-‘Krystallnacht’ sped up efforts to evacuate Jewish children from Germany. This programme – advocated and organised by Jews themselves within Germany – allowed only young children to leave and only if countries could be found to accept them. Very few countries were willing to accept refugees, and even when they did arrive, they had no plans to cope with them.
-America refused to relax its rigid immigration restrictions and all told, only 433 children were allowed in, all through the efforts of private individuals. Britain took 10,000 and appeals were made by the BBC for foster homes.
-Germany occupied the Czech Sudetenland. Chamberlain made his infamous ‘Peace in our time’ speech, on his return from Munich, which accepted Hitler’s actions.
1939 -The final collapse of the left in the Spanish Civil War and the formation of a Fascist government under Franco.
-Germany occupied the rest of Czechoslovakia.
-Italy invaded Albania.
-Germany signed a non-aggression pact with Russia.
-Germany invaded Poland.
-Britain and France declared war on Germany: WWII started.
From impact of war: Germany 1914-1950
The impact of the First World War on Germany
Social consequences of the War
German society changed enormously as a result of the war. During the war the percentage of women in the work force had risen to 37%, which was a massive rise. At the end of the war this figure did not fall dramatically, meaning that from now on women had a significant role to play in the German economy. The reaction of many Germans to the ending of the war also had a large impact on German Society. Many of the former soldiers were of the opinion that they had not lost the war; they believed that the army had been cheated. (Hitler later phrased this as 'The Stab in the back'). As a consequence of this many Germans looked for people to blame. Some lay the blame in the hands of the Kaiser. Others looked to the new Government. They had immediately sued for peace and accepted the terms of the Armistice. For many Germans this showed that they were largely to blame. Other theories that were popular amongst the former soldiers were that it was the result of Communists or Jews. So in the immediate Post War era, there is a mass of suspicion within Germany. Combined with these factors is the potential threat to the social order. Under the Kaiser the armed forces and aristocratic Prussian elite had enjoyed many privileges. These groups now had to try and re-establish their authority. In a democracy this proves difficult and can lead to further tension. The first President of the Weimar republic, Ebert, worked hard to try and win the support of the elite groups. He wanted their support in order to maximise the stability of the new republic. Likewise he had to work hard to gain the support of the army, who in return needed his support if they were to survive as a significant political power in the years following the peace settlement.
Economic Consequences of the War
The economic consequences of the war were dire for Germany. This diagram illustrates the cost of the war for each of the major participants:
The cost during the war was bordering on $40 Billion. Consider the fact that there has been 85 years of inflation since this expenditure, in modern terms this figure would be closer to $1100 Billion (Source: http://eh.net/hmit/ppowerbp/pound_question.php).
The German economy had suffered terribly during the war. Industrial output fell by over 40% between 1914 and 1918. Machinery was, at the end of the war, obsolete in many cases, run by ill trained people - remember that millions of working men had been killed in the war. The workforce was not physically fit enough to work as hard as required as food shortages had been so bad that, "Germans ate dogs, crows, zoo animals and rodents, and even the front-line troops were reduced to meagre portions of horse-meat." Estimates suggest that up to 35% of all trade was organised illegally on the Black market. The economy also suffered from shortages of raw materials. From 1915 until the end of the war, Germans were forbidden to drive a car. The situation hardy improved as a result of the Armistice, the Germans hadn't the means to purchase fuel on a large scale and found it difficult to purchase raw materials in any case as the international community shunned them as a consequence of the war.
Political impact of the war
This is the most obvious area of change. The war led to the Kaiser being forced into abdication. This left a power vacuum that was filled by the Weimar Republic. However there were other political consequences of the war that may be less obvious. The food shortages across Germany led to a radicalisation of people’s views. As a result extremist views, such as communism, became widely supported, particularly in the industrial cities. In 1919 there were several Left Wing uprisings; The Spartacus’s attempting a revolution in Berlin and a short lived Soviet Republic was formed in Bavaria. The implications of these uprisings are great. The government was forced to make use of a body called the Freikorps; this group was made up of disillusioned soldiers, who were right wing in their beliefs. Some historians argue that the methods employed by the government at this early stage of its existence, led partially to the governments fall 14 years later.
