Unit 6 - The Impact of War (1939-1945) Flashcards
How rationing worked with different groups in society:
Who received more? - Manual labourers, pregnant women, members of the armed forces
Who received less? - Sedentary workers, Jews
General allowances for rations in August 1939:
Meat - 500g /person /week
Butter - 125g
Margarine - 100g
Sugar - 250g
Cheese - 62.5g
Eggs - 1
Serious shortages in Germany by 1941:
Coal, shoes, soap and washing powder
When and why were rations cut?
1941 - the invasion of the USSR put a large drain on Germany’s resources
Why was rationing essential?
To make Germany’s resources last as long as possible during the war when trade relations to gain more resources was not possible (links to Autarky with distain for economic deals with other countries)
How did rations link to the morale of the people?
Being disallowed certain items would have irked the average person, especially by 1941 when rations were cut significantly
To what extent were the rationing problems from 1941-45 the biggest challenge that the Nazis faced in the war?
It was the biggest problem - rationing impacted the morale of the people, and the resources Germany had were depleting fast due to the 1941 invasion of the USSR
It was not the biggest problem - Germany were balancing invading the midlands of Europe along with the USSR (fighting a war on two fronts)
Who oversaw the Nazi’s propaganda system?
Goebells
Phases of World War Two:
Blitzkrieg (September 1939-June 1941) - German successes in Poland and France as well as North Africa, Greece Norway and other European countries
The War Spreads (June 1941-December 1941) - Invasion of USSR and occupation of large parts of western territory, followed by a counter-attack to push them back + declaration of war on the USA
The Tide Turns (January 1942-January 1943) - Heavy losses in the USSR during the harsh winter conditions
Total War and Defeat (February 1943-Mary 1945) - Goebbels declaration of ‘total war’ + Allied bombing of German cities + D-Day landings June 1944 + Berlin captured by USSR in April 1945
Public mood during ‘Blitzkrieg’ (1939-1941) phase:
Quick victories were celebrated as stunning victories.
Hitler’s role was emphasised as he made nine speeches between January 1940 and June 1941.
The public mood was still subject to change though and propaganda was not always a success.
Public mood during ‘The War Spreads’ (1941) phase?
Optimism after the initial success against the USSR.
This faded as it became apparent a quick war was not a realistic possibility.
Anti-Semitic propaganda, linked to the idea of a ‘Jewish-Bolshevik’ enemy increased significantly.
Public mood during ‘Tide Turns’ (1941-1943) phase?
Goebbels appealed for winter clothing for soldiers, confirming the lack of confidence in the war effort.
Defeat at Stalingrad was unexpected by the public due to the propaganda. Growing numbers now began to doubt it.
The war weariness also impactedthe potency of the Hitler myth but there was stilllarge amounts of support to draw on.
Public mood during ‘Total War and Defeat’ (1943-1945) phase?
The concept of ‘total war’ was welcomed but seen as too late.
Morale declined as Hitler appeared less and by the end of the war the ‘Hitler Myth’ was shattered.
There was a uplift in mood following the D-Day landings as Germans saw this as a chance for a final showdown with their enemies, with Goebbels promising new weapons to restore their advantage.
The impact of bombing on morale:
Official reports showed that the bombing raids from March 1942 onwards were met with resilience and support for the regime.
Those expressed defeatist attitudes were treated harshly.
Goebbels tried to lift spirits by promising new secret weapons.
Production was maintained, in fact reaching its peak in 1944.
Morale of the elites:
There was a range of views amongst the elites.
Leader of the Kreisau Circle, Helmut von Moltke,the attacks on personal freedoms was disturbing.
Others believed Hitler’s leadership was destructive and wanted a return to a form of non Nazi government.
Morale of the workers:
Absenteeism increased following the imposition of wage reductions, Sunday and night shift working.
Under ‘total war’ conditions in 1944, the working week increased to 60 hours.
To control workers they were threatened with their reserve status being removed and their extra rations taken as well as fines for missing work.
The DAF factory cell system divided workers into groups led by a loyal Nazi Party member who oversaw attendance.
Morale of women:
Hitler was slow to move women to employment in industry for ideological reasons.
1943 - seen as essential all between 17-45 had to register for work, with exemptions for those who were pregnant or had more than two children.
1945 - 60% of the workforce was women.
470,000 involved in the Auxiliary Corps.
Morale of young people:
As war broke out, the Hitler Youth continued to prepare boys for theirrole as future soldiers.
By 1941, the age for conscription was down to 17.
Conscription to the Volkssturm was lowered to 16 year oldsby 1944 and reached as low as 12 by the end.
‘The Nazi regime succeeded in maintaining the morale of the German people throughout the war’.
Assess the validity of this view.
Content: It is believed that the Nazi regime succeeded in maintaining the moral of the German people throughout the war because propaganda against the Jews and other Untermenschen elevated the morale of the people whenever there were losses in the war. This kept the people distracted and gave them Untermenschen to be angry about rather than be angry with the actions of the Nazi Government.
Balance: However, it can be argued that the Nazi regime was not successful in maintaining the morale of the German people throughout the war because by the end of the war intense rationing was in place. This affected the people’s morale because they were hungry (there is a thin line between hunger and anger)
Argument: Overall, I believe that the Nazis ability to keep up morale throughout the war was partially successful as morale began high in 1939 but by the time the war was ending, it was near enough impossible to keep the German people at bay.
