GERMANY 1918 - 1939
Principal focus
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Students investigate the key features and issues of the history of
Germany 1918 - 1939
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Successes and failures of democracy
Nature and role of nationalism
Influence of the German army
Nature and influence of racism
Changes in society
The nature and impact of Nazism
Aims and impact of Nazi foreign policy
Content divided into the study of:
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Weimar Republic
The rise of the Nazi Party
Nazism in power
Nazi foreign policy
Role of German history – legacy of the past
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Germany only a nation state since 1871
United by Prussian military power and by exclusion of Austria
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(KleinDeutsch vs. GrossDeutsch)
Rapid industrialisation before 1914
Sense of frustrated nationalism
Racism and antisemitism
Imperial Germany dominated by narrow elite
The birth of the Weimar Republic
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German High Command realised it could not win WWI by late 1918
Urged a civilian government be put in place to seek an armistice
1/10/18 Prince Max von Baden becomes chancellor – Social
Democrats included in Cabinet
28/10/18 Kiel naval base mutiny – revolution spreads to other towns
throughout Germany
9/11/18 Kaiser abdicates, Friedrich Ebert (SPD) becomes chancellor;
Germany becomes a republic
11/11/18 Armistice signed, WWI ended
1/19 Republican government formed in Weimar: Scheidemann
became chancellor, Ebert became president
Early Weimar: Revolution and counter-revolution
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Groener-Ebert Pact
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Stinnes-Legien Pact
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Industrial compromise: Recognition of bargaining rights of trade unions and
8 hour workday VS. industrial peace and no workers’ councils
Spartacist (German communist) uprising
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Ebert: Enforcing the authority of the government
Continuance of Prussian militaristic tradition
Delmer: “The Republic was born with a hole in its heart”
K. Liebknecht and R. Luxemburg: Call for a Russian-style Soviet republic
Revolt crushed by the Freikorps (irregular volunteer soldiers)– political
violence a feature of the early republic
Kapp Putsch
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Gustav Kapp: Attempted overthrow of Government (assisted by Freikorps)
Regular army did not assist the Government
Lack of authority of Weimar Government
Versailles Treaty: Terms and effects
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Drawn up by victorious powers of WWI
It required the Germans to:
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Surrender various territories
Demilitarise the Rhineland (occupied by Allied powers)
Reduce the army to 100 000; Navy to 6 battleships (disperse air force and
submarines)
Hand over all overseas territories to the Allies
Make reparations of 6 billion gold marks per year (as well as other items)
Accept full responsibility (‘war guilt’ clause) for causing the war
Effects:
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Germans stunned by the harshness of the Versailles Treaty
Looking for someone to blame:
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Hindenburg and the officer class argued that the army was not defeated in the
field, hence responsibility must lie elsewhere (Ebert welcomed the troops in
November with the greeting “As you return unconquered from the field of
battle, I salute you”. )
Versailles Treaty: Terms and effects (cont.)
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Assertion spread (and legend arose) that it was the fault of the ‘November
criminals’ – Socialist politicians who negotiated and signed the Armistice in
November 1918
‘Stab in the back’ theory: A belief in a conspiracy of communists and Jews
Democracy seen by many Germans as an imposition
Only in this way could Germany’s helpless position in June 1919 be
explained for many Germans
Germany after WWI
The Weimar Constitution
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Provided for:
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Election of a Reichstag
Elections based on proportional representation
Election of President every seven years
President to chose from the Reichstag a Chancellor
Very forward-looking:
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Sought to safeguard the fundamental rights of citizens
Provisions for the most advanced social-welfare system in the world (designed
to cope with an unemployment rate of approx. 800 000)
Compulsory state arbitration of disputes between employers and unions
Weaknesses of the Weimar Constitution
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Proportional representation
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Z. Brzenzinsky: Proportional representation led to small parties and single issue
parties so that it became difficult to create and maintain coalition governments
(Totalitarian Dictatorship and Democracy – 1950s, supported by K. Bracher in
the 1960s)
E. Kolb: More recently Kolb and other historians have pointed out that other
European countries, including the history of post war West Germany, have had
proportional representation without the rise of extremist parties to power (The
Weimar Republic)
Presidential powers and Article 48
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E. Kolb: The powers of the President meant that he could appoint governments
which did not have majority support in the Reichstag. Article 48 an inbuilt
authoritarian element (The Weimar Republic)
J. L. Radel: France had similar provisions to Article 48 used during emergencies
but constitutional power had always been returned. In Germany this article was
invoked 130 times between 1919 and 1924 to safeguard the republic from left
and right. The article was not the problem, it was the way it was misused. (Roots
of Totalitarianism)
Political and socio-economic issues to 1929
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French occupation of the Ruhr and German resistance (passive)
Hyperinflation of 1923
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Stresemann era 1924-29: a period of prosperity?
