Germany: Development of Dictatorship (Chapters 4 and 5)

Question 1

What were the events of the Riechstag Fire (1933)?

Answer 1

• The Reichstag burnt down
• A Dutch communist called van der Lubbe was found on the scene with matches, and it is said he confessed to starting the fire
• He was executed

That fact that he was a communist sparked much debate as to whether it really happened and whether or not the Nazis set him up to have an excuse to repress communism

Question 2

What were the effects of the Reichstag Fire (1933)?

Answer 2

• Hitler used the fire as an excuse to increase his power by decreasing the power of communism - he claimed there was a serious communist threat
• 4000 communist leaders were arrested, and Hitler convinced Hindenburg to pass the emergency decree which allowed Hitler to make arrests without trial as well as ban meetings and close newspapers of opposing parties

Question 3

Why did the Hitler hold the 1933 March Reichstag election?

Answer 3

• It was only 6 days after the Reichstag fire, and Hitler claimed there was a serious communist threat
• He needed to win the majority (2/3) in the Riechstag in order to pass new laws without approval

With the help of Goering, Hitler went on a huge propanda campaign, threatened voters at stations, arrested opposing party members and used the SA to intimidate and break up opposition party meetings

Question 4

What were the results of the 1933 March Reichstag election?

Answer 4

Hitler won many seats, but did not have the 2/3 majority he needed to make changes in the constitution

He therefore needed to find a way to do this

Question 5

What did Hitler do to ensure the enabling act was passed?

Answer 5

• The communist party were banned from the Reichstag using emergency powers (81 seats)
• The centre party and nationalist party (52 and 74 seats respectively) agreed to join the Nazis due to similar beliefs and the Nazis promising to protect the Catholic Church

• This gave him the majority he needed to pass acts without external approval
• He then passed the enabling act through a Reichstag vote, where a huge majority voted in favour

Question 6

What powers did the enabling act (1933) provide Hitler with and what did he immediately do with them?

Answer 6

• They allowed him to pass laws, make policies and more without Reichstag approval - this marked the end of the democratic Weimar Government and constituion
• Hitler abolished state parliments so everything could be run centrally
• He shut down all trade unions so they could be more loyal to the Nazis and because they had communist sympathies, creating the German Worker’s Front in place of them
• He shut down all remaining opposing political parties, including the Social Democrats and banned them

Question 7

What were the causes of the Night of the Long Knives (1934)?

Answer 7

• Hitler felt like the SA were becoming too powerful (over 2 million members), and its leader, Ernst Rohm, was a challenge to his power
• Rohm had contrasting views with Hitler and his homosexuality offended many
• The SA were leaving Hitler with a bad reputation as they were using unnecessary violence
• Perhaps most importantly, the SA were interfering with the regular army, harassing them and wanting to replace them, however Hitler knew the army, despite being limited to 100,000 men, were far more disciplined and influential than the SA

Question 8

What were the events and consequences of the Night of the Long Knives?

Answer 8

• Members of the SS arrested over 200 SA officers, many of whom, including Rohm, were executed
• The SA were heavily weakened, if not destroyed
• He claimed responsibility by the attack, claiming he was protecting Germany from a plot from Rohm
• The threat of the SA was removed and any other opposition now feared him, and the army was now more loyal to him

He also took revenge on old enemies, such as von Kahr and Sleicher, and removed any possible opposition to his lead

Question 9

What happened following the death of Hindenburg (1934)?

Answer 9

• Hitler took the opportunity to increase his power by combining the offices of chancellor and president, declaring himself ‘Fuhrer’, meaning he now had total power of the Third Reich
• He made the army swear an oath directly to him, rather than Germany, meaning they would follow his orders directly under any circumstances

Question 10

How did Hitler use concentration camps to enforce terror after he came into full power?

Answer 10

• Political prisoners or anybody suspected to be in opposition of Hitler were put in concentration camps around Germany, this soon moved on to people with certain characteristics such as Jews
• These camps induced a sense of terror and made people afraid of opposing the Nazis as they were treated harshly and often worked to death in the camps by the SS

Question 11

How did Hitler use the SS to enforce terror after he came into full power?

Answer 11

• The SS grew to hundreds of thousands, and could arrest anybody they wanted without trial
• Hitler used them to carry out any tasks he wanted carried out - arresting people who showed opposition and running the concentration camps

Question 12

How did Hitler use the Gestapo to enforce terror after he came into full power?

