Germany 1890-1945 Flashcards
How did hitler become chancellor through the 1930 reichstag election?
- a year after the deppression started that made around 3 million Germans unemployed
- coelition govornment formed since no party got a majority
- Heinrich Bruning (centre party polotition) became chancellor
- Bruning unpopular as he increased taxes/ lowered unemployment pay
- Hitler gained many seats and became seccond largest party in the reichstag.
How did hitler become chancellor through support of the nazis?
- put up posters and flags
- Hitler gave speaches at mass rallies
- Hitler’s popularity growing fast
How did hitler become chancellor through violence on the streets?
- Stormtroopers disrupted communist meetings and beat them up to make it hard for them to campaign
- Another political group had a version of the SA who clashed with the nazis
- in 1932 there were many bomb plots, murders and fights
- Chaos and violence proved weimar republic was failing
- People turned against hindenburg as he was using emergency decrees to make decisions without consultiong democratically elected Reichstag
How did hitler become chancellor through the 1932 Reichstag election?
- Bruning resigned in June 1932
- Franz von papen (centre party politician) elected by Hindenburg
- Had little support so called an election
- Nazis now largest political party
Who was Kurt von Schleicher?
- was made chancellor by Hindenburg
- had no support and couldn’t make laws so resigned
- 30 January 1933 Hitler made chancellor
- Hindenburg tried to limit his power by making von papen as vice chancellor/ only two other naziz in court
- They were unable to control hitler
7 things women were dicouraged/ banned from doing in Nazi Germany
- Getting a job
- Smoking
- Wearing trousers
- Wearing high heels
- Using contraception
- Having an abortion
- Slimming
4 things women were made/ encouraged to do in Nazi Germany
- Cook
- Attend church
- Have many children
- Eat healthily
What was the Mother’s cross?
It was given out to women who had many children
Bronze- four children
Silver- six children
Gold- eight or more children
Did Hitler’s childbirth policies work?
Some policies did work as the birth rate rose by over 400 K between 1933 and 1939. However, the Nazis could no longer in force their beliefs about women in the workplace as the men have gone off to war family is needed new ways to earn money and therefore many women went to work and stop having children.
What women were discouraged from having children and what was this law called?
Women who had a history of mental illness
hereditary diseases
antisocial behaviour
They were deemed to be unfit mother is and could be forcibly sterilised this was called the law prevention for diseased offspring
Why would some Christian support the Nazis?
- Hitler was respectful towards the Catholic Church
- Hitler said he would destroy communists which pleased the Christians as communists are against religion
- Nazis agreed with the Christian view that Marriage, morals, and family are vitally important
Why would some Christians not support the nazis?
- The nazis hated vulnerable people who the Christians wanted to help
- The nazis Nazis thought some people were superior to others, yet Christians believe that everybody is equal
- Hitler thought I’d himself as God-like and wished to be worshipped, put Christianity is monotheistic they and only believe in the Trinity
What did Hitler do about the Catholics
Harassed and arrested Catholic priests
Close down catholic youth groups and schools
What did the Catholics do about Hitler
The Pope issued a statement called with burning anxiety sing the Nazis were hostile to the church but it had little effect, Catholic Archbishop Galen was also arrested For criticising concentration camps and the Nazi use of euthanasia
What was the relationship between the Nazis and Catholics
Hitler began by working together with the Catholic Church, forming a peaceful bond when he the organisation got in each other’s way. However, this soon drastically changed when Hitler observed that the people of the Catholic Church were more subservient to the Pope
than to him
What was Hitler’s relationship with the Protestant church
Protestants who were in favour of Hitler We called the German Christians
They were led by Ludwick Miller who became the first right Bishop in September 1933
They would wear Nazi uniforms and use the phrase the “swastika on out chests, the cross in our hearts
Protestants who were not in favour of the Nazis were called the confessional church, they were led by Pastor Martin Niemoller.
The Nazis arrested him and banned this church from criticising them
3 facts about Kaiser Wilhelm II and the army
- he spent most of his youth in the army
- he was keen to maintain a powerful army and build up a large navy
- he took great pride in leading the army and was very interested in military tactics
What was the influence of Prussian militarisation?
