OPPOSITION TO NAZI REIGME

Political Opposition

• The Social Democrats (SPD), Communists (KPD), and Trade Unions opposed the Nazis but were quickly suppressed.

• Leaders arrested, imprisoned in concentration camps, and the parties/ unions were prohibited.

• Remaining opposition formed underground resistance, which had limited effectiveness.

• Opposition tactics:

  • Poster and pamphlet campaigns.

  • Acts of sabotage.

  • Factory absenteeism.

Military Opposition

• Some military members concerned by Hitler’s foreign policy aggressiveness (e.g., Rhineland invasion).

• Military plots to remove Hitler, including assassination attempts, were unsuccessful

• Ludwig Beck, Chief of Staff (1935-1938), tried to convince generals to oppose Hitler’s orders to invade Austria.

  • Beck resigned in 1938 but continued opposition.

  • Operation Valkyrie (1944) failed.

• Senior military figures had concerns about Hitler’s aggressive actions but didn’t fully oppose until 1938.

Church Opposition - confessing church

• Pastor Martin Niemöller, leader of the Confessing Church, criticized the lack of opposition:

  • "Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak out for me."

Church Opposition - catholic church

• Catholic Church opposed Nazi euthanasia program (1939), which killed 75,000 disabled people.

  • Cardinal Archbishop of Munich gave a sermon against it in 1941, leading to public opposition and the program's end.

Church opposition - protestant

• Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Protestant theologian, spoke out against Hitler and was involved in the 1944 assassination plot.

Workers opposition

• Workers’ resistance focused on economic interests and workplace conditions.

• Acts of defiance included:

  • Absenteeism.

  • Strikes and demonstrations.

  • Sabotaging factory machinery.

• Resistance was ineffective due to small group actions, easily controlled by the Nazis.

Youth opposition

• Edelweiss Pirates:

  • Young working-class group (ages 14-18) rejecting Nazi cultural policies.

  • Refused to join Hitler Youth, beat up Hitler Youth members.

• Swing Movement:

  • Middle-class youth who embraced jazz and swing music, seen as degenerate by Nazis.

  • Rejected Nazi social ideals, undermined Volksgemeinschaft.

Effectiveness/failures of opposition

• Very little organized opposition, and most failed.

• Gleichschaltung (Nazi consolidation) made opposition difficult through terror and conservative support.

• Propaganda and Hitler's popularity.

• Fear and terror: Gestapo and SS created widespread fear.

• Increased control over people's lives, making them feel constantly watched.

• No mass organizations to coordinate opposition.

Dictatorship by Consent?

• Voting and Elections: Nazi Party enjoyed significant support (though results were exaggerated).

• Concentration Camps: Publicized detention of political opponents, disabled, and other groups.

  • German people generally approved and were complacent about them