Germany - 3.2.7 - Grade 9 - Social Policy & Practice

Question 1

How did the Nazi treatment of Roma gypsies change between 1933 and 1945?

Answer 1

• From 1933 onwards gypsies were arrested and sent to concentration camps (these were not death camps at this point). Then, in 1938, all gypsies had to be registered and medically examined. If they failed this test then German citizenship was removed and they could no longer travel.
• During WW2, the policy towards Roma gypsies rapidly became more extreme. From 1940, gypsies were deported to labour camps. From there some went to Chelmno death camp. From 1942, this policy was applied to all gypsies. By the end of the war, 85% of German gypsies were killed.

Question 2

What are three statements about the negative consequences of Nazi economic policy?

Answer 2

• If a worker complained about working conditions they would be ‘blacklisted’.
• The Four-Year Plan led to food shortages.
• The cost of food increased so workers did not feel the benefit of increased wages.

Question 3

What were the consequences of the changes that the Nazis made to schools and the curriculum? (3)

Answer 3

• Children generally grew up to believe in the Nazi ideology. In History, children learnt about the rise of the Nazis and in Race Studies, they were taught that the Aryan race was superior to all others.
• Children were fit and healthy because of the emphasis on physical exercise in the Nazi curriculum. However, children sometimes resented the military drills they were forced to do.
• The Nazi policy on children could create family divides. Parents did not like the amount of time children spent with the Hitler Youth.

Question 4

Why was there less unemployment in Nazi Germany than there had been in Weimar Germany?

Answer 4

• Hermann Goering created the Four-Year Plan in 1936 to prepare Germany for war. The focus of this was rearmament and economic autarky. German rearmament was responsible for most of their economic growth between 1933 and 1939.
• Hitler created new jobs for men. Men were employed on public construction projects such as building the 1936 Olympic Stadium and building new autobahns. The National Labour Service made it compulsory for men aged 18-25 to work on public schemes for 6 months.
• Yet, there was actually a lot of invisible unemployment in Nazi Germany. Hitler’s statistics on unemployment did not include Jews or women forced out of their jobs in this period.

Question 5

What were the consequences of the Wannsee Conference? (2)

Answer 5

• 6 death camps with gas chambers were built in Poland.
• The rate at which the Jews were being murdered increased.