Our year 9 students have been working on their own First World War recruitment posters, looking at the various messages that were used to encourage men to sign up for the army. Here are some of their designs.
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Encyclopaedia Entry
ReplyDeleteWhat did Hitler do in Germany from 1933 to 1939?
When Hitler was elected in 1933, Germany was in a deep economic depression. At the time seven million people were unemployed and many lived in poverty. Germany was a democracy and voted in Hitler and the Nazi party. Hitler was seen as the saviour of Germany and many Germans believed he would solve all of their problems.
After the war Germany was a wreck and many people found it hard to live. They needed help, and fast. Hitler seemed like the answer to their prayers. He promised to make Germany great again. In just two years, of being the leader he had reduced unemployment to just 2 million. By 1939 he had eradicated it completely. During his time as ruler, he rebuilt Berlin and created motorways connecting the country together. Crime was reduced significantly, it was practically non-existent. He created a work ethic. Young people were encouraged to work; just like their parents. No-one dropped litter. Everyone worked. Life seemed good in Germany.
But all was not as it seemed. Behind closed doors, Germany was awash with violence, prejudice and hatred. The young people were encouraged not to work but to become soldiers. Hitler was preparing for war; he believed the war was unfinished business. He was slowly turning Germany into a dictatorship.
People lived in fear. If you were someone Hitler didn’t like you were at risk of being taken away by Hitler’s personal army, the vicious “brownshirts”. Those who didn’t obey were sent away to be “re-educated” at concentration camps. Even those who did obey, but belonged to certain ethnic groups were imprisoned. Among these groups were gypsies, the mentally ill, homosexuals, the disabled and the most hated of all, the Jews. In concentration camps people were tortured until they agreed to what the Nazi party believed.
He set out to make the public believe what he believed. He set up a propaganda ministry to tell Germans what to think. Everything was controlled by the Nazi party, the cinema to newspapers, and the radio to theatre. Anything that was not approved was not allowed. What was not allowed? Everything that made the Party and Hitler look bad. One such incident was the night of the long knives. On a single night June 30th 1934, over 400 high Nazis and brownshirts were murdered at Hitler’s command. They did not report this; they mentioned instead a small disagreement that had been dealt with. His propaganda also made people believe that the Jews were evil and the cause of Germany’s problems. They re-wrote all the books. Everything Hitler said was law.
Germany became highly sexist. Women were made to focus on having children and running a household. When Hitler came to power women were stripped of their jobs and their freedom. It was seen as their duty to have at least four children. If they didn’t they were made to. Everyone who wanted to work had to be a Nazi if they weren’t they were sacked. Only members of the Nazi party could be doctors or lawyers.
Hitler did improve Germany in some respects, but he also made it a very hard place to live. In many cases, for many people it was easier to just keep their heads down and get on with their lives instead of protesting and causing trouble. What Hitler created was a superpower and he controlled all of it. It was no wonder that in 1939, just 6 years after his election, Germany declared war and began fighting for supremacy.
By Elizabeth Warnock and Katy Connelly.