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What were the strengths and weaknesses of the Weimar Government?
Strengths:
Elections occurred every four years.
Every German over 20 could vote.
Bill of Rights
Weaknesses
Proportional Representation
Article 48
What Problems Did Weimar face in 1923?
French occupation of the Ruhr
Hyper Inflation
Munich Putsch
How did Stresseman solve the 1923 problems?
called off ‘passive resistance’ at the Ruhr.
Dawes Plan
Retenmark
Young plan
Two million houses
Through what was Germany able to rejoin the international community?
Locarno Treaty
League of Nations
Kellog-Briand Pact
What were the signs that Germany had recovered economically?
By 1928, industrial production levels were higher than that in 1913
From 1925-1929 exports increased by 40%
Hourly wages rose every year from 1924 to 1929
What demonstrated that Germany had not economically recovered by 1930?
Agricultural production never recovered to pre-war levels
Germany spent more on imports than gained from exports- lost money
Unemployment did not fall below 1.3 million
Germany became dependant on loans from the USA
What were 7 exemplar points of the 25 point Nazi plan?
creation of a strong central government
union of all Germans
Get rid of TOV
Everyone should have a job.
remilitarise
only German races may be members of the nation
lebensraum (expand German land)
What was the Munich Putsch (1923)?
A violent uprising to overthrow Weimar republic and end up establishing Nazi state.
14 dead Nazis and Hitler in prison
Took until 1928 for Nazis to beign gaining support.
What were consequences of the Munich Putsch (1923)?
Hitler and Rohm were put on trial for treason
Hitler was sentenced to 5 years in prison
Nazi party was banned
In prison, Hitler wrote Mein Kampf, full of political ideas, which became the basis for the future Nazi party.
Hitler realised he needed a new democratic strategy.
The ban on the NSDP party was lifted in 1925
Why did the Nazis fail to gain support in the 1920s?
Under Stresseman, Germans were economically better off (and he had improved Germany’s international standing) and so did not feel the need to turn to extremist parties.
War hero Hindenburg became president of Weimar, who was well respected and so support increased.
Struggled to gain support from the working class when economy was doing well.
Hitler was jailed and banned from publicly speaking until 1927.
The Nazi part were banned several times nationally or in certain parts of Germany after the Munich Putsch.
What was the Great Depression’s economical impact on Germany?
US Banks lost millions of dollars which spread depression to Germany
US stopped lending Germany money and demanded loans be repaid.
What was the Great Depression’s impact on German buissness?
Industrial production dropped 40% by 1932.
Wages dropped by 14% by 1932.
Buisnessmen lost money and had to fire workers, close their companies and even declare bankruptcy.
What was the Great Depression’s impact on German people?
led to mass unemployment, 6 million by 1932 were unemployed
farmers, middle class and lost their savings
buisnesses became bankrupt
taxes were increased and benefits slashed so Germans suffered terrible poverty.
What was the Great Depression’s political impact?
government refused to print more money
chancellor Bruning decided to cut unemployment benefits and raise taxes
no solutions were discussed
How did the Great Depression help the Nazis?
depression caused more hatred to Weimar Republic
led to more people voting for extremist parties
nazis promised to fix the economies and opened soup kitchens. promised bread and work to all workers
Why did the Nazi’s gain support owing to communism?
By 1932, communist party had 100 members in parliament
this frightened upper and middle classes, and therefore gave Nazis support and money.
What were the later weaknesses of the Weimar Republic?
Many people never forgave them for the loss of WW1
Disliked for accepting the Treaty of Versailles and failing to fix the depression.
between 1919-1933, there were 20 coallition governments, which constantly fell out, causing Hindenburg to have to use Article 48 to pass every law.
How did the Nazis use propaganda to gain more votes?
Geobbles used film, radio, loudspeakers, posters and leaflets to garner support.
Nazis owned 140 newspapers
Messages kept short and simple (‘one people, one nation, one leader’)
Targeted workers, farmers and buisiness men
message was unity
scapegoated the Jews
How did the Nazis use the SA?
intimidated opposition by turning up at their meetings and attacking them
What promises did Hitler make?
restore law and order
abolish TOV
fix depression
big buisness promised protection against communism
working class promised ‘work and bread’ and return to traditional values
farmers promised protection from communism and land from Jews
What was the role of Hitler?
portrayed as strong descicive leader
great orator
german propaganda called him ‘our last hope’
in 1932 presidential election recieved 30% of votes.
