Download Revision Exercises File

Weimar and Nazi Germany Revision Exercises
Glossary
Article 48:
The emergency powers that gave a German chancellor the power to
rule by decree when the president declared a 'state of emergency'.
Aryan:
a white person of non-Jewish descent
Chancellor:
Leader of the German Reichstag; equivalent to the British prime
minister.
Concentration Camps
Set up in mid-1930s for those who opposed Hitler
Dawes Plan (1924)
Germany borrowed money from America. This helped the
Germany economy to recover.
Depression:
A world-wide economic slump which hit first Germany in 1930. As
a result, people turned against the Weimar government and listened
to Hitler again.
Enabling Act
Passed by Reichstag, it gave Hitler powers to pass any laws he
wished.
Final Solution;
Nazi policy to wipe out the Jewish race in Europe
Fuehrer
Hitler took this name in 1934. It means 'Leader'.
Gestapo
Secret police force set up by Hitler to weed out opposition. Given
wide powers of arrest.
Gustav Streseman
Became Chancellor of Germany in 1924. Life became better for
German people as he signed the Dawes Plan and introduced a new
German currency called the 'rentenmark'.. As a result, Hitler's
popularity fell. Died in 1929
Hermann Goering
Leader of the Luftwaffe (Germany equivalent of RAF)
Hindenburg:
General from WWI who gave Hitler his support. People were
impressed with this. In 1933 he made Hitler Chancellor.
Hyper-inflation:
vast increase in the cost of living due to the devaluation of the mark
Inflation
Money lost its value. By 1923 it became so bad that it was known
as 'hyper-inflation'. Along with unemployment, Hitler used this to
gain support.
Josef Goebbels
Minister of Propaganda - his job was to see newspapers, films, etc.
hammered home a simple message: Adolf Hitler was Germany's
saviour.
Mein Kampf
(a book) Hitler was imprisoned for his part in the Munich Putsch.
In prison he wrote the book, which translates as "My Struggle." In
it he sets out his policy regarding Germany.
Munich Putsch 1923
Hitler tried to overthrow the Weimar government. With General
LUDENDORFF they marched on Army Headquarters. The putsch
was defeated.
Nazi
Shortened version of National Socialist - stood for strong Germany.
Night of the Long Knives: Ernst Roehm was a friend of Hitler who had control of the SA.
Hitler suspected Roehm was a threat to him. He got rid of them by
having them murdered along with other SA leaders and opponents
of the Nazi government. These murders were carried out by the SS
and became known as 'The Night of the Long Knives'.
November Criminals:
name given by ordinary Germans to German politicians who signed
the armistice in 1918, and the subsequent Versailles peace treaty in
1919.
Nuremberg Laws
Laws passed to discriminate against Jewish population. Jews could
not hold government jobs or work as lawyers, doctors, or teachers.
The right to vote was taken away.
Reichstag
German Parliament
Reichstag Fire:
A Communist, Van der Lubbe, started a fire in the Reichstag. He
was used by Hitler to show Germany that the communists were
prepared to do anything to get control of Germany. This increased
support for the violently anti-Communist Nazis and helped Hitler to
pass the Enabling Act.
Reparations:
compensation money Germany had to pay for 'causing' the First
World War
Rudolf Hess
Deputy Fuehrer
Ruhr Crisis (1923)
Industrial area of Germany. When Germany failed to pay
reparations, the French took it over. Caused great resentment.
Hitler used this to his advantage.
SA
Nazi storm troopers - 'brownshirts' - used by Hitler to break up,
heckle opposition meetings
The Big Three:
victors of the First World War - the USA, France and Britain
Treaty of Versailles:
signed at the end of the First World War between the Allies and
Germany
War Guilt Clause:
the part of the Versailles Treaty in which Germany accepted
responsibility for starting the First World War.
Weimar Republic
Name given to new Germany 1918. Germany became a Republic the Kaiser stepped down.
.
Make sure you know the following:

the Nazis' destruction of Weimar democracy (Reichstag Fire; taking over of the Lander, or
German states; the Enabling Act; the banning of other parties)

the Night of the Long Knives; Hitler becomes Fuhrer (or leader) of Germany

the establishment of the Nazi police state

economic policies (National Labour Service, public works, rearmament and conscription)

youth movements and education in Nazi Germany

Nazi propaganda and militarism

opposition to National Socialism from socialists, communists and the churches.

how the Nazis treated the Jews

Nazi youth movements

the Nuremberg rallies.
You should know how Hitler was able to reduce Germany's unemployment figures so quickly.

