The Annihilation of Tradition?

2021 ◽  
pp. 247-267
Author(s):  
Helen Roche
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Third Reich ◽  
Educational Institutions ◽  
Alma Mater ◽  
Religious Schools ◽  
Ancient Greek ◽  
National Socialist ◽  
The Third Reich ◽  
General Movement ◽  
Missionary School

When it came to founding new Napolas, the NPEA authorities often used the strategy of laying claim to educational institutions with venerable traditions, Nazifying and ‘Napolising’ them. This could include the appropriation of well-known humanistic boarding schools with a Protestant ethos such as Schulpforta (alma mater of Nietzsche, Ranke, and Fichte), or the Klosterschule in Ilfeld, which were both taken over as going concerns. However, the National Socialist regime’s deep hostility towards Catholic foundations also led to the forcible expropriation of former monastic schools such as the Ursuline convent school in Haselünne, or the Missionary School of the Society of the Divine Word (Steyler Orden) in St. Wendel, which were transformed into NPEA Emsland and NPEA Saarland respectively. Expropriation could also be used to punish oppositional non-religious schools such as the aristocratic Landschulheim in Neubeuern, Bavaria. Although most of these schools still retained the curriculum of a ‘humanistic Gymnasium’, teaching both Latin and ancient Greek, by the end of World War II, their existing traditions had been almost completely expunged. We can therefore see these forms of expropriation and Napolisation as part of a more general movement towards the de-Christianization of education during the Third Reich, with the NPEA in the vanguard. This chapter treats the schools at Schulpforta, Ilfeld, Haselünne, St. Wendel, and Neubeuern as case studies, concluding with a brief treatment of NPEA Weierhof am Donnersberg, a former Mennonite school which had collaborated with the Nazi authorities even prior to its transformation into a Napola.

Mobilizing on Germany’s Frontier

2020 ◽  
pp. 163-204
Author(s):  
Caroline Mezger
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Third Reich ◽  
Personal Accomplishment ◽  
Youth Leadership ◽  
Children And Youth ◽  
National Socialist ◽  
The Third Reich ◽  
German Children ◽  
Almost All ◽  
The Military

Chapter 4 investigates the World War II mobilization of the Western Banat’s ethnic German children and youth into National Socialist organizations. It explores the evolution of the region’s (now mandatory) Deutsche Jugend, showing how—through the coordinated efforts of the German minority school system, the local youth leadership, and the military—almost all children and youth deemed to be “German” officially joined the organization. Not all individuals forced into the Deutsche Jugend, however, saw its activities as an onerous burden. Rather, even decades later, some of its former members appreciated their engagement with the Deutsche Jugend as a key “nationalizing” experience and as an avenue of great personal accomplishment. Within the organization, being “German” once again officially entailed defending the Third Reich, a calculation which would bring thousands of youth voluntarily and coercively into the arms of the Wehrmacht and the Waffen-SS.

scholarly journals PLANS OF THE NAZI LEADERSHIP OF THE THIRD REICH FOR THE OCCUPATION OF THE USSR

2020 ◽  
pp. 61-67
Author(s):  
Grigoriy Yu. Volkov
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Third Reich ◽  
National Socialist ◽  
Military Leaders ◽  
Personal Traits ◽  
The Third ◽  
Thinking Process ◽  
The Third Reich ◽  
German Reich

The victory over the Axis powers had virtually preserved Russia in world history. It was a great celebration not only of the armed forces, but also of ideas. The article widely uses Soviet and modern publications, by both Russian and foreign scientists, dedicated to the East Front of World War II. The criminal essence of Adolf Hitler’s personality, his personal traits, way of thinking is shown, the analysis of his statements, offi cial speeches, private conversations, «table speeches», «Mein Kampf» is carried out. It also reconstructs the thinking process of other Nazi civil and military leaders who acted together with their Führer in pursuit of the common goal. The article for the fi rst time, taking into account the logic of thinking of the leadership of the third Reich, traces literally by years that the war against the USSR was conceived as a total genocide and carefully worked out in all directions. The author concludes that the bloody and inhuman logic of the leadership of the German Reich, big entrepreneurs and bankers, members of the National Socialist German Workers’ Party and the Schutzstaffel, generals and soldiers of the Wehrmacht, and a virtual legion of various offi cials clearly shows that they were all united in their desire to «stop Russian history».

scholarly journals Die nationalsozialistischen Propagandatexte in Bezug auf den Distrikt Lublin 1939–1944

