Exam #2 Short Answer & Essay
Question 1 & 2
A) Joseph Goebbels was a closest friend of Adolf Hitler and a german politician incharge of propaganda ministry in the Nazi government.
b) Eva Braun was a long time companion of Hitler during the Nazi Germany and she acted as a wife for less than fourty hours.
c) Ernst Röhm was a close friend of Adolf Hitler who co-founded the sturmabteilung a militia party in the Nazi Germany.
d) Magda Goebbels was a close supporter of Adolf Hitler and a wife to one of his closest friend Joseph Goebbels.
e) Heinrich Himmler was a military commander in the Nazi Party in Germany in charge of the Replacement Home Army. He was very much involved in the holocaust.
f) Hermann Göring was a long time member of the Nazi party, a military leader and a German politician. He was a veteran of the First World War where he operated as a pilot during the coveted Blue Max operation (Van, 18).
Question 3
The Weimar Republic was created after the First World War and it established its own constitution in a small city by name Weimar. It was governed by a presidential system and it never supported the work of the Germany during the great depression and its play on political extremists. The republic was seen as a support of other countries during the war and thus could pose a lot of danger for German. The Weimar Republic signed a treaty which it never honored with German and it led to a conflict with Germany. People had no faith in the location of the country as it was seen to cooperate with other rivals of German during the war (Medawar & David, 68).
Question 4
In the years before World War II Adolph Hitler broke the terms of the Treaty of Versailles several times. Describe two instances and his rationale for doing so.
The treaty limited German’s army size to 100,000. However, Hitler went against the treaty and increased his army to 400,000. Besides, he increased the navy beyond the set limit. Furthermore, creation of the Air Force was seen as defy to the treaty. It was hard for him to adhere to the treaty as it was a barrier to realization of his ambitions. Furthermore, according to the treaty, Germany was required to take responsibility for the war, and Hitler was not ready for this
Question 5 & 6
The Sudeten crisis emerged following the demands of the Sudeten Germans to have a union with Germany on September 7, 1938. Riots were experienced in Sudetenland, western Czechosvakia region occupied by Germans, and Hilter weighed an option of supporting Sudeten Germans. Sude(Medawar & David, 68). He considered using the military forces in the attempt to force Czechs to surrender to the Germans’ demands, which they later did. The Czech gave in to these demands due to lack of support. Later on, Hilter attacked Sudetenland killing the Czechs, Jews and German communists,\.
Question 7
The Nazi –Soviet pact is also known as Non- Aggression Pact. It was signed on August 23, 1939 by representatives from German government and Soviet Union. The pact enabled the Soviet Union to gain influence in Eastern Poland after its attack by the Nazis in 1938. The Soviets did not join in the war against the Germans, and this helped the Germans to successful secure itself from a two front war
Question 8 & 9
The NSDAP (full name) National Socialist German Workers Party was the Nazi German party which fought the communist during the First World War.
The SS was Schutzxtaffel translated to defense corps which assisted Hitler in gaining power. It was a paramilitary wing of the Nazi party.
The Gestapo meant secret State Police in German and it was the official Police during the Nazi Germany.
Question 10
How would you describe the Nazi treatment of the Polish population after the arrival of the Germans in the first days of World War II? Give at least one example.
When German occupied Poland during the beginning of the Second World War it was the culmination of what is today known as Holocaust. This refers to a genocide activity carried out by German soldiers to the polish Jews during the war that sought to wipe out eh whole generation of Jews in Poland. It was an extremist’s move geared towards dealing with Jews. The Nazi treatment involved killing and detention camps operated by Nazi soldiers who took away more than three million Polish Jews (Hesse, 89-91).
Question 11
What was the appeal of Adolph Hitler and the Nazi Party to the German population?
If you wish you can break this down into categories and explain what each saw in Hitler and his message:
Military
The Military (the Wehrmacht) was a defense force constituted by the Nazi government during the 1935 and 1945. The force consisted of the army, navy and the air force in the German controlled region during the Second World War. Hitler used the military to carry out war crimes against his neighbors and those who opposed his rule. The military were the principal propagators of the holocaust in Europe that sought to wipe the Jewish population. Hitler gave his direct commands to his generals who then relayed it to the military to carry out their heinous acts. They were the lead perpetrators of the invasion of Poland where they killed over three million polish Jews.
The Big Industrialists
The messages were geared towards the big industrialists to support the Nazi course. The calls were to cooperate with the Nazi regime and help it fight the Jews and collaborators of the allied powers.
The Small Businessmen
The small businessmen were used to support the course. Hitler’s message towards them sought them to support the National Socialist Platform and not him personally by claiming he was a servant of the people of German.
The Small Farmers
Hitler’s message to small farmers was to increase their production to support the population and lead German out of hunger as most the citizens joined the military. The small farmers were also used to spread propaganda which was driven towards uniting the whole of German. Their actions were directly involved with the war as they were to supply food to the population.
Hitler’s message to the Youth
Adolf Hitler requested the youths to join the National Socialist Platform and support their course. The Youth viewed Hitler as a charismatic leader who had helped unite German and thus the actions of the Nazi government were justified. The youth were used to spread propaganda and they were highly rewarded for their actions which involved joining the army and other state organs to continue with the course. The youth who joined the military were responsible for much of the atrocities committed against Jews. The youth could wear like him just to show their commitment the country (Graham, Frank and Scanlon, 56).
Hitler’s message to the German Women
Hitler message towards the German women involved them to stay at home after he introduced the law of encouragement of marriage. The law sought to promote the role of women in the society as mothers of the nation and thus their work was to take care of the kids and their homestead while serving their husbands. The Nazi used this propaganda to unite Germans form school going children to youths and the adult population to support the course.
Work cited
Graham, Frank D, and J J. Scanlon. Economic Preparation and Conduct of War Under the Nazi Regime. Washington, D.C.: Historical Division, War Dept. Special Staff, 1946. Print.
Hesse, Hans. Persecution and Resistance of Jehovah's Witnesses During the Nazi Regime: 1933 - 1945. Bremen: Ed. Temmen, 2001. Print.
Hostetter, Elisabeth S. The Berlin State Theater Under the Nazi Regime: A Study of the Administration, Key Productions, and Critical Responses from 1933-1944. Lewiston, NY [u.a.: Mellen, 2004. Print.
Medawar, J S, and David Pyke. Hitler's Gift: The True Story of the Scientists Expelled by the Nazi Regime. New York: Arcade Pub, 2000. Print.
Van, Dyke M. Dietrich Bonhoeffer: Opponent of the Nazi Regime. Uhrichsville, Ohio: Barbour, 2001. Print.
