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Research Paper
Holocaust Overview
Karisa Gould
English Composition 102106
Mr. Larry Neuburger
2 April 2012
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The Holocaust is a major event in world history, and it is important that one learns about
this event so history will not repeat itself. Most people are aware of the two to three year period
known as the Holocaust but are unaware of how Adolph Hitler and the Nazi Party were able to
systematically murder almost twelve million people. To truly understand how the Nazis almost
succeeded in wiping out an entire race of people, one needs to understand the series of events
and the methods employed that led up to the Holocaust.
Nazi rise to power
After World War I, The Central Powers were
forced to sign a document called The Treaty of
Versailles, which held Germany accountable for
starting the war. Germany had to make reparations for
all damage done during the war, which sent them into a
depression. According to Thinkquest, Germany was
forced to give up fertile land which comprised almost ten percent of its total holdings, and was
prohibited from ever again organizing a large army. After World War I, Germany was
subjugated and powerless. (The Holocaust: A Tragic Legacy) Germany as a nation was not
prepared for defeat, so their pride was hurt. As a result, fcit.usf says, Those military and
political leaders who were responsible claimed that Germany had been stabbed in the back by
its leftwing politicians, Communists, and Jews (Holocaust Timeline: Rise of Nazi Power). One
could find it understandable that the Germans turned on anyone that was questionable. When a
new government, the Weimar Republic, stepped into office, they had a hard time with regaining
control over the depressed and unruly country.
Adolph Hitler saluting his fellow Nazis.www.google.com
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A man named Adolph Hitler joined a small group of dismissed military in 1919 and
moved up to a leadership position through his motivational speeches. From Thinkquest, He
encouraged national pride, militarism, and a commitment to the Volk and a racially "pure"
Germany. Hitler condemned the Jews, exploiting anti-Semitic feelings that had prevailed in
Europe for centuries (The Holocaust: A Tragic Legacy). Towards the end of the year 1920, this
party had over 3,000 members. A year later, Adolph came to be their official leader, also known
as Fhrer.
According to Thinkquest,
Adolf Hitler's attempt at an armed overthrow of local authorities
in Munich, known as the Beer Hall Putsch, failed miserably. The
Nazi Party seemed doomed to fail and its leaders, including Hitler,
were subsequently jailed and charged with high treason. However,
Hitler used the courtroom at his public trial as a propaganda
platform, ranting for hours against the Weimar government. By the
end of the 24-day trial Hitler had actually gained support for his
courage to act. The right-wing presiding judges sympathized with
Hitler and sentenced him to only five years in prison, with
eligibility for early parole. Hitler was released from prison after
one year (The Holocaust: A Tragic Legacy).
After Hitler was released from prison, he revived the Nazi Party and became almost as if
a Jesus-like figure to the followers in the Nazi Party. He then began planning how to get
involved with Germanys political party. The Conservative military hero Paul von Hindenburg
was elected president in 1925, and Germany stabilized. (The Holocaust: A Tragic Legacy)
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Adolph transformed the Nazis into an electable and well organized party. Hitler hoped to
create a bureaucracy which he envisioned as the germ of the future state(The Holocaust: A
Tragic Legacy). The Nazi Party began to dramatically rise in numbers. From 27,000 members
in 1925, the Party grew to 108,000 in 1929 (the Holocaust: A Tragic Legacy). The paramilitary
part of the party was called the SA, which was known for fighting and panic.
Finally after tedious planning, Hitler ran for government. He ran against Hindenburg,
who ended up winning the campaign. His speeches and elections made his popularity rise
uncontrollably. From Thinkquest, Though Hindenburg disliked Hitler, he had been advised that
Hitler could be kept under control, and so he named him chancellor, an event celebrated across
Germany (The Holocaust: A Tragic Legacy). Hitler then did what all dictators do, forced
everyone out of government who were not a part of the Nazi Party, and took control. All
contrasting parties were expelled, and their front-runners were sent to jail. The Enabling Act of
March 23, 1933 was easily forced through a Reichstag of few political opponents and gave Hitler
dictatorial powers (The Holocaust: A Tragic Legacy).
Anti-Semitism
Prejudice against or hatred of Jewsknown as
anti-Semitismhas plagued the world for more than
2,000 years, states ushmm, (The Holocaust). The initial
Christians thought the Jews were accountable for the
crucifixion of Jesus. According to Yadvashem, They
were portrayed as offspring of the Devil and accused of
the ritual murder of Christian children, yet the Church
prevented their destruction (Confronting Anti-
Jewish man revisits a damaged headstone.
