How important were left-wing uprisings in Germany’s problems, 1919– 23? Explain your answer.

YES. Spartacist Uprising in January 1919 led by Liebknecht and Luxemburg; they wanted a Germany ruled by
soviets based on Russian model; joined rebel soldiers, sailors and set up councils in many towns to
undermine German government under Ebert; bitter street fighting and heavy casualties; communist uprising
in Bavaria in May 1919 with 600 killed; both stopped by Freikorps units after Ebert made deal with them;
1920 Ruhr uprising led to 2000 casualties after being stopped by police, Freikorps and army; Red Rising in the
Ruhr in 1923, etc.

NO. Left-wing uprisings effectively dealt with by authorities and Freikorps; more important – right-wing
uprisings: Kapp Putsch, 1920 forced government out of Berlin; Munich Putsch, 1923; political assassinations
e.g. Walther Rathenau, 1922; Treaty of Versailles and terms (reparations, military restrictions, territorial
losses and War Guilt Clause); effects of First World War – war debt, post-war depression and unemployment;
stab in the back myth and November Criminals; Weimar Constitution and weaknesses, e.g. Proportional
Representation and coalitions, reliance on Article 48 by Ebert; 1923 crises – Ruhr occupation and
hyperinflation, etc.

How important was political extremism in causing Germany’s weakness, 1919–23? Explain your answer.

Yes The Spartacist Uprising in 1919 – the government’s use of the Freikorps to defeat it; the Bavarian Soviet
Republic, 1919; the Kapp Putsch, 1920; the Red Rising in the Ruhr, 1920; the assassination of Walther
Rathenau, 1922, by the Organisation Consul; Munich Putsch in 1923, etc.

No More important – economic factors – the impact of WWI; reparations, invasion of the Ruhr,
hyperinflation; terms of the Treaty of Versailles – military, territorial and War Guilt Clause; Weimar
Constitution, etc.

How important was the Kapp Putsch in the development of Weimar Germany to 1923? Explain your
answer.

Yes. Kapp’s aim was to overthrow Weimar Republic and replace it with a nationalist government; supported
by German army who refused to fire on Freikorps brigades; forced Weimar government to flee to Dresden;
reaction to military restrictions of Treaty of Versailles; government unable to restore law and order using its
own forces and relied on workers’ assistance in the form of a general strike in Berlin; demonstrated right-wing
support in Germany and anti-Weimar feeling, etc.

No. More important: weaknesses of Weimar Constitution; stab in the back myth after Armistice; November
Criminals in Weimar government; impact of terms of Treaty of Versailles led to widespread resentment;
economic problems after the war – unemployment, food shortages; extremist policies of left and right –
Spartacists and Munich Putsch; assassinations; Ruhr occupation; hyperinflation, etc.

How significant was Stresemann in the recovery of Germany after 1923? Explain your answer.

Yes Overcame the Ruhr crisis and invasion of French and Belgian troops; began paying reparations again;
increased foreign confidence; Rentenmark; increased production; vibrant arts scene; negotiated Dawes and
Young Plans; increased production and investment; greater acceptance by international community through
treaties, League of Nations increased business confidence; reduction in support for minority parties; things
quietened down etc.

No Any recovery was based on American loans; could not foresee the Wall Street Crash and the Great
Depression; death in 1929 undermined confidence; weakness of coalition governments and the Weimar
Constitution; conservative and agricultural communities critical – wanted the old system back, felt
entertainment vulgar and crude; critical of reduction of moral standards; still high unemployment and many
Germans resentful of hyperinflation. Versailles and humiliation etc.

How important were Stresemann’s economic policies to the stability of the Weimar Republic, 1923-29?
Explain your answer.
Yes. Stresemann ended hyperinflation by burning old currency and introducing Rentenmark; ended passive
resistance in the Ruhr to restart industries; restarted reparation payments to Allies which led to French and
Belgian troops leaving the Ruhr; Dawes Plan, 1924, brought 800 million gold marks of US loans which were
invested in public amenities and used to invest in industry – German steel dominant again in Europe by 1926;
reparation payments linked to ability to pay; renewed in Young Plan, 1929; inflation fell, industry expanded
and exports increased and reached pre-war levels by 1928, etc.

