Unit 1 Germany | humanities

GCSE WJEC History Revision Notes

Germany in Transition 1919-1947

Exam date: Monday 1st June 2015

1. Germany 1919 - 1933 and the rise of the Nazis

What were the problems of the Weimar Republic?

The people believed the Government had stabbed the army in the back to end WWI.
Proportional Representation caused weak coalition governments.
The country was unstable and had to deal with the Spartacist (Communist) Rebellion and the Kapp Putsch.
The Treaty of Versailles that Germany was forced to sign with the Allies was very unpopular.
Article 48 of the Weimar Constitution allowed the country to be run as a virtual dictatorship in times of crisis.

What were the terms of the Treaty of Versailles? (L.A.M.B.)

Article 231 meant Germany had to take responsibility for starting WWI.
Germany had to pay £6,600 million in reparations.
Germany was banned from joining the League of Nations.
Germany had 13% of its land taken away.
Germany’s army was limited to 100,000 and they were banned from using aircraft.

What is hyperinflation?

This is when a government prints off too much money. This causes the currency to become worthless and the prices of goods rise very quickly.

What caused hyperinflation in Germany in 1923?

In 1921, Germany’s reparations bill was fixed at £6,600 million, to be repaid at a rate of £100 million per year. The German government made the first payment in 1921, but failed to make a payment the following year. The French and Belgians were angry at not receiving their money so they invaded and occupied the Ruhr, Germany’s main industrial region, in 1923. The Government called all German workers out on strike and printed off extra money to keep paying them. This led to hyperinflation.

How did the German Economy recover?

Gustav Stresemann became Chancellor in the summer of 1923.

He introduced a new currency called the Rentenmark to replace the old worthless one.
He signed the Dawes Plan with the USA in 1924, which made the repayments more manageable and gave Germany loans to rebuild their economy.
He persuaded France and Belgium to leave the Ruhr.
He signed the Young Plan with the USA in 1929. This reduced Germany’s reparations payments by ¾ and gave them an extra 59 years to pay them off.

What was the NSDAP?

The Nationalist Socialist German Workers Party.

Who was the founder of the NSDAP?

Anton Drexler.

When did Hitler take control of the NSDAP?

In July 1921 he took control, calling himself Fuhrer.

What ideas did the NSDAP have that began to become popular?

Hitler was a talented and persuasive public speaker.
People were angry that the Government had stabbed the army in the back.
People hated the Weimar Republic.
People were angry at the Treaty of Versailles.
People thought the Communists and the Jews were destroying Germany.

What was Hitler’s first political manifesto?

The 25 Point Programme.

What was the symbol of the Nazi Party?

The Swastika.

What was the Sturmabteilung (SA)?

These were protection squads who looked after Nazi public speakers. They were led by Ernst Rohm and known as the “Brownshirts” because of the colour of their uniform. They would regularly infiltrate meetings of rival political parties and cause violence.

What were the causes of the Munich Putsch in 1923?

Hitler hated the Weimar Republic.
Germany was humiliated following the occupation of the Ruhr.
Hitler hated the Treaty of Versailles.
Germany had no power internationally.
The Nazi Party had grown in size.
Hyperinflation had crippled the country.
The SA would be strong armed support.
Hitler had the support of General Ludendorff, a former army leader.
Hitler was confident that the Bavarian Minister, von Kahr and the army would support him.

What were the events of the Munich Putsch?

On November 8th, 1923, Hitler and 600 Nazis seized the Burgerbrau Keller where von Kahr and other Bavarian leaders were meeting and kidnapped them at gunpoint. Once they agreed to support Hitler, he let them go and told the authorities of Hitler’s plan to march on Berlin. Hitler continued with the march. He only had 2,000 rifles, many of which did not work properly, and the Nazis were no match for the German police force. 16 Nazis and 4 policemen were killed and Hitler was arrested.

What were the consequences of the Munich Putsch?

Hitler was put on trial for treason. The trial made him famous across Germany. Hitler was given the minimum sentence of 5 years in prison but only served 9 months.
In prison, Hitler wrote his autobiography, Mein Kampf, which outlined his political ideas.
In prison, Hitler decided to gain power through elections instead of armed putsches.

Why was Hitler appointed Chancellor in 1933?

