women

• in Weimar women 20+ given vote, by 1933 1/10 of people in Reichstag women, careers ion civil service, law and medicine allowed and more young women went out drinking
• by 1933 100,000 female teachers and 3000 doctors
• aims of Nazi's: increase German births, improve welfare, reduce female employment, reduce education and increase women organisations
• Increase Birth s (IB)- 1933 marriage loans of 600 RM, 1/4 given as gift for each child. improved maternity services, Honour cross of German motherhood 'donating children to the Fuhrer' bronze= 4 kids, silver=6, gold= 8
• IB- high taxes on childless couples, income tax reduced in proportion to number of kids (6 or more paid none), tighter penalties on abortion (made illegal), restrictions on contraception
• IB- Lebensborn (encourage births outside marriage to soldiers or SS), divorce made easier and couples cohabiting after marriage illegal and sent to concentration camp
• birth rates rose: 1932= 933,126 by 1937= 1.275 million and by 1939= 1.4 million
• infant mortality rate dropped- 1933= 7.7 % and by 1936= 6.6%
• IB failures- initital increase yet decline in 1939, birth rate did not return to Weimar, Nazi eugenics' policies reduced overall population pool and 1933 sterilisation laws killed 320,000 peopled from 1933-45
• Improved welfare (IW)- improved maternity services, recuperation homes, improved childcare facilities e.g., harvest kindergarten (children help out with harvest), distribution of milk and groceries, NSV (national socialist welfare organisation)
• success of IW- drop in IMR and rise in women in recuperation homes '
• failures of IW- many women in hard labour jobs after 1937 and sterilisation programme
• Reduced employment (RE)- 1933 marriage loans extended to women, october 1933 men preference in civil service, labour exchanges (job centres) discriminate against womeb, laws restricting number of hours women could work, women in civil service or medicine dismissed
• success of RE- female employment fell 1932= 37% and fell to 31% in 1937
• failures of RE- 1937 marriage loans extended to women in work, 1937-9 female employment rose from 5.7 million to 7.1, 1942 52% of workforce women and 1939 end of marriage loan scheme, 1943 women 17-45 register for 'state allocated work' and 1944 65% of agricultural workforce women (men at war)
• reduced education (E)- january 1934 limitations to girls as 10% in proportion of males in higher education and 1937 abolished grammer school education for girls and Latin which was requirement for uni
• success of E- girls educated for 'proper role' in society
• Failures of E- demand for educated workers grew
• women's organisations (WO)- Jung madel (10-14yr girls), league of German maidens (14-18yr), Glaube Und schonheit (faith and beauty) 18-21, NSF (natiional socialist women's organisations), DFW (German women enterprise), RAD +DAF women's sections and NSV (welfare
• success of IO- increased female participation, BDM= 1.5 million in 1939 and Jung Madel= 1.9 million in 1939
• failures of IO- not all women joined
• contradictions: demands for Hitler youth took away from family, divorce, sterilisation and euthenasia created anger in catholic, Lebensborn contrasted 'ideal family life' and economic need for full workforce yet women at home