The position of women in German society has shown little change throughout the years in 1871-1990. How far do you agree with this statement? Flashcards
How could the overall change in Women’s position be described?
Pendulum like
What could be said to be the turning point for Women?
WW1
What is there a theme of throughout German history?
Disadvantage relative to their male counterparts
In the Kaiserreich what legalised the lower status of women?
national civil code
What did the National Civil Code Assert?
men had authority in all matters relating to his family’s children and over his wife’s property and power of attorney over his wife’s legal contracts.
Could women vote during the Kaiserreich?
No
Finish the sentence: whilst industrialisation did give more employment opportunities to women…
the work was clearly segregated from the men’s.
Give 3 examples of women’s jobs during industrialisation
textiles, clothes-making and food processing
In industrialisation, Women did things such as textiles, clothes-making and food processing. What three things were bad about these?
least skilled, lowest paid and without union protection
Why was the societal concern about the number of women in the workplace during the Kaiserreich?
People feared that it led to bad health, leading to increased infant mortality and miscarriages. Large numbers of women died in childbirth.
What did the government refuse to do to Women’s employment in the Kaiserreich?
Make reforms meaning that the employment problems persisted until the outbreak of war
Bismarck’s welfare provision did contain specific benefits for women. By 1891, what were women guaranteed?
An 11 hour working day and 6 weeks’ maternity
As a part of Bismarck’s welfare provision, by 1891 what were women barred from doing?
working in mines
As a part of Bismarck’s welfare provision, by 1891 what provision did he make that could be said to re-assert their domestic role?
women were allowed more time off at lunch on Saturdays so that they could carry out domestic duties
Who set up the Society for the Protection of Women Workers’ Interests and when was this?
Emma Ihrer 1885
What did Emma Ihrer’s 1885 Society for the Protection of Women Workers’ Interests do?
support working women by providing the services of doctors and lawyers for free
Why was the Society for the Protection of Women Workers’ interest’s support for working women by providing the services of doctors useful?
Because of the number of women who died in childbirth
What shows that the Society for the Protection of Women Workers’ Interests was effective?
Banned by the government 1886
When the Society for the Protection of Women Workers’ Interests was banned by the government in 1886, how many active members did it have?
1000
Ihrer, who set up the Society for the Protection of Women Workers’ Interests, also was the first and only woman to do what?
the first and only women elected to the General Commission of German Trade Unions in 1890
Ihrer was the first and only women elected to the General Commission of German Trade Unions in 1890, what did she use this position to do?
push for increased women’s rights in the workplace
Who led the SPD’s women’s section during the Kaiserreich?
Clara Zetkin
What did Clara Zetkin’s section of the SPD publish?
the women’s newspaper Die Gleichheit (Equality)
What did Clara Zetkin start?
the first ever international women’s day on 19th March 1911
What augments the importance of the SPD having a Women’s party?
By 1912 they were the most popular German party and by 1912 they had 38% of the vote
What is a limitation of talking about Clara Zetkin and Emma Ihrer?
These women were the exception rather than the rule
When was the BDF founded?
1894
The BDF, the Bund Deutscher Frauenvereine, translates to what?
Union of German Feminist Organisations
Who supported the BDF?
Middle class women
What did the BDF campaign for?
middle class women to have equality in education and politics and be allowed to organise their own financial affairs
What two prominent German feminists were arrested during WW1 for their political activism?
Clara Zetkin and Rosa Luxemburg
Despite the fact that the type of work that women undertook during WW1 changing demonstrably, what did not see significant change?
The number of women in work
The shortage of male workers in WW1 meant that what happened for women?
women began working in areas previously forbidden such as heavy industry including chemicals, iron, steel and engineering.
What two sectors did women take up key positions ii during WW1 ?
german postal service and transport sector
In some households, what did Women become during WW1?
The primary breadwinner
What change in governmental tone was experienced over the course of WW1?
Women’s work was actively encouraged by the government as being essential for the war effort
What is the most significant factor in re-defining the role of women?
WW1
What kind of earners emerged in Weimar?
Double-earners
Though some double earners existed in Weimar, what was the expectation for Women?
there was still an expectation in many places that women should stop working when married so that they could focus on domestic life and raising a family
The significant changes that there were in Weimar were limited in what way?
They only affected an urban minority. For those in rural areas, life remained very traditional.
When were women given the right to vote and to stand for office?
November 12th 1919
In 1919 Women made up what proportion of the Weimar parliament?
9.6%
What was the average Women composition of the Weimar parliament?
