Holocaust Midterm

Zionism

-movement for the establishment of a Jewish state before AND after WW2

-World Zionist Organization founded in 1897 by Theodor Herzl

-Jewish population needed a safe space following the war due to the hostilities they face from other populations

Theodor Herzl

-founded the World Zionist Organization in 1897

-it set groundwork for establishment of the State of Israel and Jewish rights to exist & have safety

Appeasement

-Agreement between Britain, France, and Germany in which they agreed to give the Sudetenland of Czechoslovakia to Germany in hopes they would stop efforts to expand

-relevant: 1930’s during German expansion

-showed Hitler the desire of the allies to prevent war above all else

Blood libel

-the falsehood that Jewish people would practice the killing of non-jews for their blood to bake into bread

-pre-WW2, it fed into the hatred of Jews

-shows the public perceptions of the Jewish people

Spirit of 1914

-excitement of the German population for war; hadn’t been to war in 40 years

-quickly went away when the war extended longer than the few months that it was “supposed” to 

Total war

-fighting a nation/territory/people as a whole and not just their military

-both ideologically and physically; soldiers not the only target but civilians/members of the population too

-military tech advances that didn’t have/care for precision; Ex. aerial bombing-just wherever it lands is fine

Guns vs. Butter

-the area of focus for nations at war; should resources be sent to supply war effort or feeding/caring for citizens on home-front

Treaty of Versailles

-ended WW1

-established the League of Nations; hoped to prevent future wars by instead meeting to settle international conflicts

-French used this to punish Germany through war debt, territorial loss, & military limitations

-created animosity amongst Germans against the allies (entente) that allowed Hitler to eventually rise to power

Fascism 

-combination of hyper-nationalism & socialism

-against individualism-belief that it is synonymous w/ a lack of patriotism;

>hated Jews for not identifying w/ a particular nation

-against class war

Volksgemeinschaft (racial community)

-a race-based community of people with clear definitions of who “belongs” (based on blood)

-pushed for by the Nazi party

-wanted to clearly define who was German & who was not; Jews specifically did not belong

The NSDAP 25 Points

-written in 1920 to establish Nazi Party beliefs/values

-key points:

defines who is a citizen; therefore that Jews are not-stripping them of all their rights

strips freedom of the press; gov’t determines what is “good” & can be released. No critiquing Germany

-establishes Jews as the common “other”; lays groundwork for future demonization of Jews

Beer Hall Putsch

-Nov. 8, 1923

-failed coup led by Nazi party (who hadn’t established any political power yet); their first attempt to seize power

-Hitler & Ludendorff locked Bavarian officials in the beer hall & held hostage

-realized they would have to follow normal channels of being elected to power

-Hitler was arrested & sentenced to prison where he wrote Mein Kampf

x Erich von Ludendorf

-early supporter of Hitler

-promoted idea that Jewish people would stab Germany in the back

Paul Hindenburg

-German president when Hitler was appointed chancellor

-disliked Hitler but was told by his advisors that he could be controlled

-Hitler now has more power than Hindenburg

Adolf Hitler

-appointed as chancellor in 1933

-leader of the Nazi Party

-bro led the holocaust

Heinrich Himmler

-first high-ranking official to see the executions of Jews in person (using bullets)

-comes up w/ idea for final solution-the extermination of Jews as a “solution”

Franz von Papen

-chancellor before Hitler

-dissolved Reichstag (parliament) in June 1932-cleaned house to have all new elected officials;

HATED Nazis but formed a coalition w/ them in order to have them take over majority in parliament so that he could establish an authoritarian gov’t

Autarky

-self-reliant country

-Hitler wanted this for Germany but they needed to expand borders to achieve it

Lebensraum (living space)

-Germans wanted more living space; one of the main reasons for the war

-removal of Jews would open up living space for Germans

Anschluss (Annexation)

-”democratic” takeover of Austria by Germany; Austrians heavily coerced by Nazis to vote yes

-relates to German unification ideology of the time

Nuremburg Laws

-1935

-puts ideas of race into law; legal demonization of Jews

-”The Law for Protection of German Blood and German Honor” 

   >banned interracial (Jew & German) marriage/relations

-Jews lost German citizenship 

Kristallnacht

“Night of Broken Glass”

-Nov. 9-10, 1938

-grassroots movement of German citizens who broke into & destroyed Jewish businesses

Germanization

-the destruction & replacement of non-German language & culture w/ the German version

Gestapo

-secret German police

-to preserve Nazi power & control by ensuring no rebellion is brewing

-perpetrators of war crimes as well but blamed them on higher ups

Schutzwaffen (SS)

-originally Hitler’s personal guard

-loyal to Nazi party & not the state

-merged w/ Gestapo in 1936 because there was essentially no difference between the two

Einsatzgruppen/Waffin-SS (death camps)

-those that carried out the executions of Jews (first bullets, then other methods)

-all throughout war

Collaboration

-non-German officials working w/ Nazis in order to protect themselves

-perpetuated Nazi regime

Eugenics

-Social Darwinism; German supremacy

-used to degrade anyone not German

Aktion-T4

-gas used in gas chambers

-initially used to euthanize disabled Germans

Ghettos

-neighorhoods formed of Jewish people in the early 1940’s

-predecessor to concentration camps

-Jews used for labor

Judenrat

-Jewish council in charge of the functions of the ghettos and communication with the Nazis

-in charge of selecting Jews for Nazi projects