Stuff im shaky on Flashcards
(17 cards)
Impact on German people under Nazi rule?
Economic changes: 1. 1933 - Hjalmar Schacht appointed minister of economics - signed deals with countries in SA and south east europe to import more raw materials into germany - more weapons built - unemployment fell - replaced by Hermann Goering in 1938 - introduced 4 year plan to make Germany self sufficient - priority increase military production - more jobs in industrial workplaces - unemployment fell - schemes made to get people into work - RAD - all men 18-25 to spend 6 months in RAD - planted trees, mended hedges, etc. lived in small camps - free meals, small wage - public work schemes - construction of autobhans, schools, hospitals - work to 100,000 workers - rearmament of Germany gave work to millions - conscription in 1935 - army grew from 100,000 to 1.4m
Social policies: public work schemes - KdF - rewarded labourers with cheap holidays, leisure activities - SdA - better facilities e.g. lighting and cleaner rooms - young people indoctrinated - Hitler youth July 1926 - League of German maidens - Nuremberg laws for Jews - banned from public spaces in 1934 and professions in 1936 - Women to stick to 3 K’s - stay at home and have kids
Reasons for growth of Nazi party?
LONG TERM CAUSES: Germans felt “stabbed in the back” by government - Dolchstoss myth - November Criminals - article 231 humilated Germany - reparations crippled economy - loss of territories (Alsace-lorraine) - military restrictions weakened national pride
ECONOMIC CAUSES: Hyperinflation crisis - 1923- economic chaos - distrust in democracy - Great Depression 1929 - result of wallstreet crash - USA recalled loans, german businesses collapsed - 6 million unemployed by 1932 - unemployment benefits cut- people drawn to extremist parties - starvation, poverty - failure of Weimar politicians to act -Brüning’s austerity policies made depression worse - frequent use of article 48 - government appears weak- Bruning economic failures - Hitler gain popularity
POLITICAL INSTABILITY/ WEIMAR GOVERNMENT - Germans unhappy with Weimar Government - couldn’t agree how to help unemployed/ get economy out of depression - more and more jobless people forced into poverty - discontent with Governmen’t perceived inaction grew- Proportional representation - unstable coalition governments - democratic system of Weimar Germant not working - people drawn toward Nazis
NAZI PARTY STRENGTHS: Hitler- charisma and leadership - promised to restore greatness to Germany - “Make Germany great again” message resonated - promised “Work, freedom and bread” - Middle and upper class Germans afraid of communists- afriad they would lose wealth - Russian communist revolution of 1917 - supported Hitler who promised to fight the communists- use of propoganda - Joseph Goebbels: posters, mass rallies, radio, newspapers - used intimidation and violece against political rivals
In what ways were the lives of the German people affected by the Nazi police state?
- used fear, surveillance, propaganda, and repression
LAW AND ORDER: SS - set up 1925 - originally Hitlers private bodyguard - Expanded into powerful organisation running the police - led by Heinrich Himmler - SD - scurity service - intelligence agency of the SS - spied on enemies of the state- led by Reinhard Heydrich -Einsatzgruppen, SS death squads that massacred Jews in Eastern Europe - also led by Reinhard Heydrich - known for brutality - loyaltay to Hitler - Gestapo - secret state police - spied on people - power to arrest, imprison without trial, torture - tapped phones, opened mail - set up network of informers who would report back what they heard - founded by Goring, run by Himmler - concentration camps - prisons for enemy of the state labour, torture and later extermination - legal system controlled - judges swore loyalty to Hitler - police ignored crimes comitted by Nazis
CONTROL OF INFORMATION AND PROPOGANDA: censorship - newspapers, books, art, films - censored - anti Nazi material banned and destroyed - listening to foreign radio illegal - Goebbels glorified war - Hitler was Germany’s saviour - indoctrination shaped attitudes - fear of expressing personal opinions
IMPACTS ON GROUPS OF PEOPLE: Jews targeted by Nuremberg laws, Kristallnacht 1938, extermination, killed by Einsatzgruppen - political opponents in concentration camps - opposition parties banned in 1933 - Nazi and church agreements often broken e.g. Reichskonkordat - pastors who resisted e.g. Niemöller, Bonhoeffer - arrested and executed - Women to follow the 3Ks - Hitler youth
To what extent did the Weimar republic recover after 1923?
ISSUE 1: HYPERINFLATION - stopped printing old paper money - introduced rentenmark - temporary exchange currency - replaced by Reichmark in 1924 - stable currency - lasted 25 years - Germans accepted new currency - hyperinflation ended - people blamed Stresemann for not getting savings back
ISSUE 2: OCCUPATION OF RUHR: Dawes plan - 800 million gold marks - Germany could restart repartation payments - French and Belgian troops left the Ruhr - some Germans felt Stresemann gave into bullying tactics - shoul have demanded end to reparations altogether - Young plan as well
ISSUE 3: POWER - worked hard to improve relations - signed locarno pact 1925 - admitted into LON in 1926 - kellogg-briand pact - outlawed war - Germany regained international status - Right wing criticised Stresemann for not demanding lang back
FULLY RECOVERED - still many extremist parties - coalitions made - farmers and middle classes struggling - prosperity created by American loans
How did Hitler begin to eliminate his political opposition?
