The Four Year Plan, incl The Role Of Goring 1936-39 Flashcards
What was the Four-year plan
Hitler’s memorandum of August 1936 outlined his vision of a German economy ready for war within four years
What was the four year plans economy based around and why
The needs of war to avoid prob of WW1 when G Econ unable to cope with a lengthy war
When did Schacht resign as Minister of Economics and who was he replaced by?
Nov 1937 and replaced by less competent Walther Funk
WHO was the leader of the four-year plan
Goring, who had no economic expertise
What were the main aims of the four year plan? (4)
- autarky
- increase agricultural production
- regulation imports and exports
- maintain high employment and retrain some sectors workforce
When did Rearmament start trumping even food production?
By 1939
Goring wanted autarky in what especially
Raw materials esp metals, oil and rubber
What helped maintain high employment levels
Conscription and development of large-scale war industrues
How did Goebbels also try to grow his own personal wealth and influence
Took almost total control over allocation of investment, raw materials and labour
Established ‘Reichswerke Hermann Goring’ which became the largest industrial enterprise in Europe by 1939
What kind of background did Goring have?
A former fighter pilot, military pilot
What did Goring say about ‘Guns vs Butter’?
“Guns will make us powerful. Butter will only make us fat.”
How was there a massive expansion of the armaments industry?
Those businesses which cooperated with the plan benefitted from significant govt investment and contracts eg. Krupps
New areas of weapons production developed eg.
Explosives productions expanded greatly
Through what years was 2/3 investment poured into war industries?
1936-39
By 1939, how much of the workforce was employed in rearmament activities?
40-50%
By 1939, how many men were removed from the unemployment register by conscription?
1 million
How many were unemployed by 1939?
300 000
Jobs provided in state-run orgs like
SS and Gestapo
Women encouraged to stay at home BUT
W demand rapid rearmament Nazis review this policy
By 1937 women required to do a ——
Duty year in factories
By what year were women required to do a duty year in factories?
1937
In what areas was autarky achieved?
Production of grain, potatoes and sugar
How did chemicals company IG Farben thrive (stat about profits)
1935 71 million RM profit
VS
1939 240 million RM profit
Luxury goods such as what became more available
Radios and cars
How did workers lives improve?
Had more housing opps and stable rents
More leisure opps thru orgs such as the KdF (Strength thru Joy)
How did farmers lives improve under the four year plan?
Secure on land
Due to Reich Entailed Farm Law got easy credit and high prices
How did big businesses gain from workers in the 4 year plan
Lack of strike activity
Higher control over workers
What did the Reich entailed Farm Law do for farmers
Got easy credit and high prices
How was unemp reduction achieved artificially or at a cost? (4)
- women and Jews not on unemp register
- machines not used in public works schemes
- jobs created artificially in party and national bureaucracy
- workers lost much freedoms
What did workers have to join instead of trade unions?
DAF (German Labour Front)
What was the DAF like?
It controlled pay levels and working hours which were considerably higher and even had power to punish workers
Why did small businesses struggle?
Govt focused on large war-related industry?
Why were big businessmen unhappy?
Frustrated and growing govt control
What businessman in particular become frustrated at growing govt control?
Fritz Thyssen
Farmers also resent govt interference esp from what?
Reich Food Estate
What groups were frustrated by growing govt control? (2)
Big businessmen and farmers
——- didn’t reach levels desired by Hitler and armed forces
Arms production
German factories fell short on targets for
Oil and rubber
Despite intense war Econ. G still not possess war Econ by
1939
How was the G Econ not ready for war by 1939
Shortage of manpower, materials and capital crucial as well as artificial exchange rates and price controls
Contended that Hitler surprised by outbreak of Total War and not planned to go to war until
1943
1930s, how much raw materials still had to be imported/
30%
Reichswerke Herman Goring still had to ———- right before war
Import iron ore from Sweden
By 1939, synthetic oil production only —— planned levels
45%
How was ersatz time-consuming and expensive
6 tonnes of coal needed to produce 1 tonne ersatz oil
What was the balance of payments deficit by 1938
432 billion marks
By 1939, how much was the govt spending on G military
Over 25 billion marks
By 1939, how much was spent on armaments production
17% GDP
When was the balance of pay,ents deficit 432 billion marks
1938
When was 17% GDP being spent on the military?
By 1939
What was a consequence of food production suffering?
Nutritional crisis 1939
How did German Econ growth compare to Europe in 1930s
Not exceed average across Europe between wars
How was the four-year plan ineffective?
It was a vast bureaucratic apparatus characterized by inefficiencies and internal rivalries