The Wall Street Crash of 1929 caused an Economic Depression in Germany and unemployment rose to over 6 million. The mainstream parties in the Reichstag could not solve this crisis.
The Nazi Part used propaganda designed by Josef Goebbels to convince people to vote for them. Their most famous slogan was “Work and Bread.”
The Nazis did very well in elections. In 1928, they were the smallest party in the Reichstag with just 12 seats but by 1932, they were the largest party in the Reichstag with 230 seats.
Many middle class people and wealthy business men were scared of the communists so gave the Nazi Party financial support.
The SA intimidated people into voting Nazi and broke up opposition meetings.
Hitler was a charismatic and skilful public speaker. People believed his promises that he could solve Germany’s economic problems.
President Hindenburg appointed Hitler as Chancellor as he believed the experienced von Papen, whom he made Vice-Chancellor, would be able to control Hitler.

What was the significance of the Reichstag fire?

Hitler had called a General Election for March 5th,1933. On the night of February 27th, 1933, the Reichstag burned down. Historians believe the SA started the fire but Hitler blamed the communists and a young Dutch communist named Marinus van der Lubbe was arrested and blamed. Hitler used the incident as evidence that the communists were planning a revolution. As a result, Hitler passed the “Decree for the Protection of the People and the State” which limited free speech, the right to assembly, freedom of the press and allowed imprisonment without trial.

Why was the Enabling Act important for Hitler?

In the General Election of March, 1933, Hitler still did not win an overall majority. He took control Germany by passing the Enabling Act on March 23rd, 1933. It was passed by 444 votes to 94 after the SA stopped many opponents from reaching the vote. It gave Hitler total control over Germany and became the corner stone of the Third Reich, allowing Hitler to create a dictatorship. The Enabling Act allowed Hitler to:

Ban Trade Unions,
Ban Opposition Parties,
Stop Jews working for the Government.

What was the importance of the Night of the Long Knives?

Also known as Operation Hummingbird, on June 30th , 1934, during the Night of the Long Knives, Hitler got rid of the opposition hat existed to his leadership from within the Nazi Party. Hitler had the SS arrest and shoot 400 leading members of the SA, including its leader, Ernst Rohm. Rohm had been beginning to threaten Hitler’s leadership. He thought Hitler’s policies were changing Germany too slowly and he wanted the SA to replace the army.

Why was support from the army important to Hitler?

Following the death of President Hindenburg on August 2nd, 1934, Hitler merged the roles of Chancellor and President into the role of Fuhrer. To help him control Germany, he forced all members of the army to swear an oath of allegiance to him personally. On August 19th, 1934, He rigged a referendum on a leadership, showing 90% of the German people supported him.

2. Changing Life for the German people, 1933-39.

How did the Nazis control the economy?

The Nazis aimed to introduce “Autarky” to make Germany totally self-sufficient, although this was largely unsuccessful.
Unemployment was reduced as the Nazis fiddled the unemployment figures. Jews were dismissed from their jobs; unmarried men under the age of 25 had to join the RAD; women were dismissed from their jobs; part-time workers were listed as fully employed; opponents of the Nazis were sacked.
Many men were conscripted into the army, which grew from 100,000 to 1,400,000 by 1939. Many unemployed Germans were also given jobs building autobahns, schools and hospitals.
The KdF or Strength through Joy controlled workers free time. Loyal workers could go on subsidised cruises, theatre visits and even save up for a VW Beetle.
Trade Unions were replaced by the DAF. Strikes were banned and wages were set by the government.

What was the role of women?

The Nazis had a very traditional view of women. Women should not wear make-up, they should be blonde and athletic, they should not wear heels or smoke, they were not allowed to work, they did all household chores and should not get involved in politics.
Women were encouraged to have as many children as possible. The Law for the Encouragement of Marriage of 1933 gave loans to young married couples. For every child they had 25% of the loan was cleared. On Hitler’s mother’s birthday, August 12th, medals were awarded to mothers with lots of children.
Instead of working, women were told to focus on the 3 K’s of Kinder, Kuche, Kirche (children, kitchen, church).

How did the Nazis use education to control the young?

Teachers had to swear an oath of loyalty to Hitler and join the Nazi Teachers’ League to promote Nazi ideas in the classroom.
Textbooks were re-written to fit the Nazi view of History and racial purity. Mein Kampf was studied in all schools.
The curriculum was changed to prepare pupils for their future roles. Hitler wanted fit young men to join the army so boys spent 15% of their time doing PE. Girls took needlework and cookery to prepare for motherhood. All pupils learned Race Studies, which promoted Anti-Semitism.
All lessons began and ended with the “Heil Hitler” salute. In Geography, pupils learned about Germany’s hostile neighbours while in History, pupils learned about how unfair the Treaty of Versailles was.