- New election for March 1933 - chancelor - influence over newspaper and radio stations - controlled police to intimidate voters
- Reichstag burned down in feb 1933 - communist Marinus V.D. Lubbe blamed - communists blamed - Hitler promised to protect against communism
- Hindenburg allowed Hitler to pass emergency protection law - scared of communist plot- gave Hitler power
- New decree - protection of the people and state - banned leading communists taking part in election - 4,000 communists imprisoned - Nazis got lots more votes
- Convinced Centre party to join with Nazis - now had majority - passed enabling act
- April 1933 - gestapo formed, concentration camp opened in Dachau
- May 1933 trade unions banned - workers could no longer complain about pay and conditions
- July 1933 - political parties banned - “Law against formation of new parties” - no one could set up new parties - Germany now one party state
- August 1934 - all oposition had been killed in NOLN - made army swear oath of loyalty when Hinderberg died
How were arts and culture of Germanty affected by Nazi rule?
- Chamber of culture - only people part of this organisation could work - had to send message that Nazi beliefs and ideas were correct
- Cinema - Nazis had direct influence over which films were made - Goebbels read all film scripts - all films had to carry pro-nazi message - German soldiers heroes- Jews nasty - news report of Hitlers achievements shown before every film
- Music - Goebbels - music only German or Austrian - marching music, classical - Bach, Mozart popular - Jewis composers banned - Jazz banned due to relations to black people
- Theatre - Threepenny opera banned immediately - made by a jew and had jazz music - plays focus on German history and politics - shut cabaret clubs down
- Literature - Mein kampf best selling book - list of banned books - Jewish authors or un-german - encouraged books about race, glory of war and Nazis - All quiet on western front banned - 2500 writers left Germany
- Art - Otto Dix and George Grosz popular - modern art degenerate - nazis public burned 5000 paintings in 1936 - images of Hiter, happy German families
- Deisgn - Hitler closed down Bahaus movement 1933 - huge stone structures favoured
What was Germanys golden age like?
- 1920s called golden age - creativity and innovation - experimentation
1. Cinema - very popular - metropolis most technically advanced film of decade - Marlene Dietrich worldwide star
2. Nightlife - Threepenny opera box office smash - germany centre for arts - berlin famous for nightclubs and american jazz
3. Literature - writing big business - 120 newspapers and magazines to choose from - All quiet on the western front - sold 500,000 copies in 3 months
4. Art - avant-garde artists - Otto Dix painted criticsms and reality - designed to evoke thought
5. Design - Bauhaus project - modern, simple designs - not elaborate
REACTIONS - ambivalence - some Germans embraced, some hated - wished for traditional values of Germany and thought new era was leading Germany into moral decline - Nazis viewed Berlin as corrupt and sex-obsessed - when hitler came to power many weimar artists fled
in which ways were the lives of German people affected by the depression?
ECONOMIC IMPACT - american loans recalled - german economy crippled - massive fall in production - factories closed - unemployment rose to 6 million by 1932 - banks collapsed - savings and trust wiped out - many went bankrupt - lost land
SOCIAL IMPACT - widsespread despair - increase in malnutrition and disease - suicide rates increased - lost faith in weimar government - rise in streem crime and homelesness - loss of pride and dignity
POLITICAL IMPACT: Weimar politicians seen as weak - failure to take action - repetitive use of article 48 undermined democracy - Bruning austerity policies worsened situation - cut spending/raised taxes - “The hunger chancellor” - unemployment rose - more and more jobless people forced into poverty - discontent with Governmen’t perceived inaction grew
GROWTH OF EXTREMISIM - people increasingly drawn to policies of extremists - 1930 election Nazis from 12 to 107 seats - street violence between SA and street front - blamed Jews - promised to make germany great again
IMPACTS ON SPECIFIC GROUPS - working class - job losses - wage cuts - dependent on welfare - cut due to austerity - turned to extremists - middle class lost savings in bank - businesses went bankrupt - elderly lost pensions and savings
How did Germany become a dictatorship? His actions
REICHSTAG FIRE
- Reichstag building burned down - 1 week before voting day - 27th Feb 1933
- Dutch communist Marinus Van Der Lubbe blamed for fire - Hiter blamed fire on communist plot
- 4,000 communist arrested on day of fire
- Hitler used fire to force Hindenburg - pass Emergency protection law
- New decree - protection of the people and state - banned leading communists taking part in election - 4,000 communists imprisoned - Nazis got lots more votes
MARCH 1933 ELECTION
- Convinced Centre party to join with Nazis - now had majority - passed enabling act - gave him power for next 4 years to make laws without consent of Reichstag
ELIMINATION OF POLITICAL OPPOSITION
- April 1933 Nazis put in charge of Local government, councils, police - Gestapo formed - Dachau opened - may 1933 all trade unions banned - July 1933 all rival parties banned - formation of new parties banned - Germany now one party state - ceased to be democracy
NIGHT OF LONG KNIVES
- Still had rivals for power - wanted to remove them - greatest threat Ernst Rohm - leader of SA (2 million men) - had protected Hitler - helped Hitler secure power - Rohm wanted to merge army with SA and control them
- 30th June 1934 - SS stormed hotel where Rohm + other SA leaders staying - arrest and later shot
- over next few days - 400 political opponents executed including Von Schliecher
- did not hide his actions - established murder as method in new Nazi government
In what ways were the lives of German people affected by events during the early Weimar Republic?
