An important of the Nazi Control of Germany was to use of propaganda. The People of Germany were bombarded with the party message to ensure that Hitler’s routine had a lot of popular support. In 1933 the Ministry for People Enlightenment and Propaganda was set up under Joseph Gobbles. He saw his duty as passing on Hitler’s thoughts. He had to get the Nazi message across to the public and at the same time ensure that any views hostile to Nazism were suppressed. So Joseph Gobbles ministry controlled the radio, the press and all areas of culture, such as films, literature, theatre and art. Journalists were given detailed instructions in what to write about in their newspapers and also what can and can’t be passed on the radio. The Nazis made sure that the radio was easily available to all Germans. Radios were made very cheap that the German people had more of them per ahead of the population. In addition, all films, plays and literature had to conform to Nazi beliefs or they could not be performed or published. In this way, influences such as jazz or Black American music could be kept from the German people. This contributed to Hitler’s control, as the people of Germany couldn’t get away from Nazism. As it was everywhere in the German people lives. Joseph Gobbles used the media exceptionally, as people do believe what they hear and see. So with the help of Joseph Gobbles the Nazi Idea had infested the Germany nation.
As far as Nazis were concerned, women should be encouraged to have as many children as possible. Hitler was alarmed at the falling birth rate in Germany, so contraception was discouraged and mothers with eight children or more were awarded a golden Mother Cross (with silver for six children or more were awarded and bronze for four). Motherhood and family life were also prominent in Nazi propaganda. Posters and broadcasts emphasised the qualities of traditional German Women. Women were forced to have as many children as possible. Hitler wanted a master race, which were called the Aryan race, which he believed were the only people that should lead the world. This mater race had blonde hair, blue eyes, were strong and German, bearing in mind Hitler did not fit into any of these categories. If you didn’t fit these categories women would be sterilized unable to have children. Women just accepted it and thought it was the right thing to do, as they would be disobeying Hitler. Hitler had now got control over women, allowing them to think that it was acceptable to be sterilized if you didn’t fit under Hitler’s Aryan Race category. He also had control over Aryan women by supporting high birth rates, as well as supporting them he congratulated them to.
Not surprisingly, the Nazis used schools to indoctrinate the young. They laid down what was to be taught and placed special emphasis on the subjects that they considered suitable in producing ideal Nazis. So subjects like History (to show how successful the Nazis had been) and Biology (to explain Nazi racial beliefs) became much more important. The amount of time given to physical education trebled in the 1930’s. Other subjects, such as Race studies and Ideology, also appeared on the timetable as Nazi beliefs were taught as accepted facts. Education for boys and girls was different. A greater emphasis was placed on domestic sciences and other subjects suitable for motherhood in girls’ schools whereas the importance of military training was emphasised in boys’ schools.
German children’s book show how the Nazis wanted children to think. For Example in one book on the left hand side of the picture there are three Jewish men looking ugly with there big, hooked noses, they are just standing around talking which is showing that the Nazis wanted them to been seen as lazy and worthless. Just to the right of the old men are three crows, these crows are mirroring the Jewish men because no one really likes crows and they are seen as dirty and good for nothing, just how the Nazis wanted to portray the Jews. This is good primary evidence because it was taken from the time and it is what we already know the Nazis wanted to portray Jewish people like.
This was the major purpose of the Hitler Youth, which had been founded in 1926. By the time the Nazis took power in 1933, it had 100,000 members. The Nazis were particularly anxious to win the hearts and minds of the young in Germany. They knew that, no matter how much propaganda they used, there would always be some adults who rejected ideas. But if the young could be indoctrinated into the Nazi way of thinking, then those views were likely to stay with them for the rest of their lives. Those youth organisations provided ideal opportunities for the leaders to put across Nazi beliefs, and members were encouraged to report their parents or teachers if they criticised the Nazi regime. But they had another purpose too. The Hitler Youth was really a training ground for the army, and great emphasis was places on physical activity and military training. Girls didn’t join the army, but they were still encouraged to keep fit in preparation for motherhood- the opportunity to give birth to future soldiers.
These three main things brought together created Hitler’s complete control over Germany. Social. Political. Legal. These three aspects being drawn together had a strong lock over the Germany people. The germans had no way of escaping Hitler and his ideas. If it wasn’t for the tight lock of these three aspects in Germany. This would not have happened, as these aspects would not have worked on their own.
“We didn’t know about Nazi idea’s. Nevertheless, we were politically programmed to obey orders, to cultivate the soldiery virtue of standing to attention and saying Yes Sir and to stop thinking when the word Fatherland was uttered and Germany’s honour and greatness was mentioned.”