6-7%
Despite the relatively low levels of Women in the Weimar parliament, it was still a huge improvement compared to other European countries. In the UK women could not vote on the same terms as men until when?
1928
What percentage of the Länder parliaments were made up by women?
6.1%
How did the Weimar constitution move away from Bismarck’s civil code?
guaranteed equality in education and equal employment opportunity and pay in the civil service
Weimar Women emerged because what removed the traditional idea of marriage for many?
The loss of 2 million men in ww1
What culture did Weimar Women follow?
The USA’s jazz culture
When was abortion legalised in cases where the mother was at risk?
1926
What is the Nazi slogan for Women?
Kinder Kirche Küche
What does Kinder Kirche Küche translate into?
Children Church Kitchen
For those women who had enjoyed the increased freedom that Weimar brought, what Nazi view could be viewed as a regressive step?
Nazi’s view that the nation’s strength and vigour relied on Women leading traditional lives
What three policies did the Nazis role out from 1933 that negatively affected the lives of women?
- Banned from practising law or medicine
- Female teachers dismissed and barred from jury service — the number of teachers declined by 15% 1933-35
- Only 10% of university places could be reserved for women, with previous attendance at 20%
What was the Mutterkreuz?
The mother’s cross, an award for Women who had lots of children
What were the different categories of the Mutterkreuz?
Gold for 8 kids, silver for 6 and bronze for 4.
During the Nazi period, how many men and women were sterilised?
350 000
Though it may be demeaning, how could the Mutterkreuz be considered to be a good thing?
If you were already a traditional german Woman wanting children
What serves as an acknowledgement that the Nazis’ economic policies were good for all?
That the Nazis got a lot of support for women in the 1933 election
What did the Nazis remove for women in 1937?
The Nazis removed the restriction on marriage loans to include females in 1937
Why did the Nazis remove the restriction on marriage loans to include women in 1937?
they saw the need for female workers in preparing for war
despite the Nazi’s policies, what percentage of the workforce did Women make up in 1933 and 1939?
33% of the Workforce by 1939 compared to 37% in 1933
In 1939, what percentage of the clothing industry employees were women?
66%
In 1939, what percentage of the metalwork industry employees were women?
12%
Between which Nazi dates did women’s wage increase faster than men’s?
1935-38
Hitler was concerned about being unpopular during the war, so what was relaxed for women?
Restriction on clothing and makeup
What suggests that the Nazi’s changes were popular particularly amongst women of child-bearing age, older women and children?
The lack of protest
What was the girls’ organisation called under the Nazis?
BDM (league of German Girls - Bund Deutscher Mädel)
Why was the BDM (Bund Deutscher Mädel) popular?
Gave poor girls opportunities that would have previously been unattainable
Complete the sentence: though Women served a more traditional role in Nazi Germany,
the value of their position was not diminished
Despite an economic boom, what percentage of the workforce did Women make up by 1980?
39% of the workforce
Compare the percentage of the workforce that Women made up by 1980 with the Nazis and Weimar?
39% was only 2% above Weimar and 6% above the Nazis which suggests that that economic independence and status had had a negligible improvement over the time.
Positions available in the FRG were more often filled by which group than by Women?
Immigrants
By 1980, women still occupied which kind of jobs?
Lowest paid
What percentage of part time work was done by women in the FRG?
90%
What percentage lower was women’s pay than men’s in the FRG?
30% lower than men’s
What percentage of hospital and school staff were women in 1989?
75% of hospital staff and 50% of teaching staff
What percentage of doctors, head teachers and professors were women in 1989?
4% of doctors, 20% of headteachers and 5% of university professors were women.
When were women given legal equality with their husbands in the FRG?
1957
What was removed in 1959?
the father’s complete say over matters relating to the family’s children was removed making it equal
What spread to Germany during the 1970s?
feminist movements of the USA
What three things did the 1970s feminist movement achieve?
complete marital equality, ease of divorce and an ability for women to seek jobs without their husband’s permission.
When did female university admissions match men?
by the 1980s
What percentage of ALL university students were women by 1989?
41%
How was the social status of women judged until the end of the 1980s?
judged by their husband or father’s employment.
What does the fact that until the end of the 1980s, the social status of a woman was judged by their husband or father’s employment suggest?
That there is a key theme of disadvantage running through German society
Why would it be wrong to assert that there was little change to the lives of women?
So frequently was the role of women redefined by the governments
where are there areas of sticking continuity throughout genre history for women?
Rural areas
What comparison suggests a broad trajectory of long-term change?
Kaiserreich vs. FRG
In what era was there significant short term change to the lives of women?
Weimar
What group of women’s lives changed most?
Urban