49th-parallel.blogspot.com
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Semitism). This was taught to Catholic and Protestant believers during the first millennium.
Following the Enlightenment, Jewish people in Europe accomplished some rights after several
periods of maltreatment and rejection. Jews were blended into everyday life among others in
Europe, until anti-Semitism emerged once again. This time, Hitler made anti-Semitism well
known and by a mass amount of people.
Nuremberg Laws
On September 15, 1935, two laws were passed that excluded Jews from German life, as
well as taking away some of their natural rights. These were called the Nuremberg Laws. They
were first brought to the Nazi Partys attention by Hitler, and soon after were approved. From
Thenagain, The first law, Reichsburgergesetz (Law of the Reich Citizen), was designed to
deprive Jews of their German citizenship (The Holocaust: A Learning Site for Students).
Anyone without related blood of Germans was no longer considered a citizen of Reich. The
second law, Gesetz zum Schutze des Deutschen Blutes und der Deutschen Ehre (Law for the
Protection of German Blood and German Honor), or
simply Blutschutzgesetz, forbade marriage or sexual
relations between Jews and those of German blood
(The Holocaust: A Learning Site for Students). The
Germans wanted a pure race to cleanse their nation.
They made it clear to Jews that they were not
welcome. There were signs posted all over towns,
and soon Jews were not even able to seek medical attention, go to theaters, or shops. On October
18, 1935, another law was added to Nuremberg. According to ushmm, The Law for the
Protection of the Hereditary Health of the German People requires all prospective marriage
A Picture of the Nuremberg Laws.
www.gedenkstaettesteinhof
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partners to obtain from the public health authorities a certificate of fitness to marry. Such
certificates are refused to those suffering from hereditary illnesses and contagious diseases and
those attempting to marry in violation of the Nuremberg Laws (The Nuremberg Laws).
Propaganda
Through propaganda, the Nazis were ensuring the
community knew their op inions as far as anti-Semitism went, and
showed it through art, music, theater, films, books, radio,
educational materials, and the press. According to USHMM,
Nazi films portrayed Jews as subhuman creatures infiltrating
Aryan society (Holocaust History).
Kristallnacht
Kristallnacht literally means Night ofCrystal, and is referred to as Night of Broken
Glass. From USHMM, The name refers to the wave of violent anti-Jewish pogroms which
took place on November 9 and 10, 1938, throughout Germany, annexed Austria, and in areas of
the Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia recently occupied by German troops (Holocaust History).
During these two nights, Germans destroyed Jewish homes, businesses, and Synagogues.
Furthermore, USHMM states, The rioters destroyed
267 synagogues throughout Germany, Austria, and the
Sudetenland. Many synagogues burned throughout the
night, in full view of the public and of local firefighters,
who had received orders to intervene only to prevent
flames from spreading to nearby buildings (Holocaust
Nazi propaganda portraying Jews aspoison. ivarfjeld.wordpress.com
A Jewish building burning during Krystalnacht.
Jewishvirtuallibrary.org
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History). Furthermore, PBC says, By the end of the rampage, gangs of Nazi storm troopers had
destroyed 7,000 Jewish businesseskilled 91 Jews and deported some 30,000 Jewish men to
concentration camps (PBC). Kristallnacht proved to Germany that the Nazis had complete
control, and could wipe out the Jews for good. On November 15th, Jewish children were barred
from attending school, and shortly afterwards the Nazis issued the Decree on Eliminating the
Jews from German Economic Life, which prohibited Jews from selling goods or services
anywhere, from engaging in crafts work, from serving as the managers of any firms, and from
being members of cooperatives. In addition, the Nazis determined that the Jews should be liable
for the damages caused during Kristallnacht.
Ghettos
Ghettos were areas in which Jews were rounded up
and kept during World War 2. The ghettos were usually
enclosed, and the Jews lived in terrible conditions. They
were separated from the rest of the non-Jewish population.
From USHMM, The Germans established at least 1,000
ghettos in German-occupied and annexed Poland and the
Soviet Union alone (Holocaust History).
Resistance
Also from USHMM, Ghetto residents frequently
engaged in so-called illegal activities, such as smuggling food,
medicine, weapons or intelligence across the ghetto walls, often
without the knowledge or approval of the Jewish councils
Inside the ghettos. ccwebsiteclass.net
Two brothers that escaped from a concentration
camp. collections.yadvashem.org
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(Holocaust History). This was necessary to keep the people living in the ghettos alive.
