GERMANY 1919-1945

Introduction: The extremist opponents of the Weimar

government had not disappeared.

One of the most important was the Nazi

Party (National Socialist German

Worker’s Party):

The Nazis were led by Anton Drexler.

Adolf Hitler joined the party in 1919.

Drexler realised Hitler had great talent and put

him in charge of propaganda and the

political ideas of the party.

In 1920 the party announced its Twenty-

Five Point Programme:

The most important points were:

the abolition of the Treaty of Versailles

union of Germany and Austria

only ‘true’ germans to be allowed to live in

Germany

large industries and businesses to be

nationalised

generous provision for old age pensioners

a strong central government in Germany

THE MUNICH PUTSCH, 1923

By 1923 the Nazis were still verymuch a minority party, but Hitler had given them a high profile.

Nazi storm troopers began takingover official buildings.

16 Nazis were killed and therebelion broke up in chaos.

Hitler escaped in a car.

He and other leading Nazis werearrested and charged withtreason, but at the trial Hitler gained enormous publicity .

THE NAZIS IN THE

WILDERNESS,

1924-1929

Hitler used his time in prison to write a book, MeinKampf (My Struggle)

He came to the conclusion that the Nazis would not be able to seize power by force.

They could have to work within the democratic system.

Hitler created a network of local Nazi parties which in turn set up the Hitler Youth, the Nazi Student’s League and similar organizations.

1925 Hitler enlarged the SA with the ranks of theunemployed (many were ex-servicemen)

He also set up a new group called SS fanatically loyalto Hitller personally.

Goebbels was chosen to take

charge of Nazi propaganda.

Hitler and Goebbels believed the

best way to reach the masses

was by appealing to their

feelings rather than by rational

argument: posters, leaflets, films

and radio broadcasts.

However, the prosperity of the

Stresemann years and

Stressmann’s success in foreign

policy made Germans

uninterested in extreme politics.

THE DEPRESSION AND THE RISE OF

THE NAZIS

In 1929 the American stock market

crashed and sent the USA into a

disastrous economic depression.

Countries around the world began

to feel the effects and Germany

was particullary affected.

The USA asked German banks to

repay the borrowed money.

Businesses went bankrupt and

unemployment rocketed.

NAZI CAMPAIGNING

The Nazis’ 25 points were attractive to

those more vulnerable to the Depression:

The unemployed

The eldery

The middle class

Nazi campaign methods were modern and

effective:

Slogans

German people united behind one leader

Tradicional values

HOW DID HITLER BECOME CHANCELLOR

IN 1933? After the Reichtag elections of July

1932 the Nazis were the largest

single party but no a mayority party.

Hitler demanded the post of

Chancellor to the President.

Hindenburg chose Franz von Papen

(and old friend).

Von Papen had virtually no support at

all, and in December 1932 Kurt

Schleicher became Chancellor.

January 1933, Hindenburg and von

Papen met secretly with industrialists,

army leaders and politicians. They

offered Hitler the post of Chancellor

HITLER’S DICTATORSHIP Few people thought by the summer

1934 he would be the supreme dictator

of Germany.

He called election for March 1933 to try

to get overall Nazi majority.

The Reichstag building burnt down.

Hitler blamed the Comunists.

Hitler acted quickly against his

opponents -The Night of the Long Knives -

He accused Röhm (SA leader) of

plotting to overthrow and murder him.

400 others were executed included

the ex Chancellor Schleicher.

NAZI CONTROL OF GERMANY The aim of the Nazis was to create a totalitarian state where

could no be rival parties or political debate.

The Nazis had a powerful range of organizations and

weapons to control Germany:

Concentration camps

Ultimate sanction against

their own people. These

camps were run by SS

Death’s Head units.

Prisioners were forced to

do hard labour and food

was very limited.

The Gestapo

(secret state police)

They could arrest

citiziens on

suspicion and send

them to

concentration

camps

The police and the

courts

The Nazis controlled

magistrates, judges

and the courts, which

meant that opponents

of Nazis rarely

received a fair trial

The SS

Aryans very

highly trained

and totally

loyal to Hitler

DID GERMANS GAIN FROM NAZI

RULE? Hitler and the Nazis promised to use radical

methods to solve the 2 main problems:

Dr Hjalmar Schacht organised Germany’s finances

to fund a huge programme of work creation.

The National Labour Service sent men on public

works projects.

In 1936 Hitler announced a Four-Year Plan to get

the German economy ready for war.

UNEMPLOYMENTCRISIS IN GERMAN

FARMING

He won the loyalty of

industrial workers by a variety

of initiatives:

Strength Through Joy (KDF):

cheap theatre and cinema tickets,

courses, trips and sports events.

Volkswagen Beetle, the people’s

car. Symbol of the prosperous new

German.

The Beauty of Labour movement.

Certanly many middle-class

business people were grateful to

the Nazis for eliminating the

Communist threat to their

businesses and properties.

The big companies no longer had

to worry about troublesome trade

unions and strikes.

IG Farben gained huge

government contracts to make

explosives, fertilisers and artificial

oil from coal.

Mercedes abd Volkswagen

prospered from Nazis policies.

THE IMPACT OF THE SECOND WORLD

WAR ON GERMANY

In war, as in a peace time, the Nazis

used all methods available to make the

German people support the regime.

Food rationing in september 1939

Clothes rationing in november 1939

Hitler tried to maintain people’s support

by asking them to make sacrifices.

German people began to see and hear

less of Hitler.

The bombing of Dresden In 1942 the Allies decided a new

policy.

The British began an all-out assault

on both industrial and residential

areas of all the major German

cities.

The bombing of Dresden in

february 1945 killed between

35,000 and 150,000 people in 2

days.

Three months after the massive

destruction of this city, Germany’s

war was over

HITLER AND THE JEWS Throughout Europe, Jews had experienced discrimination for hundred

of years.

They were often treated unjustly in courts or forced to live in ghettos.

Jews were blamed for the death of Jesus Christ.

Another reason was that they tended to be well educated and

therefore held well-paid professional jobs or ran successful

businesses.

Hitler became obsessed by the fact that Jews ran porperous

businesses, particulary large department stores.

As soon as Hitler took power in 1933 he began to mobilise the full

powers of the state against the Jews