Fascism and Propaganda

25 points

Definition: The Nazi Party’s 1920 political platform outlining 25 ideological and policy goals.

Context: Written by Hitler and Drexler; called for nationalism, anti-Semitism, and rejection of Versailles.

Relevance: Served as the ideological backbone of Nazi propaganda and later policy.

30 January 1933

Definition: Date Hitler was appointed Chancellor of Germany. '

Context: Achieved through backroom political deals by conservative elites under Hindenburg.

Relevance: Marked the start of Nazi rule and the fall of the Weimar Republic.

Anschluss

Definition: The annexation of Austria by Nazi Germany in March 1938.

Context: Accomplished through intimidation and propaganda; welcomed by many Austrians.

Relevance: Demonstrated Nazi expansionism and violation of the Treaty of Versailles.

Aryan race

Definition: Nazi racial term for a supposed superior “master race” of non-Jewish Europeans.

Context: Central to Nazi racial ideology; used to justify exclusion and extermination of others.

Relevance: Underpinned racial propaganda and genocidal policies of the Holocaust.

Antisemitism

Definition: Hostility, prejudice, or discrimination against Jews.

Context: Transformed by Nazis into a racial doctrine blaming Jews for Germany’s problems.

Relevance: Core of Nazi ideology and justification for the Holocaust.

Beer Hall Putsch

Definition: Hitler’s failed coup attempt in Munich in 1923.

Context: Inspired by Mussolini’s March on Rome; resulted in Hitler’s imprisonment.

Relevance: Demonstrated early Nazi ambitions; led to Mein Kampf and strategy shift toward legal takeover.

Dachau 

Definition: The first Nazi concentration camp, opened in 1933 near Munich.

Context: Initially used for political prisoners; became a model for future camps.

Relevance: Signaled the institutionalization of state terror and persecution.

Einsatzgruppen

Translation: Task Forces

Definition: Mobile SS killing units that carried out mass shootings in Eastern Europe.

Context: Followed German armies into Poland and the USSR; targeted Jews, Roma, and political enemies.

Relevance: Early phase of the Holocaust before extermination camps were built.

Enabling Act (1933)

Definition: Law granting Hitler power to enact laws without Reichstag approval.

Context: Passed after the Reichstag Fire; gave legal foundation to Nazi dictatorship.

Relevance: Dismantled democratic institutions and legalized totalitarian rule.

Eugenics

Definition: The belief in improving human genetics through selective breeding.

Context: Adopted by Nazi racial scientists to justify sterilization and euthanasia.

Relevance: Provided “scientific” legitimacy for Nazi racial purity programs.

Euthanasia 

Definition: Program to kill individuals deemed “unfit” or “life unworthy of life.”

Context: Targeted disabled people through the T4 Program (1939–41).

Relevance: Early state-sponsored mass murder that paved the way for the Holocaust.

Emigration

Definition: Leaving one’s country to live elsewhere.

Context: Before WWII, many Jews and dissidents fled Germany to escape persecution.

Relevance: Showed early consequences of Nazi racial policy and propaganda pressure.

Fascism

Definition: A far-right, authoritarian ideology emphasizing nationalism, unity, and obedience.

Context: Originated with Mussolini; Nazis adapted it with racial components.

Relevance: Framework for understanding totalitarianism and Nazi propaganda.

Führerprinzip

Translation: Leader principle

Definition: The “leader principle” — absolute loyalty and obedience to Hitler.

Context: Central to Nazi political culture; rejected democracy and collective leadership.

Relevance: Justified Hitler’s total authority and cult of personality.

Gleichschaltung

Translation: Synchronization

Definition: Process of “coordination” or bringing all institutions in line with Nazi ideology.

Context: From1933 onward, independent organizations were Nazified.

Relevance: Created total control over culture, politics, and society.

Joseph Goebbels

Definition: Minister of Propaganda for Nazi Germany.

Context: Controlled all media, film, and public messaging.

Relevance: Architect of Nazi propaganda and Hitler’s cult of personality.

Alfons Heck

Definition: Former Hitler Youth member who later wrote about his experiences.

Context: Joined the Hitler Youth as a child; became a propagandist for Nazi ideals.

Relevance: His memoirs illustrate youth indoctrination and propaganda’s power.

Paul von Hindenburg

Definition: President of Germany who appointed Hitler Chancellor in 1933.

Context: A World War I general and conservative nationalist.

Relevance: His decision allowed Hitler’s legal rise to power.

Adolf Hitler

Definition: Dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933–1945.

Context: Led the Nazi Party, orchestrated WWIIand the Holocaust.

