Germany Theme 5: influence Of German History On Nazi Foreign Policy Flashcards
What does an intentionalist think?
Hitler was a mater planner and wanted to go to war
What does a structuralist think?
Hitler was an opportunist and it was other reasons that started WW2
Influences on foreign policy: social Darwinism
- attempts to legitimise racist colonial policies
- Darwin’s theory of in order to survive plants and animals adapted- those that failed became extinct
- applied to human race
Influences on foreign policy: race
- enslaving non-aryan
- aryan race- possessed superior physical and cultural attributes
Influences on foreign policy: race- what was written in 1985?
German eugenicist published work arguing Defense of cleanliness of aryan race
- not dirtying it with other races
Influences on foreign policy: race- what was written in 1936?
Professor of anthropology suggested European races must be kept separate to stop mixing
Influences on foreign policy: lebensraum
- living space for German people
- need for it
- German domination of Eastern Europe
- written in Mein Kampf
Influences on foreign policy: Treaty of Versailles
- Germans perceived treaty as harsh
- Article 231- Germany and allies accepted responsibility for starting war and damages caused
Influences on foreign policy: anti-semitism
- ‘civilised world’
- around even before Hitler’s policies
- discrimination against Jews- across Europe for nearly 2,000 years
- middle-ages- Jews blamed for Black Death
Influences on foreign policy: results of WW2
- defeat came as shock
- ‘stab in the back’- Hitler spread myth Germany stabbed in back by traitorous politicians
- ‘November criminals’
- said Germany needed strong authoritarian leader
Influences on foreign policy: pressure groups
- emerged in 1890s to force govt to enact expansionist colonial party
- pan-German league claimed to have 1 million members- demanded aggressive nationalistic foreign policy to protect Volk
- volk groups popular