Argument: Overall, I believe that the Nazis ability to keep up morale throughout the war was partially successful as morale began high in 1939 but by the time the war was ending, it was near enough impossible to keep the German people at bay.
Point 1: the Nazi regime succeeded in maintaining the moral of the German people throughout the war
1939 – War begins
Quick victories such as the occupations of France, colonies in North Africa and the midlands of Europe are celebrated across Germany
Hitler gives nine speeches between January 1940 and June 1941, which in turn brought more morale to the people
Point 2: Dips in morale throughout the war
1941 – The tides turn
June 1941 – USSR invasion begins which depletes resources and caused the first major military failure for Germany
Rationing becomes increasingly stricter due to the failed invasion of the USSR
Point 3: The Nazi regime was not successful in maintaining the morale of the German people throughout the war
Total war is announced
Several plots against Hitler and key senior Nazi’s lives
Operation Valkyrie, 20 July 1944
Conclusion: In conclusion I believe that the morale of the people rose and fell but overall, the Nazi regime kept the German people full of morale due to their efforts to create distractions which kept the population blind to the massive failures.
When had Germany been preparing for war since?
1936
What was issued on 3rd September 1939?
The news that Britain was at war with Germany
When did the Germans reach full mobilisation?
1942
Why did shortages between 1939 and 1941 not impact the success of the war?
Rationing for the German people was put in place (sedentary workers and Jews received less leaving more for everyone else)
When did Hitler anticipate the war would begin?
early 1940s
Albert Speer’s Production Miracle:
Miracle: Stabilised Germany’s wartime economy through Rationalisation (creating mass amounts of the same product with fewer variations to save depleting resources)
Coincidence: The workforce was made up largely of slave labour in concentration camps with the free labour saving costs for the economy
‘The Allied bombing offensive against German cities had a limited impact on the ability of the German economy to produce the armaments required by Germany to keep fighting the war.’ Assess the validity of this view.
CBA
Point 1
Point 2
Point 3
Point 4
Conclusion
Mobilisation of the work force:
The war began earlier than Hitler’s Four-Year Plan which led to delays
starting to work as young as 17 was deemed essential
1944: 60% of the work force was women
‘Without the appointment of Speer as Armaments Minister in February 1942, Germany would have collapsed economically.’ Assess the validity of this view.
C
B
A
What was the Intentionalist argument?
There is straight line between Mein Kamf to the Holocaust; it was Hitler’s intended plan from day one
Reasons that support the Intentionalist argument:
1920 - Hitler’s 25-Point Plan and talking about how Jews will never be true German citizens
1925 - Mein Kamf’s talks of the “parasitic” Jewish race
September 1935 - The Nuremberg Laws’ expulsion of Jews from German society
What was the Structuralist argument?
The journey to the holocaust was unplanned and a product of gradual radicalization
Reasons that support the Structuralist argument:
1940 - the Madagascar Plan
Heidrich - Planned the Wannsee Conference (1942) and created Einsatzgruppen
Himmler - Leader of the SS, the group who controlled the several death camps
Evolution of methods used to get rid of the Jews?
Emigration > Deportation > Extermination
What was the Wannsee Conference?
20 January 1942 - a meeting led by Heidrich with 15 other senior Nazis in attendance
Organisation of the Final Solution
Jewish Resistance - Warsaw Ghetto
January 1943 - only ended after two months of heavy weapons and air strikes
Jewish Resistance - Partisan Fighters
Stayed in forests across Eastern Europe and attempted sabotage against the Nazis
There were 10,000 active in Lithuania by early 1942
Jewish Resistance - Crematorium 4
Jews in Auschwitz banded together and blew up Crematorium 4
They also smuggled out messages about what was happening in the camps but no help ever arrived
Jewish Resistance - The Bielski Brothers
They set up a camp in Poland where they performed sabotage missions
At their peak, they had 12,000 people helping them
They remained uncaptured until the Soviet occupation of the area in 1944
The Death Marches:
250,000-400,000 died through forced evacuations
began as the war was ending and lasted until the war ended
The main causes of death were exhaustion and malnutrition
Headed west and went from one camp to another picking up more people
Assess the value of the source to a historian studying the Final Solution
Part of Reinhard Heydrich’s speech to the Wannsee Conference on 20 January 1942, taken from the official record of the event:
In the course ofthe Final Solution, and under appropriate leadership, the Jews should be put to work in the East. Doubtless, the large majority will die of natural causes. Any final remnant that survives will doubtless consist of the most recalcitrant elements. They will have to be dealt with appropriately because otherwise, by natural selection, they would form the germ cell of a new Jewish revival. Europe will be combed through from west to east. Germany proper, including Bohemia and Moravia, will have to be dealt with first, due to the housing problems and other social necessities.
P
A
C
T
‘The Nazi ‘final solution’ was successful in meeting the aims of Hitler.’ Assess the validity of this view.
C
B
A
‘The Madagascar Plan was the most significant escalation of persecution of the Jews in the years 1933 to 1945.’ Assess the validity of this view.
C
B
A
Use of foreign labour:
Begins from June 1940
Foreign workers mainky from occupied Western Europe begin to be used (paid at a lower rate than regular workers)
October 1941 - Russian prisoners of war used as slave workers
December 1941 - 4 million foreign workers
1944 - 14 million foreign workers (7 million foreign workers in Germany + 7 million abroad)
1942-45 - 2.5-3 million people rounded up to work in Germany
The Production Miracle: Statistics
(1941-43)
Tanks: up by 250%
Fighter Jets: up by 200%
