Life in Nazi Germany, 1933-1939: Employment, Living Standards and the Persecution of Minorities
Nazi economic and social policy between 1933 and 1939 combined real improvements for many 'ordinary' Germans with the systematic persecution of groups the regime defined as outsiders. Unemployment, which had reached close to six million during the Depression, fell sharply as the regime introduced the National Labour Service (RAD), began major public works such as building the autobahns, and drove rapid rearmament; official unemployment figures also fell partly because Jews, married women and political prisoners were removed from the statistics. The Strength Through Joy (Kraft durch Freude) scheme offered workers affordable holidays, concerts and leisure activities to build loyalty to the regime. At the same time, the Nazis persecuted groups they saw as racially or socially unacceptable. Jewish people faced an organised boycott of their businesses from April 1933, the Nuremberg Laws of September 1935, which stripped them of German citizenship and banned marriage or relationships with non-Jewish Germans, and the violence of Kristallnacht in November 1938, when Jewish homes, businesses and synagogues were attacked across Germany. Roma people, disabled people, who faced compulsory sterilisation under a 1933 law, and others labelled 'asocial' by the regime were also targeted.
Before you start
Make sure you're comfortable with these topics first:
Method
- Learn the main employment schemes precisely: the National Labour Service (RAD), major public works such as the autobahns, and rearmament, all of which created jobs and reduced official unemployment through the mid-to-late 1930s.
- Learn why 'falling unemployment' figures need careful handling: official statistics fell partly because groups such as Jews, married women encouraged to leave work, and political prisoners were removed from the count, not only because new jobs were genuinely created.
- Learn what Strength Through Joy (Kraft durch Freude) offered and why: affordable holidays, concerts, sport and leisure activities for workers, designed to build loyalty to the regime by improving everyday life, not just wages.
- Learn the persecution of Jewish people as a sequence of escalating steps: the boycott of Jewish businesses (April 1933), the Nuremberg Laws stripping citizenship and banning intermarriage (September 1935), and the violence of Kristallnacht, when Jewish homes, businesses and synagogues were attacked across Germany (November 1938).
- Learn at least one other persecuted group by name: Roma people, disabled people, who faced compulsory sterilisation under a 1933 law, or those the regime labelled 'asocial', such as the long-term unemployed or homeless.
- For a 4-mark 'give two things you can infer' question, look carefully at whether the source concerns economic improvement for 'ordinary' Germans or persecution of a targeted minority, since the question could focus on either.
- For a 12-mark 'explain why' question on unemployment, treat genuine job creation (RAD, public works, rearmament) and statistical manipulation (removing certain groups from the count) as separate, linked reasons for the fall.
Worked example
Explain why official unemployment figures fell so sharply in Nazi Germany between 1933 and 1939.
- Identify the starting point: unemployment had reached close to six million during the Depression, giving the Nazis a clear problem to solve and a clear achievement to publicise if they succeeded.
- Explain the genuine job creation with detail: the National Labour Service (RAD) put young men to work on public projects, major public works such as building the autobahns created large numbers of construction jobs, and rapid rearmament from the mid-1930s created huge demand in heavy industry and armaments factories.
- Explain the statistical side with detail: official figures also fell because certain groups were removed from the count altogether, including Jews dismissed from jobs, married women encouraged or pressured to leave paid work, and political prisoners held in concentration camps.
- Weigh the two explanations: genuine new jobs did exist and were real, but the headline fall in unemployment was larger and faster than job creation alone can explain, showing the regime's statistics were also being shaped for propaganda purposes.
- Conclude with a balanced statement: unemployment fell for a real combination of genuine economic policy and the regime's willingness to manipulate how 'unemployment' itself was defined and counted.
Practice questions
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Q1What was the National Labour Service (RAD)?Show answer
Answer: A Nazi scheme that put young men to work on public projects, helping to reduce unemployment.
Q2Give one major public works project associated with reducing unemployment in Nazi Germany.Show answer
Answer: The building of the autobahns (motorways).
Q3What did the Strength Through Joy (Kraft durch Freude) scheme offer German workers?Show answer
Answer: Affordable holidays, concerts, sport and other leisure activities, designed to build loyalty to the regime.
Q4What happened to Jewish businesses in Germany from April 1933?Show answer
Answer: They faced an organised boycott, with Nazi supporters standing outside stores to discourage customers from entering.
Q5What did the Nuremberg Laws of September 1935 do?Show answer
Answer: They stripped Jewish people of German citizenship and banned marriage or sexual relationships between Jews and non-Jewish Germans.
Q6What happened during Kristallnacht in November 1938?Show answer
Answer: Jewish homes, businesses and synagogues were attacked and destroyed across Germany, and many Jewish people were arrested or killed.
Q7Give one group, other than Jewish people, persecuted by the Nazi regime in this period.Show answer
Answer: Roma people (or disabled people, who faced compulsory sterilisation under a 1933 law, or those labelled 'asocial').
Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a GCSE History exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
Study Source A. Source A: from the account of a Jewish shopkeeper in Berlin, describing April 1933. 'Two men in uniform stood outside my door from early morning, holding a sign that told customers not to buy from a Jewish business. Several people I had served for years crossed the street rather than meet my eye, though one old customer pushed past the men and bought her bread as usual, giving me a small nod as she left.' Give two things you can infer from Source A about the boycott of Jewish businesses in 1933. Complete the table below. Inference 1: Detail in the source that tells you this: Inference 2: Detail in the source that tells you this:
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Explain why unemployment fell in Nazi Germany between 1933 and 1939.
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Study Sources B and C. Source B: text from the official announcement of the Nuremberg Laws, September 1935. 'A Jew cannot be a citizen of the Reich. Marriage and sexual relations between Jews and citizens of German or related blood are hereby forbidden. Those who violate this law will be punished.' Source C: an extract from a Kraft durch Freude holiday brochure, 1937, aimed at German factory workers. 'For a modest fare, deducted gradually from your wages, you and your family can enjoy a week by the sea aboard one of our purpose-built holiday ships, or a mountain hiking tour with fellow German workers.' How useful are Sources B and C for an enquiry into the experiences of different groups living in Nazi Germany in the years 1933 to 1939? Explain your answer using Sources B and C and your contextual knowledge.
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