q
Resistance from the Army- people
A
- General Ludwig Beck
- General Hans Oster
- Admiral Wilhelm Canaris
- Kreisau Circle (Colonel Von Stauffenberg)
7
Q
Resistance from the Army- Beck
A
- Became disillusioned with the regime after the Czechoslovakia crisis.
- Organised a simultaneous resignation of multiple high ranking Army members.
- Beck himself resigned, but others failed to do so as the Commander-in-chief of the Army still supported Hitler.
- Beck continued to organise a march on Berlin but this fell through due to Hitler’s success in seizing the Sudetenland.
- Shot in ‘44 after the July bomb plot.
8
Q
Resistance from the Army- Oster
A
- Disillusioned with the regime after the military deaths in the Night of Long Knives.
- In ‘38 advised Britain to stand up to Hitler and provided them with German Military Plans.
- In contact with trade unionists, socialists, and others encouraging dissent. (e.g Bonhoffer)
9
Q
Resistance from the Army- Canaris and the Abwehr
A
- opposed after seeing the Einsatzgruppen in Czechoslovakia.
- Helped Jewish People to emigrate, mainly through passing them off as Abwehr members.
- Executed in ‘45.
- Some suggest their most effective method of resistance was their disorganisation.
10
Q
Resistance from the Army- Kreisau Circle
A
- a group of around 25, not all army.
- Von Stauffenberg, a disabled Monarchist veteran, volunteered to bomb/ assassinate the top Nazis after witnessing SS ‘barbarities’ in the USSR.
- Postponed twice due to not everyone being present.
- Successfully detonated on July 20th 1944 at the Wolf’s Lair.
- 4 dead, Hitler only wounded.
- led to 2000 arrests and a further 5000 executions.
11
Q
Edelweiss Pirates
A
- 6 publicly executed due to involvement in the killing of two SS whilst on the run after helping Jewish people and POWs.
- other passive resistance.
12
Q
The White Rose
A
- Inspired by Galen, a group of Uni Students and their professor peacefully protested.
- eventually arrested and the Scholl siblings were both executed by guillotine.
- Sophie suffered an additional 17 hours torture.
13
Q
Humour
A
- usually told in private.
- still carried the death sentence but really depended on the circumstances/who you were.
- F. Hillenbrand suggests that some jokes were distributed by the Propaganda ministry to estimate how long it took for them to spread.
