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GCSE GermanyKey Information

The Weimar Constitution:• President is elected every 7 years by the German people. • Article 48 meant that in an emergency the President can make laws

without consulting the Reichstag• Members from political parties were voted in the Reichstag by

Proportional Representation. • A problem was that too many small parties involved the need for

coalitions which were often not stable• Constitution guaranteed equal rights such as the right to vote

Threats from the left – Spartacist Uprising (1919)

• Led by Luxemburg and Liebknect • They captured the headquarters of the

governments newspaper and telegraph bureau• They were defeated by the Freikorps who hated

Communism• Hundreds were killed and the leaders were shot• Defeat of the Spartacists relied on anti-

Republican forces

Threats from the right – Kapp Putsch (1920)

• Nationalists marched on Berlin with Freikorps troops

• Kapp set up a right wing government and the army did not stop him

• The SPD led government fled to Dresden• The government survived because of a

workers strike

Threats from the right – Munich Putsch (1923)

• Hitler and his Nazis staged an attempted Putsch in Munich when the SA burst in on a meeting of the Bavarian government

• Hitler declared himself leader and planned to march on Berlin the next day

• However two key nationalists informed the Bavarian police and during the march the Nazis were met with armed resistance

• Hitler was arrested

Treaty of Versailles• Germany had to accept the blame for starting the war• Germany had to pay £6,600 million in Reparations• Germany could only have an army of 100,000 men• No submarines or aircraft• Lost territory to France and Poland• The government were viewed as traitors for signing the

treaty and accused of ‘stabbing the army in the back’• It led to more support for more extreme right wing

parties like the DNVP

Economic Crisis (1923):• Germany could not afford to pay their reparations• The French sent troops into the Ruhr and took over mines and factories• The German government called on workers to carry out ‘passive

resistance’• To pay the workers the German government printed more money• Striking workers spent this money which caused shop keepers to put up

prices• The government responded by printing more money• This resulted in hyperinflation• Middle class lost their savings• Workers lost jobs as businesses collapsed• Pensioners on fixed income could not afford to buy what they needed• Debts were wiped out• Farmers benefitted from higher food prices• Big businesses benefitted as they traded in gold

The Stresemann years:• POLITICS: • There were no more attempted uprisings and there was greater support for pro-

Weimar parties but there were problems in forming coalitions. At first the SPD refused to join and Hindenburg worked to set up coalitions without them. This undermined democracy

• ECONOMY: • A new currency called the Rentenmark. Dawes plan provided a loan from the USA

to pay 4/5 of the reparations. The Young Plan extended the deadline to 1988• Living standards improved• Car ownership increased by 400%• Small firms struggled as they did not benefit from US loans• INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS: • 1925 Lacarno pacts secured borders. 1928 Kellogg Briand Pact assured peace with

over 60 countries. In 1926 Germany was allowed to join the League of Nations

Weimar Culture:

• New artists (Grosz and Dix) painted every day life in an objective and modern way

• Bauhaus movement made objects that could be mass produced

• Berlin became famous for its night life, transvestite balls and open discussion of sexuality

• Many conservatives were angry at this culture and believed it to represent a decline in decency

Depression:

• US loans were recalled• German exports could not be sold• Businesses closed• Unemployment rose• People could not afford their mortgages and

lived in shanty towns• Banks collapsed• Middle class lost their savings

Reasons for the rise of the Nazi vote:

• DEPRESSION: 6 million were unemployed and banks collapsed – this caused a rise in votes for extreme parties

• PROPAGANDA: The modern and exciting ‘Hitler over Germany’ campaign promised the people solutions which included jobs, higher food prices and the removal of the Treaty of Versailles

• GOVERNMENTAL FAILURE: People lost faith in democracy as Muller’s, Brunning and von Papen’s government all collapsed

• 1920s REORGANISATION: ballot not bullet / Local Gauleiter / Fuhrerprinzip all made the party into one that could be voted for

How was Hitler made Chancellor (January 1933):

• Hitler demands the post of Chancellor• Hindenburg says no• Schliecher persuades Hindenburg to make him

Chancellor• Hitler and von Papen meet in secret and plan to

make Hitler Chancellor and von Papen vice Chancellor

• Von Papen convinces Hindenburg by saying that Hitler could be tamed

How did Hitler consolidate his power?

