The Impact of Nazi Domestic Policies (P80-85)

Overall Aim & Context

• The Nazis aimed to control all information and attitudes, requiring the Churches to be "brought into line" with Nazi ideas.

• Hitler wanted to replace Christianity with Nazism, but had to proceed cautiously as two-thirds of Germans were Protestant and one-third were Catholic.

• A core conflict existed: one could not be both a true Christian and a true Nazi, as per Hitler's private statement in 1933.

The Catholic Church

• Initial Agreement:​​ The 1933 ​Concordat​ was signed. The Church agreed to stay out of politics, and the Nazis promised freedom of worship and the right to run Catholic youth groups and schools.

• ​Breaking the Agreement:​​ Hitler soon broke the Concordat:

  • Christian symbols (the crucifix) were removed from schools, replaced by Hitler's image.

  • Catholic newspapers were censored; propaganda accused the Church of corruption.

• ​Resistance & Reaction:​​ In 1937, ​Pope Pius XI​ made a public stand against Nazi criticism.

• The Nazi response was severe:

  • Membership in the Catholic Youth League was made illegal to force young people into the ​Hitler Youth.

  • State funding was cut, and some monastery property was seized.

  • Catholic schools were closed and turned into state-run "community schools."

  • The ​Gestapo and SS​ spied on Church organizations.

  • Priests who spoke out were arrested and sent to concentration camps.

• ​Outcome:​​ Despite the pressure, the Catholic Church continued to function, and ​church attendance remained high.

The Protestant Church

• Unification:​​ In 1933, Hitler unified the various Protestant groups into the state-controlled ​Reich Church.

• ​Leadership:​​ He appointed the pro-Nazi ​Ludwig Müller​ as the ​Reich Bishop. Müller was openly supported by the SA and SS.

• ​The "German Christians":​​ A faction within Protestantism that strongly supported the Nazis, calling itself the "​SA of the Church." They combined Nazi symbols and customs with Christian practices, wore Nazi uniforms and gave Nazi salute at church services. Under its pressure, 18 pastors lost their jobs because they would not declare their support of Nazi views.

• ​Resistance - The Confessional Church:​​

  • In 1934, pastors ​Martin Niemoller​ and ​Dietrich Bonhoeffer​ founded the ​Confessional Church​ in opposition to Nazi interference; they believe the Church should remain independent from Nazi political powers.

  • It grew to 5,000 members as a rival to the official Reich Church.

  • The Nazis persecuted its members: hundreds of clergy, including Niemoller, were sent to concentration camps. ​Dietrich Bonhoeffer was executed in 1945.

  • Under pressure from the "German Christians," 18 pastors were fired for not supporting Nazi views.

Overall Impact by 1939

• By the late 1930s, neither the Catholic nor Protestant Church had a significant role in society due to Nazi measures (Hitler Youth, banned church schools, anti-church propaganda).

• A 1939 census showed only ​5% of Germans​ described themselves as "God-believers," indicating a dramatic decline in organized religion's public influence.

Nazi Racial Ideology & General Persecution

• Core Belief:​​ Nazis believed in a racial hierarchy. Aryans (blond, blue-eyed) were the ideal "master race." Groups like Jews and Roma (Gypsies) were labeled ​​Untermenschen​​ (sub-humans).

• ​Sterilisation Law (1933):​​ Targeted people with mental disabilities (e.g. “simple-mindedness”), tramps and beggars. An estimated ​700,000 people​ were sterilised.

• ​​People with mental illness (1939-41) :​​ Nazis believed that mental illness was hereditary. From 1939, people with mental illnesses were sent to death by starvation, lethal injection and later gas chambers. Over ​70,000​ were killed before public protests halted the policy in 1941.

• ​Concentration Camps:​​ From 1936, "juvenile delinquents," tramps, homosexuals, and Jews were sent to camps. ​Gypsies​​ were added from 1938.

• ​Marriage Bans:​​ ​Intermarriage​ was banned between Germans and gypsies (1935) and between Germans and black people (1935).

Persecution of Jewish People: Key Laws & Measures (1933-39)​

• Context: Jewish people consists of ~1% of German population, Hitler clamed that they were the scapegoat of the defeat of WWI.

• ​Early Boycotts & Bans (1933):​​ Nationwide boycott of Jewish shops/businesses in ​April 1933, SA stood outside Jewish shops to prevent people entering. Jews were banned from government jobs, medicine, teaching, and journalism.

• ​Nuremberg Laws (September 1935):​​ Two core laws:

  1. ​The Reich Law for the Protection of German Blood and Honour:​​ Banned marriage between Jews and Aryans, and Aryans who were already married to Jews were encouraged to divorce, otherwise they would be treated in law as Jews.

  2. ​The Reich Law on Citizenship:​​ States that only people of German blood were German citizens. Jews had no longer the right to vote and hold a German passport.

• ​Escalating Restrictions (1935-38):​​ Jews were banned from public places (parks, cinemas, swimming pools) and the army (1935). From 1938, they had to register all possessions and carry identity cards. Jewish professionals were banned from serving non-Jews.

• ​​Kristallnacht– The Night of Broken Glass (9-10 Nov 1938):​​ A state-planned pogrom triggered by the murder of a German official in Paris. Results included:

  • Over ​800​ Jewish shops destroyed.

  • ​191​ synagogues vandalised or burned.

  • ​91​ Jews killed and ​30,000​ arrested.

  • Afterwards, the Jewish community was collectively fined ​1 billion Reichsmarks​ for the damage.