Consolidation under Adenauer und Erhard, 1949-65 - Restoring the civil service and government Flashcards
(9 cards)
What did many Germans feel Adenauer did regarding the civil service?
many felt espc. young Gs that in his rush to build a federal & regional civil service
= A let too many ex-Nazis into the gov
Why did Adenauer allow so many ex-Nazis into the gov?
in 1939 all gov workers had to join the Nazi party or lose their jobs
A & others argued that letting ex-Nazis work within the system was the only way to rapidly establish an effective civil service
What idea was used/when to allow ex-Nazis to work in the gov?
idea of 1945 as ‘year zero’ and no questions asked was born
- same argument applied to the judiciary
What article was added to the Basic Law that furthered the idea of year zero? + when?
11 May 1951 - Article 131 added to the Basic Law
= officially allowed ex-Nazis to work in the civil service
What did many say about Article 131?
felt it went too far and hinted at Nazi sympathies in the CDU
What/when found ex-Nazis in the gov?
1952 Bundestag report named 4 ex-Nazis working in the foreign ministry
- said could damage FRG’s reputation abroad
What party w what Nazi links won enough seats to be part of the coalition government?
1953 - the League of Expellees party (BHE, led by ex-SS officer Waldemar Kraft)
When did the League of Expellees party break up? + what happened to its members?
broke up in 1954 & many of its own members joined the CDU
When/where else did the FRG struggle with the problem of ex-Nazis?
1955 - when FRG began to establish its own army
- faced similar problems & solved in the same way of accepting ex-Nazis