How many seats do Nazis gain in Reichstag in 1933?
233
How does Hitler become chancellor?
in may 1932, Bruning resigns from role so Hindenburg makes Von Papen chancellor
In july 1932, nazis get majority vote (38%) however Hindenburg refuses to make Hitler chancellor as he hates him.
In novemeber 1932, von papen looses support and quits as chancellor
in december 1932, Schleicher is persuaded to become chancellor, but he has no power or support in the Reichstag. von papen convinces hindenburg to fire scheiler, who wants to use the army to take power. von papen and hindenburg think they can control Hitler if they make him chancellor.
On 30th January 1933, Hitler is appointed chancellor.
What occured at the Reichstag fire and how did Hitler gain power from this (1933)?
On Februrary 27th, the Reichstag was set on fire by Van Der Lubbe, a dutch communist. With this, Hitler persuaded Hindenburg to pass an emergency law enabling arrest without question. He imprisoned 4,000 communist leaders, which stopped them campaigning during the election. This gave the Nazis enough seats to pass the enabling act.
What was the enabling act and how did it help Hitler (1933)?
Reichstag voted by two thirds to give Hitler the right to make laws without the Reichstag’s approval for 4 years. This removes democracy in Germany.
What happened in July 1933?
All parties other than the Nazi party were banned.
What was the Night of Long Knives (1934), and how did it help Hitler gain power?
Members of the SA, and its leader Röhm demanded the Nazis carry out their social agenda and make SA the leader of the army. Hitler could not afford to anger buisnessmen or the army and so the SS murdered around 400 members of the SA including Röhm. This destroyed all oppostion to Hitler in the Nazi party.
What happened on the 19th of August 1934 and how did this help Hitler gain power?
Hindenberg died, leaving Hitler to be the Fürher. Members of armed forces had to swear allegiance to Hitler now. This removed opposition to Hitler within the army.
What other actions consolidated Hitler’s power by 1934?
trade unions were abolished, and their leaders arrested.
Gestapo (secret police) set up in 1933, garnered terror amongst the German population and enabled Nazis to effectively carry out policies against Jews.
Hitler abolished local governments and replaced them with a governor (Gaulieter) who directly served Hitler.
who were the Gestapo and what did they do?
secret police, most feared organisation
used any methods necessary (torture, phone tapping, etc.)
no uniforms
160,000 arrested for political crimes
established 1933
Who were the SS?
led by Himmler
initially personal bodyguards
intelligence, security, police force of 240,000 Aryans
ran concentration camps
nicknamed ‘black shirts’
had unlimited power
black shirts
Who were the SD?
Security force under Heydrich to monitor Nazi opponents, kept files.
How did the Nazi’s control the legal system?
Enabling Act
defence lawyers weakened
‘people’s court’ used Nazi judges who swore an oath of loyalty to Hitler
Over 44 crimes punishable by death.
Where was the first concentration camp set up?
In Dachau in 1933, run by SS
How many Germans were in the camps by 1939?
150,000
Who was in control of propaganda and what was it focused on?
Goebbles
the greatness of germany / the fuhrer cult / the aryan race / attacking germany’s enemies / increasing nazi support
How did the Nazi’s spread propaganda by film?
audiences of 250 million
all films included 45-minute newsreel whilst Geobbles oversaw every film produced, 13000 films total.
films directly attacking Jews- ‘The Eternal Jew’
How did the Nazi’s control propaganda by newspapers?
journalists were told what to write
anti-nazi papers shutdown
no free press
How did the Nazis’ deliver propaganda by radio?
Reich radio company controlled all stations
70% of Nazi households had a radio
foreign radio was banned
hitler’s speeches were radio shows
loudspeakers were put up in streets so all could listen to announcements.