Germany was extremely isolated at the end of the war. Trade was hard to come by as most of her previous trading partners now sunned Germany, preferring to do Business with the victorious Allies. Likewise the Germans struggled diplomatically; most notoriously their views were ignored at the Peace conference at Versailles.
Physical cost of the war
The cost of the war for Germany is estimated to be in the region of $38 Billion.
In addition to this consider the massive loss of life. Germany suffered the loss of 1.7 million young men, with another 4.3 million men being wounded during the conflict. The total casualties amounted to over 7 million, though this includes some men who were prisoners or listed as missing.
The Weimar Republic
After Germany lost the First World War, the Kaiser fled and a new democratic government of Germany was declared in February 1919 at the small town of Weimar. It was too dangerous to make a declaration in Berlin where there had just been a revolt by a Communist group called the Spartacists. The Weimar Republic was a genuine attempt to create a perfect democratic country.
The Weimar Republic looked like the perfect democracy, but it had two great weaknesses - proportional representation and Article 48.
These features of the Republic served to ensure that it was the perfect democracy:
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A Bill of Rights guaranteed every German citizen freedom of speech and religion, and equality under the law.
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All men and women over the age of 20 were given the vote. This was even better than Britain where only women over 30 could vote.
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There was an elected president and an elected Reichstag (parliament).
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The Reichstag made the laws and appointed the government, which had to do what the Reichstag wanted.
It looked marvellous.
However, hidden in the detail were two flaws that eventually destroyed the Republic.
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Proportional representation - instead of voting for an MP, like we do in Britain, Weimar Germans voted for a party. Each party was then allocated seats in the Reichstag exactly reflecting (proportional' to) the number of people who had voted for it. This sounds fair, but in practice it was a disaster it resulted in dozens of tiny parties, with no party strong enough to get a majority, and, therefore, no government to get its laws passed in the Reichstag. This was a major weakness of the Republic.
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Article 48 - this said that, in an emergency, the president did not need the agreement of the Reichstag, but could issue decrees. The problem with this was that it did not say what an emergency was, and in the end, it turned out to be a back door that Hitler used to take power legally.
Hitler's rise to power
Hitler's rise to power cannot be attributed to one event, but a mixture of factors including events happening outside Germany, the strengths of the Nazi party, and the weaknesses of other parties within Germany. Hitler used these factors to his advantage and in 1933 he legitimately gained power to become chancellor.
Wall Street Crash
In 1929, the American Stock Exchange collapsed, and caused an economic depression. America called in all its foreign loans, which destroyed Weimar Germany. Unemployment in Germany rose to 6 million.
The government did not know what to do. In July 1930 Chancellor Brüning cut government expenditure, wages and unemployment pay - the worst thing to do during a depression. He could not get the Reichstag to agree to his actions, so President Hindenburg used Article 48 to pass the measures by decree.
The Nazis gain support
Anger and bitterness helped the Nazis to gain more support.
Many workers turned to communism, but this frightened wealthy businessmen, so they financed Hitler's campaigns.
Many middle-class people, alarmed by the obvious failure of democracy, decided that the country needed a strong government. Nationalists and racists blamed the Treaty of Versailles and reparations.
By July 1932, the Nazis held 230 seats
In 1928, the Nazis had only 12 seats in the Reichstag; by July 1932 they had 230 seats and were the largest party.
The government was in chaos. President Hindenburg dismissed Brüning in 1932. His replacement - Papen - lasted six months, and the next chancellor - Schleicher - only lasted two months. Hindenburg had to use Article 48 to pass almost every law.
Hitler handed power on a plate
In January 1933, Hindenburg and Papen came up with a plan to get the Nazis on their side by offering to make Hitler vice chancellor. He refused and demanded to be made chancellor. They agreed, thinking they could control him.
In January 1933, Hitler became chancellor, and immediately set about making himself absolute ruler of Germany using Article 48.
Reasons why Hitler rose to power
- Hitler was a great speaker, with the power to make people support him.
- The moderate political parties would not work together, although together they had more support than the Nazis.
- The depression of 1929 created poverty and unemployment, which made people angry with the Weimar government. People lost confidence in the democratic system and turned towards the extremist political parties such as the Communists and Nazis during the depression.