The Gestapo were the secret branch of the police

Answer 12

• The Gestapo were in charge of finding out about anybody in opposition to Hitler and handing them over to the SS
• They had the power to search anybody’s home and make arrests without trial

Question 13

How did Hitler use informers to enforce terror after he came into full power?

Answer 13

• The informers were ordinary people who were encouraged to support any suspicious activity to the Nazis, usually activity consisting of being in opposition to Hitler
• They would report this information to the Gestapo, this information would often be about friends or even family
• It created a sense of fear and acted as a deterrent for opposition to the Nazis due to the fear of being caught

Question 14

What were the effects of terror on Nazi Germany?

Answer 14

• Created a sense of fear for opposing the Nazis, so reduced opposition
• People were afraid they would be found out (informers and gestapo) and then afraid of the consequences (concentration camps and SS)
• Reduced the liberty and freedom of speech of the people

Question 15

How did Hitler use censorship to promote his rule after he came into full power?

Answer 15

• Newspapers were strictly controlled and had to be part of the Reich Press Chamber which only promoted Nazi views
• Radio programmes were similar, and had to be part of the Reich Radio Company
• All forms of literature, art and music which opposed Nazi values were banned and destroyed, and all artists, writers etc. had to comply with Nazi expectations by joining the Reich Chamber of Commerce
• Any literature, art, theater or music etc. written by a non-Aryan - particularily a Jew - was banned

Question 16

How did Hitler use propaganda to promote his rule after he came into full power?

Answer 16

• All newspapers, radio stations, books, movies, art and music were implanted with pro-nazi messages
• These messages were often subtle so that they would slowly change the mind of the population without them realising
• These means of promoting Nazi messages, such as radios, was made accesssible in ways such as how they were made cheap and abundant
• Parades and rallies were held often
• Hitler tried to use the 1936 Olympic games to promote the supremacy of the Aryan race, though Jesse Owens thwarted this

Question 17

What were the effects of Nazi censorship and propaganda on Germany?

Answer 17

• Lack of freedom of speech and choice
• Promotion of Nazi messages, solidifying of Nazi control and weakening of Nazi opposition

Question 18

How did the Nazis change schools to best indoctrinate the younger generation?

Answer 18

• All teachers were forced to join the Nazis teacher association or lose their job - they were trained on how to pass on Nazi values to children
• The curriculum and textbooks were changed: Race studies was a new subject added taught how the Aryan race was superior, PE was emphasised to prepare boys to be soldiers, mathematics problems often included military themes, domestic sciences, only for girls, prepared them to be mothers, in Geography they were taught about the need for lebensraum
• Additional leadership schools were set up for boys with a future in leadership positions within the Reich/militrary

Question 19

How did the Nazis introduce youth groups and how did they help indoctrinate the younger generation?

Answer 19

• Youth groups were founded in 1926, but they small and membership was not compulsory, though they were growing
• It took until 1936 for them to be complulsory for all young people
• They spent evenings and weekends learning learning about Nazi views
• Boys had a focus on exercise, military and leadership, while girls had a focus on domestic life and motherhood

Question 20

In what ways did the Nazis change the role of women and how did they do it?

Answer 20

• As the birth rate in Germany was falling, they encouraged women through propaganda to have lots of children, giving medals to those who had many
• Abortion and contraception was banned
• Women were given loans if they married, but only if they gave up work, this was because the Nazis wanted them to focus on raising children as well as not take jobs from men (there was unemployment)
• The social standards were changed to, unladylike things such as drinking and smoking were banned (to improve reproductive health too) and traditional clothes and flat heeled shoes were encouraged rather than modern clothes

This was in contrast to the 1920s, where in Germany many women led professional careers

Question 21

Why did Hitler want to control the Catholic Church?

Answer 21

• A third of German population was Catholic
• Some of their beliefs contrasted Nazi beliefs
• Catholics were loyal to the Pope, but Hitler wanted them to be loyal to him
• Some people attended Catholic youth groups rather than Nazi youth groups

Question 22

How did Hitler control the Catholic Church?