How did the Nazis’ deliver propaganda with the olympics?
berlin hosted in 1936- attempting to showcase the supremacy of the Aryan Race
victories of African-American athlete Jesse Owens infuriated Nazi leadership
How did the charisma of Hitler aid propaganda?
‘Führer cult’ developed: Hitler was superman + man of the people (WW1 veteran)
Ideal for Germans to idolise and follow their leader- like a God: ‘Heil Hitler’
What is Volksgemeinshaft (definition)
Nazis would create one German community that would make religion & social class less relevant
What were the problems with the German economy?
mass unemployment (6 million)
economic depression ruined trade, business and production
What was the New plan (1933)?
Schacht introduced ‘New Plan’ to solve unemployment
How did the Nazis’ reduce unemployment?
rearmament
National Labour Service (RAD)- all men. 18-25 had to join RAD for six months (many complaints)
programme of public works (building of 1936 OLYMPIC STADIUM) creating work for 80,000 men
removing Untermensch from jobs and replacing with Aryans
How did the Nazis’ support and encourage their workers?
The Labour Front (DAF) - replaced Trade Unions
Strength Through Joy (KDF) : gave rewards for work, eg. Volkswagen
How did the Nazi’s control their workers?
Beauty of Labour (make Germans see work as good)
Reasons why the Germans workers benifited under the Nazis:
more people working, more money in economy, increasing standard of living
between 1936-39, wages increased by 20%; more to spend
KDF offered luxuries otherwise never afforded
Beauty of Labour improved working conditions
German workers got ‘bread and work’ promised by Hitler
Why did the workers not benefit under the Nazis?
price of goods rose by 20%, cancelling out income wages
lower earners struggled to buy goods
working hours increased by 6 hours on average
DAF took away workers rights
women and jews were sacked
workers forced into poor jobs
What was the impact of the plans on big businesses, small businesses and farmers?
big businesses- by 1937, monopolies controlled over 70% of production, rearmament boosted profits & wages rose by 50% (1933-1939)
small businesses- rules were tightened: 20% closed.
farmers: agricultural prices increased by 20%, hereditary farm law (1933) prevented farms from being repossesed
What did the Nazi’s claim about unemployement?
it had dropped from 4.8 million to 300,000 by 1939 (historians believed they lied)
What was Autarky?
Göring was made Economics minister and asked to make Germany self-sufficient in four years
measures introduced (support for farmers to produce more food was unsucsessful)
What were the aims of the Nazis towards women?
stay at home and look after family
to breed more pure Aryan children
life of women should revolve around 3KS- kinder, küche & kirche
How did the Nazis evoke change in the role of women in relation to work?
1933, women banned from professional posts
girls discouraged from going to university
bribed by marriage credits
How did the Nazis’ change the lives of women?
Women’s Front set up to brainwash
supposed to wear traditional women’s fashion
should not smoke + focus on being fit
German Women;s enterprise organised classes on housework + raising children
The Mothers Cross reward (4= bronze, 6= silver, 8= gold)
married couples were given marriage loans (if they had 4 children, they paid nothing back)
‘Lebensborn’ programme: encouraged to get pregnant with Aryan SS soldiers
abortion + contraception was banned
in 1936, there had been 30% more births than in 1933.
How did Nazi Education enable indroctination?
all children went to school until 14
military schools for boys and domestic schools for girls
number of PE lessons doubled and RE was stopped
all textbooks rewritten to fit Nazi History
Every lesson began with ‘Heil Hitler’ salute
nazi ideology was included in every lesson
girls taught about genetics, motherhood & housewifery
What was the Nazi Boys Youth Groups?
Physical training for military and brainwashing
all members had to swear an oath of loyalty and learnt Nazi ideology
learnt race theory
in 1932 had 108,000 members
in 1936 was made compulsory
What was Nazi Youth Group for Girls?
prepared to be wives and mothers
sports ti enhance fitness and beauty- had to be able to run 60m in 40 seconds
taught the importance of ‘racial hygine’
emphasis on importance of German mothers
Evaluation of the Youth Groups ‘ succses
millions went on to join the army and have aryan children
many youth felt important to Germanys future
Secret anti-nazi youth groups began
thousands avoided attending meetings
Who were youth opposition in the 1930s?
