Unit 8- Nazi aggression and war, 1935- 1945 Flashcards
What was the Saar plebiscite?
The Saar plebiscite was Hitler’s first act of expansion. In 1919, the T of V put the Saarland (An important coal producer) under League of Nations control and put the coal factories under French control. In 1935, the people voted to become part of Germany again so the Saarland was returned to Germany.
Why did Hitler remilitarise the Rhineland?
The T of V made the Rhineland a demilitarised zone (something confirmed by the Locarno Treaties of 1926), this meant the German army was not allowed on it. However, Germans hated this as it left Germany open to attack from the west. In 1936, Hitler ordered the Rhineland to be remilitarised with over 30,000 troops. Other countries thought it was acceptable so did nothing to stop it.
What led to the annexing of Austria in 1938?
Germany was forbidden from uniting with Austria in 1919 with the T of V. However, in 1938, Hitler ordered the Austrian Nazi party to cause chaos. The Austrian leader could do nothing to stop it so he resigned, leaving the position for an Austrian Nazi to fill. After that, the Austria Nazi immediately allowed the German army to enter Austria. Austria became part of Greater Germany in March 1938.
How did Hitler take Sudetenland?
Sudetenland was an area of Czechoslovakia where many German speakers lived. In October 1938, Hitler ordered a Nazi like group to cause trouble. Hitler then claimed the Czechs could not maintain order so the German army would do it for them. The allies did nothing since they were holding a policy of appeasement towards Germany. Sudetenland was therefore given to Germany.
How did Hitler take Bohemia and Moravia?
In 1939, Hitler claimed that Germans in Bohemia and Moravia were being mistreated. Again, he created chaos in those regions and wanted to send in the German army to regain control. The Czech president didn’t agree at first but after Hitler threatened to bomb Prague, he invited the German army into the country and thus Bohemia and Moravia became protectorates of Germany.
This led to the destruction of Czechoslovakia.
What other land did Hitler gain in 1939?
In March, Hitler ordered the occupation of Memel which was part of Lithuania. It became part of Germany. Then in April, Hitler ordered the Polish corridor to be returned. At this point, the British and French told the Poles that if Germany invaded Poland, they would protect them. This didn’t scare Hitler and in September, Germany invaded Poland.
What did Germany do between 1939- 1942?
- Using a new method of warfare called ‘Blitzkrieg’ or ‘lightning warfare’, Hitler defeated the Polish army in one week and occupied the country in September 1939.
- To prevent French and British ships from attacking German cargo ships along the coast of Norway, Hitler occupied Denmark and Norway in April 1940.
- In May 1940, Hitler invaded the Netherlands and Belgium, as well as France. The French surrendered in June. The country was divided into half; the north was ruled by Germany and the south was ruled by pro- Nazis.
- Hitler occupied Yugoslavia and Greece when helping his ally Mussolini of Italy in 1941.
- Hitler invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941 and forced the soviet army to retreat east, leaving the west occupied by the German army.
How did Hitler exterminate the unwanted?
- Euthanasia- Hitler ordered patients in mental hospitals who had incurable illnesses to be killed. When Poland was occupied, Hitler ordered the SS to kill all patients in mental hospitals as part of the Euthanasia program.
- From 1940 onwards, the Nazis ordered all Jews in major cities to live in a designated area called a Ghetto. Living conditions in these Ghettos were terrible and thousands of Jews starved to death.
- Special Action Groups of the SS followed around the army. After a town had been invaded, they were ordered to exterminate every Jew. They rounded them up and shot them in mass killings.
- In 1942, the Final Solution was declared. This ordered the extermination of every Jew in Europe by working or execution.
How did WW2 affect German citizens?
- There were food shortages since the Four Year plan cut back on German imports.
- During the war, there were steel shortages. People were encouraged to donate any metal utensils they had.
- The RAF made bombing raids on Germany. At first, they only bombed military targets but from 1942 onwards, they bombed whole towns.
- Houses were destroyed by the bombings, and so were basic amenities. People didn’t have access to water, electricity, schools, shops, doctors or telephone.
- Many people fled from the cities as refugees into the countrysides of occupied eastern European contries like Poland. However, when those countries were liberated, these refugees were captured and returned to Germany in Appalling conditions.
What opposition did Hitler face?
- During the war, the Nazis faced left wing opposition like the Red Orchestra, a spy network which passed on military intelligence to the Soviet army.
- Hitler also faced right wing opposition from officers, businessmen and aristocrats who attended secret meetings and worked out plans to how Germany should be commanded when Hitler was overthrown.
- Youth opposition:
The Edelweiss Pirates- Listened to forbidden music, wore forbidden clothes, had forbidden hairstyles and wrote anti- Nazi graffiti on walls.
The White Rose group- Group of Munich university students led by Hans and Sophie Scholl who distributed anti- Nazi leaflets, put up anti- Nazi posters and wrote anti- Nazi graffiti on walls. - There had been many attempted assassinations of Hitler over the years but the one that came close was in July 1944 by a group of officers; called operation Valkyrie. They planned to kill Hitler with a bomb and take over the government. However, they did not kill Hitler and failed to act out their plans quickly enough. The conspirators were arrested and executed immediately.
