Hitler

Blitzkrieg

"Lightning War" was an efficient military tactic in which Germany would bomb it's enemies and invade super fast to achieve victory quickly. This worked in many countries, especially France.

Reichstag

A building in Berlin, that is the meeting place of the Bundestag (Federal Assembly), the lower house of Germany's national legislature.

Wannsee Conference

This is the conference where high-ranking Nazi and German people in government and parties met to discuss the "Final Solution of the Jewish Question." They figured out most detail to this plan there.

Munich Agreement (1938)

This was the agreement between Germany, great Britain, France, Italy to allow German annexation of the Sudetenland.

Hitler Youth

A group used to indoctrinate children with Nazi ideals in the hope of raising an obedient citizen.

Munich Crisis

Yet another factor leading to the beginning of WWII, it began when Nazi Germany demanded the annexation of the Sudetenland (Czech territory at German border), arguing that the citizens within the territory were "Germanic." Furthermore, the area was strategic with regards to its mountainous terrain and numerous Czechoslovakian military defenses.

Beer Hall Putsch

An insurrection that Hitler led with his nazi party against the Weimar Republic. Hitler marched into a right-winged beer hall and gained supporters of status then attempted his coup, however, he was swiftly defeated and given a 5 year sentence for treason. He actually only served 8 months where he wrote Mein Kampf.

Brownshirts

Another name for the SA or Storm Troopers

Third Reich

Another name of the Nazi regime in Germany.

Parliamentary System

Where there is three Branches of Government: Legislative who is elected by the people Executive (Prime Minister) who is selected by the Legislative Judicial who is appointed And whose re-elections are unscheduled Requirements for elections every several years Majority party can call for elections if they think they will gain seats If a coalition falls apart the government "dissolves" Election cycle: UK One month

Lebensraum

literally meaning "living space" means the prosperity of a nation relies on its ability to expand its borders. This was misinterpreted by Hitler who used it to justify the expansion of Germany into Eastern Europe.

Authoritarian

A government that favors strict obedience over personal freedom

Totalitarian

A government that wants complete control over the state

Autocracy

A nation led by one person

Factionalism

Being self-interested or partisan (biased)

Paul Von Hindenberg

Field marshal during WWI, he eventually became the second president of Germany of the Weimar Republic. However, due to political instability, economic instability, and the rise of Adolf Hitler, he appointed Hitler Chancellor of Germany in 1933.

Ghettos

First step in separating Jews from the rest of society. They were meant to be temporary. Jewish people in these were killed deported to killing centers, or died from disease or starvation. Large step in the dehumanization of the Jewish people.

Freikorps

German paramilitary units that emerged in the aftermath of WWI made up of ex-soldiers, unemployed youth, and other disgruntled citizens, led by ex-army officers eventually joined Hitler and the nazi movement making them even stronger.

Anschluss

Hitler annexed Austria and installed a Nazi government. Directly means "union."

Volk

Hitler belief that there is a supreme race or "people" that everyone is underneath...this is how the aryan concept arose

Fuhrer

Hitler was an absolute dictator under the title of "Leader" Adolf Hitler was the "leader" of Germany 1934-1945.

Article 48

It gave president Heinrich Bruning (nazi party supporter) the power to dissolve the Reichstag and then later refill the positions with nazi party representatives. Then the Reichstag dissolved the constitution and this gave Hitler justification to assume power as dictator, not president.

Four Year Plan

It was launched in 1936 and was launched with the purpose of promoting economic self-sufficiency and of mobilizing the economy for war.

Gestapo

It was the secret police of Nazi Germany. They used tools of oppression and destruction to persecute opponents of the regime and Jews. It played a large role in the Nazi's "Final Solution."

Saar

Land in the Southwest portion of Germany below the Rhineland, also contains an important river. The Rhineland is to the north.

Right Wing

Less government in economy, more in social (Fascism)

Mixed Economy

Market run by both the people and the government, regulated by government but run by the people.

Julius Streicher

Personal friend to Adolf Hitler, he was known as one of the most infamous leaders in the Nazi regime. Also, a politician who often advocated for anti-semitic values and the creator and editor of anti-semitic weekly. In 1925, was appointed gauleiter (district leader) of Franconia. Near the end of WWI he co-founded the German Nationalist Party, which later merged with the Nazi party.

Joseph Goebbels

Philosopher, he was the minister of propaganda under Hitler's 3rd reich. He was chancellor for a day after Hitler committed suicide until he poisoned his 6 children and his wife and him committed suicide. He is responsible for the nazi party looking so good in germany.

Kristallnacht

The Night of Broken Glass; a pogrom against Jews throughout Nazi Germany and Austria, so named for the broken glass from the smashed windows of Jewish shops. Nazis destroyed around 7,000 Jewish businesses, burned down more than 900 synagogues, killed 91 Jews and deported 30,000 Jewish men to concentration camps.

Privatization

The transfer of ownership of property, business, or assets from a government body to a privately owned entity.

SS (Schutzstaffel)

The black-uniformed elite corps and self prescribed "political leaders" of the nazi party. Was initially for Hitler's protection as bodyguards, but eventually became an immense force of police and military powers. Essentially a state within a state.