The Edelweiss Pirates: working class youths who grew their hair long and worse americanised clothing. Went on hikes to avoid Nazi Restrictions and taunted Hitler Youth
The Swing Youth: Teenagers from wealthy families who admired American culture over Nazis. Listened to jazz, smoked, and partied with up to 6,000. Hated by Himmler
How effective were the youth opposition?
By 1939, opposition was limited
only 2,000 Edelweiss Pirates
small opposition- mainly cultural
How did the church oppose Hitler?
church opposition: 1934, protestant church set up, and 6,000 pastors joined, though 800 were sent to camps. catholics who spoke out were imprisoned
Martin Niemoller: Helped set up Pastors emergency league, and said people must obey God, not a man. Arrested by Gestapo and sent to concentration camp
church foccused on opposing inteference with their traditions
What are Eugenics?
the belief that it is possible to perfect human beings and eliminate so-called social ills through genetics and heredity.
What year did the Nazi establish their plan was to deport all Jews from Germany and how many Jews left Germany?
250,000 Jews left Germany from 1933 to 1939, and in 1939 this became the official plan.
What were the key events in the persecution of minorities from 1933 to 1939?
1933: On the 1st of April, Jewish business are boycotted and Jews are banned from all public places and government jobs
1935: The Nuremberg Laws put into place: jews were no longer German citizens
1936: Jews banned from working as doctors, dentists and lawyers
1938: Jews had to register all their possesions and had to carry ID cards
Kristallnacht (1938): A Nazi diplomat is murdered in Paris by young Jews and Geobbles takes this opportunity for anti Jewish action. Nazis destroy 7500 businesses, born 4000 synagogues, send 20,000 Jews to concentration camps and make them pay £1 billion for the damage
Dec 1938: Jews are banned from owning shops or businesses
1939: Jews can be evicted from their homes for no reason and they are kicked out of school
How were the disabled, homosexuals and Romas persecuted?
disabled: in 1933, Nazis passed ‘sterilisation law,’ forcibly sterilising mentally ill, etc, sterilising 400,000. in 1939, Nazis started Euthanasia. Over 5000 children are killed
homosexuals: In 1935, Nazis passed laws against homosexuality. Over 5000 were sent to concentration camps
romas: from 1935, they could not marry, and between 1936-9, they were put into camps and deported
What was German reaction to World War Two?
began in 1939 with the German invasion of Poland
Germans believed this was a reaction to Polish aggression and was designed to reclaim territory lost in the TOV
German people accepted the war but were not enthusiastic
1939-1941: war was going well for Germany so civilian morale was high & German industries prospered from war contracts
1941: Hitler invaded the Soviet union, who ‘tore the heart of Germany’
What was the opposition towards Hitler within the army during the war?
in july 1944, a bomb was planted by Colonel Stauffenberg at a meeting Hitler was at. It exploded, but Hitler survived. Stauffenberg was shot that day.
What was the youth opposition during the war?
Hitler youth became less popular as war effort was prioritised
The main opposition group was the Edelweiss pirates, who sang anti-nazi songs. In 1942, over 700 were arrested
The white rose group were formed led by the Scholl siblings. Published anti-nazi leaflets and protested. The leaders were eventually guilloteined
During the war, ‘swing youth’ were formed. Danced to jazz music which the nazis considered degenerate. The youths were monitored by the Gestapo
How did war affect Germans in terms of rationing?
Introduced in August of 1939, and a clothing points system was also introduced
autarky meant consumer goods were expensive due to low supply
germans diet became monotonous
food entitlements depended on importance of individuals to the war effort
How did area bombing caused by war affect Germans?
In 1942, the british switched to area bombing which targeted large industrial cities
cologne was bombed in 1942
over the next three years: 61 german cities were attacked and 71 million were made homeless
british tried to cripple german industry to lower morale of civilians
How did refugees, caused by the war, affect Germans?
British area bombing targeted the Ruhr region, creating thousands of refugees
During the advance of the soviet army, lots of the population fled westwards
How was German employment affected by the war?
