Nazi Domestic Policies 1933-39

Question 1

During the 1920s how did women’s lives change in most European countries?

Answer 1

Women over 20 were given the vote
There were 20 female members of the Reichstag
Some women were now equally paid to men and they had more chances of employment
Women started to enjoy more social activities outside the family and had more freedom in the way they dressed

Question 2

What did the Nazis believe women should be like to be good mothers?

Answer 2

Healthy
Be good at cookery and needle work
Marry and enable their husbands to be useful workers
Have children and bring them up to be good Germans
Stay at home and concentrate on domestic matters, not work or politics

Question 3

What policies did Nazis have to make sure women were achieving what they wanted?

Answer 3

The German women’s enterprise was formed to arrange classes and radio broadcasts to teach good motherhood
Women were encouraged to leave work and concentrate on the 3 K’s - kinder, küche and kirche (children, kitchen and church)
Some professional women were forced to leave their jobs as doctors, lawyers or teachers

Question 4

What was the Law for the Encouragement of Marriage and when was it set up?

Answer 4

1933
Loans of 1000 marks (worth about nine months wages) were provided for young couples who marry as long as the wife left work. For each one of their first 4 children they could keep a quarter of the loan

Question 5

How did the Mother’s Cross encourage child birth in Nazi Germany?

Answer 5

Awards were given to women with lots of children
Bronze for four children
Silver for six children
Gold for eight or more children

Question 6

What was Lebensborn? And when did it start?

Answer 6

1935
It means the fountain of life and was set up by the SS leader - Himmler
At first the policy provided nurseries and financial aid for women who had children with SS men. Later it even made single women available for fertilisation by SS men. This was to create genetically pure children for adoption by worthy German families

Question 7

What was the Nazi policy towards workers?

Answer 7

They banned trade unions in 1933 meaning strikes couldn’t happen
Hitler set up the DAF (German Labour Front). Their aim was to ensure workers served the Nazi regime
It set out a new employment right for workers in factories, mines, munition plants and shipyards
They regulated working hours and rates of pay and had power to punish workers
It got rid of workers freedom but established a minimum working standard

Question 8

What was RAD and when was it set up?

Answer 8

1933
RAD is the national labour service and it provided manual work for the unemployed. Butler believed the unemployed probably supported communism and were his greatest rivals. From 1935 it was compulsory for all young men to serve six month in the RAD.
Rates of pay were low and provided very poor food. They mainly built public buildings and motorways. By 1939 Germany had 7000 miles worth of motorways

Question 9

When was hitlers four year plan for the economy set up?

Answer 9

1936

Question 10

What things were involved in hitlers Four Year Plan?

Answer 10

Spending on rearmament increased, in 1933 spending on arms was 3.5 billion marks but by 1939 it was 26 billion marks!!!
Production of iron and steel trebled from 1933-1939
Hitler wanted to be an autarky (self-sufficient) so Germans production of plastic increased by 460% in the 30’s
The Germany army was 100,000 in 1933 to 900,000 in 1939

Question 11

What were the benefits of hitlers actions to workers/unemployment/rearmament?

Answer 11

Reduced unemployment and political opposition to the Nazis. There were also social benefits like protecting workers rights and Germany was ready for war and family life improved as there was less unemployment
Unemployment fell from 4.8 million in 1933 to 0.5 million in 1938

Question 12

What were the disadvantages of hitlers four year plan to workers/unemployment/rearmament?

Answer 12

It was extremely expensive and employment was only achieved because women and Jews weren’t allowed work and lots of jobs were in the SS and the Gestapo

Question 13

What was the percentage rise in wages in 1934 compared to 1938

Answer 13

1934 - 6%

1938 - 20%

Question 14

What was the percentage increase of sales in 1934 compared to 1938?

Answer 14

1934 - 14%

1938 - 45%

Question 15

What was the SdA?

Answer 15

Beauty of Labour

It tried to ensure good standards at work for safety, cleanliness, lighting, noise levels, ventilation and hot meals

Question 16

What was KdF?

Answer 16

Strength through Joy
This provided leisure activities for workers, including sport facilities, films, outings and theatre shows
The most loyal workers could win impressive holidays

Question 17

Overall why was hitler more popular in 1933?

Answer 17

He improved living standards
SdA and KdF motivated workers
Wages increased
Sale numbers increased

Question 18

In what ways did living standards not improve?

Answer 18

Trade unions were banned so the average working hours in a week went from 43 hours to 49 hours
Many of the employed were in the army, not practical jobs
Food prices rose by 20% from 1933-1939 because the Nazis limited farm output
It was the Great Depression between 1929-1933 with extremely bad living standards so any improvements just meant it went back to normal

Question 19

What did rearmament do to Germany’s economy?

