History Semester 2 Final Exam

Know what caused the world economic depression of the 1930s

The three main factors contributing to the severity of the Great Depression were:

-        The over-stimulated economic euphoria of the 1920s.

-        The draconian monetary policy pursued by the Federal Reserve Bank from 1930-1933.

-       The sudden rise of global protectionism leading to the collapse of world trade. The dramatic rise of income taxes in 1932 may have also prolonged the downturn.

Know how many people were unemployed in Germany in 1932.

6 millions people.

    Know what the feelings were of the German people and the world toward the treatment of Germany in the Treaty of Versailles. LAGER

The german people felt pain, angry and unfair toward the treatment of Germany in the Treaty of Versailles.

     Know what the political weaknesses were of the Weimar Republic.

            - Reichstag (parliament) had too many small parties with no party strong enough to get the majority, no government to get its laws passed the reichstag      

            - Article 48 which state in emergency the president did not need the agreement of the reichstag but it did not say what emergency was

      Know what were the economic problems were of the Weimar Republic.

Hiperinflation, rising prices, unemployment

    Know which two sources or groups that produced the most effective propaganda against the Weimar Republic.

Nazi and communist party

 

    Know why the appeal of Hitler and the Nazis increased between 1929 and 1932

Nazi exploited the jobless caused by Great Depression and dissatisfied voters

  Know about Adolf Hitler’s family background: father and mother, siblings and their relationships with Hitler.

Father : Alois Hitler

Mother : Klara Poizi

Siblings : Paula, Alois Jr, Edmund, Ida, Angela, Gustav, Otto

    Know the results of Hitler’s applications to the Academy Of Fine Arts Vienna in 1907 and 1908.

Hitler was twice denied admission to the drawing class for the reason of unfitness in painting.

     Know what happened to Adolf Hitler during WW1.

Hitler had volunteered by enlisitng in Bavarian Regiment. Despite his good record and a total of 5 medals, he remained a corporal because his superior felt he lacked leadership quality

     Know the abbreviations of the different political parties during the periods.

Communist Party (KDP)

Social Democratic Party (SDP)

Catholic Centre Party (BVP)

Nationalist Party (DNVP)

Nazi Party (NSDAP)

      Know when Hitler appointed Chancellor of Germany.

30 January 1933.

      Know Adolf Hitler's title in Nazi germany?

Fuhrer which means leader or guide.

      Know the national German Slogan during the Nazi Regime.

Ein Volk, Ein Reich, Einch Fuhrer.

     Know the BIG 4 under Hitler and their functions in government or military: Heinrich Himmler, Herman Goering, Martin Bormann, Joesef Goebbels.

Heinrich Himmler : Military commander, leading member of Nazi Party

Herman Goering : military leader and leading member of Nazi, found Gestapo in 1933

Martin Bormann : head of party chancellery and private secretary to Adolf Hitler

Joesef Goebbels : German politician and Reich Minister of propaganda in Nazi German

     Know about Kristalnacht.

Kristalnacht was a series of coordinated attacks against Jews throughout Nazi Germany and Austria on 9–10 November 1938, carried out by SA paramilitary forces and non-Jewish civilians. 

     Know about Volksgemeinschaft

A racially unified and hierarchically organized body in which the interests of individuals would be strictly subordinate to those of the nation, or Volk. Like a military battalion, the people’s community would be permanently prepared for war.

     Know about Hitler’s territorial re-acquisitions in the 1930’s (German lands taken during ToV)

Rhineland (demiliterised zone along Rhine River in western Germany, Austria and part of Czechoslovakia.

     Know the general terms of The Treaty of Versailles, especially as to limitations of the German military.

Army – was to be reduced to 100,000 men and no tanks were allowed

Navy – Germany was only allowed 6 ships and no submarines

Airforce – Germany was not allowed an airforce

      Know the reasons and issues concerning the hyper-inflation of 1923

      German printed money to cover the cost. This signalled to the outside world that Germany did not have enough money to pay for her day-to-day needs and whatever money may have been invested in Germany was removed by foreign investors. Such a drop in confidence also caused a crisis Germany itself when prices started to rise to match inflation. Very quickly, things got out of control and what is known as hyperinflation set in. Prices went up quicker than people could spend their money.

      Know how long Hitler envisioned the Third Reich lasting.

1000 years (The fact was it lasted 12 years)

     Know about the Kapp and Beer Hall Putsches.

Kapp Putsches also known as the Kapp-Lüttwitz Putsch, after its leaders Wolfgang Kapp and Walther von Lüttwitz — was a coup attempt in March 1920 aimed at undoing the results of the German Revolution of 1918–1919, overthrowing the Weimar Republic and establishing a right-wing autocratic government. It was supported by parts of the Reichswehr (military) and other conservative, nationalistic and monarchistic forces.

Beer Hall Putsches was a failed attempt by the Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler with  leaders to seize power in Munich, Bavaria, during 8–9 November 1923.

     Know about the SS.

     SS, abbreviation of Schutzstaffel,  (German: “Protective Echelon”), the black-uniformed elite corps of the Nazi Party. Founded by Adolf Hitler in April 1925 as a small personal bodyguard, the SS grew with the success of the Nazi movement and, gathering immense police and military powers, became virtually a state within a state.

     From 1929 until its dissolution in 1945, the SS was headed by Heinrich Himmler, who built up the SS from fewer than 300 members to more than 50,000 by the time the Nazis came to power in 1933. Himmler, a racist fanatic, screened applicants for their supposed physical perfection and racial purity but recruited members from all ranks of German society.

Know about the Polish Corridor issue and the city of Danzig.

The Polish Corridor also known as Danzig Corridor, Corridor to the Sea or Gdańsk Corridor, was a territory located in the region of Pomerelia (Pomeranian Voivodeship, eastern Pomerania, formerly part of West Prussia), which provided the Second Republic of Poland (1920–1939) with access to the Baltic Sea, thus dividing the bulk of Germany from the province of East Prussia. The Free City of Danzig (now the Polish city of Gdańsk) was separate from both Poland and Germany. A similar territory, also occasionally referred to as a corridor, had been connected to the Polish Crown as part of Royal Prussia during the period 1466–1772

      Know about the agreement Hitler had with the Pope on church issues.

     Hitler and the Catholic Church signed an agreement that he would not interfere with the Catholic Church while the Church would not comment on politics.

      Know about the economic recovery programs by the Nazis: SdA, KdF, RAD9

The SdA was set up to improve working conditions for German workers, such as the safety of machinery, the ventilation workshops, noise level and so on. SdA was a subsection of the Kraft durch Freude (KdF = strength through joy) programme organised by Robert Ley who was head of the DAF (German Labour Front). Obviously all of these were to try to ensure the workers as productive as possible.