No. Economic policies based on US loans and linking German economy to US banks; unemployment remained
high and did not fall below 1 million; Wall Street Crash in 1929 triggered a worldwide depression and
Germany saw loans recalled; more important: political stability as extremists saw a reduced vote in 1928;
more stable coalition government; election of nationalist Hindenburg as President in 1925 appeased many
conservatives; Locarno Treaty saw improved international relations; 1926 Germany admitted to LON; cultural
revival in cities – art, literature, film and architecture; increased nightlife, etc.

How significant was the Munich Putsch as a reason for the lack of Nazi electoral success by 1928? Explain
your answer.

Yes The Munich Putsch led to Hitler's imprisonment for treason; Nazis were banned and labelled extremists;
16 Nazis were killed in an uprising; the SA banned the organisation – it was seen as too violent by the middle
classes; Hitler was forced to change tactics and win power legally, etc.

No Nazis were always viewed as extremists; anti-Semitism put many off; the SA was too violent; 1924–28
were Golden Years – economic growth and political stability; the election of nationalist Hindenburg appeased
right-wing voters, etc.

How important was the Munich Putsch to Nazi Party support and membership by 1930? Explain your
answer.

Yes. Munich Putsch was reported across Germany and saw the Nazi Party become leaders of the extreme
right-wing nationalist political movement against the Weimar Republic; Hitler’s trial was reported on by
national German press; gave the Nazis much needed publicity; demonstrated that some old elites in Germany
sympathised with Nazi nationalist programme; resulted in Hitler dictating Mein Kampf in prison; membership
of Nazi Party and SA increased after ban was lifted; forced Hitler to reassess Nazi tactics – Hitler decided the
Nazis would get into power through the ballot box; Nazi leaders were trained in public speaking; propaganda
campaign increased; Nazi promises became more flexible and targeted specific groups in Germany (catch-all
party), etc.

No. Munich Putsch was a failure with 16 Nazis killed in an illegal attempt to violently seize power in Bavaria;
demonstrated politicians and German army were not siding with the Nazis in 1923; Hitler and other Nazi
leaders found guilty of treason; middle-class fears of Nazis as violent extremists and antiSemites, especially
the SA; poor electoral success in 1924 and 1928 elections; more significant – Hitler as leader – good public
speaker; Goebbels in charge of propaganda by 1930; 1929 Wall St Crash and Great Depression increased Nazi
fortunes; role of SA changed; negative cohesion and anti-communism won appeal, etc.

How significant was Joseph Goebbels in winning support for the Nazis, 1930–33? Explain your answer.

YES. Goebbels made head of Nazi propaganda in 1930 (not before!); propaganda used to target different
sectors of the population e.g. workers and promise of jobs, farmers and promises of higher food prices, anti-
communism for middle-classes and industrialists, etc.; Nuremburg rallies held annually and organised with
theatrics by Goebbels; use of media – posters, radio, movie reels before films; glorification of Hitler as a
saviour for Germany; promoted nationalism and anti-Weimar sentiments in propaganda; negative cohesion
used to stir up German fears of communist revolution and failures of Weimar democracy, etc.

NO. Questionable how effective propaganda was on some Germans who saw through it; more significant –
Hitler’s leadership and oratory skills; support from some big business and elites who helped fund Nazi
campaign; anti-communism; Nazi promises flexible; socio-economic effects of Great Depression, especially 6
million unemployed by 1932; weaknesses of Weimar government and rule by Presidential decree; role of SA –
impression of strength and order during chaos but also created chaos on the streets making many fearful of
revolution, soup kitchens, etc.

How important was the publication of Mein Kampf to the development of the Nazi Party by 1933? Explain
your answer.

YES. Mein Kampf (published in 2 volumes between 1925–26) laid down Hitler’s ideology for the Nazi Party
after the failure of the Munich Putsch (1923); Hitler emphasised the importance of racial anti-Semitism,
German nationalism and expansion in the East (Lebensraum); it helped establish the führerprinzip (leadership
principle); SA and SS members were required to read Mein Kampf; Hitler Youth had to learn about Nazi
ideology from Mein Kampf; Hitler explained change in tactics – from revolution and violence to winning
power through the Reichstag and destroying Weimar democracy from the inside etc.

