WWII in Nazi Germany' Flashcards
when did Germany surrender to the allies, wwii?
may 1945
when did Hitler commit suicide?
april 1945
when did germany invade poland?
september 1939
how was Denzafication done, after the end of WWII?
- Nazi Party banned
- advocating National Socialist ideas made punishable by death.
- Swastika and other Nazi emblems banned in public.
- Germans made to complete questionnaires about the extent of their involvement in Nazism.
- Ex-Nazis taken on tours of concentration camps or made to watch video clips of Jewish prisoners.
what was the aim of denazification after WWII?
to force Germans to confront the crimes of the Nazi regime, but also to re-educate them in order to leave Nazism behind.
IN 1946, what five categories of involvement in nazism were established?
- Major offenders
- offenders
- lesser offenders
- followers
- persons exonerates
when were the nuremburg trials?
started November 1945
what were the nuremburg trials?
Tried those involved in suspected war crimes - first hearings concerned 23 most important political, military and economic leaders of Nazi Germany - Only 3 acquitted whilst 12 sentenced to death.
how was West Germany treated after WWII?
- Initially, allies pursued a policy of de-militarisation and de-industrialisation to ensure Germany could not equip itself to fight a war but relaxed when they realised Germany needed to be economically strong to protect against the Cold War threat of communism.
- USSR wanted reparations from Germany for the damage caused during the war - much of East Germany’s industry was dismantled and taken back to the USSR, leaving already shattered country very weak.
how was East Germany treated after WWII?
- allies established a democratic, federal constitution and Konrad Adenauer became the country’s first Chancellor, serving until 1963.
- USSR ensured the creation of a communist dictatorship led by the Socialist Unity Party and Wilhelm Pieck became its first President.
how did Hitler justify leaving the LoN?
used other countries refusal to disarm as a pretext for withdrawing Germany from the League of Nations.
what was the 12 November 1933 plebiscite for, and its result?
plebiscite on his decision to withdraw Germany from LoN - seemed to show that the German public overwhelmingly voted in support of the move, although there was a large amount of pressure from the Nazis to vote this way.
when did Germany withdraw from the LoN?
14 October 1933
when was the Polish Non-aggression Pact?
26 January 1934,
what was the Polish Non-Aggression Pact?
unexpected diplomatic peace which agreed that both countries would work together diplomatically to address any issues, and would not engage in armed conflict with each other for a minimum of ten years.
why did Hitler sign the Polish Non-Aggression Pact?
- wanted to ensure that Poland did not sign a military alliance with France, as Germany was not yet prepared for another war.
- gave Poland assurance that Germany would not invade in the immediate future and therefore gave them no reason to have a military alliance with France which gave Germany time to fully rearm.
when was the Luftwaffe officially est.?
26 February 1935
when did Hitler publicly announce his plan to reintroduce conscription and increase the size of the German Army to 500,000 men?
16 March 1935
in 1939, how many men were in the German Army, and how many planes in the Luftwaffe?
German Army had approximately 1 million men, and the Luftwaffe had 8000 planes
when was the Anglo-German Naval Agreement with Britain?
18th June 1935
what did the Anglo-German Naval Agreement mean?
Germany could expand its navy to 35% of the size of the British Navy
