1
Did Hitler’s rule
benefit the people in
Germany?
Political
Impact
Social
Impact
Economic
Impact
Crisis and Conflict: Nazi Germany
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Political impact

Hitler consolidated power and established
dictatorship from 1933-1934.

4 key steps:

Reichstag Fire (Feb 1933)

Enabling Act (March 1933)

Night of Long Knives (June 1934)

Creation of role of Fuehrer (Aug 1934)
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Reichstag Fire (Feb 1933)

Hitler called for fresh elections to
gain control of Reichstag.

In Feb 1933, the Reichstag building
caught fire; a communist was
caught red-handed.
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Reichstag Fire (Feb 1933)

Hitler convinced Hindenburg to grant
him emergency powers to arrest
Communists and other opponents.

Reichstag Fire decree – all civil
rights suspended – no freedom of
speech, assembly, or press

Result? Nazis won 44% of the votes
in the election and gained more
seats in Parliament.
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Enabling Act (March 1933)

Using the SA, Hitler intimidated
the Reichstag into passing the
Enabling Act in March 1933

This act gave Hitler full dictatorial
powers for four years.

He could make his own laws
without consulting the Reichstag
or the President
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Source A: A member of the opposition recalling the day in
the Reichstag when the Enabling Act was passed
We could not agree with what Hitler was asking for
and we expressed our disapproval but that did us
no good. Hitler’s supporters surrounded us in a
semi-circle along the walls of the Reichstag,
hissed loudly and murmured, ‘Shut up! Traitors!
You all will be hung today.’
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Enabling Act (March 1933)



May 1933: All trade unions were
dissolved.
July 1933: All other political
parties were banned.
Impact: established one-party
dictatorship in Germany;
democracy destroyed.
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Night of the Long Knives (June 1934)

By 1934, the SA had grown into
a four-million strong army under
Ernst Rohm  wanted to turn
SA into a second German Army

Alarmed the generals and Hitler
 saw SA as a threat
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Source B: Extracted from a conversation in 1934 with Rohm
‘Hitler is a pig, he will betray us all. He only mixes
with posh people now. His old friends are not good
enough for him. He knows what I want, and it isn’t
to turn the SA into a branch of the army. Are we
revolutionaries or aren’t we? Why is he getting
friendly with the generals? I can be the creator of a
new army.’
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Night of the Long Knives (June 1934)

In June 1934, Hitler arrested
and executed Rohm and many
SA leaders. The killings were
known as Night of the Long
Knives.

Impact: destroyed opposition
within Nazi party; gained support
of the military
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Created the role of Fuehrer (Aug 1934)

Aug 1934: President Hindenburg died

Hitler made himself President as well
as Chancellor, creating a new role
called the ‘Fuehrer’  supreme,
unchallenged powers

Armed forces had to swear an oath of
loyalty to him.

Impact: made him absolute ruler of
Germany
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The Fuehrer Oath
I swear by almighty
God this sacred oath:
I will render
unconditional
obedience
to the Fuehrer of the
German Reich and
people, Adolf Hitler,
Supreme Commander
of the Wehrmacht.
Ba
ck
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SEQ practice
 Why
did Hitler completely control Germany
by late 1934? EYA. (2005 ‘O’ level)
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Evaluation of political impact
Positive effects
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Negative effects
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Economic impact
 Economy
improved in general compared
to Weimar rule
 Nazis
controlled vital aspects of economy
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Increased employment

Hitler introduced several policies to create jobs:
 public works programmes such as building of roads,
motorways (autobahns), hospitals etc. – provided jobs
and infrastructure
 conscription and rearmament
 removal of Jews/ women from public sector

Overall unemployment fell from six million in 1933 to
below one million in 1939.
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Militarization

Rearmament created new jobs - manufacturing arms,
supplying raw materials and military equipment e.g.
creation of modern air force

The introduction of conscription in 1935: every man
aged between 18 and 25 had to spend two years in the
armed forces – reduced unemployment.
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Based on this illustration, what was the strength of the German
economy based on?
Ba
ck
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Organizing workers’ leisure time

efforts were made to improve lives of workers

e.g. ‘Strength through Joy’ (Kdf) scheme provided cheap
theatre trips, cruises and sporting activities for workers.

