The position of women in Germany has shown little change throughout the years 1871-1990, how far do you agree?

Question 1

Bismarck Germany facts

-negatives

Answer 1

• Initially lives of women massively restricted in terms of freedoms
• National civil code legalised lower status of women, with husbands having ownership and authority of children/property/wealth
• Kaiserreich thought they were too fragile to play important roles in society, therefore banned from voting, education and politics
• Womens work considered unskilled, worked in worse conditions and with less pay compared to men
• Perception that women work increased infant mortality and worsened family lives

Question 2

Bismarck Germany- positives

Answer 2

• Welfare provisions included 6 weeks maternity leave and 11 working day
• no women to work in mining and longer Saturday lunch times to encourage domestic work

Whilst these were potential benefits for women, it was only to reinforce gender stereotypes in work

Question 3

Weimar Germany and post war germans facts- negatives

Answer 3

• Rural women very much remained in traditional roles, expected to stop working once married
• had the lower paid jobs still and a lower status than men
• clear divide between urban women and rural women, the positives for urban women was not enough to deem a complete improvement in the lives of all women

Question 4

Weimar Germany and post war germans facts- Positives

Answer 4

New weimar women/urban women saw the biggest improvements in their lives from the Bismarck era, and possibly the best Years for them to live in

• Women made up 9.6% of weimar and 6.1% of Länder parliaments, compared to GB where only 2% of MPs were women
• women over 20 given the vote
• Weimar moved away from previous civil code and ensured women were given equal employment opportunities and status, as well as education and pay
• women worked in industries like chemicals and engineering for the first time to help the war effort
• Pre-conception of marriage for young women wasn’t viable after 2 million men were lost in the way, which helped empower them

Question 5

nazi Germany facts

-negatives

Answer 5

• Nazis wanted women to conform to a traditional peasantry ‘blood and soil’ lifestyle which discouraged them from industrial work
• a lifestyle which Reverte weimar women back to imperial germany
• women encouraged to have children with the mothers cross and other amenities, which were factually popular among women of child birthing age but not for those who wanted to continue their independence
• only 10% of university places reserved for women and females teachers fell by 15% between 1933-35
• only 900,000 of the 3 million women workers were utilised in 1943
• abortions banned, jews and the disable discouraged from having children

Question 6

Nazi Germany- positives

Answer 6

• During the war women made up 60% of the work force in industrial occupations and in 1943 3 million women were conscripted to work (only 900,000 used)
• women of child birthing age provided with 25800 litres of milk, 1500 grocery packages and 172 sets of baby clothes
• mothers cross awarded for women having multiple children
• rural women benefited from improved sanitation, an expansion of health offices and racial and genetic care under the NSV

Question 7

West Germany facts- negatives

Answer 7

• women still in low status positions and their success based heavily off of their husbands work
• women made up only 4% of doctors, 20% of headteachers and 5% of university lecturers
• Benefits after WW2 discriminated against women as they were based off of life earnings, of which women had very little to claim because of the enforced gender roles of the Nazis
• by 1980 women made up only 39% of the work force despite the economic boom, only 2% more than weimar germany
• in law women were the most equal to men that they had been but in reality they were still grossly under-represented and in many ways still determined by their husbands success

Question 8

West Germany- positive facts

Answer 8

• made up 38% of students by 1980 and by early 1980s the number of women admitted to university matched that of men
• feminist movements in America empowered similar women in Germany, campaigning for greater opportunities and equality
• granted complete marriage equality for the 1st time, and women could also seek employment and divorce without husband permission

Question 9

Overal judgement

Answer 9

In reality, women in German society saw the most positive change in their position from Bismarck to Weimar, and the most negative change from weimar to the Nazi period. By the time west germany was introduced, they were by law in the most empowered position of the period, but in reality still retained many of the lower status jobs and opportunities facilitated by the Nazis, and so overall the positive improvements for women were enforced legally by 1990 but womens actual positive in society overall was still unequal to men in reality