How much opposition was there to Nazi Policies?

Opposition to Hitler

 It is difficult to argue that there was significant opposition to Hitler as most of the
German population appeared to support the regime through to the last weeks of the
war
 There are a number of reasons for the opposition being limited: terror, the economic
miracle (the Nazis provided most people with jobs), the Nazis hid or abandoned
unpopular policies (Kristillnacht/Euthanasia Campaign), Opposition was divided.

The

methods adopted by these groups and the lack of co-ordinated planning resulted in
individual acts of resistance
 There were very few who were willing or able to organise large scale resistance
needed to topple the regime
 Hitler’s success with the NOTLK showed he could literally get away with murder and
still keep support
 Successful foreign policies meant that it was difficult for opponents to gain support
 It was only when there was the pressure of military defeat that there was substantial
opposition to the regime
The treatment of opponents
 The regime was built on a system of surveillance and censorship which must have had
some impact on the limit of opposition
 Opponents would have known that individual actions would have little impact
 People were aware that the state had the ability to destroy people’s lives
 The wearing down and demoralising of opponents in the camps made many powerless or
unwilling to resist if they were released
 There were many Germans who agreed with the use of concentration camps so victims
gained little sympathy

Did Nazi religious policies achieve their aims?

Nazi ideology was a direct challenge to Christian ideals. Christianity represented a problem
for the Nazi regime especially as Jesus was Jewish. Many Germans had strong Catholic
beliefs and this could affect their support for the regime.

Protestant Churches

 Many Protestants were willing to support the Nazis because of their family values
 A number of pastors spoke in favour of them and encouraged congregations to vote
for them and let churches be used as bases for the Nazis
 Hitler wanted to co-ordinate the Protestant church as there were many variations
between them
 A united Reich Church was created in 1933 under Ludwig Muller
 Nazi policies began to alienate Protestants and in 1934 two bishops were arrested for
opposing the Reich Church
 This led to other pastors creating the Confessional Church which was out of Nazi
control under the leadership of Martin Niemoller. This attracted support of 7000 out
of 17000 pastors which can be used to show the ineffectiveness of Nazi policies in
this area. Religion came first to these people.

Catholic Church

 Hitler was concerned by Catholics as they may have put their loyalty to the Pope
before Germany
 He did not want to start a conflict and agreed the Concordat in July 1933. This
appeared to guarantee religious freedom for the Church as it could run itself and
appoint its own ministers.
 The Church agreed to keep out of politics as long as the Nazis agreed to not
interfere with the rights of the Church
 Opposition from the Churches

 Despite the Concordat, the Nazis did interfere and they were only able to achieve
limited success in controlling churches
 The Nazis used a series of policies to undermine the Church: closure of some
Church schools, removal of crucifixes from schools and replaced with swastikas,
banning nativity plays & carols, attacks on Catholic Youth movement, arresting
pastors & priests, confiscating church funds
 This weakened the churches but did not destroy opposition
 The Pope criticised the regime in 1937 with a letter called “With Burning Concern”
 Individual members of the clergy like Niemoller and Bonhoffer were sent to
concentration camps to silence them.

The German Faith Movement

 The Nazis wanted to establish an alternative to Christianity

 This faith was based on 4 key themes: a belief in the superiority of Germanic races
and opposition to Jews; the replacement of Christian ceremonies such as marriage
with pagan versions; a rejection of Christian ethics of mercy and forgiveness; a belief
in the cult of Hitler’s personality
 The Faith Movement was a failure as only 5% of Germans joined it

 Only after military successes of the war did the regime feel confident to attack the
Churches. Monasteries were closed, Church property was attacked and Church
activities restricted.
 The regime had been reluctant to attack the Churches to avoid unrest
 After 1942 the churches played a role in supporting the population after bombing
raids and the Nazis didn’t want to alienate them
 The Churches were also willing to compromise in order to survive and there was
sympathy for the Nazis attitudes to family and opposition to Communism.
 Although the position of the Churches was restricted they were not destroyed.
 How successful were Nazi economic policies?
 One of the most important reasons for increasing Nazi support from 1929 was the
improving economic situation, especially the high level of unemployment.
 When the Nazis came to power there were 6 million unemployed, industrial productions
had returned to 1890s levels and agricultural was depressed.
 However by 1933 the worst of the Depression was over and there were already signs
of recovery.
 Hitler was able to build on the public work schemes set up by Scleicher and was helped
by the end of the reparations in 1932.
 Nazi actions against trade unions meant demands for higher wages were over
 The economic position was not as bleak as it had been before when they came to
power.

