Germany - 3.3.3 Opposition to the Nazis

Question 1

Why was there very little open opposition to the Nazi regime? (3)

Answer 1

• People were too afraid of the SS, Gestapo and informers to risk it.
• Opposition groups were banned so it was difficult to join up with others who opposed the regime.
• There was some genuine support for Hitler and his policies.

Question 2

Opposition from the Edelweiss Pirates and the Swing Youth from 1933 to 1939 was ________ not political.

Answer 2

cultural

Question 3

What were the Edelweiss Pirates a group of?

Answer 3

Youths in the Rhineland

Question 4

What type of background did the Edelweiss Pirates come from?

Answer 4

They were mainly from working class backgrounds

Question 5

Where were the Edelweiss Pirates based in?

Answer 5

They were mainly based in working-class districts of large cities

Question 6

When were the Edelweiss Pirates formed and why?

Answer 6

They were formed in the late 1930s, possibly as a consequence of Nazi policies enforcing Hitler Youth membership

Question 7

What symbol did the Edelweiss Pirates have?

Answer 7

The Alpine flower

Question 8

What type of clothing did the Edelweiss Pirates wear?

Answer 8

American style of clothing (checkered shirts and white socks).

Question 9

What did the Edelweiss Pirates sing? (2)

Answer 9

• ‘Smash the Hitler Youth in twain, our song is freedom, love and life’
• Popular songs from before the Nazi regime

Question 10

By 1939, how many members did the Edelweiss Pirates have?

Answer 10

2,000

Question 11

What did the Edelweiss Pirates write?

Answer 11

Anti-Nazi slogans in graffiti

Question 12

What did the Edelweiss Pirates do? (6)

Answer 12

• Copy an American style of clothing (checkered shirts and white socks).
• They sang popular songs from before the Nazi regime and they sang “Smash the Hitler Youth in twain, our song is freedom, love and life”.
• They went on hikes and camping expeditions in the countryside to get away from Nazi restrictions.
• They taunted the Hitler Youth.
• They read and listened to banned music and literature.
• They wrote anti-Nazi graffiti.

Question 13

What did The Swing Youth do? (3)

Answer 13

• They embraced the ‘degenerate’ culture of the Weimar Republic and rejected Nazi values.
• Influenced by America, they listened to American music, watched American films and drank and smoke.
• They organised illegal dances attended by thousands.

Question 14

How were the Edelweiss Pirates and the Swing Youth different?

Answer 14

The Edelweiss Pirates mainly came from lower class backgrounds whilst the Swing Youth came from wealthy backgrounds as their families would have record players.

Question 15

What did the Edelweiss Pirates do during the Second World War? (3)

Answer 15

• Spread Allied propaganda leaflets.
• Gave shelter to army deserters.
• Attacked members of the Hitler Youth and some Nazi officials - in 1944 they killed the head of the Cologne Gestapo.

Question 16

How did the Nazis ‘clamp down’ on the Edelweiss Pirates in 1942 and 1944?

Answer 16

• In 1942, 700 members were arrested.
• In 1944, 12 were publicly hanged in Cologne to send a message.

Question 17

What happened to the Swing Youth during the war?

Answer 17

They gained more members

Question 18

What did the Nazis do to the Swing Youth during the War?

Answer 18

They sent anyone they caught listening to jazz to concentration camps.

Question 19

What was the White Rose Group? (4)

Answer 19

This group was set up at Munich University by Hans and Sophie Scholl and Kurt Huber.
- The white rose was a symbol of justice; the group was non-violent.
- Hans had seen the murders of Jews and other non-Aryans on the Eastern Front.
- The White Rose Group published anti-Nazi leaflets and graffiti exposing the atrocities the Nazis were committing.
- All three leaders (plus other members) were eventually caught and executed.

Question 20

What was the July Plot, 1944?

Answer 20

• Appalled by his experiences on the Eastern Front, Count Stauffenberg devised ‘Operation Valkyrie’. This was a plot to assassinate Hitler, using a bomb in a briefcase.
• At a military conference in East Prussia on 20th July 1944, Stauffenberg tried to blow up Hitler. The bomb exploded, but Hitler was only injured. Stauffenberg, along with 5,746 others were executed for his role. This highlights the deep opposition to Hitler from within the army towards the end of the war.
• This seriously worried Nazi leaders so the army was brought under the control of the SS, which did reduce open opposition.

Question 21

How effectively was opposition dealt with 1939-45? (2)

Answer 21

• Any resistance or opposition to the Nazi regime during the war years was taken more seriously and therefore dealt with more harshly. For example, more members of Swing Youth who were caught listening to jazz and wearing inappropriate clothes were sent to concentration camps.
• Opposition within the army was the first genuine threat to Nazi rule and again, those discovered plotting against the regime were killed as a warning to others.

Question 22

What was the Rosenstrasse Protest? (4)

Answer 22

• The Rosenstrasse protest happened in Berlin.
• “Aryan” women whose Jewish husbands had been arrested by the German police protested where they were being held.
• The men were released after a few days to minimise the attention that the protests received.
• This is a rare successful protest against Nazi social policy.

Question 23

How many Germans supported the Nazis?

Answer 23

Most

Question 24

What is an example of passive resistance towards the Nazis?

Answer 24

Telling an Anti-Nazi joke