e.g. ‘Beauty of Labour’ scheme to improve working
conditions – washing facilities and low-cost canteens

e.g. popular scheme to help workers buy a Volkswagen
Beetle car for a small weekly payment
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Workers were tightly controlled





German Labour Front (DAF) set up to keep strict control
of workers
e.g. not allowed to strike or bargain for higher wages
e.g. not allowed to change their jobs without government
permission.
In 1935 a wage freeze was imposed.
By 1939, as the economy geared up for war, workers
were working up to 72 hours a week.
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Big businesses benefited

Big businesses benefited from Nazi policies
 Goering’s Four-Year Plan (1936): prepare for war by
producing arms and ensuring that country was selfsufficient.

Big companies gained huge government contracts to
produce weapons and war materials (steel, oil etc.)

No longer had to worry about troublesome trade unions
and strikes
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Evaluation of economic impact
Positive effects
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Negative effects
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Social impact
 Hitler
imposed tight control over the
people in order to achieve his goals.
 German
people had little freedom.
 Some
groups suffered discrimination and
persecution.
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Propaganda

Joseph Goebbels controlled the Propaganda
Ministry, which aimed to brainwash people into
obeying Nazis and idolizing Hitler

Cult of personality – Hitler’s picture was
everywhere and he was portrayed as Germany’s
saviour
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Propaganda

Radio stations were controlled to broadcast Hitler’s
speeches and Nazi propaganda.

All films had to carry pro-Nazi message  praised the
Nazis or showed the Jews as enemies

Nuremberg rallies: spectacular rallies that gave an
impression of power and unity
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1936 Olympics

Propaganda opportunity to showcase Germany
as a modern and successful nation

Germany came top of medal table

Projected efficiency, power, strength and
achievement
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Censorship

The Nazis controlled all forms of media and
there was very strict censorship.

Newspapers could publish only what was
approved by the Ministry of Propaganda.

Books written by Jews and other ‘undesirable’
people were removed from libraries and burnt in
public.
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Censorship

Only Nazi-approved artists could show their
works – usually paintings or sculptures of heroiclooking Aryans or images of ideal Aryan family

Music was controlled. Jazz was banned as it had
been invented by black people
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The SS and the Gestapo

Instruments of terror

Arrested and killed opponents of the Nazi Party

The SS (Elite Guard): responsible for destroying
opposition to Nazism and carrying out racial
policies of Nazis.

The Gestapo (secret police): ruthless
organization that could arrest and send people to
concentration camps without trial
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Informers

The Nazis appointed Blockleiter (block leader) to
spy on the population and report any anti-Nazi
activities to the local Gestapo office.

People were encouraged to report on their
families and neighbors who did not show total
support for Hitler and the Nazi Party.
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Concentration camps

Established in 1933; run by SS.

Opponents of the Nazis and undesirable members
of the population, such as Jews, Communists and
gypsies, were sent to the camps without trial.

Prisoners forced to do hard labour; given limited
food; suffered beatings and random execution

Very few emerged alive
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Education and youth

Schools encouraged loyalty and obedience to
Nazism.

Textbooks were re-written to include Nazi
political and racial ideas e.g.

Treaty of Versailles was unfair

Superiority of the Germans as Aryan race

Jews were subhuman; depicted as ugly and
greedy
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Education and Youth

Nazi youth organizations were set up for both
sexes.

Hitler Youth: used physical and military training
to indoctrinate boys to glorify war

League of German Maidens: taught girls to
welcome their role as mothers
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Why children are important
When an opponent declares, “I will not
come over to your side,” I calmly say,
“Your child belongs to us already… What
are you ? You will pass on. Your
descendants, however, now stand in the
new camp. In a short time they will know
nothing else but this new community.”
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What I can see
Key Questions
Hitler in the
background
Who is this poster
aimed at?
Young HJ
boy.
Aryan in
appearance,
serious,
looking ahead
(in awe?)
Why was this
poster produced?
What does this
poster tell you
about Nazi
attitude towards
youth?
Military/
Smart
Uniform
Caption in
Bold
“Youth Serves the Führer”
All 10-year-olds into the Hitler
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Youth."
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“Adolf Hitler's
youth attends
community
schools”
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Nazi-controlled education system:
The Nazis had total control over the
subjects and textbooks. The main objective
of education was to teach Nazi ideas and
to instill in all young Germans a sense of
loyalty to Nazism.
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Use of terror to control Germany:
The Nazis used violence to make sure
that they did not face challenges to their
power. Many opponents of the Nazis
were beaten up, sent to prison or killed.
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Women were given limited responsibilities

Nazis believed that women should only be
concerned about ‘children, church, cooking’.