NO. More important – Hitler’s leadership and speeches – rallies like the Nuremburg Rally attracted supporters
and presented a theatrical spectacle for the crowds; SA grew in membership to over 100 000 by 1928; SA
used to spread Nazi propaganda; SA ordered to be less violent and extreme in their actions – marches,
parades and Nazi symbols; Nazi propaganda and policy promises became more flexible and focused on
different social groups in Germany e.g. workers were promised jobs, farmers better prices and middle-classes
protection from a communist revolution; Wall Street Crash and subsequent Great Depression in Germany left
6 million unemployed by 1933 – led to increased votes for extremists and fears of a communist revolution.
Hitler used this fear to attract wealthy industrialists to fund party campaigns in elections; political elites
helped Hitler into power by creating a conservative coalition with Hitler as Chancellor; Reichstag Fire allowed
Hitler to increase his power with Hindenburg’s emergency decrees – moves Germany towards a one-party
system that was completed with the Enabling Act (1933) etc.

How important was Nazi electoral success as a reason for Hitler’s appointment as Chancellor in January
1933? Explain your answer.

YES – Nazis had become a major party in the 1930 elections gaining 107 seats and the second largest party; in
July 1932 they won 37% of the vote making them the largest party in the Reichstag; Hitler demanded the
Chancellorship from Hindenburg as leader of the largest party, as was Constitutional convention; allowed the
Nazis to block government legislation forcing Hindenburg to use Article 48 and rule by decree; 1932
Presidential election gave Hitler 13 million votes against Hindenburg’s 19 million – showed he was popular
with German citizens etc.

NO – More important – fear of communism as they became the third largest party after 1930 with 13% of the
vote – this increased to 17% of the vote by November 1932; increased Nazi funds from industrialists and
votes from the middle-classes who feared a communist revolution as in Russia and the Nazis promised to
destroy communism and protect private property; Depression led to severe unemployment – nearly 6 million
by 1933; Nazi propaganda machine under Goebbels used negative cohesion to play on the fears of the
German middle-classes; Nazi promises were flexible – Hitler often changed unpopular policies; Hitler’s
leadership and oratory skills – rallies and speeches; political manoeuvring from von Papen to remove
Schleicher and persuade Hindenburg to appoint Hitler etc

How significant was racial policy in bringing about the kind of society the Nazis wanted after 1933? Explain
your answer

Yes. Hitler and the Nazis wanted to create a pure, Aryan race in Germany; Jews, Gypsies and other non-
Aryans were discriminated against from 1933; 1933 – Jewish shops boycotted and anti-Semitic propaganda in
the press; Jews also purged from government and Civil Service; 1935 Nuremberg Laws denied Jews
citizenship; 1938 Kristallnacht – 30 000 Jews sent to concentration camps; by 1939, over 40% of Jews had
emigrated from Germany; Gypsies faced many of the same discriminatory laws and many were sent to
concentration camps; Black Germans sterilised; after outbreak of war, Jews required to wear Star of David
and have a J in passport; ghettos in eastern Europe during occupation; 1941 – Einsatzgruppen began mass
shootings of Jews in eastern Europe; Wannsee Conference in January 1942 led to Final Solution, etc.

No. More significant: (could be used as YES argument) other ‘undesirables’ dealt with by the Nazis – seen as
incompatible with Aryan master race (herrenvolk); homosexuals, handicapped, drunkards, beggars and
prostitutes were sometimes sterilised or sent to camps; dealing with the unemployment problem caused by
the Depression led to New Plan which saw huge public works programmes initiated (e.g. autobahns);
destruction of liberal democracy and creation of totalitarian rule using Enabling Act; police state created
using SS and Gestapo; laws to help farmers, workers and middle-classes; women and family more significant;
youth policy, etc.

How significant was the use of concentration camps in dealing with opposition to Nazi rule after 1933?
Explain your answer.