TOV
- Germans angry and humiliated after signing of TOV in June 1919 - felt they had been betrayed by politicians
- 13% of land lost including factories, farmlands, mines - 6m people - significantly weaker armed forces - loss of pride - massive reparations
- INVASION OF RUHR
- germans affected by occupations of Ruhr (60,000 Belgian/French soldiers) - industrial heartland of Germany - failed to make reparations - soldiers took food/goods from shops and arrested people - responded through passive resistance - 150,000 evictions of workers/police
HYPERINFLATION
- more money printed to pay reparation debts - massive devaluation of currency - bread loaf rose from 2 marks in 1919 to 200 million marks by 1923 - middle class bank savings whiped out - elderly people lost pensions - aristocrats benefited - most wealth invested into property - wealthy Jews had money in overseas accounts
POLITICAL UNREST
- germany was a democracy - violence between warring parties - between 1919 and 1922 over 350 political murders
- Kapp putsch led by wolfgang kapp 1920 - right wing uprising led by Wolfgang Kapp - took control of Berlin - supported by Freikorps - Kapp couldnt control Berlin workers on strike - fled after only 100 hours
- after Kapp Putsch - some left-wing workers stayed onstrike - took control of several towns - red rising - soldiers sent to stop rebellion - 1000 killed
- Munich Putsch - November 1923 - Hitler and nazis tried to sieze control of bavarian government - marched through Germany with 2000 supporters - stopped by armed police
How did Germany become a dictatorship? Germany’s problems
- due to lasting negative impacts of WW1 and depression - unemployment in Germany risen to over 6 million in 1933
- many people jobless and forced into poverty - level of discontent with Governments perceived incaction grew
- germany was a democracy - violence between warring parties
- weimars democratic system of proportional representation - difficult to make decisions - many political parties all different views - parties rarely won majority - coalitions made - ineffective - watered down compromises
- democratic system wasnt working - change was needed
Impact of war?
RATIONING
- Supplies needed for soldiers - food shortages
- By november 1939 - food and clothign rationed - people limited to one egg per week - good like soap/toilet paper very short supply - hot water rationed to two days per week
TOTAL WAR
- 1942 - Albert Speer made armaments minister - organised country for total war
- everything focused on making weapons - growing food for soldiers - anything that didnt contribute to war effort stopped - beer and dance halls closed - sweet shops closed - letter boxes boarded up - factories open 24/7
LABOUR SHORTAGES
- women drafted in to work in factories - men fighting - 1944 - 7 million foreign workers brought in to work as slave labour in factories - came from Germman empire
BOMBING
- From 1942 allies began bombing German cities - no electricity, water or transport - thousands lost homes - thousands more migrated to find safety as refugees
Why did some christians support the Nazis?
- Hitler swore to destroy communism - appealed to Christians as communism was anti-religious
- Hitler promised to respect the church
- Nazis believed in important of marriage, family and moral values - so did Christians
General Nazi Attitude to Religion?
- Nazis - create unified national community (Volksgemeinschaft) - loyalty to Hitler more important than religion
- Religion was seen as rival to Nazi – especially Christianity - moral teachings that conflicted with Nazi ideology
- Nazis wanted to control/eliminate religion that posed a threat to their power
Christianity in Nazi Germany?
- In 1933 most Germans were Christian - 2/3 Protestant - 1/3 Catholic.
- Concordat (1933) between the Nazis and the Catholic Church:
- The Church agreed to stay out of politics.
- Nazis promised to respect Catholic independence.
- Hitler quickly broke it - persecuting Catholic groups and shutting schools
Protestant and Catholic Churches?
- some Protestants supported the Nazis and formed the Reich Church, led by pro-Nazi bishop Ludwig Müller
- Nazis wanted “Nazified” version of Christianity - removed Old Testament and portrayed Jesus as Aryan
- 1933 Concordat - Hitler broke it (Catholics)
Religious Resistance to the Nazis
- August 1941 - Archbishop Galen - openly critisised Nazi euthanasia programme (Aktion T4) - placed under house arrest
- 1973 Pope issued “With Burning Anxiety” statement - nazis were “hostile to Christ and his Church”
- Confessing Church formed 1934 in opposition to the Reich Church - Led by Pastor Martin Niemöller
- Jehovah’s Witnesses refused to swear allegiance to Hitler, serve in the army, or say “Heil Hitler”
