Nazi during the war

1. What was the purpose of rationing in Nazi Germany during the war, and how did it change over time?

To prevent unrest like in WWI, rationing started off minimal. But as the war progressed, food and goods became scarcer. Meat rations dropped from 750g to 250g per week, and clothes, shoes, and coal were in short supply. By 1945, ration cards were often ignored, and people relied on black markets.

2. How did rationing affect the daily lives of ordinary Germans during the war?

Food became more monotonous (bread, potatoes, preserves), and people bathed in warm water only twice a week. Shops displayed fake goods for 'decoration only,' and luxury items were only available on the black market. Despite this, rationing was widely accepted, especially early in the war.

3. What was the impact of Allied bombing on German cities and civilians?

From 1942, the RAF used ‘area bombing’ with incendiaries, destroying 3.6 million homes and killing up to 400,000 civilians. Dresden lost 70% of its buildings and 150,000 people. 7.5 million were made homeless. Morale suffered but often turned to determination due to propaganda.

4. How did the Nazis and civilians respond to bombing raids?

Many fled to the countryside, though large-scale evacuations failed. Propaganda downplayed destruction, encouraging resistance. Though morale dipped in late war, bombing often strengthened resolve to continue fighting.

5. What caused labour shortages in Nazi Germany during the war, and how were they dealt with?

With 13.7 million men in the army, there was a huge home front shortage. The Nazis used foreign forced labour, POWs, and conscripted women (17–45) to work in factories and farms. By 1943, 21% of the workforce were foreigners. Nazi ideology still limited full use of women.

6. What role did women play in the Nazi war economy?

Women worked in agriculture, armaments, and as medics. Despite wartime need, only 1 million of 3 million eligible women were employed by 1943 due to employer bias and Nazi views on gender roles.

7. Who were the Edelweiss Pirates and how did they oppose the Nazi regime?

A working-class youth group in western Germany. They beat up Hitler Youth members, sang anti-Nazi songs, and graffitied walls. In 1944, 12 were hanged for killing a Gestapo chief in Cologne. They showed that not all youth conformed.

8. What did the White Rose group do during the war?

Led by Hans and Sophie Scholl at Munich University in 1943. They distributed anti-Nazi leaflets, exposed atrocities like the Holocaust, and were executed for protesting against Nazi policies.

9. What was the Swing Youth movement and how did it challenge Nazi values?

Middle-class youth who rejected Nazi ideals. They listened to jazz, drank alcohol, and rejected militarism. The Nazis shut down their clubs and viewed them as degenerate.

10. How did the Catholic and Protestant Churches resist the Nazis during the war?

Bishop von Galen protested against the euthanasia of the disabled, leading Hitler to halt the programme. Dietrich Bonhoeffer (Confessional Church) worked with resistance and was executed in 1945 for helping Jews and plotting against Hitler.

11. What was the July Bomb Plot of 1944, and what happened as a result?

Army officers led by Colonel Stauffenberg planted a bomb to kill Hitler. It failed due to a thick table leg. Stauffenberg and 5,000 others were executed. The failure showed Hitler’s grip on power and how hard it was to remove him.

12. How effective was opposition to the Nazis during the war?

Opposition was brave but limited in success. Youth groups and churches posed small threats. The July Bomb Plot failed. However, von Galen stopped euthanasia, and some resistance saved Jewish lives. The SS and Gestapo crushed most dissent.

13. How did Nazi racial persecution escalate during the Second World War?

The regime moved from discrimination to systematic extermination. By 1945, 6 million Jews had been murdered. Sinti and Roma were sent to camps, and over 100,000 disabled Germans were secretly killed by 1941 under the euthanasia programme.

14. What were the conditions like in the Jewish ghettos during the war?

Overcrowded, unsanitary, and brutal. In Warsaw, 400,000 Jews were crammed into 1 square mile. Food was scarce (250 calories/day), and disease was rampant. Many Jews died from starvation or typhus. Ghettos were sealed off with barbed wire and watchtowers.

15. How did some Jews resist Nazi persecution in the ghettos?

In 1943, Jews in the Warsaw Ghetto fought back with home-made weapons and support from Polish resistance. Though defeated, they killed many German soldiers. This showed Jewish resistance even under brutal conditions.

16. What was the role of the Einsatzgruppen in Nazi racial policy?

Mobile SS death squads set up in 1941 to kill Jews, Roma, and political enemies behind the Eastern Front. In Babi Yar (Kiev), 34,000 Jews were murdered in 2 days. By the end of 1941, they had killed over 500,000 people — later reaching 1.2 million.

17. How did the Einsatzgruppen carry out mass murder?

They shot victims into mass graves on the edges of villages. Later used gas vans to smother victims. These killings were personal, traumatic for the killers, and time-consuming — a factor that led to the creation of extermination camps.

18. What was the Final Solution and when was it planned?

Planned at the Wannsee Conference in January 1942 by Reinhard Heydrich. It was a plan to exterminate all Jews in Europe using death camps like Auschwitz, Treblinka, and Sobibor. Jews were sent by train, separated, and gassed using Zyklon B.

19. What happened to Jews when they arrived at extermination camps like Auschwitz?

They were separated: the old, young, and weak were sent straight to the gas chambers. Others were forced to work. Some were experimented on by SS doctors like Josef Mengele. Bodies were burned in large ovens.

20. What was Auschwitz and why was it significant?

Auschwitz-Birkenau was the largest death camp. Over 1 million Jews were murdered there. It symbolised industrial-scale genocide, using gas chambers, crematoria, and forced labour. It also housed medical experiments and prisoners from all over Nazi-occupied Europe.

21. How did the Nazis profit from racial persecution?

The SS looted Jewish possessions, including gold fillings from teeth. Stolen goods were used to finance the war effort or enrich SS officials. Ghettos and camps were exploited for labour and valuables