Relevance: Embodied fascist leadership, propaganda, and racial ideology.

Hitler youth (HJ)

Definition: Nazi youth organization for boys.

Context: Mandatory after 1936; trained children in loyalty, obedience, and militarism.

Relevance: Instrument of indoctrination and future recruitment for the Nazi regime.

Conscription (1935)

Definition: Reintroduction of compulsory military service in Germany.

Context: Violated the Treaty of Versailles; rebuilt the Wehrmacht.

Relevance: Marked Germany’s militarization and defiance of international law.

Invasion of Poland (1939)

Definition: Germany’s military attack on Poland, starting WWII.

Context: Justified through propaganda about protecting ethnic Germans.

Relevance: Triggered British and French declarations of war.

Kristallnacht (1938)

Translation: Crystal night

Definition: “Night of Broken Glass” — state-organized pogrom against Jews.

Context: Synagogues and Jewish businesses destroyed; thousands arrested.

Relevance: Turning point from discrimination to open violence against Jews.

Lebensraum

Translation: Living space

Definition: Nazi idea of territorial expansion for the Aryan race.

Context: Used to justify conquest of Eastern Europe.

Relevance: Key ideological motive for WWII and genocide.

Mein Kampf

Translation: My fight

Definition: Hitler’s autobiography and ideological manifesto.

Context: Written in prison after the Beer Hall Putsch.

Relevance: Outlined Nazi beliefs in nationalism, anti-Semitism, and expansionism.

Military Reoccupation of the Rhineland (1936)

Definition: Hitler’s remilitarization of a demilitarized German zone.

Context: Direct violation of the Treaty of Versailles; no Allied resistance.

Relevance: Strengthened Hitler’s power and emboldened further aggression.

Ministry for Popular Enlightenment and Propaganda

Definition: Government office controlling Nazi propaganda.

Context: Headed by Joseph Goebbels; oversaw press, radio, film, and art.

Relevance: Centralized control over culture and shaped public opinion.

Molotov Ribbentrop Pact (1939)

Definition: Non-aggression treaty between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union.

Context: Included secret terms dividing Eastern Europe into spheres of influence.

Relevance: Enabled Hitler to invade Poland without fear of Soviet retaliation.

Murder of the Disabled

Definition: Nazi killing of people with mental or physical disabilities.

Context: Part of the T4 “euthanasia” program starting in 1939.

Relevance: Prototype for mass murder methods later used in the Holocaust

Non Jewish Victims of Nazi Persecution

Definition: Groups targeted besides Jews, including Roma, disabled, LGBTQ+, and political dissidents.

Context: Seen as threats or inferior under Nazi ideology.

Relevance: Highlights the broad racial and social reach of Nazi persecution.

NSDAP

Definition: National Socialist German Workers’ Party (Nazi Party).

Context: Founded in 1920; led by Hitler.

Relevance: Vehicle for Nazi ideology and totalitarian control.

Nuremberg Laws (1935)

Definition: Laws institutionalizing Nazi racial ideology.

Context: Stripped Jews of citizenship and outlawed intermarriage.

Relevance: Legal foundation for racial segregation and the Holocaust.

Occupation of the Sudetenland (1938)

Definition: Annexation of a German-speaking region of Czechoslovakia.

Context: Allowed under the Munich Agreement; justified by “self-determination.”

Relevance: Example of appeasement and Hitler’s aggressive diplomacy.

Operation Barbarossa (1941)

Definition: German invasion of the Soviet Union.

Context: Broke the Nazi-Soviet Pact; launched a genocidal war in the East.

Relevance: Expanded the Holocaust and led to Germany’s eventual defeat.

Pact of Steel (1939)

Definition: Military and political alliance between Germany and Italy.

Context: Strengthened Axis cooperation before WWII.

Relevance: Cemented fascist solidarity in Europe.

Pearl Harbor (1941)

Definition: Japanese attack on the U.S. naval base in Hawaii.

Context: Led the U.S. to declare war on Japan and Germany.

Relevance: Turned WWII into a truly global conflict.

Propaganda

Definition: The use of media to shape opinions and beliefs for political ends.

Context: Central to totalitarian regimes; used by Nazis to manipulate emotion and identity.

Relevance: Tool for mass persuasion and control under fascism.

The “Racial Enemy”

Definition: Groups defined by Nazis as racially inferior or threatening (especially Jews).

Context: Used to unite Germans against a common foe.

Relevance: Justified persecution and genocide through fear and dehumanization.

Reich Chamber of Culture

Definition: Nazi institution controlling artistic and cultural production.

Context: Overseen by Goebbels; required artists to be “racially pure.”