Public Works and creation of jobs

 Hitler promised to solve unemployment within 4 years from 1933

 One billion Reichmarks were invested in these schemes, which saw the building of
roads, canals & houses.
 The car industry was encouraged by tax concessions, which resulted in a 40% increase
in production
 The introduction of rearmament and conscription in 1935 helped to absorb the
unemployed youth.
 The government also continued the Voluntary Labour Service, which had 500,000 men
employed by 1935.
 The most significant measure was the Law for the Reduction of Unemployment which
took women out of the job market by offering loans for those about to marry if they
gave up work.
 By 1938 there was virtually full employment.
 However there are limits to this; unemployment was 2.5 million in 1934 but did not fall
again until 1936 with the introduction of conscription and rearmament in 1935.
 Much of the work, such as the Reich Labour Service, was poorly paid and involved hard
labour done in poor conditions.

Schact’s New Plan

 Hjalmar Schact was President of the Reichsbank from 1933 to 1939 and was appointed
Minister for Economics from 1934 to 1937.
 He encouraged heavy state spending which saw government spending go up 70& from
1933 to 1936
 Germany was importing more raw materials but not increasing its exports which
resulted in a shortage of money
 The New Plan was introduced in September 1934. It gave the government control over
all trade, tariffs, capital and currency exchange. This meant it could decide what
imports were allowed and gave priority to those for heavy industry.
  The rapid increase in spending increased the chances of inflation but this was avoided
through Mefo bills which were credit notes used to pay manufacturers of milirary
equipment. These were used to raise funds by offering them at a 4% interest rate on
the money market and banks were forced to invest in them.
 In 1936 Schact argued that arms expenditure should be reduced and the production
of industrial goods increased so that there was more to sell leading to the “guns or
butter debate”- should Germany focus on military or consumer goods?
 Hitler rejected Schact’s argument and appointed Goering as Commissioner for Raw
Materials & Currency

Goring’s Four Year Plan

 The aim of the plan was to achieve autarky- Germany would be self-sufficient and
produce its own food and industrial goods
 The plan set out to increase agricultural and industrial production and would favour
arms over agriculture
 This appeared to make it clear that Hitler would be moving towards total war economy
where everything contributes to the war effort
 One aim of the plan was to increase production in key war industries such as synthetic
rubber, fuel, oil & iron ore. Large plants were built and after the Anschluss in 1938
combining Germany and Austria, Austrian companies were taken over. As a result
industrial production rose but most targets were not met.
 When war broke out in 1939 Germany was still importing 1/3 of its raw materials from
abroad so was not ready for total war.

Conscription, rearmament & preparations for war

 Conscription was introduced in 1935 and helped to reduce the unemployment levels but
rearmament (involved ¼ of workforce) created economic problems.
 Some historians were expanding too quickly- there were shortages in many areas,
including food, consumer goods & raw materials.
 There were labour shortages, particularly among skilled workers and this pushed up
wages
 Expenditure and the deficit had grown and the government found it difficult to
finance which led to discontent among the working class
 2/3 of German investment had been directed to rearmament.
 It can be argued that preparations had been for short wars of conquest as a long war
would create problems in production. The economy was not ready for the war Hitler
had to fight as Britain and France forced him into a major war. The plan was that
Germany would be ready for major war by 1943.
German Labour Front (DAF)

 The rights of workers declined as they were stripped of many of their rights,
including negotiations over pay and conditions.
 Trade unions were replaced by the DAF which was under Nazi control and compulsory
for all workers to be a member of.
 Wages and working conditions were often poor and unrest was dealt with harshly.
 Take home pay deteriorated as workers had to pay large contributions to the DAF and
working hours increased from 43 hours per week in 1933 to 47 by 1939. As military
demands increased pressure was also put on workers to do overtime.

Strength Through Joy

 This was established to try and win worker support

 Its aim was to improve worker morale and conditions
 It offered workers benefits like holidays, cultural visits & sports facilities.
 However these were only available to loyal workers
 Workers could also pay towards a “People’s Car”- Volkswagen- and many did contribute
but nobody received a car.

How successful?

 The success of Nazi economic policy up to 1939 depends on the criteria that it is
judged against.
 One of Hitler’s key promises to eradicate unemployment had virtually been achieved
but only because a ¼ of workforce were employed in rearmament
 In terms of preparing for war there was a failure to reach the full scale mobilisation
needed for total war but this was because war was planned to start in 1943
 17% of Germany’s GNP went on military expenditure in 1938-39 compared to just 8
%in Britain
 This created problems in other areas such as production bottlenecks, competition for
resources, labour shortages and a growing danger of inflation
 Production targets were still not met despite the increase in production of certain
goods
 If the war had been short then Germany could have been viewed as well prepared but
the war was not short