Yes. Large-scale prisons first set up in 1933 to deal with political opponents of the Nazis such as communists,
trade unionists and social democrats; other groups considered undesirables were also sent there, e.g. tramps,
beggars and prostitutes; basic work conditions and harsh discipline; run by SA then later SS; many deaths
from beatings and executions; prisoners used as slave labour in quarries, agriculture and forestry; created
sense of fear in general population; Gestapo and SS could send opponents to camps without trial; some
prisoners released to spread fear in population; first camp at Dachau became model for further camps with
1.65 million sent to a camp between 1933 and 1945, etc.

No. More significant: use of SS and Gestapo under Himmler and Heydrich; controlled all police and security
organisations by 1936; SD and Gestapo used to hunt out opponents effectively; Nazi courts and judges meant
no rule of law; increase of capital offences from 3 to 43 by 1943; informers used to spy on local residents and
inform Block Wardens of anti-Nazi behaviour; failure to completely end organised opposition – youth
opposition, churches, underground left-wing movements, army and conservative resistance still existed as did
private grumblings; censorship of media, etc.

How significant was gaining the support of the armed forces in Hitler’s consolidation of power between
1933 and 1934? Explain your answer.

YES. Hitler needed the German Army for his future territorial expansion: reclaiming lost land from the Treaty
of Versailles and expanding eastwards to create Lebensraum; they had the equipment and military expertise;
Hindenburg remained commander-in-chief of the armed forces and there was a danger the army might
launch a coup against the Nazi government; senior army generals feared the Nazi SA who wanted a second
revolution and Ernst Rohm’s wishes for the SA to become the new official German army; Hitler tried to
reassure the army by purging the SA in the Night of the Long Knives after Hindenburg threatened martial law;
army oath of loyalty after Hindenburg’s death helped assure loyalty of the armed forces to Hitler etc.

NO. More significant – Reichstag Fire (February 1933) allowed Hitler to gain emergency powers from
Hindenburg which helped remove the Communists (4000 arrested) and curb civil rights; March elections 1933
gave the Nazis 44% of the vote – largest party still in the Reichstag; Enabling Act allowed Hitler to shut down
trade unions and ban other political parties making Germany a one-party state – Hitler now a virtual dictator;
use of SA and SS intimidation on the streets and in the Reichstag; SA used as auxiliary police to shut down
party meetings and arrest opponents; setting up of concentration camps (Dachau was the first to house
opponents of the Nazis and was set up in March 1933); Concordat (September 1933) with Catholic Church
meant the church did not interfere with political matters; Goebbels propaganda etc.

How significant was the Enabling Act (1933) in allowing Hitler to establish a dictatorship in Germany by
1934? Explain your answer.

YES – Enabling Act gave Nazi cabinet (Hitler in reality) ability to bypass Weimar Constitution; made into a
virtual dictator; Hitler could pass laws without consent of Reichstag or President; used it to ban trade unions
and other political parties making Germany a one-party state; state parliaments abolished and replaced with
Nazi governors who could make state laws etc.
NO – Hitler only a virtual dictator – could be removed by President and martial law; German army still not
supportive of Hitler and SA especially; more significant – Reichstag Fire removed communist opposition and
gave Hitler emergency powers from Hindenburg; March Elections increased Nazi vote in Reichstag; concordat
with Catholic church gained Centre Party support and guaranteed Catholic Church would stay out of politics;
Night of the Long Knives removed SA and Rohm as potential threat and gained support from Hindenburg and
German Army; death of Hindenburg and Army oath of loyalty etc.

How significant were resistance groups in the opposition to Nazi rule? Explain your answer

Yes. Left-wing groups remained active in Nazi Germany (Communists and Social Democrats), although they
were kept underground – posters, leaflets and illegal newspapers; trade unions remained underground and
organised illegal strikes; conservative opposition such as the Kreisau Circle included aristocrats, army officers
and professionals who opposed Nazi rule; churches, both Catholic and Protestant, spoke out against the Nazi
regime – Bishop Galen helped stop the T-4 euthanasia programme temporarily and Pastor Niemoller
organised the Confessing Church and preached against the Nazis; army resistance, most notably the July
Bomb Plot in 1944; youth opposition – Edelweiss Pirates and White Rose distributed pamphlets, broadsheets
and scrawled graffiti on walls; Swing Movement, etc.

