Scribd
Upload
21 views1 page

Nazi Racial Ideology and the Holocaust

Between 1933 and 1945, six million Jews were killed in Europe due to Nazi racial policies, culminating in the Holocaust, which targeted Jews and other groups deemed inferior. Adolf Hitler rose to power in Germany, establishing a dictatorship and promoting the idea of the Aryan race as the 'master race' while systematically eliminating perceived threats. Nazi ideology emphasized racial purity and portrayed Jews as the primary danger to Aryan supremacy.

Uploaded by

dikehope040
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
21 views1 page

Nazi Racial Ideology and the Holocaust

Between 1933 and 1945, six million Jews were killed in Europe due to Nazi racial policies, culminating in the Holocaust, which targeted Jews and other groups deemed inferior. Adolf Hitler rose to power in Germany, establishing a dictatorship and promoting the idea of the Aryan race as the 'master race' while systematically eliminating perceived threats. Nazi ideology emphasized racial purity and portrayed Jews as the primary danger to Aryan supremacy.

Uploaded by

dikehope040
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

TOPIC 3: IDEAS OF RACE

CASE STUDY: NAZI GERMANY AND THE HOLOCAUST

BACKGROUND

In 1933 there were approximately nine million Jews living in Europe, however between 1933
and 1945, six million Jews had been killed due to Nazi racial policies.
This killing began in Germany in 1933 under Adolf Hitler’s Nazi government but intensified
during WW2 when Nazi Germany took control of twenty-one European countries.
By 1941, the Nazis had decided to murder every Jewish man, woman and child in Europe. They
were targeted because of their so-called racial characteristics. This deliberate, systematic and
planned murder of the Jews of Europe is known as the Holocaust.
The Nazis also targeted the following individuals or groups believing them to be inferior:
Mentally and physically disabled people
“Black” people or dark skinned German people
Homosexuals
Slaves
Gypsies- Roma and Sinti

HITLERS’S CONSOLIDATION OF POWER ( Source-based)

Germany was defeated during WW1 and this led to feelings of bitterness. After the war, Adolf
Hitler and the Nazi Party became increasingly popular.
On 30 January Hitler was appointed to be the Prime Minister of Germany by Hindenburg
(President at that time).
At this time, Hitler was not in total control of Germany, because he only had three Nazis in the
cabinet.
However, over the next eighteen months, Hitler removed the main opposition to his
government and laid the foundations of his Dictatorship. (A form of government characterized
by the rule of one person or a group of people who have absolute power).
In August 1934, president Hindenburg died and the offices of the president and Prime minister
were combined. Hitler was called Fuhrer (leader) and His dictatorship was complete.

NAZI RACIAL IDEOLOGY (Source-based) What race was considered “perfect” in Nazi Germany?

Hitler and the Nazis identified Germans as members of the “Aryan” race. According to the Nazis,
Aryans were at the top of the racial hierarchy. This is why the Nazis referred to German Aryans
as the “master race.”
The Nazis idealized Aryans as blonde, blue-eyed, athletic, and tall. Nazi propaganda posters,
photographs, and films showed people who fit this ideal. However, many people whom the
Nazis considered to be Aryan Germans did not look like this. For example, Adolf Hitler had
brown hair and was average height. The Nazis did not persecute or murder people solely based
on hair or eye-color.
The Nazis believed that they had to protect Germans from inferior races. To stay strong, they
thought they had to remain racially pure. To Hitler and the Nazis, Jewish people were the
biggest threat to the Aryan race.

You might also like