The Nazis came to power at a time when the world economy was recovering. The German
economy benefited from an increase in world trade, leading to more jobs in manufacturing.

A house-building programme led to more jobs in construction.

The government launched a road-building programme that created thousands of jobs.

Many Jews were sacked or forced to become unemployed, and they were not counted when
the unemployment figures were announced.

Women were excluded from the unemployment figures, while many unemployed men found
work by taking jobs that had been done by women.

Part-time workers were counted as being in full-time employment.

Compulsory military service (conscription) meant that thousands of young men were no
longer unemployed or in full-time employment.
How did they deal with opposition?

As soon as the Nazis came to power, their first targets were the Communists and Social
Democrats. These political parties were seen as major threats to Nazi power and they were
outlawed as soon as possible. Soon after, only the Nazi party was allowed to function as a
political party.

Trade unions were seen as a threat to Nazi power. The larger trade unions were closely linked
to the Social Democrats and the Nazis feared their potential power. They decided to smash
the trade unions as soon as possible.

The civil service and legal profession were regarded as possible sources of opposition to Nazi
power and great efforts were made to ensure that civil servants and those in the legal
profession were loyal to the Nazi regime.

The armed forces were seen by the Nazis as a possible source of opposition to Nazi plans and
programmes. The Army High Command escaped the policy of 'co-ordination' that applied to
other organisations and institutions that were possible sources of opposition to the Nazi
regime, but Hitler insisted on an oath of loyalty being sworn by the armed forces in 1934.

Christian churches in Germany were seen as possible sources of criticism and opposition to
many Nazi policies, so the Nazis worked hard to weaken the influence of the Catholic and
various Protestant churches over public opinion.
Source Focus
Evaluating sources

When asked about how useful a source is:

say whether or not the source is useful, i.e. does it help us to better understand what happened
or what people thought?

provide evidence for that answer by referring to features in any source, such as authorship
(who produced it?), purpose (why was it produced?), date (when was it produced?) and detail
(what information does it contain and how accurate do you think it is?)

when the source is a map or a table of information, concentrate on the detail

When asked about how reliable a source is:

say whether or not you think the source is reliable, i.e. a trustworthy source of accurate
information or opinion

provide evidence for that answer, by referring to features in any source such as authorship
(who produced it?), purpose (why was it produced?), date (when was it produced?) and detail
(what information does it contain and how accurate do you think it is?)

As a rule, sources produced by Hitler and the Nazi Party will be biased, and often full of lies
and offensive comments about their political enemies. These sources may not be reliable but
that does not mean that theses sources are not useful or valuable to the historian. Evaluate
these sources in the same way that you evaluate any other source.

Ask yourself 'Is this source useful and valuable?' and 'Is this source reliable?'

Provide evidence for your answer by referring to features in the source.

Who produce the source and what is their point of view? For example, is the author biased?

Why was the source produced and who was meant to look at it or read it? When was the
source produced and why is this important? For example, it many have been produced at an
important turning point in the history of the Nazis.

What information does the source contain? For example, does it contain fact or opinion?
Sometimes, the facts may be accurate but the opinion of the author is biased. Often, the facts
and the opinion will provide evidence of bias and exaggeration.
TASK
Make a copy of the following table and using key words explain how each of the following
threatened Hitler's position and how the threat was removed.
Why a threat?
How removed?
Communists
Reichstag
Rohm and the SA
a) the Gestapo
b) concentration camps?
To be able to answer questions on Germany 1933-1939, you should be able to answer the
following:
1. Which Act gave Hitler the power to rule by decree for four years?
2. Whose death allowed Hitler to gain more power?
3. What position did Hitler take when Hindenburg died?
4. Who was placed in charge of propaganda by Hitler?
5. What part did the following play in the police state:
6. Make a list of Nazi methods of propaganda
7. Which Nazi organisation provided entertainment for workers and their families?
8. Who were the main victims of propaganda?
9. What name did the Nazis give to the German 'master race'?
10. Which minority groups did the Nazis persecute?
11. When did the Nazis organise their first attack on Jewish homes and businesses?
12. What were German boys and girls prepared for by the Nazis?
13. Which youth organisations could German boys and girls join?
14. In what ways did the Nazis treat women as second-class citizens?
15. What did the Nazis believe the primary role of women to be?
16. What do the 'Three K's' stand for?
17. How many Nazi opponents were sent to concentration camps by 1939?
18. How did Hitler turn Germany into a one-party state? (Mention the Enabling Law,
Nazi opposition and the economy in your answer.)
19. List three ways in which the Nazis created new jobs in the 1930s.