No. Organised opposition mainly ineffective at bringing down the Nazi regime; SS and Gestapo along with
other intelligence agencies were effective at shutting down organised opposition; propaganda, censorship
and control of the media; between 193342, the Nazis enjoyed widespread support and organised
opposition failed to make any headway; informers used to keep watch at local level and report to local Nazi
Block Wardens; SS and Gestapo used fear and terror to suppress opposition; fear of concentration camps;
legal system biased towards Nazi officials and overlooked Nazi excesses; more significant – private grumbling,
Nazi jokes; allow Galen as a NO argument; Second World War led to loss of support for the Nazis after 1942;
Nazi regime used an increasing amount of propaganda, etc.

How significant was the persecution of minorities as an aspect of Nazi policy, 1933–45? Explain your
answer.

YES. Nazi race theory viewed pure Germans as herrenvolk (master race of Aryans) who were superior to
untermenschen (sub-races, inferior) such as Jews, Gypsies, blacks and other non-whites as well as physically
and mentally handicapped; taught in school curriculum and to Hitler Youth organisations; promoted in Nazi
propaganda; T-4 euthanasia programme murdered handicapped with carbon monoxide gas; official anti-
Semitic Nazi policy - 1933 boycotting of shops and removal from civil service, propaganda campaign; 1935
Nuremburg Laws, 1938 Kristallnacht, 1941 Wansee Conference and Final Solution; SS based on Aryanism –
new racial elite in German Reich; Einsatzgruppen and extermination camps run by SS, etc.

NO. More significant – economic policies in 1933-38; New Plan focused on lowering unemployment through
public works' schemes run by RAD, conscription, rearmament (Nazi economic miracle); Four Year Plan
accelerated rearmament and tried to achieve autarky; policies towards workers, middle-classes, farmers and
industrialists; policies towards churches and religion; creation of one-party state and fuhrerprinzip;
Gleichschaltung – Nazi coordination of society towards a volkisch nation and totalitarianism; policies towards
women and family; youth policy and Hitler Youth, etc.

How significant were the churches in the opposition to Nazi rule after 1933? Explain your answer.

YES. Catholic Church: some Catholic priests helped protect persecuted minorities; Bishop Galen spoke out
against Nazi policies and T-34 Programme (killing of mentally ill and physically disabled); Nazis failed to silence
him and led to a change in public policy; Pope still able to criticise Nazi regime from Rome; Protestant
Churches: Pastor Niemoller and Bonhoeffer created Confessing Church and opposed Nazi interference in
Church; many ministers opposed Reich Church; many preached against Nazis in church sermons and aided
resistance groups, etc.

NO. Concordat in 1933 effectively got Catholic Church on side with the Nazi regime; many churchgoers
supported Nazi regime or did little to oppose it and attended the Reich Church under Bishop Muller; Nazis
also attempted German Faith Movement – a pagan alternative; more significant – underground political
parties and trade unions distributed leaflets and encouraged strikes; Swing Movement; Edelweiss Pirates;
White Rose; army resistance – Blomberg and Fritsch opposed Nazi war plans; 5 attempts by military to
assassinate Hitler – 1944 July Bomb Plot; low-level resistance (anti-Nazi jokes); conservative Kreisau Circle, etc

How significant was the role of the family in German society under the Nazis? Explain your answer.

YES. Traditional family values promoted by Nazis; women seen as mothers of the Aryan race while men
worked or joined the armed forces; women encouraged to have at least 4 children with an Aryan husband as
the birth rate had fallen in the Weimar years; Mother’s Cross introduced for women who had 4 or more
children; financial incentives – marriage loans for each child and family allowances introduced; German
Women’s Enterprise set up to offer classes in home-craft and parenting skills; education and schooling used
to indoctrinate young people in Nazi ideas (eugenics, racial theory) and militaristic attitudes; Hitler Youth
organisation helped prepare young people for either war in the case of boys (Hitler Youth) or marriage and
childbirth for girls (League of German Maidens) etc.

