Life in Nazi Germany

How effectively did the Nazis control Germany from

1933-1945 and the tactics they used to maintain
control
 Life in Nazi Germany

There is no room for Rival parties & political

opposition of any kind
02 debates were non-
in Nazi Germany. existent

01 03
The aim was to create a Ordinary citizens must
Totalitarian state. divert their whole energy
into serving the state and
04 doing what its leaders
want.
 Key Questions & Learning Outcomes Guide
How did the Nazis use
culture and the mass media to
control the people?
05
04
Why did the Nazis persecute
many groups in German
society?
How much opposition was
there to the Nazi Regime?
01
02 How effectively did the
Nazis deal with their political
opponents?
03
Was Nazi Germany a
totalitarian state?
What sort of Germany did
Hitler want to create?
● A strong Germany - Hitler blamed Germany's
problems on weak leadership of the past.
● The Kaiser days – Hitler wanted to rule Germany
as how the Kaisers of old did.
● He wanted Germans ready for war & who were
able to restore Germany's military pride.
 Support for a Strong Germany

Elderly - it reminds
them of the old 01
Germany.
02 Army - it creates a
strong military.

03
Middle Class - it creates a
stable Germany.
Opposition to a Strong Germany

01 The political opponents and the

Communists.

02 The Young - dislike having their lives

under strict control.
A racially pure Germany

01 Hitler wanted to remove Jewish people and other non-Aryans

from any position of leadership to promote Aryan Supremacy
and pave the way for the next step in human evolution.

02 Hitler believed in Aryan supremacy and blamed the Jewish

people for many of Germany's problems. Germans were
taught in school about the 'Aryan' looking people. Hence, very
young Germans supported Aryan supremacy.
 Which groups did Hitler persecute?

• Jews, Gypsies, black people. Slavic people, such as those from I hate
Poland and Russia, were targeted because they lived in areas everyone
needed for German expansion. equally
<3
• The Nazis wanted to ‘improve’ the genetic make-up of the
population and so persecuted people they deemed to be disabled,
either mentally or physically, as well as gay people.

• Political opponents as well as those whose religious beliefs

conflicted with Nazi ideology, such as Jehovah’s Witnesses, were
also targeted for persecution.
 Fun Fact

• Did you know that Gypsies received their

name by accident?

• Gypsies are actually a nomadic group from

North India.

• However, they look similar to Egyptians

and were mislabeled by the Europeans

• Do you know any other names that are a

result of mislabeling/overgeneralization?
Opposition to a Racially Pure
Germany

01 Families - many have Jewish relatives.

02 Teenagers - they have friends that are now

'Undesirables'.
A people's community
(Volksgemeinschaft)

01 In the Volk, people would see their contribution

to Germany as more important than their own
fulfillment.

02 The Nazis wanted people to give their hearts and

minds to Hitler, and in return, they would be
compensated for compliance.
The word “Volk” seems familiar doesn’t it?
The connection between the Nazis and famous
automobile companies has been well documented.
In May 1937, Adolf Hitler's party founded a state-
owned company that was later named Volkswagen, or
'The People's Car Company’.
Hitler himself asked Ferdinand Porsche, founder of the
Porsche car company, to design it.
Who supported Volksgemeinschaft
(a People's Community)

01 Families - they were given more money &

allowances under Volksgemeinschaft policies.

02 Members and family of the Party - Nazi gets

increased control.
Opposition to a People's Community

● The church - Church activities were taken over by the Nazis.

● Working class - many traditional societies and clubs were taken over.
 Back to this:
How did the Nazis use
culture and the mass media to
control the people?
05
04
Why did the Nazis persecute
many groups in German
society?
How much opposition was
there to the Nazi Regime?
01
02 How effectively did the
Nazis deal with their political
opponents?
03
Was Nazi Germany a
totalitarian state?