Unit 2a: Nazi Germany revision notes

• after the Kaiser abdicated, uncertainty ensued, so Friedrich Erbert put together a new government but it had major weaknesses. Some of its key features were:
  • proportional representation
  • elections every four years
  • the chancellor needed a majority in the Reichstag to pass laws
  • the president could suspend the constitution and pass laws by decree
• the consititution - unstable coalition governments, hard to agree, suspension often the only way
• Treaty of Versailles - blamed for signing it, reparations caused economic problems
• Kapp Putsch (right) - seized power in Berlin (workers striked, so Putsch failed)
• Munich Putsch (right) - putsch failed but Hitler's trial publicised his views
• Hyperinflation (1923) - government printed money (for reparations etc), worthless, poor living conditions
• French Occupation of the Ruhr - reparations, wrecked equipment so French couldn't profit, still lost money
• attacks from left - Spartacist uprisings defeated Weimar Republic using Freikorps
• Bankruptcy (1923) - lost wealth-making regions, spent all gold reserves on war, reparations

• November 1923 - Stresemann introduced new currency Rentenmark (stabilised the currency, German people showed confidence in it)
• 1923-38 - US loans (helped to pay reparations, greatly helped German industry)
• 1924 - Rentenmark converted to Reichsmark (gradually restored the value of German money)
• 1924 - Stresemann negotiated the Dawes Plan with the USA (reorganised and reduced reparations, French withdrew from the Ruhr)
• 1925 - Locarno Pact (improved relations with Britain and guaranteed borders with Belgium, France and Italy
• 1928 - Kellogg-Briand Pact - NOT STRESEMANN'S INITIATIVE (one of 62 countries that agreed to settle disputes peacefully, better relations with USA and France)
• 1929 - Young Plan (set timescale and reduced reparations, France agreed to leave the Rhineland early)

Remaining problems:

• Short lived coalition governments, extremist parties, unemployment, reliant on US loans, industry slowed down by 1927, USA buying Germany's exports, German nationalists hated Dawes and Young plans

• Hitler couldn't get a job so blamed the Jews for controlling all the opportunities
• blamed Jews and socialists for 'stabbing Germany in the back'
• fought bravely in First World War and couldn't believe Germany were defeated
• 1919 - Hitler joined the DAP (German Workers' Party) led by Anton Drexler
• 1920 - Hitler was second command of the DAP, (August) changed to NSDAP (National Socialist DAP) 
• 1921 - Hitler took over control of the Nazi Party
• Treaty of Versailles must be scrapped
• Germany must be allowed to expand into neighbouring countries - lebensraum
• no German citizenship for Jews
• fight the Bolshevik menance
• Nazi Party's private army (SA)
• created in 1921 by Hitler for security and fights with communists
• by 1924 there were over 50000 members
• Ernest Rohm put in charge (many were ex-soldiers from First World War)

• unpopular Weimar Republic - worsened in Sep 1923 by called off strike in Ruhr and start of paying reparations to France
• former army leader Ludendorff close to Hitler - persuade army
• ready - 55000 supporters and SA
• Bavarian government (right wing) would support Munich Putsch
• Hitler's trial - propaganda (led to election successes in 1930s)
• wrote Main Kampf while in prison
• improved economy - less unemployment
• Hindenburg president of Weimar Republic - increased popularity
• May 1928 elections - Nazis only won 12 seats in the Reichstag
• split into regions (gaue) controlled by a gauleiter
• given money by backers e.g. Krupp
• SA expanded to 400000 members and ** set up in 1925
• party propaganda more effective (clear message, newspapers, radio and film)

• the Great Depression (1929-32) caused by the Wall Street Crash was a worldwide economic recession
• had direct impact on Germany (especially businesses and government) and impacted people
• had to pay back loans to the USA and couldn't get new ones, had to pay higher taxes to the government, markets dried up, as few people had money to buy German goods
• couldn't borrow money from the USA, refused to print more money, so had to increase taxes instead, government workers lost jobs, cuts made to unemployment benefit, government blamed for depending on US loans, already problems with coalition government as couldn't decide how to solve the crisis
• millions of workers and farm labourers lost their jobs, banks went bust and people lost their savings, businesses collapsed, and so did investments based on them, young people suffered many job losses, families encountered terrible poverty, men couldn't find work and unemployment benefit was reduced,
• in 1932, 6 million Germans were unemployed

