Jews stood out as different
due to their religion, customs
and looks
Many Christians hated the
Jews, blaming them for the
execution of Christ
Germans
wrongly
blamed the
Jews for defeat
in WW1
Some jews were criticised for being communist rebels (
Kurt Eisner, leader of the communist rising in 1928)whereas
others were frowned upon for being wealthy capitialists
Hitlers Views
Firstly by setting them out in "Mein
Kempf" Hitler proclaimed his racial views
The Aryan race was the superior race. They were
portrayed as tall,blond,blue-eyed and althletic.
(Known as the Herrenvolk)
Other races, such as the Slavs of Eastern
Europe were seen as lesser races.
Then there were the "Utermenschen", or sub humans; this included Africans.
Worst of these were the "Lubensunwertes" which included
the gypsies and Jews. These groups were deemded
unworthy of life
Persecution starts
As soon as they came to power in 1933, the Nazis official started to pass laws
There were Nazi boycotts of Jewish businesses. Jews were banned from government jobs and from inheriting land
In 1935, Jews were banned from restuarants and the army
Nuremberg Laws (1935) tightened restrictions with Jews unable to vote,
become a German citizen and even marry a german citizen
In 1938 Jewish Doctors, Dentists and Lawyers were forbidden to work for the White
aryan race. Jews also had to register all possessions and had to carry a German
identity card
Kristallnacht
On the 7th of November 1938, a young polish Jew, Hershel Grynszpan, went into the German embassy in Paris and shot Ernst Von Roth, a
German.
Goebbels told Hitler and announced that if Germans took revenge the Government would do nothing to
stop it. The result was a storm of attacks on the Jews
On the 9 and 10 November 814 shops, 171 homes and 191 synagogues were destroyed. At least 100 jews were killed.
The Jews were blamed and made to pay; they were fined 1 billion marks and banned from German
schools or Universities. In 1939 the Reich office, the Jewish emigration centre was set up to rid Germany
of Jews all together. Progress was slow so in April Jews were forced to leave their homes and move to
Ghettos. Here they had to wait to be deported
Youth and Education
Schools
New subjects such as race studies were taught. Mein kampf became a
compulsory text. History lessons criticised communism and the Treaty of
Versailles. Girls had different lessons concerning domestic application such as
cooking which prepared them for later life.
Teachers had to swear allegiance to the Nazis teachers league, lessons were always begun with the Nazi salute and "Heil Hitler"
Youth Movements
Other youth activities were shut down, for instance churches, as the Nazis set up their own activities
Boys
Little fellows - aged 6
Young Germans - aged 10
Hitler youth - aged 14
Girls
Young maidens - aged 10-14
League of German maidens - aged 14-18
Both groups swore a loyalty to the Nazi party and often activities were completed together to encourage
cooperation. However, domestic skills were mainly focused on with the Girls whereas boys were
prepared for becoming a soldier
Women in Germany
1920's
Women over 20 were given the vote and were more
likely to have successful careers. They were often
paid on an equal basis with men. For instance there
were 100,000 Female teachers by 1933
1930's
However the Nazis believed that like
Germanys youth, they should serve their
society. They were encouraged to be
good-mothers.
They had to stay healthy, learn house craft, cookery and needlework, marry and
enable their husbands to be useful workers and stay at home and concentrate on
domestic matters
When the Nazis came to power, a number of these policies were driven by
these ideas. The German workers Enterprise was set up to arrange classes
and radio broadcasts, teaching good motherhood. Women were also
encouraged to concentrate on the 3K's (or children, kitchen and church). Some
professional were even forced to leave their jobs as lawyers, dentists etc.
Marriage and Childbirth
The birth rate was falling in Germany and the Nazis wanted to reverse this.
In 1933 the law for the encouragement of marriage was introduced.
Loans of 1000 marks were provided for young couples to work ( 9
months wages), as long as the wife left work.
SS men were also used to create genetically pure
babies. Furthermore, the Mothers cross ( an award for the
number of children had ) encouraged larger families with
4-5 bronze, 6-7 silver and 8 or more for Gold.
Work and unemployment
Hitler, who believed they disrupted the economy, banned Trade unions in 1933
Therefore, the DAF was set up to ensure workers worked for the best interest of the Nazi regime (See textbook page 48)
Although German workers lost their
freedom to act collectively against
employers, at least a minimum working
standard was set up
Hitler hated unemployment
because it was where
communism thrived strongest.
The RAD (National labour service) was set up which provided
manual labour for the unemployed
Rearament (see pg 49) In 1933, Hitler ordered his army generals to
prepare to treble the size of the army to 300,000 men. He ordered the Air
Ministry to plan to build 1,000 war planes. Military buildings such as
barracks were built.
Europe's reaction to breaking the treaty of versailles? Very limited
as many countries were still recovering from the Great Depression