Militarisation - the belief that a country should have strong armed forces
The Kaiser came from the state of Prussia
Prussia favoured militarisation meaning Prussian generals, army officers and tactics formed the basis of the united German army
Germany and Industrialisation
- The Kaiser dreamt of making Germany as great as Britain
- In the late 1800s, Germany began to industrialise
- 1913 Germany producing as much coal as Britain and more iron and steel
- 1914 Germany producing 2/3 of Europe’s steel
- German companies in electrical goods and chemicals dominated Europe
- German leading factory owners had become very influential
What were the Navy Laws?
(introduced 1898-1912)
Huge amount of money spent to rapidly increase the size of the German navy and army
To pay for it, taxes were increased and money was borrowed, meaning Germany would be in debt for a very long time
They were made because The Kaiser wanted a large navy to take over more countries and protect those already in the German empire
What was the general belief of socialism under the reign of Kaiser?
- Many workers unhappy with low wages and bad conditions
- Workers joined trade unions hoping to force the government to improve pay and conditions. By 1914, over 3 mil workers had joined trade unions
- There was a political party called The Social Democratic Party that became popular among workers
What was The Social Democratic Party?
It was a new political party that believed wealth should be split equally.
It hoped laws would be made by the Kaiser and Reichstag that improve workers’ rights and conditions
It disagreed with the power and privilege head by land and factory owners
1/3 of Germans voted for them at this time
What was the most extreme view on socialism?
Wanting to rebel against the Kaisers rue by starting a revolution to allow cities and towns to be governed by councils of workers
What is a chancellor?
The chief minister that advises Kaiser
What is the Bundesrat?
Made up of representatives from each state that discussed laws
What is the Reichstag?
Parliament elected by men over 25, debated and voted on laws drawn up by the Kaiser and ministers
What could Kaiser do in government?
Ignore all government advice and make his own decisions, made all military and foreign policy decisions
Describe the spartacist rising
- left wing
- tried to take over berlin 6 January 1919
- didn’t want large parliament like Weimar republic, wanted small councils
- was handled by gov sending 2000 ex soldiers (right wing free corps) to destroy them
- significant as it made people scared and aware of communism
Describe the Kapp putsch
- right wing
- lead by Wolfgang Kapp in 1920 and his 5000 men (free corps)
- aimed and succeeded in overthrowing government and taking over the country
- gov handled it by fleeing berlin and there was a workers strike
- semi significant as he got his power but only for 100hrs
- The WR survived because the workers didn’t support Kapp so he fled abroad and the gov could return
Describe the Munich putsch
- right wing
- hitler interrupted a beer hall to persuade politicians to help him
- hitler took control of the beer hall and got Ludendorff’s support
- not very significant, gov unphazed but did lead to Hitler’s uprising
- Hitler was imprisoned for 9 months
Key outcome for Hitler of the Munich Putsch
Made him realise that he couldn’t take power with violence and he knew he had to get voted in legitimately, he worked this out while in prison
Describe the issue of the occupation of the Ruhr
- Germany couldn’t pay its second payment of reparations and announced this
- The French and Belgian soldier decided to take what they were owed by force
- In January 1923, 60k soldiers marched into the Ruhr (a rich industrial area of Germany)
- They took control of every factory, mine and railway in the region
- They took food and goods from shops and arrested any German that stood up to them
How did the occupation of the Ruhr lead to hyperinflation?
- The government told its workers in the Ruhr to go on strike not fight pack (passive resistance)
- To pay the striking workers, the government printed lots more money
- The workers spent their money quickly so shopkeepers upped their prices
- as prices went up, the government printed more money until workers were being payed twice a day and had to carry their money in wheelbarrows
What was the reparations situation in 1921
In the TofV, Germany were ordered to pay 6.6 bil in the next 66 years
Later that year the gov scraped together the first 2 bil in gold, col, iron and wood, and handed it to Belgium and France who had suffered the most in ww1
However they couldn’t pay the rest
