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Nazi Germany
In this lesson, students will be able to
define the following terms:
Adolf Hitler
Nazi Party
Human Rights Violations
The Third Reich
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In Germany, the leaders of the Weimar
Republic were blamed for signing the
Treaty of Versailles, which ended
World War I.
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Under the treaty, Germany was forced
to pay huge reparations to Britain and
France. The reparation payments led
to a soaring inflation rate in Germany
in the early 1920s. In 1930, the Great
Depression spread to Germany.
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More than one-third of Germans lost
their jobs. The Weimar government
could not cope with this catastrophe.
People turned to more radical solutions.
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Adolf Hitler was the
leader of the Nazi
Party. He published
his main ideas in his
book, Mein Kampf. In
his book, Hitler blamed
Germany’s problems
on the leaders of the
Weimar Republic. He
urged Germans to
abandon democracy.
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Hitler believed
that Germans
were a superior
“Aryan” race.
He planned to
wipe out
Slavic peoples
like the Poles
to make room
for Germans
in Eastern
Europe.
Hitler called the
Jews an “evil race”
that should be
destroyed for
causing Germany’s
defeat in the
war. He saw
Communism as a
Jewish plot to
control the world.
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Unable to cope with the Great Depression,
Germany’s President appointed Hitler
as chief minister in 1933. Hitler acted
quickly to secure complete control of
Germany by setting the Parliament on fire
and blaming the Communists.
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The German Parliament then agreed to
Hitler’s request for emergency laws giving
him absolute power. Almost immediately,
Hitler used his new powers to crush all
opposition.
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Hitler called his government the
Third Reich or Third Empire.
He turned Germany into a
totalitarian state.
Hitler used his power to
destroy all opposition.
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Jews were persecuted. They lost their
citizenship, were forced to wear yellow
stars on their clothing, and were barred
from marrying other Germans. They
were also forced into concentration camps.
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Human rights were
suppressed. People
were arrested and
executed without trial.
Rival political parties were
closed.
People were
sent to
concentration camps.
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The Gestapo or Nazi secret police arrested
opponents, who were thrown into
concentration camps where they were
mistreated, tortured, and killed.
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Questions for Reflection:
• Who was Adolf Hitler and what did he
believe?
• Why did many Germans blame the leaders
of the Weimar Republic?
• How did the Nazis gain power?
• How did the Nazis violate people’s human
rights?
• How did the Third Reich differ from the
Weimar Republic?
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