Answer 22

• At first, a concordant was signed which agreed that they would not interfere with eachother
• However Hitler soon broke this rule, removing Catholic symbols, censoring Catholic newspapers and using propoganda to hint at corruption
• Following a priest speaking out against the Nazis, they reacted severely, shutting down the Catholic youth league, arresting priests who spoke out against them, siezing funding from the church and using the Gestapo to spy on the church

Question 23

How did Hitler control the Protestant Church?

Answer 23

• Since the church agreed with many of Hitler’s views, Hitler decided to combine all parts of the protestant church into one, heavily influenced Nazi church known as ‘Reich Church’
• Pastors who did not support it lost their jobs
• There was some resistance, such as those who set up the ‘Confessional Church’ in protest to the Reich Church who were determined to dissasociate itself from Nazi control, however they were swiftly shut down and its members sent to concentration camps

Question 24

What were the effects of Hitler’s policies on the Church?

Answer 24

• Opposition to the Nazis was decreased and their control further established
• Propaganda against the churches, banning of Church schools etc. meant that neither the Protestant Church nor the Catholic church played a signifigant role in society
• Religious membership dropped steeply, with, in 1939, only 5% of people calling themselves religious

Though he signifigantly reduced the power and influence of the churches, many people still attended the Catholic and Protestant Churches (even outside of the Reich Church)

Question 25

Before the war, how did Hitler persecute those he did not see as Aryan apart from Jews?

Answer 25

• 1933 sterilisation law meant tramps, beggars and those with disabilities were allowed to be forcefully sterilised
• These groups, homosexuals, and gypsies were sent to concentration camps from 1936
• From 1939, people with disabilities were beginning to be executed, eventually in gas chambers
• In 1935, intermarriage between Aryans and non-aryans was banned

Question 26

Before the war, how did Hitler persecute Jews?

Answer 26

• In 1933, a nationwise boycott of Jewish shops and businesses was organised
• In 1935, Jews were banned from public places and the army
• On the same year, the Nuremburg laws were passed, banning intermarriage between Aryans and Jews. It also denied Jewish people of citizenship, meaning they could not vote and had no rights
• They encouraged Jews to emmigrate in 1939, and many did, but then decided to ban emmigration in 1941 so they could kill them instead
• In 1938, all Jewish possessions had to be registered with the government, and all Jewish professionals were not allowed to take on work with non-jews, which eventually led to Jewish professionals being banned from work

Question 27

What was the cause of the night of broken glass?

Answer 27

A German official in an Embassy in Paris was murdered by a Jew, which gave the Germans an excuse to launch a campaign of murder and terror in Germany

Question 28

What were the events of the night of broken glass (1938)?

Answer 28

• Over 800 shops owned by Jews were destroyed, and 200 synagogues vandalised
• Many Jewish homes were attacked and damaged, and Jewish possessions siezed
• Over 30000 Jews were arrested and 100 killed

Question 29

What were the effects of the night of broken glass?

Answer 29

• Showed the Nazi’s hatred towards the Jews and what they were willing to do against them - presented as a spontaneous attack due to anger towards Jews
• Jewish suffering was increased, and much damage was done to the Jewish community

Much of the property damaged was actually owned by German landlords, so they fined the Jewish community 1 billion to pay for the damage

Question 30

What were Hitler’s economic plans for Germany?

Answer 30

• Reduce unemployment
• Reduce imports and be in a state of self-sufficiency (produce everything locally) so if they went to war they would not loose supply of these materials

• Unemployment was high due to the effects of the great depression, Hitler also needed money for rearmament German economy had to be strong
• This was part of the 4 year plan which begun in 1936

Question 31

What did Hitler do to try and reduce unemployment?

Answer 31

• Double spending on public works to create construction jobs
• Spending on arms dramatically increased, which created jobs in arms factories and related industries such as steel
• The German army itself was expanded from 100,000 to over 900,000
• The RAD (National Labour Service) was set up to help unemployed men do manual labour. They had to serve 6 months in this service. After 1935, all unemployed men had to join this

Question 32

What were the effects of Hitler’s efforts to reduce unemployment?

Answer 32

• Unemployment dropped from 6 million to only half a million between 1933 and 1939
  However, these figures are skewed because:
• Women were encouraged to not work and stay at home, with many of them being sacked. While they were encouraged back to help with the war, there were still less. These unemployed women were not included in unemployment figures
• Many Jews were forced out of work, and since they were not considered citizens, also were not counted in unemployment figures
• Anyone with temporary work or who was in the RAD was counted as employed, and conditions here were often bad and pay was low

Question 33

Which two schemes did the DAF put in place to improve working conditions so workers would be more productive and what did they consist of?