• Reichstag Fire:• Van der Lubbe is caught red handed• Hitler blames the Communists• This leads to the passing of the Decree for Protection of People and State

which allows the Nazis to round up communists• Enabling Act:• The Reichstag votes to pass law making powers to Hitler• This act is passed because of SA intimidation, banning of Communists and

a deal with the Centre Party• Night of the Long Knives:• SS murder SA leaders including its leader Rohm• This is because the SA were demanding to remove the power of the

Middle Class• This gained the support of the army who were worried about the SA

How did the Nazis control Germany?

• PROPAGANDA:• The ‘People’s Radio flooded the market• Cinema: Triumph of the Will and Olympia portrayed Nazi

messages• Nazi press agency controlled all newspapers• TERROR:• SS had unlimited powers to deal with the opposition• Gestapo could arrest people merely on suspicion• Confessions were extracted by torture• Concentration camps were set up from 1933• Block wardens spied on communities

How successful was Nazi economic policy?

• Unemployment was reduced dramatically (less than 0.5 million) because of the National labour Service, rearmament and removal of the Jews and women

• The Four Year plan failed to bring about Autarky as in 1939 Germany continued to import 33% of raw materials and significant amounts of food stuff

• People lost freedoms as membership of trade unions was banned and was replaced with the German Labour Front. They were compensated with Strength Through Joy and Beauty of Labour

How successful were Nazi policies towards women?

• Successful encouragement of marriage via the Law for the Encouragement of Marriage – 1000 mark loan which was reduced by 250 marks with the birth of each child. Motherhood crosses for 4, 6 and 8 children

• Successful removal of women from the workplace, including doctors, civil servants, teachers and lawyers. However the Nazis had to back track on these policies as they needed women to work during WWII

• The denial of freedom of expression was not as successful as women still wore trousers, high heeled shoes and make up

How successful were Nazi policies towards the youth?

• Children were indoctrinated via the education system where all subjects took on a Nazi bias. This explains the enthusiasm for the genocide that they were involved in their later lives

• Children prepared for their later roles. 15% of time in school for boys was spent and hiking/camping in the compulsory Hitler Youth prepared them for life in the army. Girls learnt needlework and cookery. Many children enjoyed these activities

• However there were youth opposition movements. The Swing Youth were groups of upper and middle class youths who met in bars and nightclubs and listened to jazz. The Edelweiss Pirates went on hikes to beat up Hitler Youth patrols

How successful was Hitler in removing the power of the church?

• The Concordat with the Catholic Church was broken as youth groups were closed down, priests were harassed and crucifixes were banned in schools

• However Catholicism was not destroyed, only attacked• The Protestant Church was restructured into the National

Reich Church where the Bible was replaced with Mein Kampf and a sword

• However an opposition movement broke away and formed the Confessional Church

• The German Faith Movement was a disaster because only 5% joined

Nazi cultural attitudes:• The Nazi Chamber of Creative Art laid guidelines down

for artists, sculptors, writers and musicians• Many Weimar artists to flee• House of German Art was set up to show what was

acceptable and the House of ‘degenerate Art’ to show what was banned

• Public book burnings• They closed down the Bauhaus movement• They disapproved of the cabaret culture because it was

sleazy

Nazi treatment of the Jews1933 Boycott of Jewish shops and banning of Jewish doctors

and from government jobs

1934 Jews excluded from parks, playing fields and swimming pools

1935 Nuremburg laws removed citizenshipIllegal for a Jew to marry an Aryan

1936 Olympic Games

1938 Goebbels gave the green light for Kristallnacht where Jewish property was attacked

1939 Reich Office for Emigration discussed the Madagascar PlanJews forced to leave their homes and live in ghettos

1941 Einsatzgruppen

1942 Wannsee conference planned the workings of the death camps, including Auschwitz and Treblinka

Life in Germany during WWII• Clothes and hot water were rationed and some

goods were replaced with Ersatz goods but the success of Blitzkrieg kept this to a minimum

• Defeats in the Soviet Union saw a reduction in morale. Goebbels propaganda campaign helped as evidenced by the donation of 1.5 million winter coats

• Total War forced longer working hours and compulsory labour laws and closed non essential businesses

