Unit 3: Nazi Germany and the

Holocaust

Unit 3 Overview

5 weeks (now through 12/11) Major topics

The Weimar Republic and its failings Hitler’s rise to power Nazi ideology and laws The Holocaust

Assessments DBQ: The Weimar Republic Nazi Germany paper (week after Thanksgiving) Some quizzes, of course

A fact to ponder: Adolf Hitler came to power legally and

democratically

The End of the First World War

1914-1918 Central Powers (Germany, Austria-

Hungary, Ottoman Empire) defeated by Allied Powers (France, United Kingdom, Russia, US)

Effects on Germany 2.5 million dead Political turmoil Psychological shock

Review: World War I

July 1918: US troops arrive

in France October 1918: Germany

requests an armistice based on Fourteen Points

November 10: Kaiser Wilhelm abdicates

Armistice signed November 11

The End of the War

How should Germany be governed after WWI? How should the Allies make peace with Germany?

Two Questions

Woodrow Wilson (USA) wants fair treatment, self-determination, and a League of Nations

The other Allies (France, UK, Italy) want revenge

Questions for Analyzing the Treaty

of Versailles

1. What is this document saying? (Translate it into plain English)

2. Why might Germans be upset about this document?

Signed June 28, 1919 Treaty ending World War I with Germany Germany was not allowed to negotiate – a diktat

Major provisions Blame – the War Guilt Clause Army – severe limits on Germany’s

military Reparations – Germany owed money

to the Allies Territory – Germany lost 13% of

territory + all colonies

The Treaty of Versailles

“The Allied and Associated Governments affirm and Germany accepts the responsibility of Germany and her allies for causing all the loss and damage to which the Allied and Associated Governments and their nationals have been subjected as a consequence of the war imposed upon them by the aggression of Germany and her allies.”

Blame: The War Guilt Clause

June 28, 1919 (included in Treaty of

Versailles) Blamed Germany for WWI Germans resented this provision Justified demands for huge reparations

Blame: The War Guilt Clause

Germany’s army and

navy severely restricted

Germans worried about external threats

Left many Germans unemployed

Freikorps – unofficial anti-Communist armies

Army: Restrictions on the Military

Dolchstoßlegende

– “stab in the back” myth

Traitors (possibly Jews!) stopped Germany from winning WWI

Gave Germans an outlet for frustration

And Now, a Fancy German Word

Germany forced to pay back massive amounts

of reparations to Britain and France Britain and France needed reparations to pay

back wartime loans from the US Total:

Initially $63 billion ($768 billion in 2010 money) Later reduced to $33 billion ($402 billion in

2010 money) Last payment made October 3, 2010

Reparations

Germany lost territory in Europe Also lost all its colonies Total losses:

13% of European territory 10% of population (about 6.5 million

people) Lots of Germans suddenly living in

other countries

Territory

German Territorial Losses after WWI

A fact to ponder (again):

Adolf Hitler came to power legally and

democratically