- The Nazi storm troopers attacked Hitler's opponents.
- Goebbels' propaganda campaign was very effective and it won support for the Nazis. The Nazis targeted specific groups of society with different slogans and policies to win their support.
- Hitler was given power in a seedy political deal by Hindenburg and Papenwho foolishly thought they could control him.
- German people were still angry about the Treaty of Versailles and supported Hitler because he promised to overturn it.
- Industrialists gave Hitler money and support.
Methods of controlling Nazi Germany
Below are some of the methods used by the Nazis to control every aspect of German life.
Censorship
Films. Mass media
Intimidation
S.S. Gestapo. S.A.
One Party State
Enabling Act. Parties Banned. Trade Unions
Propaganda
Censorship. Rallies. Parades. Control of media
Dictatorship
Enabling act
Indoctrination
Hitler Youth. Control of Education
Economic recovery
Rearmament. Fall in unemployment
Some of the reasons why the Nazis were able to control everyday life in Germany were because of the following:
- The Nazi party was the only political party in Germany. All other parties were banned.
- Censorship was rigorously enforced by Dr Goebbels, the Nazi Minister of Propaganda. Germans could read and see only what the Nazis permitted.
- Young people were forced to use school text books that had been rewritten by the Nazis and boys were encouraged to join the Hitler Youth.
- The Enabling Act allowed Hitler to pass any law without consulting the Reichstag (or parliament).
- Opponents of the Nazis were rounded up by the Gestapo or the S.S. and most ended up in prison or concentration camps.
- The Nazis' persecution of Jews meant that many other Germans lived in fear of the Nazis turning on them, too.
However the main reason was fear as people who spoke out against them were attacked or arrested by the Gestapo (secret police) or the SS (Hitler’s private bodyguard) and hundreds of thousands of innocent German people died in concentration camps. Clever propaganda techniques, control over young people’s education, the Hitler youth and the role of the Gestabo ultimately meant that Hitler had total control over Germany
Further information:
Most Germans had seemed to have accepted Hitler's ideas, but for those who did not life could be unpleasant:
• All other political parties were banned. The leaders of the Communist and Socialist parties were arrested and put in Concentration Camps. The first of these were opened in 1933. The Reichstag ceased to have any importance.
• Only Nazis could become civil servants, government officials or teachers.
• A People's Court was set up to try cases of treason, but this could include almost anything. It worked in secret and there was no means to appeal, except to Hitler himself.
• The Nazi Party took control of every area of life in Germany. A secret police force was set up, the "Geheime Staats Polizei" (Gestapo). This was used to spy on people at all times. Germans learned to keep their mouths shut. Any sign of complaint could lead to arrest and "re-education" or to complete disappearance. In every block of flats there was a warden who checked on people's comings and goings.
• The Nazis controlled all books and newspapers, films and radio programmes. Any writers, painters or composers that the Nazis did not approve of were banned. These included: Mendelssohn, a German composer who was Jewish; Van Gogh, a Dutch painter who was an impressionist; and H G Wells, a British novelist who wrote a book called "The Shape of Things to Come" in which he predicted that a Second World War would lead to the destruction of the world.
Hitler realised that if he could control what people read, looked at and listened to he could control people's ideas.
Most of the changes were introduced gradually; the worst effects only came into force during the Second World War. It was not until 1939 that Jews began to be really badly treated. At the same time most people found themselves becoming better off - wages rose, transport improved and there was more security and very little crime. Overall Germany seemed to be recovering. In 1936 the Olympic Games were held in Berlin and the Rhineland was reoccupied.
Impact of Nazi Rule
Establishing the totalitarian state
By 1933 Hitler was one large step closer to his goal of having complete control of Germany. Before the March elections of that year he had been made Chancellor - the second most powerful political job in Germany. Using the powers that the job gave him, he actively sought to increase his power even more.
Destroying the Reichstag
In February 1933, the Reichstag building was burned down. Hitler blamed the Communists for the fire and arrested the party's 81 officials. After the March elections, using the fire as an excuse, Hitler banned his greatest rivals, the Communist party.