• 1945 air raids destroyed Dresden and killed 3 million civilians

Why did Germany become divided?• The Yalta Conference decided that Germany and Berlin should be

split between the USA, USSR, France and Britain• At the Potsdam Conference this separation was confirmed• Relations between the USA and USSR worsened due to the Soviet

takeover of Eastern Europe and the US use of the atomic bomb. Thus the country would never be united again. Truman responded by offering Marshall Aid to West Germany

• In the Berlin Blockade the USSR tried to force the USA out of Berlin by cutting the road, rail and canal links. The USA responded with an airlift. After this there was little hope of a unified Germany

• In 1949 two countries were confirmed: FDR and GDR

The Nuremburg Trials:• Hitler and Goebbels committed suicide in the bunker at

the end of WWII• 21 senior officials were put on trial• Accused of planning the war, war crimes against peace

and war crimes against humanity• Schacht, von Papen and Fritsche were found not guilty• Seven were jailed. Speer for 20 years and Hess for life• The rest received death sentences• Goering committed suicide after he was sentenced to

execution

Adenauer’s Economic Miracle• Unparalleled economic growth • 600% increase in industrial production. Unemployment reduced

from 9% to 0.4%• Due to use of the latest technology, Marshall aid the Korean War

and a lack of support for striking• European Coal and Steel Community brought together France’s

iron ore and Germany’s coal which resulted in 170% increase in trade. This led to the European Economic Community (EEC)

• Unemployment did rise again to 1 million in the mid 1970s• In the 1960s and 1970s there were political problems including the

rise of the NDP (neo-Nazi party)and the Baader-Meinhof gang (terrorist movement)

Life in East Germany• One party state• The state owned most of the land and industry• Great economic problems due to lack of industrial capacity, USSR

demands for reparations and thousands of skilled workers who left to live in the west

• Poor pay and high work quotas• 300,000 workers went on strike in 1953 which was put down by the

Soviet army• 3 million East Germany fled to the west by 1961• Berlin Wall was built: 4 metres high, 111km long with 300 watch towers• It was justified as a means of keeping out American spies• Peter Fechter tried to cross, was shot and fell into the narrow strip, he

bled to death• Secret police was called the Stasi• Unemployment was reduced in 1970

The reunification of Germany• Gorbachev said that the USSR could not defend Eastern

European countries from internal opposition• Hungary removed its barriers to Austria which allowed

hundreds of East Germans to escape• East Germans demonstrated for more freedom• Kohl (West German chancellor) pushed for reunification• East Germany announced it will open its borders• 10th November 1989 – East Germans pull wall down• Kohl poured money into East German economy• 1990: Germany is reunited with Kohl as Chancellor

ESSAY:Change: Impact of Change: Pace of change:

The Weimar Republic Working class:Became poorer during hyperinflation. Living standards improved in the Stresemann years. Unemployment rose by 6 million as a result of the depression. People could not pay their mortgages and set up shanty towns. Dependence on soup kitchensMiddle class:Lost savings during hyperinflation. More luxury goods during the Stresemann years. Car ownership rose by 400% by 1927. Savings lost again in the depression as banks collapsed.Businessmen:Many benefitted from hyperinflation. Businesses closed following depression as exports could not be soldFarmers:Survived during hyperinflation as inflation pushed up prices

The Nazi Years Working class:Full employment due to the National Labour Service, rearmament and conscription. However not an increase in wages. Working hours rose dramatically. Little consumer goods. Price of food rose and greater taxation from 1936. Demise of trade unions. Beauty of Labour/Strength through JoyWomen:Loans for marriage and written off when had children. Dismissed from jobs. Dictation of appearanceChildren:Teachers forced to join the German Teachers League. Nazi bias to subjects. Military training and preparation for motherhood. Hitler youthChurch:Initial Catholic support but opposition grew following the breaking of the Concordat. National Reich Church/German Faith movementJews:Exclusion/Nuremberg Laws/Kristallnacht/Ghettos/Deportation/Death camps Military training

WWII Jews:WWII created the conditions for the HolocaustWorking class:Initial celebration. Total War. Bombing campaignsWomen:Drafted in to keep up production

East and West Germany West Germans:Transformation into a prosperous state. New currency. Free market. Reduction in unemployment. Modernisation of industries. 2 million new homes. Unemployment rise in 1970sEast Germans:Many left for a better life in West Germany. Berlin wall made it harder to leave. Reunification of Germany removed Berlin Wall