NO. Nazis had to reverse their policy on women’s work in 1937 to increase the number of factory workers
due to conscription of German men; SS brothels set up to increase birth rate as part of the Lebensborn
programme ignoring family values and marriage; more significant – racism and anti-Semitism in schools,
legislation (Nuremburg Laws, 1935); boycotting of Jewish shops and anti-Semitic propaganda widespread in
media (newspapers, magazines and cinema); compulsory sterilisation as part of eugenics programme;
crushing of opposition such as the Communists and trade unions (Reichstag Fire Decree and Enabling Act,
1933); solving the unemployment problem economic caused by the Depression; improving working
conditions for workers (e.g. Strength Through Joy, ‘Beauty of Labour) and farmers (e.g. Reich Food Estate) etc.

How significant was anti-Semitism in German society under the Nazis? Explain your answer.

YES – Anti-Semitism was a key Nazi policy since the 25-Point Programme and Mein Kampf; Hitler and other
Nazis violently anti-Semitic; Nazis saw the Jews as an undesirable parasitic race in Germany – blamed the
Jews for the German surrender in the First World War and accused them of being communists; SA were used
to boycott Jewish shops and businesses in 1933; Jews were removed from Civil Service and other professions
in 1933; school curriculum and Hitler Youth used to indoctrinate young people about the danger of Jews in
Germany; 1935 Nuremberg Laws saw Jews stripped of their citizenship;1938 Kristallnacht – Jewish shops and
businesses destroyed and 30,000 Jews arrested and sent to concentration camps; Jews banned from German
schools and other public facilities; war radicalised policy further – Einsatzgruppen (1941) used for mass
shootings of Jews and Final Solution in 1942 saw 6 million Jews murdered in specially built extermination
camps etc.

NO – More significant – Nazi economic policies prioritised solving the unemployment problem – Schacht’s
New Plan led to public works schemes like the autobahns and the National Labour Service (RAD); policies
towards workers (DAF, Strength Through Joy and Beauty of Labour); policies towards farmers; policies
towards women and the family; youth policy (Hitler Youth); Nazi control – terror through the SS and
Goebbels’ propaganda and control of culture and the media etc.

How significant were policies towards businessmen and industrialists in winning support for the Nazi
regime, 1933–39? Explain your answer.

Yes Small shopkeepers were promised protection against large stores; the Communist Party was banned –
trade unionists were arrested; big business benefited from rearmament; confiscation of Jewish businesses
and property; conscription boosted demand for war supplies; the New Plan and Four-Year Plan, etc.

No The Nazis did not stop new department stores from opening; big business only benefited if it made what
the Nazis wanted, i.e. war supplies; more significant – workers had Strength Through Joy and Beauty of
Labour organisations – leisure activities, cheap holidays, better working conditions; farmers – Reich Food
Estate – better prices, removed debt, etc.
How significant was the Treaty of Versailles as a reason for the increasing popularity of the Nazis after
1929? Explain your answer.

Yes Hitler promised to reverse the terms of the Treaty; this was popular with many Germans; rearmament;
November Criminals and the stab in the back myth, etc.

No More significant were anti-communism; propaganda; the impact of the Depression – unemployment; the
role of the SA; Hitler’s leadership; Big Business; newspapers; weakness of the Weimar Governments, etc.

How significant were public works schemes in improving the lives of German workers, 1933–1939? Explain
your answer.

Yes Public works schemes such as the autobahn building project helped reduce unemployment which was at
6 million in 1932 – financed by Minister Schacht with huge amounts of public funding; National Labour
Service employed all 18–25 year olds for six months; worked on railways, public building projects and
conservation projects, etc.

No Public works schemes including the National Labour Service paid very poor wages and had long working
hours; military in style in preparation for future conscription; more significant was rearmament – new jobs in
munitions factories; 1935 conscription reintroduced; Goering's Four Year Plan focused on creating a war
economy, reducing unemployment down to a few hundred thousand by 1938; Strength Through Joy
movement gave cheap entertainment to workers and their families; Beauty of Labour improved working
conditions, etc.

How important was the threat of a communist revolution as a reason for Hitler’s appointment as
Chancellor in January 1933? Explain your answer.