Relevance: Enforced ideological conformity and censored dissent.

Reichstag Fire (1933)

Definition: Arson attack on the German parliament building.

Context: Blamed on communists; used to declare an emergency.

Relevance: Justified suspension of civil rights and Nazi consolidation of power.

Leni Riefenstahl

Definition: German filmmaker who directed Nazi propaganda films.

Context: Created Triumph of the Will and Olympia glorifying Hitler and the Reich.

Relevance: Example of art as propaganda and aestheticized politics.

Ernst Röhm

Definition: Leader of the Nazi SA (Stormtroopers).

Context: Early ally of Hitler, later purged during the Night of the Long Knives (1934).

Relevance: His death consolidated Hitler’s power over the military.

Saar Referendum (1935)

Definition: Vote by residents of the Saar region to rejoin Germany.

Context: Held under League of Nations supervision.

Relevance: Propaganda victory for Hitler showing support for reunification.

Sterilization Laws (1933)

Definition: Laws authorizing forced sterilization of people with hereditary illnesses.

Context: Part of Nazi eugenics and racial hygiene program.

Relevance: Early step in the regime’s biological control of the population.

Triumph of the Will

Definition: Propaganda film directed by Leni Riefenstahl documenting the 1934 Nuremberg Rally.

Context: Commissioned by Goebbels to glorify Hitler and the Nazi Party.

Relevance: Exemplified visual propaganda’s power to manipulate emotion and unity.

Volksgemeinschaft

Definition: “People’s community” — Nazi ideal of a unified, racially pure national body.

Context: Excluded Jews, communists, and other “outsiders.”

Relevance: Justified exclusionary policies and social conformity

Women (their role in the Nazi Regime)

Definition: Nazi ideology assigned women roles as mothers and homemakers.

Context: Promoted through propaganda like “Kinder, Küche, Kirche” (children, kitchen, church).

Relevance: Reflected Nazi gender ideology and the regime’s control over family life.

National Socialism

Definition: The political ideology of the Nazi Party combining extreme nationalism, racism, and totalitarianism.

Context: Developed under Adolf Hitler after World War I, it rejected democracy, Marxism, and liberalism while promoting Aryan supremacy and loyalty to the Führer.

Relevance: Served as the foundation of Nazi policy, propaganda, and justification for dictatorship and genocide.

Hitler’s early life

Definition: The formative years of Adolf Hitler from his birth in Austria (1889) to his political rise in Germany.

Context: Grew up in a middle-class Austrian family; failed artist in Vienna; developed early nationalist and anti-Semitic beliefs; served in WWI where his sense of mission and resentment deepened.

Relevance: His early failures and ideological development shaped the worldview that became central to Nazi propaganda and leadership style.

Weimar Republic

Definition: The democratic government established in Germany after World War I (1919–1933).

Context: Founded after Kaiser Wilhelm II’s abdication; plagued by economic crises, political extremism, and loss of public confidence.

Relevance: Its instability allowed the Nazi Party to exploit national humiliation and fear to gain power legally by 1933.

Doris L. Bergen War and Genocide

Summary: Provides a concise overview of the Holocaust within the broader context of WWII. Explores how ideology, bureaucracy, and ordinary individuals contributed to genocide.

Themes: Anti-Semitism, racial ideology, war as a cover for genocide, complicity of ordinary citizens.

Relevance: Highlights how propaganda and ideology normalized genocide, showing how fascist rhetoric became state policy.

Alfons Heck A Child of Hitler

Summary: Memoir recounting Heck’s experiences as a child indoctrinated by Nazi propaganda and his rise in the Hitler Youth. Offers insight into totalitarian manipulation of youth and loyalty.

Themes: Indoctrination, blind obedience, loss of moral independence, propaganda’s emotional power.

Relevance: Demonstrates how Nazi propaganda shaped belief systems and moral values from a young

age.

David Welch The Third Reich

Summary: Examines how the Nazi regime used propaganda to gain and maintain power through mass media, imagery, and emotional appeal.

Themes: Media manipulation, myth making, spectacle, censorship, cult of Hitler.

Relevance: Shows propaganda as both a political weapon and a cultural force that sustained fascism.

Blitzkrieg

Translation: Lightning war

Definition: A military strategy focused on rapid, coordinated attacks using aircraft, tanks, and infantry to overwhelm the enemy before they can organize a defense.

Context: First used by Nazi Germany during the invasions of Poland (1939) and France (1940); relied on speed, surprise, and concentrated force to secure quick victories.

Relevance: Demonstrated the effectiveness of modern mechanized warfare and became a symbol of early Nazi military success, heavily used in propaganda to promote German superiority.