Answer 19

The government was spending more than its income from taxes so imports and exports were unbalanced
Imports started to rise much higher than exports
(Without the war Germany would have been in major debt and living standards would have fallen again)

Question 20

What happened to schools during Nazi Germany?

Answer 20

All children attended school until they were 14 and then it was voluntary. Boys and girls went to separate schools
Nazis added the subject Race Studies where they were taught about superior races like Aryans and inferior ones like Jews
Mein Kampf became a compulsory school text and PE was made 1/6 of school time
Domestic science was compulsory for girls (needle work and cookery)

Question 21

What was Pimpf (little fellows) and Jungvolk (hitler youth)?

Answer 21

The Nazi government ran youth movements including Pimpf where boys aged 6 went there and did hiking and camping
Aged 14 boys would join Jungvolk where they did military training like the SA

Question 22

What groups were set up for girls?

Answer 22

League of German Maidens to focus on training for health and motherhood

Question 23

How did some youth rebel against hitlers rules?

Answer 23

Joined rival groups who found simple ways to rebel like growing long hair or listening to modern swing music and their groups included mixed sexes
They also graffitied walls with anti-Nazi slogans
One group called Edelweiss Pirates had 2000 members by 1939

Question 24

Why was the anti-semitism in Germany?

Answer 24

Jews looked different because their customs and looks
Some Christians accused Jews of killing Christ
People looked for scapegoats - Germans blamed Jews for losing WW1

Question 25

What were hitlers views on inferior races?

Answer 25

He thought Slavs of Eastern Europe were inferior
He also thought the Untermenschen (sub humans) were inferior which included Africans, gypsies and Jews
He thought they were unworthy

Question 26

When Nazis came to power what were there first persecution to Jews?

Answer 26

April 1933- Nazi boycotts of Jewish businesses and Jews were banned from government jobs
Sept 1933- Jews were banned from inheriting land
May 1935 - Jews were banned from the army
June 1935 - Jews were banned from restaurants

Question 27

When were the Nuremberg laws set up?

Answer 27

15th September 1935

Question 28

What were the Nuremberg laws?

Answer 28

Persecution for Jews became a lot worse
The Reich Law on Citizenship said only those of German blood could be German citizens. Jews lost the right to vote, hold government office or have German passports
Jews were forbidden to marry German citizens
From April 1938 Jews had to register all their possessions so it was easier for the government to confiscate them
From July 1938 Jews had to carry an ID card stamped with a large J for Jew
Also Jewish doctors, dentists and lawyers were forbidden to work for white Aryan Germans

Question 29

What and when was Kristallnacht?

Answer 29

7th November 1938
A young Polish Jew went into the German embassy in Paris and randomly picked out a German and shot him because he was angry about how Germans treated his Jewish parents. This created a wave of anger throughout Germany and meant there was more violence towards Jews.
Hitler ordered that if Germans decided to take revenge on the Jews the government won’t do anything to prevent it
Gangs smashed up Jewish property and attacked Jews. 814 shops, 171 homes, 191 synagogues were destroyed and therefore it was called the Night of Broken Glass (Kristallnacht)

Question 30

What happened after Kristallnacht?

Answer 30

The Jews were fined 1 billion marks for the damage and were banned from running shops or businesses and banned from German schools or universities
20,000 Jews had been sent to concentration camps for punishment
From April 1939, Jews could now be evicted from rented homes and Germany occupied Poland in September 1939 so Jews were sent to ghettos which were fenced off areas that were overcrowded and little food

Question 31

How did hitler persecute other races like gypsies?

Answer 31

Gypsies were also arrested and sent to concentration camps
Marriage between Germans and gypsies was forbidden (1935)
In April 1939 many gypsies were deported

Question 32

How did Nazis treat homosexuals?

Answer 32

The laws against homosexuality strengthened in 1935, many were sent to concentration camps where 60% died there
These laws also encouraged voluntary castration of homosexuals

Question 33

How did Nazis treat the disabled?

Answer 33

They thought they weakened the German bloodline so Nazis said babies born with a disability should be allowed to die
From 1933 doctors could force people to be sterilised (become infertile) if they were physically or mentally disabled/alcoholics or had learning difficulties. 700,000 Germans were sterilised between 1934-1945
A secret official policy was started in 1939 where you could kill disabled children. By 1945 6000 disabled Germans had been killed by starvation or lethal injection