The Enabling Law
At the March elections the Nazi party was the largest single political party. After suspending the Communists, and using his storm-troopers (the SA) to intimidate members of the other parties, Hitler had the two-thirds majority in the parliament he needed to suspend the country's constitution.
This meant Hitler now had the power to issue new laws without consulting parliament.
- He made the Nazis the only legal political organisation in the country. The other parties were banned or dissolved themselves.
- No-one could now challenge the Nazis legally, which made opposition very dangerous. Opponents of the Nazis had to work in secret, and some fled abroad.
Suppressing all opponents
In April 1933, the parliaments of the German states (Lander) were replaced by Nazi governors who could appoint and dismiss officials and judges.
- Anti-Nazis or Jews were removed from the civil service.
- In May 1933, trade unions were banned and replaced by the Labour Front.
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In June 1934, in the 'night of the long knives', Ernst Rohm, leader of Hitler's storm troops was killed, along with 400 of his men. This ensured the German army would be loyal to Hitler and showed that even Nazi supporters were not safe if Hitler doubted their absolute loyalty.
In August 1934, President Hindenburg died. With the support of the army, and with no one left to oppose him, Hitler combined the role of President with that of Chancellor and assumed the title of Fuhrer (Leader) of Germany.
Organisations of the totalitarian state
Hitler used a number of organisations to uphold and extend his control of Germany.
- The SS (Hitler's personal body guard).
This organisation was made up of fanatical supporters of Hitler. Hitler used them as his execution squad to eliminate his National flag (1933-1945) of the Third Reich
opponents.
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The SD (Security Service) and Gestapo (Secret State Police). The SD had an army of informants and hunted down, and also often eliminated, opponents.
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The Police force and law courts. Heinrich Himmler, the head of the SS, was also in charge of the police. This meant no-one investigated the crimes committed by the Nazis. Special 'people's courts' made sure that opponents of the Nazis charged with treason were found guilty, even if there was little or no evidence.
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Concentration camps. Established in 1933. Opponents of the Nazis and undesirable members of the population, such as Jews, Communists and gypsies, were sent to the camps without trial. The SS, Hitler's most loyal organisation, ran the camps.
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The army. After the murder of Rohm, the army pledged their loyalty to Hitler. His plans to rearm the forces and his expansionist foreign policy were popular with them.
The visible evidence of control, seen in flags, symbols and uniforms on the streets, together with the use of informants, made people very cautious. However, the system was not as efficient as it appeared, with security forces often reporting "grumbling" among workers but unable to do much about it.
Social controls
The churches
Despite signing an agreement with the pope, The Catholic Youth League was broken up, Catholic priests arrested, and religious teaching banned. Hitler set up a Protestant Reich Church with Nazi bishops. Ministers, such as Martin Niemoller, who resisted were sent to concentration camps.
Youth
To brainwash the young, Jewish and anti-Nazi teachers were sacked and subjects were given a pro-Nazi bias so children would accept Nazi ideas without questioning them. The Nazi youth organisation used physical activities to indoctrinate boys to glorify war while girls were taught to welcome their role as mothers.
Propaganda
Joseph Goebbels, as Minister for National Enlightenment, controlled the media and arts. He made sure that Germans were fed Nazi ideology while other ideas were censored. The glorification of Nazi Germany was emphasised by the Nuremberg rallies and the 1936 Berlin Olympics. These were a message to the world that Nazi Germany was here to stay.
Anti-semitism
From 1933 Jews were removed from public office and the professions. The 1935 Nuremberg Laws deprived them of citizenship. Persecution was gradually increased with boycotts of Jewish businesses until Kristallnacht in November 1938 when the SA looted over 7,000 Jewish shops and arrested 20,000 Jews.
Economic controls
The Nazis tried to make Germany self-sufficient - that is, to produce all the goods it needed without having to rely on external supplies. This could be achieved more easily for some types of goods than for others, so the need to obtain access to oil, for example, was part of the reason for Germany's aggressive foreign policy in eastern Europe.
Employment
The Nazis implemented a major programme of public works, such as building and repairing roads, railways and houses. This significantly helped reduce unemployment, as did large-scale military rearmament. With Germany building up its armed forces, thousands of jobs in iron, steel, aviation and shipbuilding were created. After 1935, conscription of men into the army also helped reduce the unemployment figures. This was seen as a benefit to the country and enabled many Germans to accept Nazi rule.