Autarky

Economically independent or self-sufficiency

Sphere of Interest

A part of a smaller nation that a bigger nation has political, social, economic, and military control

Aryan

A person of Caucasian European descent who is not Jewish. Preferably with blonde hair & blue eyes

Chancellor

A person of high authority who oversees many functions of government, such as Hitler in 1933.

Coalition Government

A political party needs 50% of the vote (majority) to become the government, if there is no majority, a party needs support by the smaller parties joining with the bigger ones to get a majority

Versailles

A treaty was signed here- it said that Germany got all blame for WWI. Massive reparations were owed, which later, Hitler used to rally the people behind the rejection of the treaty.

Gleichschaltung

A unification of Germany where all other organizations are leveled so that Germany can establish itself under totalitarian control.

SA (Sturmabteilung)

Aka Stormtroopers or Brownshirts were a paramilitary organization of the nazi party known for violent intimidation tactics which were a key role in Adolf Hitler's rise to power.

Economic Determinism

All political and social arrangements are built off of economic relationships

German Labour Front

All workers/employer were supposed to belong to __ (way of gov. regulating production, wages, hours, and activities)

Market Economy

An economy free from government control. The state does not control any part of the market, and there are essentially no structures or limitations on pricing or production. Also called capitalism

Labor Camps

aka Nazi Camps - "Between 1933 and 1945, Nazi Germany established about 20,000 camps to imprison its many millions of victims. These camps were used for a range of purposes including forced-labor camps, transit camps which served as temporary way stations, and killing centers built primarily or exclusively for mass murder." In these camps, the Jews were humiliated and treated extremely poorly. The Nazis got an economic gain from the labor.

Reichstag Fire

Burning of a building in Berlin in 1933, which was widely believed to be a stunt from the nazi party and joseph goebbels to suede public opinion to support the nazi party after Hitler became chancellor and blamed it on the communists.

Command Economy

Government has full control of the economy

Heinrich Himmler

Head of the gestapo (ordered the deaths of millions of people). He was the Chief of police (1936), minister of the interior (1943), minister of home defense (1944)

Mein Kampf

Meaning "My Struggle", Hitler wrote this anti-semitic book while in prison to write down his feelings and beliefs of the supreme race, jews, and politics. This was a big influence in the future of Germany.

Reparations

Money or materials that the loser of a war must pay to the winner such as described in the treaty of versailles.

Left Wing

More government in economy, less in social (Communism)

Incentives

Motivation used to manipulate someone into doing something-Hitler used these in his rise to power. Something that encourages a person to do something or work harder

Holocaust

Negative eugenics; A massive genocide in which over 9 million people, around 6 million of which were Jewish, were murdered by the Nazi regime

Ruhr

North of the Rhineland region of West Germany, it is a massive industrial region and also the name of the river that runs through the region. This was an important area to own during WWII.

Ernst Rohm

One of Hitler's chief army officers of the storm troopers (SA), but was Hitler feared he was competition so ordered his execution

Lebensborn

Positive eugenics; A program in which SS and Wermacht officers were encouraged to have children with Aryan women in an attempt to spur forth a German master-race of Aryan peoples

Popular Sovereignty

Rule of the people; the concept in which government is created and sustained through public opinion and elected officials

Rearming the Rhineland

Since the treaty of Versailles demilitarized parts of the ___, Adolf Hitler rejected those clauses in the treaty and mobilized soldiers to recapture the French-occupied __. Since the __ was such an industrial zone, Hitler then used it for WWII armament manufacturing.

Rule of Law

That individuals, persons and government shall submit to, obey and be regulated by law, and not arbitrary action by an individual or a group of individuals.

Eugenics

The idea that the human race can be perfected by encouraging higher rates of reproduction in people with desired genes, and discouraging (in this case killing) people from reproducing with undesired traits. German physicians conducted 'medical' experiments on Jews in concentration camps.

NSDAP

The nazi party, led by Adolf Hitler, assumed power in 1933 and resumed a totalitarian government until 1945.

Night of Long Knives

The night that Hitler and his followers arrested around 200 Sturm Abteilung (SA) officers; most were shot as soon as they were captured. Hitler did all this because he was afraid that there was some coup forming to overthrow him, and also because he felt threatened by some individuals.

Weimar Republic

The government of Germany from 1919-1933, and so called because the assembly adopted the German Constitution at ___

Nationalization

The process of private assets or industries being taken over and made public by the government

Decentralization

The process of separating and distributing powers/functions away from a group or individual in power (State)

Centralization

The process through which all decision making is made by a central group or individual, localizing power to that central point (Federal)

Ideas/Ideology

The theory or beliefs of a group or political party

Nuremberg Laws

These were the official documents that "legalized" the persecution of Jews. It was in __ where Adolf Hitler and his Nazi Party officially determined that the statuses of "German Jews" was officially "Jews in Germany," which established the framework that eventually led to the Holocaust.

Force/Fear

Using extortion such as scare tactics to get something from someone else