Opposition to the Nazis

• Going against the Nazis was very difficult once they were in power.
• Political resistance had been smashed.
• Many communists had been rounded up and arrested.
• People were scared to speak out against the Nazis in case they were arrested or worse.
• There were several groups of young people who did go against the Nazis.
• Spies and informers were everywhere.
• Resistance against the Nazis was seen by many to be unpatriotic.
• The Edelweis Pirates
• They angered the Nazis by listening to Jazz music which was from America.
• Many people who did oppose the Nazis were executed.
• The Church
• The Nazis were very worried that the church could be a source of resistance to them.
• It was difficult for protestant groups to go against the Nazis as there were 28 different protestant groups
• Mein Kampf replaced the bible.
• The Nazis tried to set up their own brand of religion.
• The Swastika replaced the cross
• This made it hard for them to work together
• The Catholic Church was seen as being very powerful by the Nazis as it was a ‘World Church’
• Many protestant ministers did hate the Nazis and what they were doing.
• The Nazis signed an agreement with the Catholic Church called the concordat
• In reality many Catholic priests spoke out against the Nazis.
• This was meant to ensure that the Nazis left the Catholic Church alone and the Catholic Church would not criticise the Nazis