Workers' conditions
The Labour Front prevented strikes. Many Germans preferred low paid jobs to unemployment. Kraft durch Freude (Strength through Joy) was an organisation set up to make lives better. This meant loyal workers received benefits such as subsidised theatre visits, sports facilities as well as cheap cruises. Although some disliked being regimented even in their leisure pursuits, others enjoyed the better facilities.
The production of the people's car (the volkswagen) from 1938 suggested Nazism was benefiting workers because they could put their name down for one of these cars and save money each week for two years to buy one.
Incomes
The government controlled wages and prices but, despite this, the standard of living dropped under Nazi rule. Resources that might have gone towards improving supplies of goods for people to use were diverted into the public works programme and into rearmament.
It is easy to think that all Germans were affected by the Nazis in everything they did, but in practice many were able to continue with everyday life without much change, as long as they were not among the groups that the Nazis persecuted. They may have been irritated by the propaganda and censorship that restricted what they could read in newspapers or see in cinemas or the theatre, but for some there were compensations in Strength Through Joy, in regular employment or even in lower crime rates - as one historian has said, "if nothing else, dictatorships make good police".
There was also a good deal of support for the foreign policy that sought to overturn Versailles - events like the reoccupation of the Rhineland and the Anschluss with Austria were popular, and seen as evidence that Germany was recovering from the humiliations of Versailles.
This does not suggest that Nazi Germany was a pleasant place to live - unless of course you were one of the Nazi elite. There was always an undercurrent of fear, an element of unpredictability, and for persecuted groups it was a terrible tragedy. But many ordinary people learned to put these things in the background and to get on with their lives. Only a few, however, were brave and committed enough to take their resistance beyond "grumbling" and become active opponents of the Nazis.
Life in Nazi Germany
Life for women in Germany
Hitler had very clear ideas about the woman's role in the Nazi state - she was the centre of family life, a housewife and mother. Hitler even introduced a medal for women who had eight or more children!
The role of women
The Nazis had clear ideas of what they wanted from women.
Women were expected to stay at home and look after the family. Women doctors, teachers and civil servants were forced to give up their careers. Even at the end of the war, women were never asked to serve in the armed forces.
Their job was to keep the home nice for their husband and family - their life should revolve round the three 'Ks':
Goebbels said: "The mission of women is to be beautiful and to bring children into the world."
Hitler wanted a high birth rate, so the population would grow. The Nazis even considered making it law that families should have at least four children. Girls did keep fit in the BDM to make themselves healthy for childbirth, but they were discouraged from staying slim, because it was thought that thin women had
trouble giving birth.
The Law for the Encouragement of Marriage gave newlywed couples a loan of 1,000 marks, and allowed them to keep 250 marks for each child they had. Mothers who had more than eight children were given a gold medal. Unmarried women could volunteer to have a baby for an Aryan member of the SS.
Women were supposed to emulate traditional German peasant fashions - plain peasant costumes, hair in plaits or buns and flat shoes. They were not expected to wear make-up or trousers, dye their hair or smoke in public.
Life for minorities
Nazi race theory saw many groups as ’undesirables’: Jews, Roma, black Germans, homosexuals, Jehovah's Witnesses and the mentally and physically disabled. These people could not be part of the new ‘racially pure’ Germany.
During the early 1920s some of the French troops occupying the Rhineland had been of North African descent. Some of these men had developed relationships with German women, resulting in children being born. Children were also born to people from Germany’s African colonies who had settled in Germany. The Nazis saw these mixed race children as ’inferior’ to the Aryans.
After 1933 almost 400 black Germans were part of a compulsory sterilisation programme. Between 1939 and 1945, under the shadow of war, many of them disappeared without trace.
This section describes how the Nazis dealt with Roma, homosexuals, Jehovah’s Witnesses and the mentally and physically disabled peoples.
The Germans had lots of policies towards minorities such as Jews, 1933-1939
April 1933-Nationwide one-day boycott of Jewish shops, lawyers and doctors all over Germany. Laws passed to dismiss non-Aryans from public service and the professions.