Yes Fear of communism had been prevalent amongst middle classes and wealthy elites since 1917 Bolshevik
Revolution; early threats of communists in Germany led to support for right-wing extremists – Spartacists,
Red rising in the Ruhr, etc.; Nazi Party had always promised to destroy communism which led to party
funding; Depression in Germany saw an increase in popularity for the Communist Party – 100 seats in the
Reichstag by 1932; middle class, farmers and industrialists saw Nazis and Hitler as a way to prevent a
communist takeover; SA used to crush Communists on the streets; many conservatives saw the Nazis as the
only party able to deal with the communist threat; anti-communist propaganda by the Nazis most effective in
gaining support, etc.

No Social and economic effects of the Depression more important – 6 million unemployed by 1932 led to
desperation from all classes; unpopularity of Weimar Republic intensified as it failed to deal with social and
economic problems; Hitler’s leadership skills and public speaking; Nazi propaganda; use of the SA to give a
sense of order and discipline; flexibility of Nazi Party policies and promises to voters; weakness of the
opposition – Social Democrats and Communists divided and opposed, weak coalitions in the Reichstag;
political manoeuverings by von Papen and Hindenburg in appointing Hitler Chancellor in January 1933, etc.

How significant was the Hitler Youth in the development of Nazi rule after 1933? Explain your answer.

YES – HJ created in 1926 as youth wing of Nazi Party; indoctrinated young boys and later girls in Nazi
ideology, Hitler worship; membership was voluntary until 1936 when all other youth groups were banned
(1939 membership was compulsory); under leadership of von Schirach (Reich Youth Leader); boys developed
military skills for future role in German Army; girls trained to become mothers and housewives; both boys
and girls schooled in Nazi racism, anti-Semitism and eugenics; physical fitness important for both groups to
create healthy Aryan race; Hitler saw youth as the future of Germany etc.

NO – Nearly 1 million young people had not joined by 1940; many chose to join rebel groups such as Swing
movement, Edelweiss Pirates etc.; more significant: Nazi schools introduced new curriculum which prioritised
sports, eugenics, racial health and teachers forced to join Nazi Teachers’ League; religious education
scrapped; police state developed under Himmler and Heydrich – SS, SD and Gestapo; concentration camps;
informers; Nazi legal system; Enabling Act; Night of the Long Knives; death of Hindenburg and Army Oath in
1934; Nazi policies on women and family; Nazi propaganda and censorship; racist and anti-Semitic policies
(e.g. Nuremberg Laws) etc.

How significant was the recovery of the German economy in strengthening Nazi rule, 1934-39? Explain
your answer.

YES – German unemployment fell to under 200 000 by 1938 from 6 million; rearmament provided jobs;
conscription lowered unemployment after 1936; factory jobs increased due to rearmament; Nazi public
works schemes – RAD; use of Beauty of Labour and Strength Through Joy schemes; removal of Jews from Civil
Service and other professions; middle-classes and industrialists benefited from government funds etc.

NO – More significant – use of fear and terror from SS, SD and Gestapo; propaganda campaign; compulsory
membership of Hitler Youth after 1936; changes to school curriculum; Nazi coordination; censorship;
concentration camps; early foreign policy successes e.g. Rhineland etc.

How significant were policies towards young people in bringing about the Nazification of Germany after
1933? Explain your answer.

YES – Hitler Youth promoted obedience to Fuhrer and German nationalism; gave preparation for future life in
armed forces – rifle training, grenade throwing, marching, parades, drills, camping and survival techniques;
indoctrination in racist and anti-Semitic policies; League of German Maidens promoted women as future
mothers and encouraged domestic skills and 3 Ks ‘kinder, küche, kirche’ (children, kitchen, church); girls made
to learn how to knit, cook, clean and keep fit with gymnastics to bear future Aryan Germans; taught how to
recognise Jews and marry healthy Germans; school curriculum heavily controlled – biology, promoted race
studies, anti-Semitism; history taught betrayal during First World War etc.

NO – Over 1 million young Germans had not joined youth organisations by the early 1940s. More significant –
racial and eugenics policies towards undesirables; anti-Semitism – Nuremburg Laws, Kristallnacht, Final
Solution; Lebensborn programme; policies towards women and the family to promote high birth rate and
‘racial hygiene’; repression of women and promotion of traditional roles/loss of jobs; creation of one-party
state – Enabling Law; removal of political enemies like communists and trade unions – creation of DAF to
control workers and aid rearmament; economic policy focused on lowering unemployment after Depression –
New Plan and Four Year Plan; conscription; propaganda and censorship; use of SS, Gestapo and concentration
camps to enforce Nazi policies etc.