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Loaf of bread 1918- 0.63 marks; late 1923-201 000 000 000 marks
Rate of exchange changing several times a day
Dawes Plan (repayments based on capacity to pay)
Young Plan (annual repayments to conclude in 1988)
Locarno treaties ( a triumph of cooperation between ministers for
foreign affairs from Germany, France and Britain)
Admittance to the League of Nations
Cultural innovation
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Berlin: Literature, music, theatre and art
Sexuality entered a permissive phase
Nudity and open homosexuality
Experimental design in architecture
Political and socio-economic issues to 1929 (cont)
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One view is that at the end of 1918 the SPD was justified in attacking the left and
making an alliance with the conservative elites. K. D. Erdmann suggests that the
demands of the left would have destroyed the new democracy
Revisionist historians have suggested that the SPD distrusted popular mass
movements and showed naivety for their reverence for conservative loyalty
The economic and social repercussions of hyperinflation are still subject to intense
debate
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Usefulness of inflation and hyperinflation as a means of currency stabilisation in Germany
and serious weakness of the economy to 1929 which made it difficult for the German
government to deal with the savage impact of the Great Depression
Kolb has suggested that the economic and social instability during this period
undermined the political stability since the economy functioned entirely upon
foreign loans (economic, social and political fragility)
Close correlation between art and politics: Gay has described this period of
German culture as one filled with clashes between modernism and anti-modernism,
between reason and irrationalism – Broad sections of a basically conservative
population associated modernism with decadence and blamed Weimar for its
introduction
Curbing of the workers’ movement: Industrial disputation increased
Impact of the Great Depression on Germany
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Its onset crippled the economy:
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Foreign loans dried up
Industries closed
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Unemployment soared
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Iron and steel employers in the Ruhr refused to pay recent wage increases and locked
out their workforce. Big business had given a clear notice of its intention to undermine
the arbitration system.
From 2 000 000 in 1929 to more than 6 000 000 in 1932
Collapse of the unemployment insurance system
Dramatic decline in exports
Dramatic decline in living standards, especially for middle class
Young Plan made invalid
Economic instability mirrored in the political scene
Collapse of the Weimar Republic 1929 - 1933
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Muller’s coalition government the last to be able to call on the
backing of a majority in the Reichstag
Hindenburg and the use of the emergency decree
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Appointed successive Chancellors: Bruning, von Papen, Schleicher
Appointment of Adolf Hitler as Chancellor
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Hitler leading the largest party in the Reichstag
Papen’s ambition and revenge: Removing Schleicher
Hindenburg’s blunder: opposition and acceptance
Collapse of the Weimar Republic 1929 – 1933
(cont)
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Controversy thus surrounds the reasons for the collapse of the republic, whether it
was destined for failure at its inception or whether the Depression and the
emergence of Nazism destroyed its credibility
A. Bullock: The role of the personality of Hitler as a spokesperson for discontented
groups in Germany over structural weakness in the Weimar republic
Nicholls: Weimar had weak foundations but Hitler was spokesperson for key
discontented groups in Germany
A. J. P. Taylor: The economic crisis led to the rise of the Nazis
F. Fischer: Basic continuities in socio-economic structures from Wilhelmine Germany
into the Weimar republic (emphasises the superficial nature of Weimar democracy
and structure rather than the Depression or the role of individuals as cause of
collapse)
K. D. Bracher: Weimar built on weak democratic base
I. Kershaw, E. Kolb, M. Broszat: These historians stress the weakness of the Weimar
government, socio-economic dislocation and continuing power of conservative
elites
Liberal and left wing scholars have accused the army of weakening the democratic
system and developing a dualistic state where power descended from a