How did the Nazis use youth movements to control the young?

The Nazis set up the Hitler Youth to control the spare time of young people. All other youth groups were banned. From 1939, membership was compulsory and 7 million children had joined up.
Boys joined the Jungvolk (German Young People) until they were 14 and then moved up into the Hitler Jungend (Hitler Youth). They learned Nazi songs and ideas, went camping and hiking and learned useful military skills.
Girls joined the Jungmadel (Young Girls) until they were 14 and then they moved up into the Bund Deutsche Madchen (League of German Maidens). They learned domestic skills in preparation for marriage and motherhood.

What was the Police State?

The Nazi police state operated through the use of force and terror. The SS (Schutzstaffel), the SD (Sicherheitsdienst or Security Service) and the Gestapo (Geheime Staats Polizei or Secret State Police) were the cornerstones of the police state. In 1936, they were brought under the control of Heinrich Himmler.
The SS were also known as the “Blackshirts” because of the colour of their uniform. By 1934, they had 50,000 members. After the Night of the Long Knives, they worked with the SD to remove all Nazi opposition in Germany.
The Gestapo was brought under the control of the SS in 1936 and run by Himmler’s deputy, Reinhard Heydrich. It could arrest and imprison people suspected of opposing the Nazis and send them to concentration camps. By 1939, 160,000 people had been arrested for political “crimes.”
To control the legal system, the Nazis made all judges join the Nationalist Socialist League for the Maintenance of the Law and, from 1933, all German Lawyers had to join the German Lawyers Front. In 1934, the People’s Court was set up to try cases of treason. If judges were too soft, Hitler would alter their verdicts.
The first concentration camp was opened in Dachau near Munich in 1933. They were run by the SS. Political prisoners were sent to concentration camps where they were used as slave labour. Few ever survived.

How were propaganda and censorship used?

In 1934, Josef Goebbels set up the Ministry for Popular Enlightenment and Propaganda to control the thoughts, beliefs and opinions of the German people.
Non Nazi newspapers were shut down. Editors were forced to print what the Nazi Party told them to for fear of arrest.
All radio stations were placed under Nazi control. Cheap mass produced radios were sold so everyone could afford one. Hitler and Goebbels made regular broadcasts.
Germany made over 100 films every year. Film scripts were shown to Goebbels before they were filmed to ensure they were pro Nazi. Before every film, a 45 minute pro Nazi newsreel was shown.
There was an annual mass Nazi rally in Nuremburg to advertise the power of the party.
All books were carefully censored to make sure they were pro Nazi. Books written by Jews, communists or Nazi opponents were publicly burned. Many writers were forced to write books praising Hitler’s leadership.
Propaganda posters were used to promote the Nazi party and their policies.
In 1934, a Law Against Malicious Gossip forbade the telling of anti-Nazi jokes.

How did the Nazis control the arts?

Hitler hated Jazz because Jazz musicians were generally Black. The Nazis encouraged traditional folk music and German classical music like Bach and Beethoven.
Plays in theatres were forced to concentrate on German history.
In architecture, new buildings used Greek and Roman styles of architecture to look powerful.
Hitler hated modern art and encouraged traditional paintings to promote Nazi ideas such as the perfect Aryan and motherhood.

What was Nazi racial policy?

Hitler wanted all Germans to be pure blood blond haired and blue eyed Aryans. Jews and Slavs were seen as sub-human.
Hitler believed all of Germany could be made Aryan through selective breeding and the destruction of the Jews.

Why and how did the Nazis persecute the Jews?

Anti-Semitism was not a new idea. It goes back to at least the Middle Ages. Hitler used it to encourage hatred of the Jews. By 1939, 270,000 Jews had left Germany as a result.
School textbooks and lessons were changed to put across Anti-Semitic views. In 1936, Jewish teachers were banned from teaching. In 1938, all Jewish children were expelled from school.
In 1935, the Nuremburg Laws were passed. Jews were no longer classed as full German citizens. They lost the right to vote or be elected themselves. They were banned from marrying or having sexual relationships with non-Jews.
On November 8th, 1938, a young Polish Jew walked into the German embassy in Paris and shot a Nazi official. As a result, Goebbels organised an attack on Jewish property all over Germany, which became known as Kristallnacht (The Night of the Broken Glass). 7,500 Jewish shops were destroyed, 400 Synagogues were burned down, 100 Jews were killed and 20,000 were sent to concentration camps.
On April 30th, 1939, Jews were evicted from their homes and forced to live in ghettos. They had their radios confiscated so they could not listen to foreign news.

