The Impact of the Nazi Regime on Life in Germany

Question 1

Cultural expression

Books, films, theatre, architecture,

Answer 1

• through Gleichschaltung, cultural expression was easily controlled
• promotion of Nazi Ideals of anti-semitism, nationalism, virtues of sacrifice, loyalty and discipline, purity
• art had traditional gender roles and idealism of aryan ideology featured
• Censorship and confiscation meant thousands of artists and intellectuals left Germany, but many stayed and conformed
• ungerman books burnt
• film secretly owned by Goebbels
• Reich Cinema Law (February 6 1934) - all scripts needed approval and film sets inspected with actors and directors having racial background checks
• Theatre Law of 1934- all theatres were licensed thus plays were acceptable
• Schlosser (President of the Reich Theatre Chamber
• Architecture used as propaganda with great neoclassical structures inspired by Ancient Rome

Question 2

Religion

Answer 2

• Nazis violated concordat with Catholic Church and leading catholics were murdered in the night of the long knives
• Nazis tried to change central tenets of Christianity such as Hitler being a new Messiah, Christ being a nordic martyr, removing jewish old testament from the bible etc.
• Tried to replace the Church with their own religion- “German Faith Movement” with Hitler as god. This failed.
• opposition began, e.g. the Confessing Church in 1934, thousands of pastors who joined were beaten, tortured or arrested

Question 3

Workers

Answer 3

• Hitler needed to improve the efficiency and productivity on the home front during mobilisation
• Rearmament projects were undertaken (by 1939, 1/4 of Germany’s workforce was employed by these)
• Reich Labour Law of 1935 made labour service compulsory for young Germans
• German Labour Front of 1933, under Robert Ley tried to unit and appease workers to boost morale and health, thus productivity using propaganda such as:
• Strength through Joy Program, subsidised leisure activities, cruises, theatre tickets etc.
• Beauty of Labour program- to improve working conditions
• working conditions for many remained poor
• It was difficult to change jobs
• Women were encouraged to leave the workforce
• there was absenteeism and acts of workplace sabotage however Gestapo made it difficult

Question 4

Youth

Answer 4

• Hitler Youth had 100,000 voluntary members by 1933
• all other youth groups were abolished in 1933
• Law Governing Hitler Youth and Second Hitler Youth Law conscripted all youth, even if parents objected, compulsory for age 10-18
• many boys became tired and disillusioned
• League of German Maidens
• subservient to Hitler Youth- reinforced submissive role of women in society
• Household activities like cooking, gardening, ideology etc.
• Physical activity was included to maintain the health of girls to ensure reproductive capability- utilitarian value of women
• similar reaction to the boys

Question 5

Education

Answer 5

• in 1933, 97% of Germany’s teachers joined (forcibly) the Nazi Teacher’s Association. Failure to join meant removal from the profession
• control from kindergarten to university
• curriculum was amended to favour nazi ideology
• regular inspection
• Disillusionment and resignation resulted in education standard decline during this period

Question 6

Women

Answer 6

• women were to focus on becoming the mothers of future generations of Nazis and serve the Reich in the domestic sphere
• Women were expected to focus on “Kinder, Kuche, Kirche” (Children, Kitchen, Church) a nazi slogan for female societal expectations
• NSF (national socialist womens league and women wing of the Nazi Party) founded October 1931 affirmed nazis ideals of women and organised courses in motherhood and household duties.
• After WWI, women were discontent with their reduced role in the workforce although this increased during WWII mobilisation. By 1939, almost 90% unmarried women and 36% of married women went to work.
• divorce was discouraged, contraceptions were difficult to obtain, abortions illegal, and tax concessions given to couples with children
• plus propaganda such as the ‘Mothers Cross’ Bronze- 4 kids, Silver- 6, Gold- 8

Question 7

Jewish community

Answer 7

• less than 1% of German population was Jewish (525,000 people)
• Hitler linked them to bolshevism/ communism and used them as a scapegoat for Germanys problems. They were ‘volksfiend’ or public enemy of German purity
• 1st April 1933- national boycott of Jewish businesses
• excluded from civil service, armed forces, law and arts
• Jewish books burnt in book burning ceremonies from May 1933
• Nuremberg Laws of 1935- deprived Jews of citizenship and banned them from relations with Germans
• During 1936 Berlin Olympics, persecution decreased for appearances and then after ramped up significantly
• Kristallnacht, night of broken glass occured 9-10 November 1938
• German embassy offical was murdered in Paris by a jewish man
• Goebbels ordered a state sponsored pogrom
• The SA destroyed Jewish businesses and synagogues
• Approx 100 Jews were killed and 20,000 were arrested and put in concentration camps
• Jewish community then fined 1 billion reichsmarks
• In 1939, einsatzgruppen mobile killing units, created by Reinhard Heydrich, containing members of SS were used and later in 1941 for mass shootings of jews and soviet citizens behind enemy lines.
• Goerring handed over remaining 240,000 Jews who didn’t emigrate to Himmler’s SS for deportation
• ghettos and concentration camps
• Wannsee Conference in 1942, the Final Solution was proposed which resulted extermination camps such as Auschwitz where 1.1 million people were murdered, 960,000 being Jewish.

Question 8

Other

Answer 8

• Romani people were considered Gypsies and considered burdens as they were nomadic and tended not to work
• 1938- Himmlers Decree for struggle against the Gypsy Nuisance, forced relocation and sent to concentration camps
• approx 15000 homosexuals sent to concentration camps between 1933-1945
• Law for the Prevention of Genetically Diseased Offspring- ‘Sterilisation Law’ of July 1933, resulted in the involuntary sterilisation of over 300,000 German’s with hereditary diseases and health issues.
• while statistics vary, around 17000 deaf Germans were sterilised between 1933-1945.
• T4 program- Euthanasia program beginning October 1939, was a campaign of mass murder using gas chambers of people with a life unworthy of living. would lead to final solution of jewish question.