Their role was to produce racially pure and
healthy German babies and to look after their
families.
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Women were given limited responsibilities

Many professional women were forced to give
up their jobs and stay at home.

Women who bore many children received
special awards and cash incentives.
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Critical Thinking
These statements
were on a Nazi
leaflet given to all
young women.
Do you agree with
the statements?
1.
Remember that you are a German!
2.
If you are healthy, do not stay single!
3.
Keep your body pure!
4.
Keep your mind and spirit pure!
5.
Marry only for love!
6.
As a German, choose only a husband of the same blood!
7.
In choosing a husband, ask about his forebears!
8.
Health is essential to beauty!
9.
Don’t look for a playmate but for a companion!
10. You should want to have as many children as possible!
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The Cross of
Honor for the
German mother

bronze for four to
five children
 silver for six to
seven children
 gold for eight or
more children.
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Persecution of Jews

Hitler and the Nazis believed that Germans
belonged to the superior Aryan race while the
Jews were the inferior race (Untermensch).

Inferior races should be the slaves of the
superior race

When the Nazis came to power, they
immediately began to take measures against the
Jews.
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Persecution of Jews
1933
1935
• All Jews were
sacked from
government
jobs.
• The Nuremberg
Laws were
passed.
• The government
called for the
boycott of
Jewish shops.
• Jews were
stripped of their
German
citizenship and
banned from
marrying
Germans.
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1938
• Jews were not
allowed to attend
state schools and
universities.
• Jews were banned
from owning
businesses.
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Night of Broken Glass

On 7 November 1938, following the killing of a
German official by a Jew, the Nazis organized a
night of violence against the Jews.

More than 7 500 Jewish shops and over 400
synagogues were destroyed.

91 Jews were killed; 20,000 taken to
concentration camps.
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Holocaust
• ‘Final Solution’ which killed more than 6 million Jews
through death extermination camps in parts of Germany
and Poland.
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‘ALL THAT IS NEEDED
FOR EVIL TO
SUCCEED IS, THAT
DECENT HUMAN
BEINGS DO
NOTHING’. (Edmund
Burke)
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Other groups persecuted by Nazis
 Nazis
believed that people with disabilities
were genetic degenerates.
 The Nazis, therefore:
 Killed mentally disabled babies and
mentally ill patients.
 Sterilized physically disabled people
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 This
genetically
ill person will
cost our people's
community
60,000 marks
over his lifetime.
Citizens, that is
your money.
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Christian churches were controlled by
Nazis

Hitler set up a state Reich Church, which
preached Nazi values, and banned the Bible and
the cross.

All church schools and youth groups were
closed.

Priests and pastors who opposed the Nazi party
were arrested and sent to concentration camps.
Ba
ck
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Letter writing
 Imagine
you were the leader of the
League of Nations in 1938.
 Write a formal letter to Hitler of Nazi
Germany. Persuade him to reform the
government policies that are bringing more
harm than benefits to the German people.
The length of your letter should be about
250 to 300 words.
Crisis and Conflict: Nazi Germany
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Summary
Impact of Hitler’s
regime
Political
Social
Economic
• Working conditions partly improved.
• New jobs were created.
• Big business benefited.
Crisis and Conflict: Nazi Germany
Back to
main
summary
• Democracy in Germany ended.
• Threats to Hitler within the Party were
removed.
• Emergency laws were used.
• The SS and the Gestapo.
• Informers.
• Concentration camps.
• Pro-Nazi cultural activities, parades and
rallies.
• Propaganda and censorship.
• Youths were brainwashed by the Nazis.
• Nazi-controlled education system.
• Women were given limited
responsibilities.
• Jews were treated cruelly.
• Christian churches were controlled by
the Nazis.
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