Nazi Germany - Experience of Occupied Europe Flashcards
When did Poland officials exist as a country
Since the end of the First World War
Before this it had been part of an area controlled by Germany
What was the main aim the Nazis had when they invaded Poland
They needed more living space
To destroy any element of Polish control or culture
Their plane was to totally Germanise the country
When did Poland cease to exist
October - 1939
What happened form 1940 in Poland
Hundreds of thousands of native Polish citizens were expelled, and 500,000 ethnic Germans were settled in their homes and lands
Where were many of the Poles moved too
General Government Region
Governed by Hans Frank, ex Nazi lawyer who introduced a rule of terror
Around………..of the most talented people in Poland were arrested with many being tortured and executed
30,000
How many non-Jewish citizens were killed din Poland and why
1.9 million, because the Nazis considered the Slavic Poles to be racially inferior
What happened in May 1940
Polish decrees established that Poles working in Germany had to wear a P on their arm humiliating them and singalong them out as different
How large was Poland’s population of Jews
Start of war - 3.5 million
By the end of the war the Nazis had murdered around 3 million
The Nazis destruction of Poland and the brutality of their occupation led to the Polish people forming…………………………….
One of the largest and most complex resistance movements in the whole of Nazi occupied Europe
Where did the Polish government escape to in 1939
London
What happened in August 1944
Poles staged an uprising in Warsaw against the Nazis which lasted 2 months
In the ned, the uprising was brutally crushed by the Nazis.
Hitler ordered the complete destruction of Warsaw and it’s people. Patients in the city hospital were shot as they lay in their beds. In total 200,000 people were killed and Warsaw’s destroyed.
When did German troops invade the Netherlands
10 May, 1940
How did the Nazis attack the Netherlands
They heavily bombed Rotterdam, an important trading cry with a large dock. Over 800 people were killed and 25,000 homes destroyed as the Luftwaffe targeted civilian areas.
Fearing similar destruction and loss of life, the Dutch government……………
Surrounded
What happened to the Dutch royal family and government
Escaped to exile in the UK
Why were the Dutch treated differently to the Poles
Shared the same ethnic backgrounds as Germans and were therefore treated very differently from the Slavs of the East
How were jobs treated in the Netherlands by the Nazis
Civil servants were allowed to continue working if they chose too, however 30% of town mayors stepped dow. The Dutch education system was not changed as the Nazi leaders realised that there would be backlash if they tried interfere.
The Dutch were know to respect………..and at first there was a general…………..with Nazi regulations
Authority
Compliance
Give the first bit of resistance in the Netherlands
Celebrated Prince Bernhard’s birthday in 1940, by wearing Carnations for support of the royal family in exile
No-one was punished for the resistance
When was the turning point of Nazi rule in the Netherlands
1941-1942
First jewish men (425) were rounded up for deportation
Dutch communists called for a strike in retaliation
Trams stopped working and strikers marched through the streets
The Germans abandoned their friendly attitude and shot at the strikers
9 were killed and hundreds arrested
What happened in 1943 (Netherlands)
Germans abandoned their attempts to try and win over the Dutch and instead used intimidation and violence
The 140,000 Jews living therefore their main target
They began exporting them to extermination camps in huge numbers
In all 76% of jews were deported. This was partly due to Dutch compliance but also because of the difficulty in hiding people in a small densely populated country .
So many German men fighting on front lines, 300,000 Dutch ex-soldiers would be transported to Germany to work as forced labourers, not all turned up
Give some Dutch resistance
Of the 170,000 men expected to report to duty and work in Germany, only 54,000 did so.
1944 - 300,000 men hiding
Many illegal print press created producing anti-Nazi leaflets which encouraged more people to rest forced labour.
1944- Dutch government ordered railway strikes - 30,000 rail workers went into hiding.
Coal and food were in short supply and living conditions worsened
Who was André Trocmé
Protestant pastor who worked throughout the war to rescue jews from the horror of concentration camps
By the end of the war he’d saved over 5,000 Jews
Give some resistance groups
French resistance
Published papers, carries out Guerrilla warfare and helped the Allies. In 1944, they became the French Interior Force which helped the Allies wish the Nazis out of France
Poles helped rescue 450,000 Jews from certain death . Aided by the Polish Underground state, they fed and hid Jews from the holocaust
Give some people/groups who collaborated with Nazi rule
Coco Chanel - some suspect that she was a spy for Hitler but never been proven
Latvia - group made up of right wing students and soldiers who volunteered, they killed Jews and communists and aline killed half the population of jews in Latvia.
