History

A few members wondered in the You Know What Really Grinds My Gears topic if we Germans learn about Hitler and the World War II. I didn’t want to get off-topic there and so I’m creating this one to answer the question and because I think that it would be neat to talk about history. Maybe we learn something new because something hasn’t been part of the curriculum.

Without further ado, here’s what we learned about WWII, straight from my History folder from the tenth grade:

Hitler’s way into the Second World War

Breach of the Treaty of Versailles: 1933: Hitler’s accession to power and withdrawal from the League of Nations
1935: general conscription
1936: occupancy of the Rhineland
1937/38: annexation of Austria, Japan becomes an ally
1938: Munich Agreement
1939: occupancy of Czechia

Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact

Hitlers’s ideology: lebensraum of the Germans is in the east
Slavs = inferior
socialism/communism = major enemy

Soviet-Russia/Stalin: structure of the socialism/communism
no allies

Hitler and Stalin were enemies

August 23rd, 1939: non-agression pact with additional protocol:
If Poland should be attacked by Germans, the Russian Troops march in until they reach the river Vistula and occupy Poland on their part. Thereby, Poland has been divided under Germany and Soviet-Russia’s leadership.

Hitler wanted to take over Poland by force but he also wanted to avoid to get between two fronts, the English & French as well as the Soviet Union. Therefore, Hitler and Stalin signed the German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact. In the following week, Germans marched in to Poland. Hitler also wanted to make a conquest of the Soviet Union, which Stalin knew. That’s why he didn’t do anything until Hitler has marched in.

World War II

June 21st, 1940: Hitler dictated ceasefire condition to France

After he defeated France, Hitler let the railroad car, in which Germany had to sign the ceasefire agreement after the defeat in WWI, to re-establish. Herein the defeat of France has been sealed and thus the “Disgrace from Versailles” has been amended.

Further Progression of The War

On June 22nd, 1941 began the Operation “Barbarossa”. German Troops marched into the Soviet Union. Several resistance groups had warned Stalin but he didn’t believe them. Therefore he and the Red Army, which was in process of updating, were surprised when the German Troops attacked. The troops marched farther and farther into the Soviet Union until they reached Moscow at the end of 1941. But they forgot to think about the Russian winter and they had a lack of supplies and the Red Army, which has finished the aforementioned update, put up resistance.
In the following year, in winter 1942/43 General Paulus’s army occupied Stalingrad. But they were surrounded and the General surrendered. 93000 of 250000 men had been imprisoned (only 6000 survived). Hitler banned General Paulus and this battle became the symbol of Germany’s defeat.
On December, 1941, the USA came into war after the Japanese bombarded Pearl Harbor.
In January 1942, Germany had 29 enemies. The German-Italian Troops surrendered ton the British and Americans in Northern Africa in May 1943. On June 6th, 1944 the Western Allies landed in the Normandy and liberated France. The Soviets marched to the West and Berlin was the last fortress of the Germans. On May 7th/9th, 1945 the war ended after Hitler married Eva Braun and committed suicide.

The German Resistance

Communism/Social Democrats/Unions
Tools: pamphlets for enlightenment
espionage
sabotage in armament industries

White Rose
Geschwister Scholl at the university in Munich
Tools: pamphlets for enlightenment
Result: imprisonment/execution

Middle Class/Nobles/Officers
“Kreisau Circle”
Tool: discussions
Result: non

July 20th, 1944
C. Stauffenberg
Tools: assassination and coup attempt
Results: failure, imprisonment, execution

Occupation Policy in WWII

Displacement
Especially the Poles from Zawiercie had been displaced – Germans settled in

Enslavement
Civilians and prisoners of war became workers in the German Reich, for example in the armament industries or in the agriculture

Annihilation
Especially the Jews and the gypsies

Everyday Life In The War

Economy did not collapse during the war because almost all of Europe had been economically pillaged (for example oil in Rumania, provisions from Norway, clothes from France). Towards the population, a war-weariness had been avoided through the means of movies.

That’s everything I could find in my folders. There was more in my History book but I had to give it back after I graduated from that school. I don’t know how it is in other countries but here we have the choice whether we buy the books or borrow them from school and, well, it was the latter case with my Histoy book.

