The changing role of women, ‘total war’, rationing and the effects of allied bombing

The changing role of women, ‘total war’, rationing and the effects of allied bombing.

1. The Nazis wanted women's roles to change. They tried to increase the birth rate (without success) and encourage more women to go out and work (also without much success). This was the opposite of what the Nazis had been portraying through propaganda in the 1930s: women now wanted to stay at home, not work. In 1943, the Nazis tried to force 3 million German women to work, but only 1 million did - which ended up being one of the reasons for the German war defeat.
2. "Total war" was what happened when it became clear to the German people that the country did not have a guaranteed triumph in the war. Every single aspect of the German economy was then put towards the war effort - this meant that there was no longer everyday things in Germany like sweet shops; magazines and professional sports. All shops that were open were there to help the war effort, with working hours being increased and more women working in factories.
3. Rationing began at the beginning of the war, and it affected everyday life for German civilians. Only food and clothes were rationed early on in 1939, and even then it was still easy to acquire them as Germany was winning the war at the time. But, by 1942, Germans were living off a lot less that British people. Rations became increasingly scarce, and included things such as bread, potatoes and vegetables. It eventually became almost impossible to buy new clothes or shoes.
4. German people still had hope and high spirits due to the Nazis pretending that they were winning the war through propaganda - the Allies wanted to end this. The Allies intensively bombed Germany's largest cities in May 1943, including Berlin, Cologne and Hamburg. Approximately 800,000 civilians were killed, and left many people fleeing to the countryside (village populations increased substantially), people sharing their homes, and opened German's eyes to see that they were losing the war. German support began to weaken, especially in villages.