Why Was The Mood Grim In Germany In The 1930S

Why was the mood grim in Germany in the 1930's?

A worldwide economic depression hit Germany, making millions of people unemployed.

What percent of the vote did the Nazi Party get in 1924? What percent of the vote did the Nazi Party get in 1932? What did the 1933 elections allow the Nazi Party to do?

1924: 3%
1932: 33%
It allowed Hitler to become Chancellor

What rights did individuals lose in Germany under the Nazis? Why?

Germany became a dictatorship, making individuals lose their freedom of speech, press, assembly, and the right to privacy.

What are the SS? What did they do to people who opposed the Nazis?

The SS were the German secret police, along with Hitler's personal bodyguards. They would arrest and kill those who opposed the Nazis.

What did the Gestapo do? Who created/led them?

The Gestapo tortured and killed those who opposed Nazi. SS Chief Heinrich Himmler led them.

What was Dachau? What did it become the ideal model for?

Dachau was an abandoned factory which became a prison camp. It became the model for concentration camps.

What did the Nazis do to any viewpoint they felt threatened by?

They were censored or eliminated from all media.

Who was the Nazi propaganda minister?

Dr. Joseph Goebbels

What types of books were burned by the Nazis starting in 1933?

Books written by Albert Einstein or Sigmund Freud, or any books for the Jewish religion.

What was the "Germanic race" called? What did the ideal person look like?

The Aryan master race had blond hair and blue eyes.

Explain how the Nazis began to put their racial ideology into practice.

They spread it through posters, the radio, movies, schools, and newspapers. They limited rights for many people.

Explain the euthanasia program. Who were its targets? How many people died?

Patients were examined for disease. Those were deemed inferior, mentally ill, or physically handicapped were killed. About 200,000 people died.

What was Germany planning to do with the territories they conquered in the East?

They were going to resettle the territory with German colonists.

How were people in Poland and other Eastern European countries treated compared to those in "Germanic" countries? Why?

They were treated harshly and used as slaves, as these countries were deemed inferior and they had Jews.

About how many Jews lived in Germany in 1933, and what percent of the German population were they?

About 500,000 Jews = less than 1%

How many Jews lived in areas that would be occupied by Germany during World War II? What percent of the Jewish population would be dead in these occupied countries by the end of the war?

9 million Jews --> 66% would be dead

How were the Jews of Eastern and Western Europe different? What two European countries had the largest Jewish population just before World War II?

Jews in Eastern Europe lived in more separate communities. Jews in Western Europe adopted mainstream culture. Poland and the Soviet Unions had the largest populations.

What is Antisemitism? What problems have Jews been blamed for throughout history?

Antisemitism = discrimination against Jews
They were blamed for the death of Jesus and the Black Death.

Who was Karl Lueger and what did he do? Who looked up to him?

He was a preacher who preached Antisemitism. He was looked up to by Adolf Hitler.

What did the Nuremberg Race Laws do?

They restricted the rights of Jews in Germany.

Were the Nuremberg Race Laws enforced as strictly during the 1936 Olympics? Why?

The laws were not as strict to show the other countries that they were not being discriminatory to other races.

Explain some of the key events and what happened during the Night of Broken Glass.

Synagogues were burned, Jewish businesses were destroyed and some Jews were killed.

What happened to Jewish children after the Night of Broken Glass?

They were expelled from public schools.

Why did America not let Jewish refugees into the United States during the 1930s?

They believed Jews would compete for jobs and overburden social programs for the needy.

What was the "Final Solution"?

The Nazi plan to exterminate the Jews.

List out the 6 extermination camps. About how many Jewish people died in the Holocaust?

Chelmo, Belzec, Sobibor, Treblinko, Auschwitz-Birkenan, and Mahdanek. Approximately 6 million Jews died.

What were the Ghettos used for?

To isolate and keep Jews in one place.

What was life like for adults in the Ghettos?

Unbearable; people begged for food

What was life like for children in the Ghettos? What did they do?

They begged for food and smuggled food. They attended and played school as well.

What country was invaded by Germany on June 22, 1941?

The Soviet Union

Who were the victims of the SS Special Action Squads? How did they kill their victims?

Jews were rounded up and shot/gassed.

What was the date of the Wannsee Conference? What city was it held in?

January 20, 1942 - Berlin

What was said and planned by key Germans at the Wannsee Conference?

The "Final Solution" and the mass extermination of the Jewish race.

What types of people were usually the first to die at a concentration camp?

Young kids/babies, handicapped, pregnant women, the sick, and the elderly.

How did people profit from the corpses of the victims?

Hair was made into rope. Gold fillings were taken.

Why was gas chosen as the preferred method to kill people?

It was much more efficient and "cleaner".

Explain the importance of Auschwitz to the Nazis? How many people died at Auschwitz?

Auschwitz was a large complex and used for forced labor. More than a million people died.

What types of experiments did Dr. Josef Mengele perform on people? Who were his typical victims?

Typical victims were twins/children. Organs, eye color, and reaction to pain were compared between twins.

What other groups of people besides Jews were victims of the Nazi concentration camp system?

Communists, Socialists, criminals, Jehovah witnesses, gypsies

Explain the forced labor system. Why did Germany use forced labor?

They forced concentration camp workers to do hard labor, while forced labor was free. The Jews were able to be considered as their slaves.

Why did the death marches happen?

Germany moved Jews into Germany as the Allies started to win the war.

What happened to half of the survivors of Auschwitz within a few days of being freed?

They died

How were Jewish survivors of the Holocaust treated after WWII, especially in Poland?

Many were physically attacked because their homes and property were not given back.

What country was created in 1948? Why?

Israel: a Jewish homeland

What were the Nuremberg Trials? What was their point?

They were trials of captured Nazi, used to show they were accountable for their crimes.

Did Nazis escape justice? Where did many flee?

Some Nazis escaped to countries like the US.

Did many people help Jews escape or hide during WWII?

Many people did nothing.

What was unique about Nazi deportations of Jews in Denmark when compared to other countries that the Nazis captured?

Denmark resisted Nazi deportations and tried to keep track of their deported citizens.

How many of Denmark's 8,000 Jews were able to escape to safety?

7,200

Explain what happened during the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.

On April 19, 1943, the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising began after German troops and police entered the ghetto to deport everyone. 750 fighters fought the soldiers, and were able to hold out for a month, but then crashed in May. More than 56,000 Jews were captured. 7,000 were shot and the rest were deported.

Why do you think there were so few successful uprisings in the camps?

There was fear along with very few weapons available.

What were the jobs of the Sonderkommando?

They were Jews forced to burn the bodies of the deceased.

Who was the target of a serious assassination attempt in July 1944?

Adolf Hitler

How did the White Rose organization oppose Nazi policies in Germany?

They distributed anti-Nazi leaflets and wrote anti-Nazi slogans on public walls.

What were the last words of the White Rose organization?

"Long live freedom!"