2.3.5 Problems of De-Nazification

• The Allies disagreed on how de-Nazification should address the millions of minor individuals involved in the Nazi regime. The Soviet Union leaned towards punishment, while the Western Allies leaned towards rehabilitation and embracing democracy
• The Western Allies, with the US eager to expose Nazis, Britain less so, and France indifferent, also became divided. The magnitude of de-Nazification meant that all three countries lost interest in the process
• Investigating every single German civilian would have been impractical. However, the Americans gave out 1,600,000 questionnaires, resulting in 374,000 former Nazis losing their current posts
• Skilled Technocrats Who Did Not Lose Their Jobs:

  1. When Cologne's water supply was damaged, the crimes of 18 out of 21 city-employed specialists under investigation for their Nazi pasts were overlooked
  2. In Bonn, 102 out of 112 doctors were former Nazis, yet their past affiliations were ignored because of their skills
• The Western Allies asked 16 million Germans to complete questionnaires, known as Fragebogen, consisting of 131 questions about their activities during Nazi rule. 3.5 million people were found answerable to charges
• In March 1946, the Western Allies created local tribunals to prosecute those identified in the questionnaires. As many judges were former Nazi party members facing their own investigations, final-year legal students were permitted to participate in the trials
• As the majority of Germans claimed to be anti-Nazis, the Allies found it difficult to distinguish between active and passive supporters of the reigme
• Ultimately, de-Nazification proved to be too difficult for the Allies to implement and they shifted their focus to rebuilding Germany instead