How did Nazis change relations with the church?

Although the Nazi Party was opposed to Christianity, Hitler could not get rid of religion completely because Germany was a Christian country.
Many religious people had actually supported the Nazis as they thought the Nazis would promote traditional family values.
In 1933, Hitler decided to work with the Catholic Church and signed a Concordat with the Pope promising to stay out of religious issues if the Pope kept out of politics. Within a few months Hitler broke this agreement. Nazis arrested up to 400 priests and closed down Catholic schools, youth groups and monasteries. In 1937, Pope Pius XI criticised the Nazi regime.
Many Protestants hated Nazism. Pastor Martin Niemoller set up the Pastor’s Emergency League in 1933 for Protestants who opposed the Nazis and later established the Confessional Church in opposition to the Nazi’s National Reich Church. He was arrested and sent to a concentration camp.
Some Protestants admired Hitler and called themselves German Christians. They formed the National Reich Church. Their leader was Ludwig Muller. They replaced the Bible and the cross with Mein Kampf and a sword.

3. War and its Impact on life in Germany, 1939-47.

What was life like during the early years of the war, 1939-41?

The Nazi policy of Blitzkrieg (Lightning War) brought quick victories and little suffering to Germany. The German army even sent home luxury items from conquered countries like gold, paintings and silk stockings. The victories made Hitler more popular.
Autarky and the controlling of supplies led to the introduction of rationing in 1939. This led to 2/5 of the German population having an improved diet.
Everyone took part in the war effort. The Hitler Youth collected scrap metal to be recycled for the army. The children were evacuated from the cities in September 1940 to avoid bombing raids.

What was life like during the later war years, 1942-45?

From 1942, the German people became far more involved in the war as the Nazi Party introduced a policy of “Total War.”
Albert Speer was appointed Reich Minister for Armaments in 1943 and made sure the economy was fully geared up for the war. He closed down small factories and moved workers to bigger more efficient factories. He brought in cheap foreign workers and by 1944, 29% of all workers in Germany were foreign. He also introduced assembly lines to speed up production, which increased production per worker by 60%.
From 1943, women from 17-45 were conscripted into munitions factories. By 1944, 42% of workers were women.
From January 1943, following the German Army’s defeat in Russia, Goebbels began using more and more propaganda to boost morale and convince the public that Germany could still win the war. Military defeats and the bombing of German cities were used as propaganda tools to encourage the German people to continue fighting.
Food rations were reduced in 1942 due to shortages caused by military defeats. There was a lot of illegal trading in rationed goods on the black market.
From 1942, the Allies began to bomb German cities heavily to disrupt German war production destroy the morale of the German public. 2,700,000 bombs were dropped, killing 650,000 German civilians.
By 1944, the German Army was stretched so Hitler created the Volkssturm (People’s Army) as a last line of defence. The Volkssturm was made up of men too old, young or injured to join the regular army. They had to supply their own weapons and they were poorly trained, although they did help to defend Berlin from the Russians in 1945.

How were Jews treated during the war years?

Initially, all Jews were gathered together in Ghettos, which were walled-in to prevent them from leaving. Conditions in the Ghettos were appalling and 55,000 Jews died in the Warsaw Ghetto alone.
Following the invasion of Russia in 1941, Einsatzgruppen (Killing Squads) raided Russian towns that had been captured by the German Army to look for any Jews. They marched the Jews to the outskirts of their towns where they were forced to dig their own graves before they were shot. By 1943, the Einsatzgruppen had killed 2,000,000 Russian Jews.
In January 1942, leading Nazis met at Wannsee in Berlin to work out the “Final Solution.” They decided to build Death Camps in Poland at Auschwitz, Treblinka, Sobibor and Belzec. From March 1942, Jews from all over occupied Europe were being transported to these camps.
On arrival at the Death Camps, fit and healthy Jews were put to work. The rest were sent to the gas chambers. Zyklon B gas was used to kill the Jews. The gas chambers were very efficient. At Treblinka, 140,000 Jews were being killed every month. Many Jews were also used for medical experiments. By 1945, over 6,000,000 had been killed.

What opposition was there to Nazi rule within Germany from civilians?

