German dictatorship and democracy (1919-1963) key issues

• what was the nature of WW2/total war?

  -civivilian involvement(consciption/war work)-new types ofwarfare(planes and bombing)-economicchanges (nature of production/rationinh/work)-tighter control ofpropoganda(morale is essential)-moreterror/repression-support for regime against a “common enemy”
• how did Germany use rationing?

  -earlyintroduction, more than britain- diet monotonous but 2/5 germans more healthy. meat and dairy limited-clothesandsoaprationed,toilet paper unavailable, hot water 2x a week-declaration of total war,sweet shops closed-people usedblack marketfor goods
• what was the impact of allied bombing on the german people statistically overall


  -overall400,000germans killed,500,000severely injured or disabled,3.6 millionhomes destroyed
• describe the main bombing attacks

  1940 Hamburg-70 raidson the city, next 2 years 137. First bomber raid30th May 1942killed nearly500people,1350,000residents fled,12,500buildings were damaged-in1943the UK and Us agree to increaseair war, the clock bombing of germany-24th julyhamburg causes firestorm,40,000 civilians killed-Dresden 13th-15th Feb 1945-1300heavy bombers killed35,000germans
• what changed in total war economy?

  -1939-41military expidenturedoubled,55%workforce relied on war, consumer goods availability low-Sept 1939 8290planes produced, only increased to10,780in 1941- inefficiency, lack of central control and coordination-The Office Of The Four Year Plan- SS and armed forces wanted quality>quantity- resulted infailure to achieve levels of armament production when USSR invasion-Labour shortage,24.5 million employed 1939down to20.5 million 1940-recruited foreign workers from europe,1939 women= 37% labour force
• explain total war and Albert Speer's impact

  -1941 production shortages, armament production lower than Britain-‘Rationalisation Decree’issued by Hitler December1941to reform economy and eliminate waste-infeb 1942albert speer was appointedminister of armamentsand he implemented‘industrial self responsibility’to ensure mass production-Central Planning BoardestablishedApril 1942, speer introduced 3 policies:1) using conc camp prisoners as workers2) employing women in armament factories3) ending conscription of skilled workers-eliminated professional sport ect-first 6 months,tanksincrease by25%, totalarmsproduction increase by59%

  -could’ve been more but speer had impact of allied bombing, SS exploiting land ect
• what was the impact on jewish people off occupation of land in the East

  -1939occupation of poland caused3 million jewsunder nazi control-war made jewish resettlement difficult, and the ghettos in warsaw and krakow-byspring 1942,500,000jews murdered by SS
• explain the end of resettlement within the "final solution"

  functionalist opinion— extermination likely after defeat became likely, intentionalist opinion- hitler committed for a long time

  -when it became clear war wirh USSR would not end fast,resettlement became impossible-Wannsee Conference Jan 1942agreed to conscript jewish people into labour gangs, expecting many to die-1942conc camps converted intoextermination camps, most immediately killed, or made to work until they couldn’t-overall6 millionkilled,4000 survived
• what was opposition like during WW2?

  -Nazi Youth supportdecreasedand people joinedSY or EPinstead.-white rosein Munich made leaflets, however were caught and executed-Bonhoefferinvolved in plot to assassinate Hitler, arrested and hung in Oct 1942-opposition inarmy.winter 1942/3 andKreisau Circlewas formed- significant opposition because members were influential-army began toplot against Hitlerwith individuals such as Ludwig Beck-July Bomb Plotattempt to assassinate Hitler, he used it toarrest 7000opponents, nearly5000killed
• what are the reasons for lack of resistance?

  -it was unpopular and treacherous

  -repression of regimes, eg Gestapo

  -acceptance of Germans??

  -too divided
• name and describe 5 impacts of WW2 on the German people

  STUNDE NULLE-‘zero hour’- germanys collapse and desperation-however, still efficient civil service, local gov ectFORCED LABOUR-1939Stalin proposed millions of germans torebuildUSSR,111,000worked in slave labour conditions-USSR invasion on East,150,000germans sent to work in USSR- overall271000and200,000returnedNUREMBERG TRAILS-nazi accused of crimesREFUGEES-atYaltait was agreed thatPoles and Czechscould remove germans- half a million killed-1 in 2germans on the move,12 million from east,10 million from camps, 12 million prisoners of warDESTRUCTION-last 2 weeks of war,40,000 tonnesof soviet artillery shells on Berlin left20 million homeless,2/3of men born in 1918 dead by 1945-may 1945, million livestock killed, rural populations abandoned farms, 1945950-1100calories a day
• What caused the breakdown of the Grand Alliance?

  Yalta- 4th-11th feb 1945, Stalin, Roosevelt, Churchill- attempted plans for peace and occupationPotsdam- July-Aug, 4 Ds, decided on: 4 zones, Alsace and Lorraine given back to France, 1/4 territory lost, USSR take 1/4 of reparationsCurrency Reform- In US 1945, made Military mark, USSR printed too much so lost value. 20th June 1948, Erhard makes Deutschmark , but soviets refuse and make their ownBerlin Blockade- June 1948-May 1949, soviets blocked access to west berlin, allies made airlift to fly food, medical supplies, fuels, 16th april 1949, plane landed every minute, overall 394,509 tons and 279,000 flights