The impact of the war 1939-45

Question 1

rationing before operation barbarossa

Answer 1

-food rationing introduced August 1939
-panic buying of clothes= clothes included 1939
-allocation of food based upon race, occupation etc
-Nazis exploited newly conquered countries for food supplies
-shortages of coal, soap etc

Question 2

rationing after Operation Barbarossa

Answer 2

-meat cut from 500g per person to 400g- later in the war was in very short supply
-1945 food supplies were unreliable
-farmers had shortages of fuel, animal feed etc

Question 3

propaganda on morale

Answer 3

-controlled the flow of information to German people
-SD and Gestapo monitored the public mood and impact of propaganda

Question 4

different phases of the war

Answer 4

-phase 1: sept 1939- june 1941
-phase 2: june 1941- dec 1941
-phase 3: jan 1942- jan 1943
-phase 4: jan 1943- may 1945

Question 5

events/ mood in phase 1

Answer 5

-poland, netherlands, france, denmark, belgium etc
-propaganda not always effecting in raising morale
-victory called for celebration
-Hitler portrayed as a military genius
-Jan 1940- june 1941 made 9 speeches
-Battle of Britain jul-oct 1940 (br blamed for prolonging war)

Question 6

events in phase 2

Answer 6

-June 1941 operation barbarossa- initial successes
-December 1941: red army launched counter attack halting ger advance, 11 dec ger declare war on USA (japan attacked pearl harbour)

Question 7

public mood in phase 2

Answer 7

-invasion of ussr= crusade against ‘Jewish Bolshevism’
-SD reported that ppl worried the war would last for years
-letters from soldiers undermined propaganda- harsh winters
-jewish international conspiracy used as a scapegoat

Question 8

events/ mood in phase 3

Answer 8

-German losses increased during the winter
-civilians aware of realities of war from letters from the Eastern Front
-Goebbels appealed for winter clothing for soldiers 20/12/41
-disillusionment deepened

Question 9

Stalingrad

Answer 9

-july 1942- february 2 1943
-german defeat and major turning point in the war- news of defeat was a shock to morale

Question 10

attitudes within phase 3

Answer 10

-Goebbels built unrealistic expectations of victory
-war-weariness now more evident, criticism of propaganda, Hitler myth losing potency

Question 11

events of phase 4

Answer 11

-February 1943: Goebbels announces ‘total war’
-allies attempt to ruin morale by bombing cities
-D-Day landings- June 1944- second front opened- allied forces in Ger by 1945
-Berlin captured by soviets April 1945
-Ger surrendered 7th May 1945

Question 12

public mood in phase 4

Answer 12

-Hitler myth began to decline, blame of Stalingrad onto incompetent military leaders
-Spring 1944: news of retreat of Ger forces on Eastern front, heavy allied raids= morale decline
-June 1944: D-Day landings= morale declines
-August 1944: Paris liberated
-defeat seen as inevitable

Question 13

impact of bombing on morale

Answer 13

-March 1942: RAF bombed Lubeck
-1943: campaign intensified-43 Ger cities bombed, Hamburg bombed 7 times in a week
-reports showed resilience of germans
-exhaustion due to firestorms, food shortages
-workers continued until end of 1944- repressive regime

Question 14

end of war

Answer 14

-millions of germans in colonised countries were driven out- walked westwards away from advancing soviets
-Jan 1945- USSR entered Ger- 3.5mill fled homes
-around 500k to 1mill died on these marches

Question 15

civillians/ morale at end of war

Answer 15

-survivors of the marches were met w/ homelessness, starvation, sewage problems in W.Ger
-civilian morale collapsed
-Nazi regime collapsed quickly and thoroughly

Question 16

women’s morale

Answer 16

-May 1939= 37.4% of workforce
-May 1944= 51% of workforce
-1945= 60%
-June 1940= 250k women conscripted
-1941 Goring decree= women on family allowance w/ no kids had to work= only 130k extra women in work
-Stalingrad= all women 17-45 had to work
-Jan 1945, 470k female auxilaries, radio, secretaries etc on front

Question 17

Youth morale

Answer 17

-HJ= future soldiers, collected money for winter aid
-conscription age: 1940=19, 1943=17, 1945=16
-military camps/ training= 17yo, 3 week training w/ waffen ss, by nov 1942, 120 camps
-volksturm conscription Sept 1940= 16-60yo unfit for service, end of war was 12yo
-1943= HJ division of Waffen SS 16-18yo sent to Battle of Normandy

Question 18

elite morale

Answer 18

-some though Nazis were evil, others were patriotic but thought Hitler was leading Ger to destruction
-Helmut von Moltke= against the treatment of others
-opposed Nazi’s limitations on personal freedom

Question 19

working men’s morale

Answer 19

-Decree on the conversion of the whole Ger economy onto a war footing (3/sept/1939)= wage reductions
-Oct 1939 wages back to pre-war levels
-Aug 1944= holidays banned, 60hr working week, no overtime pay
-absenteeism= conscription
-wages/ earnings based on how much is produced