13.7 million Germans served in the war, creating labour shortage on home front
women entered the workforce
nazis made use of forced labour
11 million ethnic germans were refugees or had been expelled by countries surrounding Germany
How did racial persecution escalate leading to the final solution?
persecution extended to jews living in territories invaded, and led to the evetual extermination of up to 6 million european jews
What was the first phase of the extended racial prosecution?
polish ghettos: 3 million more Jews were brought under Nazi control and confined to ghettos
Hitler ordered the “final Solution” (extermination of 11 million Jews) in 1941
What was phase two of the extended racial prosecution?
Mass killings begin:
During the war, the Einstazgruppen (branch of SS) followed behind army to round up Jews, communist officials, and russian officers and execute them
victims were forced to dig up mass graves and then were shot and buried in huge numbers
By the end of 1941, the total victims reached 1.2 million
these mass killings were expensive and time consuming, and so phase 3 was brought about as a more efficient process
What was phase 3 of extermination camps?
in 1942, Heydrich held a conference in Wannase, and it was agreed all Jews under German occupation would be brought to Poland where they would be worked to death or exterminated
This led to death camps, the most notorious being Auschwitz-Birkenau, where 2.5 million Jews were murdered
Those who were immediatley exterminated were ushered into showers, were they were gassed to death using Zyklon B
Around 6 million Jews were murdered during the Hollocaust, 88% of Polish Jews were killed
How was Germany defeated?
In February 1943, Germany was defeated for the first time, and in 1945, Germany was invaded from the east and the west
Split into four zones: USSR (east), USA, Britain and France ( West Germany
Why did the Soviets want to denazify?
suffered terribly for the war, wanted revenge and had resentment
What did the soviets do to Denazify?
tore down nazi symbols and made it illegal to display them
high ranking nazi officials were imprisoned in soviet camps
removed 1/3 of teachers who were nazi sympathizers
What were the problems with soviet denazification?
set up an investiagation on thousand of nazi party members however there were not enough soviet officals to do the jobs and so they had to appoint potential nazi sympathizers
tribunals were less harsh
By 1948, Ulbricht was appointed leader and scrapped denazification as he was tired of the slow process and wanted to look to the future
Was Soviet Denazification a success?
Around 300,000 Germans were convicted of low level involvement and imprisoned or banned from positions of power
Why did the west want to denazify?
they feared many nazis would try to hide after the war
What did the west do to denazify?
gathered information from 1944
Those who had been involved in war crimes were tried in the Nuremberg trials, were only 3 were acquitted and 12 were sentenced to death
all germans over the age of 18 had to complete a questionnaire about past political jobs
intelligence officers investigated and dismissed 50,000 public officials
the allies wanted to expose ex-nazis to what they did and so showed the pamphlets
What were the problems with western denazification?
questionnaire unlikely to be fully reliable
200,000 individuals were held imprison but later released as there was not enough evidence to put them on trial
50000 investiagtions dismissed
by 1948, they focussed on rebuilding Germany over denazification
How successful was German denazification?
nuremberg trials punished guilty
found denazification a large task and set up a German review board which found 4,000/5,000 guilty
How did treatment in East Germany differ from that in West Germany?
soviet union wanted reparations for war damage and so lost of East Germany’s industry was dismantled and taken back to the USSR. The west initially pursued de-militarisation to ensure Germany could not equip itself to fight another war however the policy was realised when allies realised Germany needed to be strong to protect against communism
how did politics in east Germany differ from that in west Germany?
Soviet Union made sure communism was the dominant force and from 1950, started removing other political parties, so it was not truly democratic. The allies established a democratic, federal constitution and by 1955, West Germany was stable, democratic and able to join NATO
How was economy and life in East Germany?
There was no economic miracle
food industrial equipment was shipped out of GDR to USSR
communism implemented: 7000 landowners had land confiscated
free education for all
forced conscription took 10% of the country’s worth
food had to be rationed
the conditions led to a protest in 1953 of 1 million
the movement of people from east to west led to the Berlin wall
What was the economy and life like in west germany?
west Germany was an economic miracle: the economy grew by 8% every year and unemployement halved
marshall aid and east german migrants were highly skilled workers which boosted the economy
trade unions and businesses worked together which prevented support for communism
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