Hitler's aims and results of policies Flashcards
(19 cards)
Hitler’s aims regarding domestic policies
Aims:
Racial Purity:
Hitler aimed to create a racially pure Germany by eliminating those deemed inferior, such as Jews, Roma, disabled individuals, and homosexuals. This was achieved through laws like the Nuremberg Laws (1935), which stripped Jews of their citizenship and prohibited marriage between Jews and non-Jews.
Totalitarian Control: He sought to establish absolute control over all aspects of German life through the coordination of institutions and suppression of dissent. This included the abolition of federalism and the centralization of power.
The Nuremberg Laws
-Enacted in 1935
-They were a series of racial laws that significantly impacted and stripped the rights and status of Jews and other minority groups in Germany.
Law for the Protection of German Blood and German Honour
This law prohibited marriages and extramarital intercourse between Jews and Germans.
Reich Citizenship Law
This law defined citizenship based on racial criteria, stating that only those of “German or kindred blood” were eligible to be Reich citizens. Jews were classified as state subjects without citizenship rights.
Impacts of domestic policies
Persecution and Genocide: The Holocaust resulted in the systematic murder of approximately six million Jews and millions of others deemed undesirable. This was facilitated by the establishment of concentration camps like Auschwitz and Treblinka.
Police State: The establishment of a police state ensured that opposition was swiftly suppressed, creating a climate of fear. The Gestapo and the SS were instrumental in enforcing this control.
Hitler’s aims regarding economic policies
Autarky: Hitler aimed to achieve economic self-sufficiency through rearmament and the development of synthetic substitutes for raw materials. This included the Four Year Plan (1936-1940), which focused on military production and strategic resource development to be ready for war by 1940.
Economic Recovery: He sought to reduce unemployment and stimulate economic growth. The Nazi regime implemented large-scale infrastructure projects, public work schemes such as the construction of the autobahn, to create jobs.
German Labour Front
-Established in 1933.
-Under the leadership of Robert Ley, and it became the sole labor organization in Nazi Germany.
-Included both employers and workers but was primarily used to promote Nazi ideology and control labor conditions.
-Abolished collective bargaining and the right to strike, and wages and working conditions were set by Nazi officials
Beauty of Labour and Strength through Joy
-Designed to improve working conditions and provide leisure activities for workers while promoting Nazi ideology.
-However, these initiatives were often used as propaganda tools to support the regime’s agenda rather than genuinely improving workers’ lives
Impacts of economic policies
Rapid Economic Recovery: Unemployment was significantly reduced from over six million in 1933 to virtually zero by 1938. However, this was achieved at the cost of a militarized economy, which prioritized war preparation over consumer goods.
War Preparation: The economy was geared towards war, leading to significant military expansion and eventual conflict. This included the remilitarization of the Rhineland in 1936 and the annexation of Austria in 1938.
Hitler’s aims regarding political policies
Totalitarianism: Hitler aimed to consolidate power and eliminate opposition by establishing a one-party state. The Enabling Act of 1933 gave him dictatorial powers.
Expansionism: He sought to expand Germany’s territory through military conquest, based on the ideology of Lebensraum (living space).
Impacts of political policies
End of Democracy: The Nazi regime abolished democratic institutions, establishing a dictatorship. Opposition parties were banned, and dissent was suppressed. Effectively dismantled the constitutional republic of the Weimar government..
Aggressive Expansion: Germany’s aggressive foreign policy led to the invasion of neighboring countries, including the annexation of Austria (Anschluss) in 1938 and the invasion of Poland in 1939, which triggered World War II.
Hitler’s aims regarding cultural policies
Promotion of Aryan Culture: Hitler sought to elevate German culture as superior to all others, emphasizing Germanic traditions, history, and achievements. This involved the censorship and removal of art, literature, and music deemed “degenerate” or incompatible with Nazi ideology.
Control of Media and Arts: The regime controlled media and arts, suppressing dissenting voices and promoting a narrow, state-approved cultural narrative.
Hitler Youth
-Focused on training boys to be soldiers and promoting physical fitness, military discipline, and loyalty to Hitler.
-Prepared for eventual service in the German Armed Forces and therefore promoted militaristic training and ideological indoctrination
League of German Girls
-Emphasised domestic roles and racial purity
-Prepared young German girls for motherhood and a home economic-centered curriculum.
-How to be a good wife, mother and care for the family
-KKK (Kinder, Küche, Kirche) –> Children, Kitchen, Church.
-The Nazis didn’t discriminate women from society but rather envisioned a different more conservative role for them.
Hitler’s aims regarding social policies
Racial Purity: Central to Nazi ideology was the concept of racial purity. Policies aimed to eliminate or segregate groups considered Untermensch “subhuman,” including Jews, Romani people, disabled individuals, and others deemed “unfit”.
Social Conservatism: The Nazis promoted a socially conservative agenda, discouraging behaviors such as premarital sex, prostitution, and homosexuality. They aimed to restore traditional family values, with women primarily serving as homemakers and educators of children.
Results of these social policies
Persecution of Minorities: The Nazis systematically persecuted Jews, Romani people, disabled individuals, homosexuals, and other minority groups. This included forced sterilization, concentration camps, and mass killings.
Social Repression: The strict enforcement of social norms led to a repressive society where non-conformity was severely punished. This included the prosecution of sexual “deviations” and the enforcement of traditional gender roles.
Family and Population Policies: The regime implemented policies to encourage large families among “Aryan” Germans, such as financial incentives for having children. Conversely, they discouraged or forcibly prevented reproduction among “undesirable” groups.
Impact of Hitler’s policies on women
Restrictions on Employment and Education:
Women were discouraged from working outside the home and were barred from many professions. They were also discouraged from pursuing higher education, with schools focusing on training girls to be homemakers.
Traditional Roles and Appearance: Women were expected to adhere to traditional roles and appearances, emphasizing domesticity and childbearing.
Incentives for Childbearing: The regime offered financial incentives for women to have children, such as loans and medals for mothers with multiple children.
Limited Political Participation: Women were largely excluded from political roles.
Impact of Hitler’s policies on minorities
Persecution and Discrimination: The Nazis systematically persecuted Jews, Romani people, disabled individuals, homosexuals, and other minorities. This included legal discrimination, forced sterilization, and eventual mass killings.
Racial Hierarchy: The regime promoted a racial hierarchy with Aryans at the top, viewing other groups as inferior. This ideology justified the persecution and marginalization of minorities.
Forced Labor and Concentration Camps: Many minorities were forced into labor camps or concentration camps, where conditions were harsh and often fatal.
Eugenics and Racial Hygiene: Policies aimed to eliminate “undesirable” traits through forced sterilization and euthanasia programs, particularly targeting people with disabilities.
To what extent did Hitler achieve authoritarian control
Legal manipulation and control:
-Enabling Act (1933)
-Abolition of Democracy (1933)
-Gleichschaltung (1933)
Propaganda and Ideological control:
-Cult of Personality
-Media and Cultural Control
Terror and Repression:
-Police state (SS, Gestapo)
-Special Courts (political opponents)
Elimination of Opposition:
Purges and Assassinations:
-Night of the Long Knives in 1934
-Persecution of Minorities: The regime systematically persecuted Jews and other minorities,