The DAF was the German Labout Front which all employers and employees were forced to join which ensured the efficient running of businesses

Answer 33

• Strength Through Joy (KDF) - Leisure activities, such as cruises, or cheap sports and theatre tickets, were given to the hardest working employees
• Beauty of Labour (SDA) - Part of the DAF which tried to encourage improved working conditions, such as adding sport and lesiure facilities to businesses

Question 34

How did Hitler use ghettos during the war?

Answer 34

• In captured countries, such as Poland, there were large populations of jews
• As they could not remove all these people, they began a policy of ghettoisation, meaning all Jews were forced to live in ghettos within the cities of Poland
• They were walled off areas were Jews were crammed into poor housing. There was starvation, disease and death

Question 35

How did Hitler use death squads during the war?

Answer 35

• In areas that they had quickly conquered, such as the Soviet Union, Hitler used death squads to eliminate any Jews
• They would follow the German army, and round up any Jews (and other groups such as communists) and put them to death
• It is thought they had murdered over 1.2 million civillians during the war

Question 36

What was the final solution and what were its effects?

Answer 36

• In 1941, at a conference in Wannsee, Berlin, the Nazis decided upon a ‘Final Solution’ to the Jewish problem
• Many concentration camps were turned into extermination camps, where all Jews would be killed inside of gas chambers. It is thought 6 million Jews died through this method
• Jews from within the Ghettos, especially in Poland, were taken directly to these camps to be exterminated

Question 37

What were the impacts of rationing on Germany during the war?

Answer 37

• From 1939, rationing began on basic food products and things like clothes, which they were given stamps to be able to buy
• The ration stamps were enough for basic nutrition, but many things like tobacco were missing and people were unhappy
• Despite trying to import from the occupied territories, the food shortages continued but people adapated and it was never a major problem
• Starvation only occurred at the end of the war when cities were flooded from people fleeing the advancing Soviets

Question 38

What were the impacts of total war on Germany during the war?

Answer 38

• Women and prisoners of war were recruited to work in German industry to tackle the labour shortage (over 7 million imported from the occupied territories)
• Non-essential businesses were shut down
• All people of working age were required to register as available for work, including men and women(16-65 and 17-45 respectively)
• Working hours were increased, holidays were banned, many leisure activities such as sport were shut down

Question 39

What were the impacts of allied bombing on Germany during the war?

Answer 39

• The British RAF carried out bombing raids on Germany during the war
• Initially, they started with industrial targets, but moved on to bombing civillian areas in order to reduce morale
• Many German homes were destroyed, and around 1 million people, including many children, were force to evacuate
• However, for the most part, the majority of people continued to live their lives normally
• Additionally, the targeting of industrial and transport areas did not have a major effect either on industrial production and the war effort as it only decreased by 1%

Question 40

What did the main opposition to the Nazis consist of?

Apart from the July Bomb Plot

Answer 40

• The German Communist Party continued to operate underground but was never a major threat
• Many priests spoke out against the Nazis
• The Kreisau circle was a group of influential Germans who discussed how to counter the Nazis, but were shut down quickly
• The Swing Youth, who were young people who listened to music the Nazis deemed ‘degenerate’, though eventually some of the main members were arrested
• The Edelweiss Pirates, who would do things such as steal supplies from Nazi transports but were never a serious threat
• The White Rose Group, who were a group founded by the Scholl siblings, criticised the anti-semetic policies and the continuation of the war. However, the Scholl siblings were eventually executed

• The opposition definitely ramped up during the war, but had always been present
• That being said, the majority of Germans stayed loyal to the Nazis until the end due to terror and propaganda and it was never a major threat until the July Bomb Plot

Question 41

What were the events of the July Bomb Plot (1944)?

Answer 41

• A group of Nazi army generals, led by General Ludwig Beck, plotted to overthrow Hitler due to their dislike of his policies
• During a meeting at Hitler’s military headquarters in Germany, von Stauffenberg took a bomb in a briefcase into a meeting. It exploded, and four people were killed, but Hitler survived
• After this, von Stauffenberg and Beck tried to sieze control of Berlin, but failed and were caught and executed