Gemany At War Flashcards
Why did the British bomb Germany?
To weaken Germany ability to fight
Weaken German morale
Industrial targets. Stop production of planes and bombs etc
Where and when were there prominent bombings
Berlin August 1940
Berlin 1942
Hamburg July 1943
Dresden 1943
Hamburg august 1943
How many civilians died during bombings
3.5 million
What is total war
All economic activity is focused on the winning of the war. Everything else would cease until the war is won.
What happened to things and shops during total war
Most things were rationed. E.g clothes soap toilet paper and only getting hot water 2 days a week with a lack of oil.
What was ersatz?
A German made fake food. Like ersatzkaffee, a coffee made from acorn and barely seeds
Why did a black market develop
Rationing allowed a black market to flourish with people buying goods like meats toilet paper and new clothes
What groups of people were given extra rations and why
Miners- they were important for war effort
Blood donors- they needed to be healthy to donate blood
Pregnant women- to make healthy babies
What were balcony pigs?
People grew herbs and vegetables on their balconies in big cities
Who was Albert Speer?
He was put in charge of ensuring the German economy was ready for total war
How did Albert Speer ensure Germany was ready for total war
He made workers in factories work longer hours. Getting women to join the workforce. Working in factories was dangerous as they would be target to bombs
What other groups got drafted into the workforce
Jews and political opponents worked until there deaths without pay.
Hat did the league of German maidens do?
Helped out in kindergartens and elderly peoples homes.
How did the onset of war alter the Jewish problem for the Nazis
The countries they invaded had many Jews in them. USSR had 5 million, Poland had 3 million. Immigration was stopped. Further into the war the Nazis realised the pay their original plan of moving Jews east towards Siberia was no longer an option as the Russian army put up a fight.
Who were the einsatzgruppen?
SS squads (3000 men) carried out mass shootings and used gas vans to eradicate towns filled with Jews about Europe. Primarily in Eastern Europe.
What was the purpose of the ghettos?
To imprison Jews the Nazis created ghettos in big cities. They were surrounded by huge walls and guards. The Nazis punished anyone who tried to leave. A Jew living in a ghetto would only live 3-12 months. Ghettos were used to keep Jews in until they were moved to concentration camps.
Example of a ghetto
Warsaw ghetto Poland
What was the final solution?
It was a decision made in January 1942, at the wansee conference. Heydrich came up with the solution of concentration camps. To eradicate the Jews they would be brought to camps and killed with zyklon b gas. The Nazis changed their focus from labour camps to death camps.
Who ran death camps
Death head units ran the camps.
What is the difference between death camps and concentration camps?
Concentration camps were camps where you would be sent to work and do hard manual labour. Death camps were camps where you were sent to die. Examples of death camps are Auschwitz and Birkenau
Who were wartime opposition for the Nazis
The army, the home front and political opponents.
Why did youth oppose the Nazi regime and how would they oppose it.
Many opposed the Nazis as they didn’t agree with Hitler youth and recognised how crazy it was teaching 8 year old kids how to throw grenades.
A group called the edelweiss pirates would make up rude alternatives to pro-Nazi songs sung by Hitler youth. They would listen to banned music and drink. Some even beat up Nazi youth members. They also refused to join home guard
The consequences of these actions led to them being captured and having their heads shaven.
Why did the church oppose the Nazis and what actions did they take?
The concordat had been broken. The churches opposed euthanasia of disabled. Couldn’t worship Hitler and God.
The pope publicly disapproved of the Nazis. Many Catholic priests saved Jews by sneaking them out of Germany. Bonhoeffer and Niemoller set up new churches to rebel.
Bonhoeffer was executed. Many priests were taken to concentration camps.
Cardinal Gaelin was killed.
Why did the army oppose the Nazis and what actions did they take?
Many officers weren’t happy with the einsatzgruppen. Hitler was too ruthless with German life in the army getting many men killed with his orders. Army generals didn’t like being controlled by a working class man.
The Kreisau circle planted a bomb. This was a plot called operation Valkyrie. This plot failed. Because of the plot Hitler feared for his personal safety during the war.
Because of the plot 5000 people were killed by Hitler because of paranoia. He used this fear as an excuse to kill many political opponents.