constitutional and additionally a military base
Collapse of the Weimar Republic 1929 – 1933 (cont)
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Kolb suggests that the political aims and ambitions of the Reichswehr
chiefs...were factors of the first rank in the disruption of the Weimar republic
Collapse of the Weimar Republic 1929 – 1933 (cont)
http://www.herodote.net/Images/HitlerHindenburg.jpg
The rise of the Nazi Party
http://www.ns-party.com/gauleitung.jpg
The rise of the Nazi Party
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Hitler and the German Workers’ party
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National Socialist German Workers’ Party
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Attended meeting in Bavaria in 9/1919 in the role of Army investigator
Saw it as a vehicle for his own ambitions (joined as member number 7)
Hitler renamed the party
Twenty-five Point Programme
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Designed to attract a wide variety of support, calling for:
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Strong leadership from a central government
Abolition of the Treaty of Versailles
Unification of all Germans in a greater Germany
Anti-capitalist measures: land reform, profit sharing etc
Welfare provisions: pensions for the aged
Anti-Semitic views: No Jew could be a member of the German nation
Sturm Abteilung (SA)
The Munich Putsch
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Attempt to seize power in Munich on 8/11/1923
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A rift existed between the right-wing Bavarian government of von Kahr and
Weimar authorities. Hitler tried to exploit this
Supported in his efforts by General Ludendorff
Putsch failed
Hitler on trial
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Charged with high treason
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Hitler: “There is no such thing as high treason against the traitors of 1918”
Drew sympathy from judges in courtroom
Sentenced to five years (served nine months in Landsberg prison)
Mein Kampf
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Whilst in prison, he wrote Mein Kampf (‘My Struggle’)
Set out his views on Germany’s future
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Racial theories
War and struggle
Fuhrerprinzip
Lebensraum
“If outvoting them takes longer than outshooting
them, at least the results will be guaranteed by
their own constitution” Hitler
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Reversing the ban on the party and Volkischer Beobachter
Reunifying the party – Congress of Bamberg
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Hitler’s authority over the whole movement was reimposed
Joseph Goebbels appointed Gauleiter (district supervisor) in Berlin July
1926
Little electoral success 1924 – 1929
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Developing party structures and rituals
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Swastika
‘Heil Hitler’
Creation of students’, women's’ and teachers’ Leagues
Schutzstaffeln (SS)
Party membership in 1926: 49 000
The Great Depression and the Nazi message
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Racially-based nationalist ideology
Coordinated social-welfare effort designed to project a caring image
Claim to be a vigorous young movement
Proved effective – number of votes rose significantly
Nazi power increases
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Nazi Party won 107 seats in the September 1930 elections (second only to
the Social Democrats)
March 1932: Hitler stood for presidential election (Lost to Hindenburg)
Nazi party won 230 seats in July 1932 elections – Largest single party in the
Reichstag
Election of November 1932: Nazi vote fell by 2 000 000, though still largest
single party in Reichstag
Hitler as Chancellor
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von Papen persuades Hindenburg to accept coalition with Hitler as
Chancellor
To be surrounded by experienced conservatives (von Papen and
Hugenberg)
R. Stackelberg, The Nazi Germany Sourcebook, p. 23
Consolidation of Nazi power 1933-34
B. Dennett, Key Features of Modern History, p. 270
Consolidation of Nazi power 1933-34 (cont)
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Establishment of Dachau concentration camp
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1/4/1933 – Boycott Day: Jewish businesses targeted
The burning of the Reichstag
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Suspended civil liberties and gave the government wide ranging powers
The Enabling Act
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Marinus van der Lubbe and the Communists
Were the Nazis involved?