2019 ◽  
Vol 144 ◽  
pp. 51-63
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Wójcik
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Statistical Analysis ◽  
Scientific Research ◽  
Third Reich ◽  
World War ◽  
National Socialist ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Third Reich

Der Artikel soll einen kurzen Überblick über die Entstehung und Verbreitung der Propagandatexte im Distrikt Lublin geben. Das Textkorpus besteht aus den Texten über den Distrikt Lublin mit der damals größten Anzahl der verlegten Exemplare. Die damals von deutschen Journalisten, Archivaren, Historikern und Volkskundlern verfassten Texte waren vor allem als Propagandamittel für den Gebrauch der im Distrikt Lublin eingesetzten Deutschen, die über den ganzen Distrikt verstreut waren, gedacht. Zahlreiche Autoren haben sowohl gegenwärtige als auch geschichtliche Themenbereiche ins Auge gefasst. Mit Rücksicht auf den geplanten Weitergang des sog. Nationalsozialistischen Aufbaus wurden verschiedene Themenbereiche aufgeworfen. Das Ziel, der von den NS-Forschern „produzierten“ Texte über den Distrikt Lublin war vor allem die Festigung des deutschen Volkstums auf den besetzten Gebieten.National Socialist propaganda texts in relation to the Lublin district 1939–1944Propaganda texts published in the period of World War II by German journalists, historians and cultural analysts first of all consist of propaganda materials dedicated to Germans and Volksdeutsche scattered around the entire district. The corpus consists of texts about the Lublin district with the largest number of copies published at the time. The propaganda texts created in those times also aroused interest in the problems of Germans and Volksdeutsche from the General Governorate in the Third Reich. In relation to the National Socialist plan of “Aufbauarbeit” the texts addressed numerous topics which required scientific research of the district’s area and a statistical analysis. The aim of these texts “produced” by National Socialist researchers concerning the Lublin district was primarily to strengthen Germanness in the occupied areas.

National Socialism and Consumption

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Jonathan Wiesen
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
National Socialism ◽  
Western Europe ◽  
Third Reich ◽  
The United States ◽  
Consumer Society ◽  
National Socialist ◽  
Benito Mussolini ◽  
The Great Depression ◽  
The Third Reich

Many important works in the field of consumer studies focus on the United States and post-World War II Western Europe, with the former often cast as the paradigmatic example of consumer society. Notwithstanding the disruptions of the Great Depression and less-severe business cycles, these societies offer plentiful images of bustling stores, widening economic opportunities, and the emergence of politicized citizen-consumers. The unique violence of the movements – whether manifested in the militant machismo of Benito Mussolini or the genocidal thrust of National Socialism – sets fascism apart from other twentieth-century developments. This article addresses some of the questions that emerge from a consideration of fascism and consumption, focusing in particular on National Socialist Germany, where consumption served a uniquely harsh end. It explores how Nazism envisioned the function of buying, selling, and consuming; the extent to which consumption was shaped by the state's ideological priorities; Nazi visions of consumption; realities of consumption and marketing in the Third Reich; and the debate on consumption and consent.

Inklusion und Exklusion: Rentenpolitik im rassistischen NS-Wohlfahrtsstaat

2019 ◽  
Vol 68 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 93-105
Author(s):  
Ulrike Haerendel
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Pension System ◽  
Third Reich ◽  
Pension Policy ◽  
Pension Insurance ◽  
National Socialist ◽  
Retirement System ◽  
The Third Reich ◽  
The Government ◽  
Pension Benefits

Zusammenfassung Die Rentenpolitik im NS-Staat begnügte sich mit kleinen Änderungen gegenüber dem eingeschlagenen Pfad, die aber häufig mit propagandistischer Aufwertung verkauft wurden. Während Renten mindestens bis zum Krieg auf sehr niedriges Niveau sanken, gab es gewisse Leistungsausweitungen, die den Rentenbezug erleichterten und mehr Menschen ins System inkludierten, so auch Nicht-Erwerbstätige. Die rassistische Ausgrenzung von „Staatsfeinden“, Juden, Sinti und Roma und anderen Unerwünschten lief von Anfang an parallel. Sie wurde nicht nur durch Normen und Maßnahmen des Regimes vorangebracht, sondern auch von den Rentenversicherungsträgern selbst gefordert und umgesetzt. Mit Beginn der Deportationen wurden Renten ausgesetzt und dann ganz entzogen, während gleichzeitig Leistungsverbesserungen die Heimatfront stabilisieren sollten. Abstract Inclusion and Exclusion: The Old Age Pension System in the Racist Welfare State 1933 – 1945 During the Third Reich, pension policy deviated very little from the previous path, although Nazi-propaganda stated major improvements. Whereas pensions dropped to a very low level until World War II, there were expansions of benefits, too. By making it easier to qualify for a pension, including especially non-workers, the coverage of the retirement system increased. However, the discrimination of Jews and other so called outlaws took place from the very beginning in the National Socialist society. Not only the judicial system and other instruments of the government were excluding Jews from the social security system, but also the administration of the pension insurance. With the beginning of the Shoah pension benefits to Jews have been put on hold and withdrawn later on. At the same time improvements of benefits for the “Germans at home” were meant to stabilize the war society.

