Anti-Semitism The Treatment of Jews

Filth. Scum. By-products of dirt and vileness Filth! Scum! By-products of dirt and vileness! Half breeds, mutants, freaks, begone from this place! How dare you befoul the house of my fathers.’

Master Race Hitler told the German people they were descended from the Aryan Race- a master race of people recognised by their blonde hair and blue eyes. It was therefore crucial that the Germans keep their race pure. Any impure elements had to be eliminated.

Keeping the blood pure The German race could only be kept pure if Germans only had children with other pure blooded people. For this reason it was crucial to control the youth and teach them only to breed with other pure blooded Germans.

Jews The race deemed to be most inferior were the Jews. Hitler blamed them for all of German’s troubles, including Germany’s defeat in WWI and the economic troubles and hyperinflation of the 1920s.

Why Hate the Jews? Children were taught the Jews wanted to destroy Nazi Germany. They were money grabbing and an evil influence on children http://research.calvin.edu/german-propaganda-archive/story2.htm

Jews were also demonised.

Anti Semitic Propaganda Nazis used films to get across their anti Semitic message. This poster was produced for the film ‘The Eternal Jew’ which was shown in cinemas across Germany.

Posters In all anti-semitic propaganda Jews were always portrayed as stupid and ugly. This poster shows ugly Jews being forced out of German schools.

Posters Jews were also portrayed as a threat to a pure Germany. "The Jewish spirit undermines the healthy powers of the German people."

Posters Jews were also portrayed as Communists, money grabbing and a threat to Germany’s financial security.

Chronology of Persecution

Life for Jews in Nazi Germany As soon as the Nazis came into power they began to attack the Jews. Use the information on the following slides to construct a timeline of the persecution faced by Jews. Include the month (where you can), year and describe what happened.

April 1st 1933 The persecution begins The campaign started on April 1st 1933 when a one day boycott of Jewish owned shops took place. Brownshirts stood outside Jewish shops to make sure the boycott was successful.

Also throughout 1933 Jews were also stopped from being civil servants and lawyers. Many shops and restaurants refused to serve Jews. Jews were banned from public swimming pools, and public parks.

The Nuremberg Laws 15th September 1935 A series of laws were passed to “Protect German Blood and German Honour”. They included: Banning marriage between Germans and Jews Banning sex between German and Jews

Continued Removing Jewish citizenship (which took away their passports and official papers) Jews were now required to carry a special identity paper with a large J for Jude printed over their personal details. Jewish Doctors were not allowed to treat German patients https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWP2GKeQDco

Kristallnacht: Crystal Night November 1938 9th-10th November https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ph3yRmsZRRQ (Steve Berkoff, 10 mins) A young Jewish student walked into the German Embassy in Paris and killed the first German official he saw in November 1938- Ernst von Rath. He wanted to take revenge for the way his family had been treated in Germany. The Nazis took advantage of this and used it as an excuse to attack all Jews living in Germany.

What happened? On the nights of the 9-10 November 1938 an organised attack on Jews across Germany took place. So much glass was broken it became known as Kristallnacht, or the night of the broken glass. All across Germany Jewish property and synagogues were attacked. Over 7500 Jewish shops were destroyed and 400 synagogues burned down. 91 Jews were killed and around 20,000 sent to various concentration camps.

More than 10,000 Jews were sent to Buchenwald concentration camp.

Watch! In this interview with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Holocaust survivor Susan (Strauss) Taube shares her memories of Kristallnacht, the November 1938 pogroms. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUiEBQ2ga4U

Was it organised? NO! Goebbels wrote in a Nazi newspaper on the 12th November that “the outbreak of fury by people on the 9-10th November was neither organised or prepared, but it broke out spontaneously.” YES! Orders signed on the 9th November 1938 stated: “Synagogues had to be burned down only when there was no danger of fire in neighbouring buildings. Businesses and apartments belonging to Jews could be destroyed but not looted. Demonstrations are not to stopped by the police. Jews in all districts, especially the rich to be arrested.”

Aftermath In the aftermath of Kristallnacht, the Nazis blamed the Jews and fined them 1 billion marks (or $400 million in 1938 dollars) for vom Rath's death. As repayment, the government seized Jewish property and kept insurance money owed to Jewish people. Over 100,000 Jews fled Germany for other countries after Kristallnacht. More would have left but they weren’t able to take any money or possessions with them and were afraid to start a new life elsewhere with nothing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDIXugTLGts

Practice exam questions Describe the persecution carried out against Jews between 1933-39. (4 marks)

Source A was written in the German city of Leipzig in November 1938 In one of the Jewish areas of the town an 18 year old boy was hurled from a three storey window to land with both legs broken on a street littered with broken beds. The main streets of the city were a positive litter of shattered plate glass. All of the synagogues were gutted by flames. No attempts on the part of the fire brigade were made to extinguish the fire. Many male Germans have been sent to concentration camps. How fully does the source show anti-Semitic persecution in Nazi Germany? (6 marks)