Burning of ‘un-German’ books: Left-wing, pacifist and Jewish works
Establishment of the Gehaime Staatspolizei (Gestapo)
Decree for the Protection of the German People
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‘Enemies of the state’
Replacing parliamentary democracy with the rule of Hitler and the Nazi Party
Outlawing political opposition
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Nazi governors replaced elected state parliaments
Consolidation of Nazi power 1933-34 (cont)
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Night of the Long Knives
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Ernst Rohm and the power of the SA – threatening the Reichswehr
Hitler authorised Heinrich Himmler (leader of SS) to purge the most radical
elements of the SA
Hitler wanted and needed the cooperation of the Reichswehr
Death of Hindenburg
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Hitler takes over his office and becomes the Fuehrer of the German
Reich and People
Nazism in power
http://www.nazi-lauck-nsdapao.com/adolf-5-75dpi.jpg
The role of Hitler
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An area of intense historical debate
Differing interpretations:
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Intentionalist historians:
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A. Bullock and H. T. Roper: Hitler was a strong leader. Until the 1970s historians view Hitler
as master planner creating a chaotic state structure to increase his own power (Roper,
Hitler’s War Directives; Bullock, Hitler: A Study in Tyranny)
K. Bracher: Hitler establishes rival agencies to make himself omnipotent. These historians
see Hitler directing the Third Reich towards implementing the race war for the purpose
of lebensraum for the German people
Structuralist historians:
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M. Broszat, T. Mason, M. Geyer, I. Kershaw: Hitler was in many ways less powerful than
he appeared to be and was forced to react to forces that he could not control. He
was a victim of the ‘Hitler myth’ he had helped to create. The structuralists have
concentrated on analysing the internal and interconnected structures of the regime
instead of describing its outward form
‘Master of the Third Reich’...
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Hitler seen as the vital, powerful, central ingredient to the Nazi system of
government
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Hitler delegated authority to his most powerful potentates
Giving power though encouraging them to compete for power and influence
whilst keeping the power to interfere and make final decisions for himself
Hitler very rarely consulted cabinet before taking a decision, which was an
indication of his desire to keep power in his own hands
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4 cabinet meetings held in 1936; last meeting held on 5/2/1938
...or ‘Weak Dictator’?
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Hitler not seen as a strong, decisive leader
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Hitler’s role was as a figurehead and a unifying force for the party and the
nation
As a leader, he was easily swayed, moody, erratic and not in direct control of
the affairs of state
The power of those around Hitler in the Nazi party are emphasised
This analysis explains why Nazis move from uncoordinated attacks on Jews to
legislation of persecution, Kristallnacht, encouragement of emigration in 193839 to the ‘final solution’.
It was a spiralling radicalisation of anti-Semitic policies that led to the ‘final
solution’ rather than the result of carefully planned long term goal as the
intentionalists claim
The role of Hitler (cont)
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Evidence exists to support both these views – reflects the real historical
complexity of Nazism
Consensus: Germany’s government under Hitler was chaotic
M. Broszat: Structure was polycratic (had different rulers)
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Day-to-day power and administrative control rested with Himmler, Goering,
Goebbels and others. They, in turn, stood at the top of their own smaller
autocratic pyramids
Competition and rivalry existed at this level as functions overlapped,
causing confusion, competition and friction
But, was it a deliberate ‘divide and rule’ policy?
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K.D. Bracher suggests that it was (Hitler’s way of ensuring that no one person
gained too much power)
Kershaw and Broszat disagree
Nazism as Totalitarianism?
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Historians have debated this question
Based on C. Friedrich’s comparison between Nazi Germany and Stalin’s
Russia in the 1950s
A totalitarian image of Nazism sees it as monolithic and well organised,
which is the way they sought to portray themselves to the world, instead of
the chaotic jungle of competing institutions, spinning of on radical
programmes, held together by a system of terror and increasingly
fantastic ‘Fuhrer myth’
I. Kershaw: The definition of totalitarianism requires an isolated and
passive population unable to respond
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Structuralists criticise the totalitarian view as looking only at the outward form
instead of internal structure and function. There was a broad based consensus
among Germans in support of the Nazi state. It was not a terrorised and passive
population although there was institutional use of terror
Hitler detested administration and bureaucracy. There was little order in
the power and authority structure of the state
Hitler: Myth and charismatic leadership
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The term was used by Goebbels to describe the ‘heroic’ leader image of
Hitler. Goebbels’ Hitler was seen as the architect of Germany’s recovery
and personally incorruptible – yet a man of the people
Hitler embodied an extensive (though not all-encompassing)
ideological consensus:
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Anti Marxism – Hitler admired for opposition to Bolshevism ending the power of
the moderate socialists
The national interest – Hitler creates a socially harmonious national
community. The myth grew that he was unaware of the misdeeds of party
members
Employment – Seen as personally responsible for fall in unemployment.