The Language of Ideology: Lingual Manipulation of Readers in German Literature of the Third Reich

2005 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven Michael Press
Keyword(s):  
German Literature ◽  
Third Reich ◽  
National Socialist ◽  
Critical Studies ◽  
The Third ◽  
Historical Argument ◽  
Underlying Basis ◽  
The Third Reich ◽  
Post War ◽  
German People

In recognizing more than just hyperbole in their critical studies of National Socialist language, post-war philologists Viktor Klemperer (1946) and Eugen Seidel (1961) credit persuasive words and syntax with the expansion of Hitler's ideology among the German people. This popular explanation is being revisited by contemporary philologists, however, as new historical argument holds the functioning of the Third Reich to be anything but monolithic. An emerging scholarly consensus on the presence of more chaos than coherence in Nazi discourse suggests a new imperative for research. After reviewing the foundational works of Mein Kampf (1925) and Myth of the Twentieth Century (1930), the author confirms Klemperer and Seidel’s claim for linguistic manipulation in the rise of the National Socialist Party. Most importantly, this article provides a detailed explanation of how party leaders employed rhetorical language to promote fascist ideology without an underlying basis of logical argumentation.

A war hero or a Hitler soldier?

2019 ◽  
pp. 50-57
Author(s):  
Pavel Gotovetsky
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
World War Ii ◽  
Interwar Period ◽  
Military Service ◽  
Third Reich ◽  
National Committee ◽  
World War ◽  
The Third ◽  
The World ◽  
The Third Reich

The article is devoted to the biography of General Pavlo Shandruk, an Ukrainian officer who served as a Polish contract officer in the interwar period and at the beginning of the World War II, and in 1945 became the organizer and commander of the Ukrainian National Army fighting alongside the Third Reich in the last months of the war. The author focuses on the symbolic event of 1961, which was the decoration of General Shandruk with the highest Polish (émigré) military decoration – the Virtuti Militari order, for his heroic military service in 1939. By describing the controversy and emotions among Poles and Ukrainians, which accompanied the award of the former Hitler's soldier, the author tries to answer the question of how the General Shandruk’s activities should be assessed in the perspective of the uneasy Twentieth-Century Polish-Ukrainian relations. Keywords: Pavlo Shandruk, Władysław Anders, Virtuti Militari, Ukrainian National Army, Ukrainian National Committee, contract officer.

“Hoe ik tot de politieke theologie kwam”. Pater Brauns kijkt terug op de beweegredenen voor zijn publieke leven

2009 ◽  
Vol 68 (1) ◽  
pp. 78-93
Author(s):  
Luc Vandeweyer
Keyword(s):  
Third Reich ◽  
Nineteen Sixties ◽  
Right Wing ◽  
Extreme Right ◽  
National Socialist ◽  
Political Activities ◽  
Holy Trinity ◽  
Short Period ◽  
The Third Reich ◽  
Voor Zijn