Wannsee ConferenceThe Final Solution
The Wannsee Conference took place on January 20, 1942. 15 High ranking Nazis and
German government met in Wannsee to discuss the Final Solution. The Final Solution was a
systematic way of completely wiping out the European Jews, which was authorized by Hitler in
1941. Before the conference, most people already knew about the plan to mass murder Jews.
From ushmm.org, during the course of the Final Solution, the Jews will be deployed under
appropriate supervision at a suitable form of labor deployment in the East. In large labor
columns, separated by gender, able-bodied Jews will
be brought to those regions to build roads, whereby a
large number will doubtlessly be lost through natural
reduction. Any final remnant that survives will
doubtless consist of the elements most capable of
resistance. They must be dealt with appropriately,
since, representing the fruit of natural selection, they
are to be regarded as the core of a new Jewish revival (Holocaust History).
Extermination Methods
The Nazis goals were to carry out the Final
Solution as effectively as possible. There were three
main methods of extermination used at the camps. One
method of annihilation was mass shootings. From
holocausteducation, The Jews were captured or
arrested, forced to dig their own graves or simply placed
At the Wannsee Conference. www.Ushmm.org
Awaiting death in the concentration camp.
Ushmm.org
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along large mass graves, and then shot so that they fell into the grave (Methods of Mass
Murder). The second method was the use of gassing trucks. It happened as follows: the Jews
were forced into a hermetically sealed truck, and then exhaust gas from the engine was led into
the truck. The Jews were thus suffocated. They first started using gassing trucks to avoid Nazis
being emotionally upset about shooting the victims. The third method was using gas chambers
with Zyklon B, which was the most effective way. The gas chambers could hold many, and it
was a more secretive way of murdering.
The Death Camps
There were six main death camps for exterminating Jews: Auschwitz-Birkenau, Belzec,
Chelmno, Majdanek, Sobibor, and Treblinka.
Auschwitz-Birkenau was the camp where the largest
amount of Jews were murdered. The use of Zyklon-B
was first brought to this camp. Sobibor was only open
for 21 months, and was only open to quickly
exterminate Jews. As soon as they arrived, they were
murdered. In Treblinka, they started to cover their
tracks by burning the bodies.
Liberation
From USHMM, As Allied troops moved across Europe in a series of offensives against
Nazi Germany, they began to encounter tens of thousands of concentration camp prisoners.
Many of these prisoners had survived forced marches into the interior of Germany from camps in
occupied Poland. These prisoners were suffering from starvation and disease (Holocaust
History). The Soviets had the first attempt to shut down a concentration camp. Because of the
Inside the camps. www.ushmm.org
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Soviets rapid advance, Nazis began hiding the evidence, burning the bodies, and devouring the
camp after most of the prisoners had already been killed. The Soviets liberated Auchwitz, but the
Nazis forced the prisoners to march, when then became
known as death marches. There were large amounts of
evidence left in Auchwitz. According to ushmm.org,
They discovered, for example, hundreds of thousands of
men's suits, more than 800,000 women's outfits, and more
than 14,000 pounds of human hair.
One can now understand how the Nazis came to carry out a mass murder.
Liberation. www.holocaust-lest-we-forget.com
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Works Cited
"Confronting Anti-Semitism."Anti-Semitism: The Longest Hatred. Web. 18 Apr.
2012.
"Holocaust History." Ghettos. Web. 21 Apr. 2012.
"Holocaust History." Kristallnacht: A Nationwide Pogrom, November 9-10, 1938.
Web. 20 Apr. 2012
"Holocaust History."Nazi Propaganda. Web. 20 Apr. 2012.
"Holocaust History."Liberation of Nazi Camps. Web. 22 Apr. 2012.
"Holocaust History." Wannsee Conference and the "Final Solution" Web. 22 Apr.
2012.
"Holocaust Timeline: The Rise of the Nazi Party." Florida Center for
Instructional Technology.
"Methods of Mass Murder." The Danish Center for Holocaust and Genocide
Studies. Web. 22 Apr. 2012.
"The Holocaust."Anti-Semitism. Web. 18 Apr. 2012.
"The Holocaust: A Learning Site for Students." The Nuremberg Race Laws. Web.
18 Apr. 2012.
"The Holocaust: A Tragic Legacy." ThinkQuest. Oracle Foundation. Web. 15
Apr. 2012.
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"The Holocaust: A Tragic Legacy." ThinkQuest. Oracle Foundation. Web. 17
Apr. 2012.
"The Nuremberg Laws."Nuremberg Laws: 1935. Web. 18 Apr. 2012.
PBS. PBS. Web. 21 Apr. 2012.