March 22nd, 2013

CW 8.7: Totalitarian Germany

Page 1

Do First (3 minutes) and Share Out (2 minutes)

Describe the Great Depression, its causes and effects.
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Lesson Overview (1 minute)

Objective: SWBAT synthesize the causes of the rise of totalitarianism in Germany after WWI.
Mastery: Today, all you have to do is complete the packet.
Agenda:

Do First (5 minutes)
Lesson Overview (1 minute)
Key Ideas (2 minutes)
Reading: Overview of Totalitarian Germany (6 minutes)
Reading: The Rise of Hitler (6 minutes)
Reading: Hitler in Power (6 minutes)
COMPLETE ALL OF YOUR WORK FROM PREVIOUS DAYS

IF YOU NEED TO FINISH PACKETS FROM PREVIOUS DAYS, DO IT

TODAY!!!!
Key Ideas (4 minutes)
1. Germany experienced an economic crisis after WWI
2. Hitler promised to fix this crisis, the people supported
him, and as a result, he was able to take power
3. Shortly after Hitler took total control of Germany, he
invaded Poland, starting WWII.

March 22nd, 2013

Part I: Overview of Totalitarian Germany

CW 8.7: Totalitarian Germany

Page 2

By the end of World War I, Germany's ability to feed its own populace was essentially cut in half. Its industries
were being dismantled, and trade with other countries on which it depended was being curtailed severely. In a
very short period of time, many Germans would be facing starvation.
The United States made loans to Germany that helped Germany's economy recover somewhat. However, the
U.S. stock market crash of 1929 sent the United States into the worst depression in its history. The collapse of
the U.S. economy had a domino effect. Other countries saw their economies impacted, especially the weaker
economies of Germany and Italy. Beginning in 1929, the situation in Germany deteriorated beyond anyone's
worst nightmare. Many Germans totally lost faith in the government's ability to take care of its citizens. They
wanted to improve their lives, to have enough food, and to lead lives with some security. Desperation was
widespread and in knowledgeable hands, could be used to manipulate an entire country. Adolf Hitler believed
he had those hands, and to humanity's everlasting sorrow, it turned out that he did.
1. What was life like in Germany after WWI?
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2. What caused the Germans to end up in this situation?

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3. Which of our Unit Essential Questions (on the poster at the front) might the above information answer?
Explain your answer.
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March 22nd, 2013

CW 8.7: Totalitarian Germany

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Part II: The Rise of Hitler

As leader of the Nazi Party, Hitler promised the German people relief. To the unemployed workers, he
promised jobs and to the farmers, a market for their goods. Soldiers heard him speak stirringly of the
"Fatherland," where a person could hold up his or her head and be proud to be a citizen. A talented speaker,
Hitler, along with his cohorts, appealed to the people's emotions rather than their reason. He painted a
picture of a revived and strong Germany and played on the spirit of nationalism. Each despairing group of
people heard what it wanted to hear and ignored the undercurrents of violence and hate on which the Nazi
message was carried. According to Hitler, the problems the German people faced could be laid at the door of
specific groups of people. Those groups were "corrupt" politicians, communists, and Jews. Rid Germany of
those undesirables, and all would be well. Germany could once again become the mighty nation it once was.
The Nazi rise to power was not uncontested. Many protested Hitler's reasoning, finding the holes in his
arguments and placing the blame on him for Germany's troubles. Unfortunately, those who disagreed openly
with Hitler found themselves faced with violence, and many were forced to flee the country to save their lives,
leaving everything behind. The well-organized Nazi Party skillfully spread its message and persuaded more and
more people that Hitler was the answer to Germany's problems.
By January 1933, 6.1 million people were unemployed in Germany. That same month, Hitler became
chancellor of Germany and proceeded to solidify the position of the Nazi Party. In August 1934, Germany's
president Paul von Hindenburg died, and Hitler seized total power as a right-wing dictator, forcing the leaders
of all the military branches to swear oaths of loyalty to him.

1. Describe the series of events that led Germans to support Hitler and the Nazi party.
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2. Why were Germans so willing to accept Hitlers leadership?

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March 22nd, 2013

CW 8.7: Totalitarian Germany

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Part III: Hitler in Power

As the leader of Germany, Hitler expanded his country's military industry. Although that expansion violated
the Versailles Treaty, it did revive Germany's devastated economyand strengthened its military. In 1936,
German troops occupied the Rhineland and restored it to Germany. In 1938, Hitler annexed Austria to
Germany. The next year, at the Munich Conference, Great Britain and France agreed to let him annex the
Sudetenland, part of Czechoslovakia. However, as his expansionist policy grew, Hitler decided to annex all of
Czechoslovakia instead and did so. In 1939, only five years after Hitler gained power, Germany invaded Poland
and set off World War II.

1. What did effect Hitlers rise to power have on Europe and the rest of the world?
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2. One of our Unit Essential Questions asked, How should the victor treat the defeated? How was Germany treated
after WWI? What was the effect of this treatment?

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