Pater-jezuïet Marcel Brauns (1913-1995) heeft tijdens een korte periode in de jaren zestig een vrij belangrijke rol gespeeld in de herleving van het Vlaams-nationalisme op politiek vlak. Zijn religieuze staat hielp vele katholieke gelovigen een keuze voor de partij Volksunie legitimeren. Zijn keuze voor deze politieke activiteiten werd gemotiveerd door zijn denkbeelden die hij zijn “politieke theologie” noemde. In deze brontekst legt hij uit hoe zijn persoonlijke opvatting van de werkzaamheid van de goddelijke Drievuldigheid in de geschiedenis bepalend was voor zijn handelen. In zijn ogen was het anti-belgicisme van de Vlaams-nationalisten een verwezenlijking van de wil van God. Daarbij legitimeerde hij ook het moorddadige optreden van Vlaamse, nationaal-socialistische collaborateurs in dienst van het Derde Rijk tijdens de oorlog 1940-1945. Omwille van die uiterst-rechtse opstelling werd hij al snel uit de Volksunie geweerd. Hij zette zijn leven verder als spilfiguur van een kleine drukkingsgroep op de extreme rechtervleugel van het Vlaams-nationalisme.________"Hoe ik tot de politieke theologie kwam". Father Brauns looks back at the motivation for his public lifeDuring a short period in the nineteen-sixties the Jesuit Father Marcel Brauns (1913-1995) played a fairly important role in the revival of Flemish nationalism in the political arena. The fact that he was a religious helped many Catholic faithful to legitimise their vote for the party of the Flemish People’s Union. His involvement in these political activities was motivated by the concepts that he described as his political theology. In this source text he explained how his personal interpretation of the activity of the Holy Trinity in history had determined his actions. According to him the anti-Belgian attitude of the Flemish-Nationalists was a fulfilment of the will of God. At the same time he also legitimised the murderous actions of Flemish national socialist collaborators in the service of the Third Reich during the war 1940-1945. Because of that extreme-right position he was soon to be barred from the People’s Union. He carried on as a key figure of a small lobby on the extreme right wing of Flemish nationalism.

Il rumore delle onde

2021 ◽  
Vol 101 (1) ◽  
pp. 58-86
Author(s):  
Camilla Tenaglia
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Mass Media ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Third Reich ◽  
Neutral Position ◽  
Holy See ◽  
Radio Broadcasting ◽  
German Speaking ◽  
The Third Reich

Abstract This essay addresses the relations between Pius XII and Germany at the beginning of his pontificate through the role of Vatican Media, especially Vatican Radio. During the interwar period, the Vatican media system (media ensemble) underwent major transformations, including the creation of a radio broadcasting station in 1931. Pacelli was one of the main agents of these improvements: as Secretary of State supporting Guglielmo Marconi’s project, as Pope through his extensive use of the mass media at his disposal, from radio to cinema. At the end of the 30s the difficult diplomatic relations between the Holy See and the Third Reich also had an impact on mass media, as shown by the election of Pacelli in March 1939. The role of Vatican Radio in Vatican diplomacy towards Nazi Germany was already clear during the events surrounding the Anschluss in 1938 and it became a tool for unofficial communication to convey more explicit stances on the regime during World War II. The same strategy was employed during the Option in Südtirol in 1939, when Catholics were able to deliver anti-Nazi propaganda thanks in part to radio in the attempt to avoid the voluntary resettlement of German-speaking Italian citizens from the area. The Holy See maintained a neutral position throughout the events, but at the same time Vatican Radio broadcast programmes in German about the condition of the Catholic Church under the Nazi regime. These broadcasts supported the efforts especially of the Archbishop of Trento Celestino Endrici and his clergy, who opposed the resettlement. Once again Vatican Radio proved a crucial tool for conveying unofficial communications while maintaining the neutral stance typical of the Holy See‘s foreign policy.

Hitler, for Example: Registers of National Socialist Exemplarity in Contemporary Germany

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-29
Author(s):  
Nitzan Shoshan
Keyword(s):  
National Socialism ◽  
Third Reich ◽  
Moral Values ◽  
Moral Life ◽  
Far Right ◽  
National Socialist ◽  
Moral Exemplars ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Holocaust ◽  
The Third Reich

Abstract This article examines whether and how the figure of Adolf Hitler in particular, and National Socialism more generally, operate as moral exemplars in today’s Germany. In conversation with similar studies about Mosely in England, Franco in Spain, and Mussolini in Italy, it seeks to advance our comparative understanding of neofascism in Europe and beyond. In Germany, legal and discursive constraints limit what can be said about the Third Reich period, while even far-right nationalists often condemn Hitler, for either the Holocaust or his military failure. Here I revise the concept of moral exemplarity as elaborated by Caroline Humphry to argue that Hitler and National Socialism do nevertheless work as contemporary exemplars, in at least three fashions: negativity, substitution, and extension. First, they stand as the most extreme markers of negative exemplarity for broad publics that understand them as illustrations of absolute moral depravity. Second, while Hitler himself is widely unpopular, Führer-substitutes such as Rudolf Hess provide alternative figures that German nationalists admire and seek to emulate. Finally, by extension to the realm of the ordinary, National Socialism introduces a cast of exemplars in the figures of loving grandfathers or anonymous fallen soldiers. The moral values for which they stand, I show, appear to be particularly significant for young nationalists. An extended, more open-ended notion of exemplarity, I conclude, can offer important insights about the lingering afterlife of fascist figures in the moral life of European nationalists today.

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