However, workers were less impressed as wages fell and hours increased
Moderate – Hitler was believed to oppose the radicals in the party e.g.
attempts to remove crucifixes from classrooms. Many saw him as ‘god
fearing’
Ruthless against enemies of the people – Anti-Semitic but not in favour of
gutter violence. Many approved removal of Jews from everyday spheres of
life
Foreign policy – Hitler was seen as an upholder of the nation’s rights
Military genius – The defeat of France in just four weeks
Hitler: Myth and charismatic leadership (cont)
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Kershaw suggests that Hitler’s charismatic authority was heroic and
required repeated success to provide proof of exceptional powers
The charismatic style of leadership led to:
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Nazi leaders ignoring the conservative elites
The ‘wild men’ of the party becoming responsible for increasingly extreme
policies
Hitler becomes increasingly unable or unwilling to separate himself from the
myth, detached from reality and cut off from criticism
The Hitler myth was essential to the existence of the Nazi state
Propaganda, terror and repression: SS and SA
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Hitler: Propaganda a way to gain and keep the support of
the masses
Ministry for Popular Enlightenment and Propaganda
Reich Chamber of Culture
Themes addressed by Nazi propaganda:
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Need for racial purity
Fear and hatred of Jews and communism
Fuhrerprinzip
National Community (Volksgemeinschaft)
Achievements of the Reich
Messages and slogans kept as simple as possible
Propaganda administered through:
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Newspapers
Cinema
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The Eternal Jew
Triumph of the Will
www.hermes-press.com/ nazification_step3.htm
Propaganda, terror and repression: SS and SA
(cont)
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Radio
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Festivals and celebrations
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Nuremberg rallies
Art and architecture
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‘The People’s Receiver’
‘Realism’ and the monumental style
Berlin Olympics
www.nspropaganda.org.wentworth/edu.html
Propaganda, terror and repression: SS and SA
(cont)
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Structured oppression:
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Heinrich Himler and the SS (‘State within a State’ – responsible only to Hitler)
Totenkopfuerbande (concentration camp administration)
Eisatzgruppen (resettlement and extermination)
Waffen SS
Gestapo
Sicherheitsdienst (SS intelligence agency)
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Werner Best (Chief of the SD) “It is correct to say that in the National Socialist Fuhrer
State, the institutions called upon to protect the state possess an authority which is
derived solely from the new conception of the State and one which requires no special
legal legitimisation”.
German concentration camps
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Dachau, Mauthausen, Flossenburg, Buchenwald, Sachsenhausen, Ravensbruk
(Women’s camp)
Imprisoned included communists, socialists, political opponents, trade unionists,
religious dissenters, people who spoke out against the regime etc
Opposition to Nazism
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Opposition to Nazism scattered throughout Germany during this period.