• strong propaganda  - clear messages os NSDAP's policies, Goebbels was very important
• support for women - messages of the key role for women and the family in Germany's future
• big businesses - promised strong leadership and protection from communists
• farmers - promised to protect farmers from communists
• middle-class support - hit hard by Great Depression, felt let down by moderatre parties, liked the anti-communist message
• some working-class support - jobs and images of a strong Germany (but more supported communists)
• SA as private army - stronger than communists
• Great Depression - Nazis offered hope and strong leadership
• unemployment hit the working class and the middle class very hard
• people lost faith in the moderate politicians - a success of Weimar governments failed to tackle unemployment between 1929 and 1933
• people turned to the extremist parties instead - communists on the left and Nazis on the right
• workers liked the communists, but anyone with something to lose (e.g. businesses, farms and property) hated them - this meant that many middle class people voted for the Nazis to keep the communists out

• March 1932 - Hindenburg beats Hitler in presidential election
• May 1932 - Hindenburg makes von Papen chancellor under Article 48 (Bruning is unpopular)
• July 1932 - centre party (less than 68 seats) vs Nazis (320 seats) but von Papen still chancellor
• Nov. 1932 - centre party (even less seats) vs Nazis (196 seats) but von Papen still chancellor
• Dec. 1932 - still ruling by decree so he removes von Papen and makes von Schleider chancellor
• 28th January 1933 - von Schleider resigns due to lack of support
• 30th January 1933 - Hitler made chancellor after von Papen's assistance
• Hitler had the largest party - von Papen wanted him on his side to give him support in Reichstag
• German government always saky coalitions - needed other parties' support to pass laws
• Hitler's party linked to violent thugs - SA fought pitched battles in the streets so von Papen made a plan:
  • Nazi Party backing (230 seats in Reichstag)
  • won't remain popular for long - will have to do what they say
  • Nazis depend on money from businesses (can cut off at any time if need to)
  • make Hitler chancellor but he (von Papen) will control him to get what he wanted

• used legal mathods (March 1933 election, Enabling act), party organisation (propaganda, donations, from businesses) and illegal methods (intimidation and violence) to remove opposition and take control
• 27th February 1933 - Reichstag fire (Reichstag building burnt down by Dutch communist (Marinus van der Lubbe) who confessed, Hitler persuaded Hindenburg to call an emergency election, Nazi's won 288 seats, made deals to get 2/3 majority needed to change the constitution)
• March 1933 - Enabling Act (power to make any laws without Reichstag approval for 4 years)
• people were prevented from organising into groups that might challenge the Nazi s: ensorship of the press and Ministry of Propaganda established, people could be arrested and held without trial (suspension of Habeas Corpus), any house could be searched and belongings confiscated
  • 1933 - (May) Trade Unions banned and strikes made illegal, (July) other political parties banned
  • January 1934 - regional parliaments closed down
• Rohm challenged Hitler - wanted Nazis to be about workers, not big businesses
• ** got rid of their oppsition, shot Rohm and 400 other opponents
• President Hindenburg died, propaganda ensured 90% of voters chose Hitler for Fuhrer

• new laws were passed (made it a crime to do things like listen to a foreign radio station)
• ** arrested peopl who were accused of disobeying laws ('protective custody')
• Gestapo (secret police) - read mail, istened in on phone calls - to spy on people
• wardens given 40 households each to spy on and report and suspicious behaviour
• encouraed to be an informer - spied on their friends and family
• Law Courts under total Nazi control - no jury, all judges took an oath of loyalty to Hitler
• concentration camps were where many prisoners were taken (first opened Dachau in 1933)
• totalitarian regime - central government in control of every aspect of the country
• communists, political opponents, Christians (who didn't support the Nazis), undesirables (Jewsm Gays) were targets of the police state
• Corcondat with Pope (1933) - allowed Catholics to worship if their bishops agreed to support Hitler
• went back on promise; harrassed priests, closed Church schools, banned Catholic youth organisations
• some Protestants in the Confessional Church backed Hitler, forming the Reich Church under Ludwig Muller
• but some Protestants opposed Hitler and were sent to concentration camps