May 1935-Jews forbidden to join the army.
1935 Nuremburg Laws (September) - Jews lose their rights as German citizens. The Reich Citizenship laws made Jews ‘subjects’ rather than citizens. It became illegal for Jews to marry, or to have any relations with Aryans. Jews were encouraged to leave Germany.
1936-A lull in the anti- Jewish campaign as the Olympic Games was taking place in Berlin. Anti-Jewish signs were taken down.
April 1938- Jews had to register their property, making it easier to confiscate.
June-July 1938- Jewish doctors, dentists and lawyers were forbidden to treat Aryans.
October 1938- Jews had to have a red letter ‘J’ stamped on their passports.
9-10th November 1938 Kristallnacht-Mass destruction of synagogues and Jewish shops; large number of German Jews either killed or arrested and sent to concentration camps.
15th November-Jewish pupils only allowed to attend Jewish schools. Segregation enforced.
March 12th 1939-First mass arrests of Jews takes place as nearly 30,000 Jewish men and boys are sent to concentration camps.
Life for children
Education was controlled by the Nazis. Children were taught about the greatness of Hitler e.g. on his birthday they had to place flowers behind the pictures of Hitler at home and at school.
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Primary Schools – children were taught fairy stories of Nazi knights who saved maidens from bad Russian gnomes. In maths the young child had to count the number of SS guards.
- From birth children were told that the Germans were the master race.
- Secondary school teachers had to be Nazi members.
- The secondary curriculum included biology, which emphasised the supremacy of the German race. In History Germans were taught how the Treaty of Versailles was unfair. In Maths questions included the area of a swastika.
- Physical education was especially important, the Nazis wanted boys to be fit so that they could be good soldiers and girls to be fit so that they could be healthy mothers.
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The Hitler Youth was an organisation that boys joined. Here they would go camping, do sports activities and be taught Hitler’s ideas.
- The League of German Maidens – prepared girls for their role as housewives. They were taught how to do various household chores and went on weekend outings.
Children in the Holocaust.
Children were especially vulnerable in the era of the Holocaust. The Nazis advocated killing children of “unwanted” or “dangerous” groups in accordance with their ideological views, either as part of the “racial struggle” or as a measure of preventative security. The Germans and their collaborators killed children both for these ideological reasons and in retaliation for real or alleged partisan attacks.
The Germans and their collaborators killed as many as 1.5 million children, including over a million Jewish children and tens of thousands of Romani (Gypsy) children, German children with physical and mental disabilities living in institutions, Polish children, and children residing in the occupied Soviet Union. The chances for survival for Jewish and some non-Jewish adolescents (13-18 years old) were greater, as they could be deployed at forced labour.
The fate of Jewish and non-Jewish children can be categorized in the following way: 1) children killed when they arrived in killing; 2) children killed immediately after birth or in institutions; 3) children born in ghettos and camps who survived because prisoners hid them; 4) children, usually over age 12, who were used as labourers and as subjects of medical experiments; and 5) those children killed during reprisal operations or so-called anti-partisan operations.
In the ghettos, Jewish children died from starvation and exposure as well as lack of adequate clothing and shelter. The German authorities were indifferent to this mass death because they considered most of the younger ghetto children to be unproductive and hence “useless eaters.” Because children were generally too young to be deployed at forced labour, German authorities generally selected them, along with the elderly, ill, and disabled, for the first deportations to killing centres, or as the first victims led to mass graves to be shot.
Upon arrival at Auschwitz-Birkenau and other killing centres, the camp authorities sent the majority of children directly to the gas chambers. SS and police forces in German-occupied Poland and the occupied Soviet Union shot thousands of children at the edge of mass graves. Sometimes the selection of children to fill the first transports to the killing centres or to provide the first victims of shooting operations resulted from the agonizing and controversial decisions of Jewish council (Judenrat) chairmen. The decision by the Judenrat in Lodz in September 1942 to deport children to the Chelmno killing centre was an example of the tragic choices made by adults when faced with German demands. Janusz Korczak, director of an orphanage in the Warsaw ghetto, however, refused to abandon the children under his care when they were selected for deportation. He accompanied them on the transport to the Treblinka killing centre and into the gas chambers, sharing their fate.