Includes:
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Eilbeck Comrades
Rote Kapelle (Communist spy network – uncovered 1942)
Youth groups like:
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Individuals
Church (Roman Catholic and Protestant)
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The White Rose (Munich University)
Eidelweiss Pirates (working class gangs opposing HJ)
Especially against Hitler’s T4 euthanasia program
Army
Gestapo records show that they seized 1 643 000 anti-Nazi leaflets in 1936
Opposition failed largely because:
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German people’s traditional conservatism and loyalty to authority
Lack of organisation and small size of opposition groups
Lack of interest and support from Britain and the USA
Role of the SS
Opposition to Nazism (cont)
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Support for the Nazi regime has been an area of increasing controversy as
historians argue over the reasons for the continuation of support and
growth of opposition to Nazism on the home front
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Traditionalist historians such as D. Peukert and M. Broszat have suggested
that opposition to the regime could be dealt with only in terms of the
assassination attempts and the various levels of dissident behaviour
across the Reich
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Recent historiography however, has questioned the very definition of the
term opposition, expanding it to incorporate a far-reaching scale of
reactionary behaviour. Everything ranging from everyday defiance, such
as the abandonment of the Hitler salute all the way to undermining the
very structure of the regime by attempting to assassinate Hitler
Opposition to Nazism (cont)
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A turning point for the growth of opposition and the continuation of
support was the Nazi defeat at Stalingrad where the Wehrmacht met its
first series of losses. The worsening war effort promoted an atmosphere of
pessimism and in turn promoted the growth of structuralist historiography
that underlined the importance of the worsening war effort to the overall
growth of opposition and continuation of support for the regime. These
structuralists, such as R. Bessel, continue to outline the main groups that
opposed the regime, from everyday Germans, to Jews, to the
conservative elite, to the army and again to the working class
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Conversely, historians have tended to agree upon the reasons for
continuation of support for the regime. The use of propaganda,
suppression of the rebellious segments of society and the structure of
regime – these have been identified as contributing factors in
persistence of support for the regime
the
the
the
the
Social and cultural life in the Nazi state
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Gleichaltung and Volksgemeinschaft
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DAF (German Labour Front)
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Abolishing trade unions and spreading Nazi propaganda
Schonheit der Arbeit (beauty of labour) and Kraft durch Freude
(strength through joy)
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Coordinating all aspects of German socio-economic life to Nazi ideals
Creating a ‘racially’ pure German national community, free from class
divisions and social conflict – putting the national interest above self interest
‘Blut und Boden’ – Blood and Soil (glorifying the peasant farmer)
Improving working conditions and rewarding loyal workers
Women and Nazism
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‘Kinder, Kuche, Kirche’
 Central theme of Nazi policy towards women
Pro-natalism
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The Mutterkreuz (Mother Cross)
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4 children = bronze
6 children = silver
8 children = gold
http://www.ns-party.com/gauleitung.jpg
Social and cultural life in the Nazi state (cont)
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Marriage loans
Jungmadelbund and the BDM (League of German Girls)
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Women in the workforce and the birth rate: Corresponding to Nazi ideology
and policy?
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Educating German girls of their reproductive duties to Germany
Between 1933 – 1939 women in the workforce increased from 11.6 million to 14.6 million
Birth rate increased from 18.0 per 1000 in 1934 to 20.3 per 1000 in 1939
Divorce rate rose during this period
Hitler youth
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Hitler: “Whoever has the youth has the future”
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Political and social indoctrination of the youth: pushing the philosophy and ideology of
the national socialist ‘revolution’
Hitler Jugend
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Voluntary to compulsory membership (90% of youth belonged by 1937)
Emphasis placed on physical activities, developing courage and endurance
Social and cultural life in the Nazi state (cont)
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Religion
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Catholic Church: From Concordat to growing
tensions
Organised religion: Ministry of Church Affairs
(later replaced by the SS)
Protestant Churches: Division leading to an
imposition of Hitler’s will
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Creating a Reich Bishop for an all-embracing
German Christian Church
Discontent and breakaway: Pastor Martin
Niemoller (The Church to be independent from
the state)
R. Stackelberg, The Nazi Germany Sourcebook, p. 24
Social and cultural life in the Nazi state (cont)
www.stargods.org/ Nazis_and_the_Occult.html
Nazi racial policy
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Hitler: “The cultivation of racial purity is the real end and purpose of the
state” Mein Kampf
Hitler: “What soon gave me cause for alarm were the Jews at work. Was
there any shady undertaking, any form of foulness, especially in cultural
life, in which at least one Jew did not take part?” Mein Kampf
Sterilisation of the ‘unfit’
Anti-Semitism a central consistent theme of Nazism
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Nuremberg Laws, 1935
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Laws passed between 1933 and 1935 removed Jews from the civil service,
education, health and legal systems
Boycotts of Jewish business’ occurring from April 1933
Citizenship Law
Laws for the Protection of German Blood and Honour
Aryanisation of economic life
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Government placing limits on Jewish economic and cultural activities
Nazi racial policy (cont)
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Propaganda and the Jews
Kristallnacht
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Goebbels and anti-Semitic propaganda
Jews fined for the destruction in Kristallnacht
Exclusion of Jewish pupils from schools
Hitler: “Any future war will lead to the destruction of the Jewish race in
Europe”
R. Stackelberg, The Nazi Germany Sourcebook, p. 21
Nazi racial policy (cont)
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Historians have argued whether the Nazi final solution was a planned,
systematic progression or whether it descended from the gradual/radical
spiralisation of the regime
Structuralist historians argue that the structure of the Nazi hierarchy and
the worsening conditions at home resulted in the Wannsee conference
and the formulation of the final solution
Other intentionalist historians suggest that the Nazis had a plan for the
elimination of the ‘problem’ of the European Jewry. The structuralists M.
