Download Leisure in Nazi Germany

Leisure in Nazi Germany
By George Lynch 10G
Outline
• Hitler wanted to control every part of peoples
lives.
• This included their free time.
• This meant Hitler set up an organisation called
‘Strength through Joy’ (Kraft Durch Freude KDF).
• The KDF had the job of organising leisure
activities for the German people.
The KDF Plan
• Hitler made a man called Dr. Robert Ley in
charge of the KDF.
• He calculated that there were 8,760
hours in a year. About one third of
there time was taken up by sleeping and a
quarter of their lives working.
• This left 3,740 hours of leisure for Ley to
organise for every citizen.
Dr. Robert Ley
• He was one of the leading Nazi politicians.
• He was the head of the German labour front
(1933-1945) and the KDF.
• He was later charged with war crimes in 1945
and, four days after receiving the indictment,
Ley strangled himself in his cell, using a noose
made by tearing a towel into strips, fastened
to the toilet pipe in his cell.
KDF Trips
• The biggest programme Robert Ley divised was to
provide workers with cheap holidays- only to the
most hardworking and faithful Nazi’s.
• He had two 25,000 liners built to escort the
workers to places like the Canary Islands.
• This would only cost about 62 marks- two weeks
of the workers earnings.
KDF Trips - Continued
• For the men who did not deserve a place on
the cruise ship in the Nazi’s eyes, they were
offered for 28 marks, a walking holiday in the
mountains.
• And if they were lucky, in the Winter, 28 marks
for a Skiing holiday in Bavaria (This included
accommodation, equipment etc.)
KDF Trips - Continued
• For the richest and most faithful Nazi’s, trips
like two weeks in Switzerland were offered.
• Also a full tour of Italy was offered for 155
marks for the most wealthy Nazi workers.
KDF Entertainment
• Not only did the Nazi’s organise the peoples
holidays, they also controlled most forms of
entertainment.
• 7 million took part in sports matches and for
those who weren't into such things, outings
the theatre and opera were organised.
KDF’s Transport Planning
• The KDF also planned to equip
German workers with cheap cars.
• Hitler wanted them to be ‘peoples
cars’ so that everyone could afford
them.
• Hitler contacted the Austrian
engineer Ferdinand Porsche to make
a VW
• Hitler said ‘ it should look like a
beetle’
More About KDF’s Transport
Planning
• The price was set at 990 marks and Doctor Ley
started a scheme to make step by step
payments to make buying a car even easier.
• It ended up that the whole scheme was a
swindle by the Nazi’s.
• No German received a VW.
• This was because, in 1939 the factory turned
into a weapons factory to support the war
effort
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