How significant was rearmament in the Nazis’ rule over Germany, 1933– 39? Explain your answer.

YES – Hitler began to secretly rearm in 1933 (which had already begun in 1931 in Weimar); tanks and new
Luftwaffe being tested in secret; Hitler left Disarmament Conference in 1933 as well as the League of Nations;
Hitler promised to abolish terms of Treaty of Versailles including rebuilding the German war machine;
rearmament popular with munitions manufacturers and some big business that profited from Nazi contracts;
rearmament helped reduce unemployment and stimulated sectors of the economy; New Plan and Four Year
Plan under Goering focused on war preparation; conscription reintroduced in 1936; reconquering land lost in
the Treaty of Versailles and conquering Lebensraum in the East were high on Hitler's foreign policy agenda
etc.

NO – More significant – solving the unemployment issue – public works schemes such as building of
autobahns; compulsory enlisting of 18–25 year olds in National (Reich) Labour Service (RAD); removal of Jews
and women from civil service and professions; helping farmers – Reich Food Estate under Darre and Reich
Entailed Food Law; Blood and Soil philosophy; creating of volksgemeinschaft or national community;
Gleichschaltung - Nazification of Germany; racial policies and anti-Semitism; persecution of other minorities
and political opponents; policies towards women and family; youth policy – Hitler Youth and school
curriculum; creation of one-party state; SS and Gestapo; concentration camps; propaganda etc.

How significant was economic recovery as a reason for the lack of effective opposition to Nazi rule, 1933–
39? Explain your answer.
YES Unemployment reduced to under 1 million by 1937 helped popular support for Nazis after 1933; National
Labour Service provided work on public works projects and conservation programmes such as autobahns;
government expenditure funded economic recovery – most Germans happy to put up with Nazi government;
private business became prosperous which helped Nazis gain further support; rearmament allowed
munitions factories to open – preparation for war and Goering’s Four Year Plan 1936; conscription
reintroduced in 1935 allowed many unemployed to join armed forces – increased national pride and many
Germans felt Hitler was allowing Germany to emerge from the humiliation of defeat in the First World War
and the terms of the Versailles Settlement, etc.

NO Nazi propaganda was effective at maintaining support for the regime; SS and Gestapo used terror and
concentration camps to quickly remove political opposition; all parties banned under the Enabling Act; Nazi
Party only legal party – police state/liberties and freedoms suspended; trade unions banned and leaders
arrested; SA purged in the Night of the Long Knives and Army support gained; Army oath of loyalty to Hitler in
1934; Hindenburg died and Hitler became President and Chancellor – Fuhrer; use of DAF, Strength Through
Joy to keep workers happy; fear of losing job; indoctrination of youth; opposition small and underground;
Hitler’s foreign policy popular 1933–38; concordat with Catholic Church 1933, etc.

How significant was the Second World War in determining Nazi policies towards the Jews? Explain your
answer.

YES – Second World War helped radicalise Nazi policies towards Jews, especially in occupied territories;
General Government in Poland set up ghetto system in many cities; Einstazgruppen killing squads (branch of
SS) – approximately 1 million killed by mass shootings from 1941; Jews forced to wear yellow Star of David;
Wannsee Conference, 1942 made decisions on Final Solution – elimination of all European Jews in death
camps such as Treblinka and Sobibor from 1942; mass gassing of Jews in mobile vans, then specially built gas
chambers and crematoria - over 6 million killed in total etc.

NO – More significant – Nazi policy became increasingly anti-Semitic after Hitler and the Nazis assumed
power in 1933; 1933 saw SA boycott shops and Jews were removed from civil service and then later barred
from professions; 1935 Nuremburg Laws denied Jews citizenship and prohibited marriages between Jews and
Aryan Germans; 1938 Kristallnacht – first official violence towards Jewish community by disguised SS men;
Jews barred from owning property and businesses; banned from schools; 40% of Jews had left Germany by
1939 etc.