Prosecution against minorities

Question 1

Nazi racial beliefs and policies - Eugenics

Answer 1

• science of selective breeding from Darwin’s ideas
• best children possible need the most suitable parents, so ‘unsuitable’ parents were sterilised to prevent them from having children
• became a subject in schools

Question 2

Nazi racial beliefs and policies - Racial hygiene

Answer 2

• along with most suitable parents, Aryan parents were wanted, so passed laws to prevent mixed-race marriage
• became a subject in the Hitler Youth

Question 3

Nazi racial beliefs and policies - Hitler’s views

Answer 3

• Aryan race is the superior race (Übermenschen)
• other races e.g. Slavs of Eastern Europe were inferior (Untermenschen)
• even worse were the ‘gypsies’ and Jews, deemed unworthy of life (Lebensunwertes)

Question 4

Causes of anti-Semitism

Answer 4

• religion, customs and looks made them stand out
• Christians blamed Jews for the execution of Jesus
• successful in finance and business, so people were jealous of them
• blamed them for Treaty of Versailles and economic hardships (people were looking for someone to blame)
• Hitler had strong views against Jews, so influenced laws/policies accordingly

Question 5

Treatment of minorities - Slavs

Answer 5

• considered as Untermenschen
• threatened to invade Slav countries for Lebensraum
• persecuted less than other minorities

Question 6

Treatment of minorities - ‘Gypsies’

Answer 6

• arrested and sent to concentration camps (forced to live in special camps)
• banned from travelling in groups (registered to track them)
• forcibly removed from Germany

Question 7

Treatment of minorities - Homosexuals

Answer 7

• imprisoned and sent to concentration camps

- castrated

Question 8

Treatment of minorities - Disabled

Answer 8

• Law for the Prevention of Hereditarily Diseased Offspring (sterilised mentally ill, deformed, epileptic, etc.)
• T4 programme (disabled babies killed by starvation or lethal overdose of drugs)

Question 9

The persecution of the Jews - Persecution begins (1933)

Answer 9

Propaganda in education, the press, arts presented Jews as ‘filthy’ and ‘vermin’. As a result:
- banned from government jobs and civil servants were sacked
- banned from inheriting land, from the army
Boycott of of shops and businesses - SA painted Jewish stars in front of shops, discouraging people from entering.

Question 10

The persecution of the Jews - The Nuremberg Laws (1935)

Answer 10

Citizenship:
- only Germans allowed to be citizens
- Jews lost the right to vote, passports
- Jewish star sewn onto clothes to identify, carry identity cards
Protection of German Blood and Honour:
- Jews can’t marry/have sexual relationships with Germans

Question 11

Kristallnacht (9-10 Nov 1938)

Answer 11

1. Grynszpan shoots vom Rath in the German Embassy in Paris. He is taken to hospital.
2. Goebbels orders newspapers in Hanover (Grynszpan’s hometown) to condemn Jews
3. SA, SS, Gestapo ordered to attack synagogues and Jewish homes. Vom Rath dies.
4. Hitler turns Hanover attack to nationwide attack. Nazi leaders encouraged to arrange attacks under cover.
5. Jews ordered to pay £1 bil for all damage and sent to concentration camps.

Question 12

The climax of peacetime persecution

Answer 12

Heydrich made head of the Reich Office for Jewish Emigration. Ordered to evict all Jews from their homes for deportation from Germany.

Question 13

The role of the German People

Answer 13

People who criticised Nazis were severely dealt with, so they were too scared to speak out about the atrocities towards Jews. Others ignored violence. Some thought the violence was justified and took part in it.