Broszat and H. Mommsen argue that the Nazi genocide resulted from the
gradual radicalisation of the regime
D. Goldhagen (Hitler’s Willing Executioners) argues that without the
widespread indifference, acceptance and even popular support, the
Holocaust would not have been possible
The main area of debate in this field has been between the intentionalists
and the structuralists over the origins of WWII. Some historians have
suggested that Hitler was an aggressive dictator who pursued a policy of
aggression from the start of the regime. Others have questioned this
suggesting that Hitler was an opportunist who adapted to changing
conditions at home and abroad
Nazi foreign policy
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The significance of the Versailles Treaty
Reintroduction of conscription and repudiation of disarmament clause of
the Versailles Treaty
Ten year Non-Aggression Pact with Poland 1934
The Saar
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Remilitarisation of the Rhineland 7/3/1936
Civil war in Spain
Rome-Berlin Axis
The Hossbach conference
Anschluss with Austria
Sudetenland crisis and the Munich conference
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Voted to rejoin Germany-seen as a vote of confidence in Hitler’s new Germany
Franco-British appeasement: Giving in to Hitler’s ‘reasonable’ demands
Nazi-Soviet non-aggression pact
Nazi foreign policy (cont)
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Did Hitler have a program of conquest?
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K.D. Bracher: The world view outlined in Mein Kampf shaped the choices Hitler
made when he finally achieved power in Germany, especially in the spheres of
race and foreign policy
Was it merely the expansion of German borders without any long-term
objective?
Did Hitler want world domination or merely the conquest of Lebensraum in
the East?
Did his foreign policy follow from his ‘unshakeable will’?
Hitler to Carl Burckhardt, Swiss Commissioner to the League of Nations:
“Everything that I undertake is directed against Russia. If those in the West
are too stupid and too blind to understand this, then I shall be forced to
come to an understanding with the Russians to beat the West and then,
after its defeat, turn all my concerted force against the Soviet Union”
Nazi foreign policy (cont)
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R. Overy: Hitler planned for a total war, though well after 1939, and when
war broke out Germany mobilised as fast as it could. Things went wrong
when economic planning got out of phase with foreign policy:
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Hitler’s speeches about a long drawn out conflict
Economic planning which was all long term
Hitler’s plan for a war in the mid-1940s or later
Sheer size of rearmament in the late 1930s was much bigger than was needed
for Blitzkrieg. War coming in 1939 threw the long term plans into confusion
showing up unsolved structural problems in the Nazi economy
Achieving as much as possible through diplomatic means whilst
vigorously pursuing policies of rearmament
Nazi foreign policy (cont)
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Historians differ in their attempts to explain Hitler’s foreign policy
Intentionalists
Structuralists
Hitler had detailed and long term plans
for war:
Lebensraum in Mein Kampf
As soon as he came to power he
prepared for war
At the Hossbach conference Hitler
announced his plans to invade Austria
and Czechoslovakia
Clear evidence of long-term goals,
economic and military preparations and
specific plans for war
Hitler had no specific plans, took advantage
of opportunities as they arose:
Nazi foreign policy similar to that of past
German governments. Hopes and aims were
not the same as deliberate plans
Hitler was a nationalist. A strong army and
economy doesn’t mean he planned to risk it
all in war
Hossbach notes are not reliable. The
meeting was typical of many Hitler had to
‘test’ ideas
Nations develop war plans: it does not
prove that they intend to use them
There is no clear evidence of a deliberate
plan for war. Hitler took risks, he threatened
and bluffed. These risks led to the war
Nazi foreign policy (cont)