• censorship - government controls what people hear, see and read
• propaganda - information given out to spread ideas or points of view
• Goebbels became Nazi Minister of Enlightenment and Propaganda
• newspapers that opposed Nazi's were shut down
• books could only be published with the governments permission
• 'Decadent' art and culture banned, including modern styles of art and jazz
• public burning of books by Jewish authors or with non-Nazi views
• 1933 - Reich CHamber of Culture - only members could publish or perform their work
• only short-range radios were made - couldn't receive foreign stations
• radio producers, playwrights, academics, film-makers, and newspaper journalists were told what to produce by the Nazis
• posters, radio, cinema, rallies, plays, art, education, sport, slogans were common methods of propaganda used by the Nazis

• only Nazi youth groups allowed (others shut down) to make children into Nazi citizens
• race studies (Aryan superiority and Jewish inferiority), a lot of PE, boys trained for military roles, girls trained as housewives and mothers
• 8 million members of youth groups by 1939: Little Fellows (boys 6-10), Young German Folk (boys 10-14), Young Girls (girls 10-14), Hitler Youth (boys 14-18), League of German Maidens (girls 14-18)
• some opposition: didn't like to encourage spying, joined rival groups (Edelweiss Pirates)
• 3Ks - kinder, kuche, kirche (children, cooking, church) and many professional women lost jobs (e.g. doctors)
• 1933 Law for the Encouragement of Marriage - lent money if wife worked (per child 1/4 of loan let off)
• German Women's Enterprise (GWE) gave medals for number of children (Bronze 4-5, Silver 6-7, Gold 8+) and gave classes and radio programmes on household topics
• 1933-36 - number of working married women fell (rose again during war)
• number of marriages and birth rate increased (may have been due to improving economy)
• few women had more than 2 children and GWE had 6 million members
• many employers now employed women - but wages were 2/3 of mens' wages

• DAF (German Labour Front) - set working hours/rates of pay, made sure workers/employers did what state needed
• RAD (National Labour Service) - unemployed working, compulsory in 1935 for all young men, army-style work and living conditions, public works (building 7000 miles of autobahn by 1939)
• rearmament - wanted to rebuild German military power, military spending rose from 3.5 billion to 26 billion marks (1933-39), economy refocused on supplying for military, boost for war factories and economy, less unemployment
• unemployment (1933-38) went from 4.8 million to 0.5 million - invisible unemployment (Jews and Women), Men (military)
• wages rose//afford consumer goods - became more expensive to buy things
• car ownership up by 300% in 1930s - overspending on military (iminent bankruptcy)
• SdA (Beauty of Labour): improved working conditions - had to work for longer hours
• KdF (Strength through Joy): holidays and leisure activities for workers - had to work for longer hours
• public support for Nazis as better living standards - standards of living were so low in the Great Depression that they were bound to rise once the depression was over

• 1933 - boycotts of Jewish businesses, banned from inheriting land and government jobs
• 1935 - Jews banned from the army and public places, Nuremberg Laws deny Jews German citizenship (so lose right to vote), Jews banned from marrying Aryans
• 1936 - Jews banned or restricted from being teachers, nurses, dentists, vets + accountants
• 1938 - (March) register property, (July) carry identity cards, (November) Kristallnacht (1938)
• 1939 - (April) evicted from homes and moved to ghettos - thousands dies from disease and starvation
• long standing distrust of Jews (common across Europe), Nazi propaganda and fear of Gestapo and **
• Jewish shops and synagogues set on fire and smashed up - Jews blamed and fined
• 20000 Jews arrested ad 100 killed, barred from opening businesses
• Aryans - lesser races (e.g. Slavs) - Untermenschen (sub-humans e.g. Africans) - Lebensunwertes (not worthy of life e.g. Jews and Gypsies)
• Nazis said that disable babies should be allowed to die and disable people should be sterilised
• Nuremberg Laws prohibited marriage with Aryans, April 1939 - rounded up into ghettos