WON: Thank you so much for posting a topic like this. I absoultely love history, and one of my career choices is to be a history teacher. One of my favorite historical subjects was actually World War II. The most intesting fact about the War was the way it all started. Right after the end of WWI, the Treaty of Versailles was drafted. The ironic thing is that even though Germany was not the spark of WWI, they were forced to sign a war-guilt clause. To make things worse, it devestated Germany (the treaty) economically, politically, and socially. Hitler tried to find ways to combat the harsh Treaty of Versailles. And when you’re a desperate nation, you’ll do anything to get back on your feet agin.

Thank you for taking the time to posting this WoN! I forgot which member inquired about this, but the information you provided is fantastic!

I love history, and I like to see how it’s presented in other countries, and states even.

WWII has a special place in my heart, having a Grandfather fight in the Pacific theatre and a Great-Grandfather fight in the European theatre.

I am mostly German of heritage. We had family in Germany and the United States during the war. Afterwards, in the 1950s, some family went back to the Mother Country, to find if our family was still in their homes. We couldn’t find them. They either died or were displaced.

Anyway, as I have made it quite clear on several occasions, I LOVE history. Espcecially American History. And more specifically, The American Revolution & writing Constitution/Founding.

Cool! In a way history fascinates me. I am an 8th german. So that answers if we ever learn about WWii.

You’re all welcome and I’m happy that you all appreciate this

Any discussions or debates you all wish to talk about, feel free to.

You should check out this book. It was the first book I read about World War II, and I’ve been a fan of this series ever since I was a kid in 6th grade (I wrote about it in the ‘Books’ thread). Describes the major events, but also tells the ‘human side’ of the conflict (what it was like to live in the trenches, what food they ate, how kids survived during the war) in a very entertaining and irreverent way.

I think I’ve read something like that before TDIT. Except instead of talking about the world war, i was reading about gladiators.

Would it happen to be ‘The Rotten Romans’ or its sequel, ‘The Ruthless Romans’, TSS? I remember reading the former, and it was quite good.

Yeah, I think i read something like that!

I got myself into dinosaurs today because at my work this week, it’s dinosaur week. I’m gonna teach kids about dinos as well as do a lot of fun things dinosaur related. It’s gonna be a blast.

That is so great! Where history meets science. Have fun.

One thing I loved so much about visiting New York, was all the history. Being from California, I’m not use to being in a 400 year old city!

Just look at Broadway. We all know of it today as the theatre district of NYC. However, it use to be an Indian trail. Ane General Washington marched his troupes out of the city on Broadway, after the British took the city.

I saw the site of the Triangle Shirtwaste Factory Fire, Columbia University (Where FDR & Alexander Hamilton among others graudated) and the gravesite of Alexander Hamilton, and where John Lennon was murdered.

I wish I could of seen even more, I just scratched the surface.

Oh how I wish I can go to New York

Don’t worry, you will get there someday! Anything in peticular you want to see?

If I remember correctly, which I probably don’t, are you the member thinking of becoming a History Teacher?

I’ve been told so many times that I should become a history teacher, due to my enthusiasm and knowledge of the subject. But I can’t deal with kids or teenagers!

If there was one thing I would love to see in new york more than anything in the world, it’s Broadway, or a broadway play.

And I am one of two members that wanted to be a history teacher. I not only love history, but I’m great with young people too.

I wish I could of seen a play on Broadway. I wanted to see The Lion King or The Book of Mormon, but it never worked out.

And that’s great! History is the greatest thing, and I love it when people want to teach it. What’s your favorite period in history?

When I was there, I saw Shrek on Broadway. It was…interesting. To say this nicely, I would have rather seen Beauty and the Beast on Broadway.

EJE: Oh I loved a lot of periods in history. I loved studying the French Monarchy with the French Absolute Monarchs, I loved the scientific revolution and enlightenment, the Revolutions, the Wars (WWI, WWII, etc), but my favorite (and I think I have to blame Sarah Vowell for this) is the Civil War in America.

Well, my favorite periods are probably the World Wars and the Weimar Republic, at least from those we talked about in History class. But I would actually like to learn more of the American history as we only briefly scratched the surface in class.

Do you think you’ll learn more about american history as time passes? Like will you take a class on it?