Some young people joined the Edelweiss Pirates. They would try to beat up Hitler Youth patrols and hand out Allied propaganda leaflets. In 1944, Barthel Schink, the 16 year old leader of the Cologne Pirates was hanged by the Nazis.
The Swing Youth met in bars and nightclubs to listen to banned jazz and swing music.
The White Rose Group was set up by Hans and Sophie Scholl at Munich University in 1941. They wrote and distributed 6 anti-Nazi leaflets, describing the atrocities that they were committing. However, in February 1943, they were caught and executed by the Gestapo.
Many religious groups and individuals opposed the Nazis. Martin Niemoller set up the Confessional Church in opposition to the National Reich Church and was incarcerated in Sachsenhausen concentration camp. Dietrich Bonhoeffer helped some Jews to escape and was arrested by the Gestapo. Bishop Clemens von Galen was a Catholic priest who was arrested for preaching about the horrors of Nazi atrocities.

What opposition was there to Nazi rule within Germany from the military?

Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg had been badly wounded during the failed invasion of Russia. He also hated the brutality of the SS and the mistreatment of Jews. He devised “Operation Valkyrie”, which involved placing a bomb in a briefcase beside Hitler to kill him.
As Chief-of-Staff to the Home Army Commander, von Stauffenberg met with Hitler regularly.
On July 20th, 1944, von Stauffenberg planted the bomb. He had been disturbed setting the detonator so the bomb was smaller than it should have been. He placed the briefcase containing the bomb 2 metres away from Hitler but it was accidentally moved away during the meeting. When the bomb went off, one man was killed, but Hitler was protected from serious injury by a solid oak table.
Stauffenberg was arrested on his return to Berlin. Hitler took revenge on the army and over 5,000 people suspected of being involved in the plot were executed.

How was Germany defeated?

The D Day landings of June 6th, 1944, provided the Allies with a foothold in Europe to fight back against the Nazis. By August 25th, Paris had been liberated.
The failure of Operation Market Garden slowed the Allies advance to Berlin from the west.
The Germans used their remaining reserves in a last ditch attack at “The Battle of the Bulge” which failed. On March 9th, 1945, the Allies entered Germany from the west with the Russians reaching Berlin in late April from the east.
The final Russian assault on Berlin began on April 16th, 1945. By April 24th, there was house to house fighting in the city between the Russians and the Volkssturm. On may 8th, the German Army finally surrendered.
On April 30th, 1945, Hitler committed suicide and Admiral Donitz replaced him as Fuhrer.

How was Germany punished by the Allies?

At the Yalta Conference in February, 1945, the Allies decided to split Germany and Berlin into 4 zones controlled by the USA, UK, France and Russia.
At the Potsdam Conference in July, 1945, the Allies decided to demilitarise Germany and re-establish democracy. Germany had to pay reparations, mostly to Russia and the Nazi Party was banned.
At the Nuremburg Trials, the Allies put 22 senior Nazis on trial for waging war, crimes against peace, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
200 other Nazis were put on trial. 142 were found guilty, 24 were given the death sentence, 20 were given life in prison, and 98 received other prison sentences.

What happened to Germany after the war?

After the war Germany went through a period of Denazification. 90,000 Nazis were held in detention and a further 2,000,000 were banned from working. 30,000 different pro Nazi books were destroyed.
In 1947, the American, British and French zones merged to become The Federal Republic of Germany, 1990 Germany reunified.

Adolf Hitler Timeline

1889 Adolf Hitler is born in Braunau am Inn, AUSTRIA.

1909-1913 Becomes a homeless artist in Vienna, Austria.

1914-18 Joins the German army in World War 1.

1914 Wins the Iron Cross medal for valour. (courage in battle)

1916 Promoted to the rank of corporal in the army.

1919 Joins German Workers’ Political Party (D.A.P.)

1921 Becomes leader of the Nazi Political Party.

1923 Organises Munich Beer Hall Putsch which fails. Hitler is arrested.

1924 Hitler is imprisoned after Putsch and spends 9 months in Landsberg. Prison where he writes his book ‘Mein Kampf’. (My Struggle)

1933 Becomes Chancellor (Prime Minister) of Germany.

1934 Becomes Führer (leader) after the death of President Hindenburg.

1938 Under Hitler Germany invades Czechoslovakia.

1939 Hitler orders the invasion of Poland with the support of Russia. Britain declares war and World War 2 begins.

1941 Hitler orders the invasion of Russia. (Operation Barbarossa) He also declares war on the USA following the bombing of Pearl Harbor by Japan.

1942 The Final Solution, Hitler’s genocide (murder) of the Jews begins.

1944 Hitler survives an assassination attempt by Claus von Stauffenberg.

1945 Hitler commits suicide along with his wife Eva Braun in his bunker in Berlin. World War 2 ends following the surrender of Germany and Japan..