Nazi policies towards women, the young, the Churches and the Jews

Nazi policies towards women, the young, the Churches and the Jews.

1. Nazis believed the a woman's role was staying at home and raising a family - they didn't want them to have too much freedom. Women existed to provide children. The Nazi idea that it was an honour to produce large families for Germany was spread by the League of German Maidens (read below) - Nazis even gave awards to women for doing this. Subjects like cookery were taught to girls at school. It was also stressed that they should choose "Aryan" husbands. The Nazis banned women from becoming lawyers in 1936 and did their best to stop them following other professions. The shortage of workers after 1937 meant that many women had to go back to work, though. Many Nazi men did not like this.
2. Hitler knew that loyalty from young people was crucial in order for the Nazis to remain strong. Boys aged 14 and above were recruited for the Hitler Youth, which was made compulsory in 1939. Girls aged 14 upwards joined the League of German Maidens. Boys would partake in lots of physical exercises and wore military-style uniforms, while girls were mainly trained for domestic skills like sewing. Boys were being prepared to be soldiers, the girls to be wives and mothers.
3. The Nazis saw the Church as a threat, many of them against Christianity - with its teachings of peace seen as incompatible with Nazi ideas. In 1933 Hitler signed an agreement with the Catholic Church - each side promised not to interfere with each other. Although, Nazis did still try to curb the Church's influence, and there were some Catholic protests against Nazi policies. Hitler tried to unite all of the different protestant churches into one Reich Church; Nazi Bishop Ludwig Müller was placed at its head. Some church members split off in protest at this state interference, forming the Confessing Church. Many clergy who stood up to the Nazi regime were sent to concentration camps.



Members of the League of German Maidens

4. Nazis believed that "Aryans" (white northern Europeans) were the master race and other ethnicities such as Jews, Romani or Russian people, were inferior. The Nazis blamed Jewish people for Germany's problems. Schools taught anti-Semitic values in school, and that World War 1 was lost because of the Jews (and communists). In universities, students burned anti-Nazi and Jewish books, and Jewish teachers were sacked. In 1935, the Nazis passed the Nuremberg Laws, effectively stopping Jews being German citizens; marriage was banned between Jews and non-Jews, and sexual relationships were banned between Jews and non-Jews