DID THE GERMAN PEOPLE BENEFIT FROM NAZI RULE IN THE 1930s?

        However, there were many ways in which the German people did not benefit from the Nazi rule. For example, the German people lived in a police state where the Nazis controlled their whole lives- their education, their work and even their leisure time. This was done through Strength Through Joy. The censorship and propaganda of the Nazi’s meant that artists, writers and musicians did not have their freedom of speech if they were opposing Hitler and the Nazis. There was a great loss of freedom for the individual, as you could not have political views, and everything that was on offer, for example lectures, were controlled. The powers of the SS and the Gestapo made sure that no one stepped out of the line or against the Nazis or they would be sent to concentration camps. There was very little open opposition or underground resistance, and what did exist was soon destroyed. The sorts of people who definitely did not benefit from the Nazi rule included the Jews. They were blamed by Hitler for Germany’s defeat in the First World War by ‘stabbing Germany in the back” this was mainly because they were not Aryan. From 1935, the Nuremberg Laws stated that they were not of Aryan race and were an outcast. They no longer had any citizenship and could not get any jobs. Their life became completely miserable when the Nazis came to power in the 1930’s. Another section of the society that suffered due to the Nazi rule was the Protestant Churches. They refused to agree to encourage their congregations to support the Nazis, so Hitler brought all the Protestant Churches together in one Reich Church- a Nazi-dominated church. Ministers who opposed this, such as Martin Niemoller and Paul Schneider were arrested and put into concentration camps. As well as that, anyone who did not fit into the ideal of an Aryan was a suspect. Gypsies were a target as well. They did not look like Aryans because they were homeless and tended not to have permanent jobs and were not ‘socially useful’.

        In conclusion, different sections of society had different views. It can be seen that most Germans were prepared to accept Nazi rule in the 1930’s and were ready to accept losing all their freedom to the Nazis, as long as they were employed and could support their family. I think that it depended on who you were at that time, as it benefited different people in different ways.