1. Introduction
Adolf Hitler was appointed chancellor of Germany on January 30, 1933, bringing an end to German democracy. Guided by racist and authoritarian ideas, the Nazis abolished basic freedoms(3)The Third Reich quickly became a police state, where individuals were subject to arbitrary arrest and imprisonment. By mid-July 1933, the Nazi party was the only political party permitted in Germany
German resistance to Nazism (“Widerstand”) was the opposition by individuals and groups in Germany to the National Socialist regime between 1933 and 1945. (2) Some people engaged in active plans to remove Hitler from power and overthrow his regime. The Resistance members were motivated by factors such as: the mistreatment of Jews, harassment of …show more content…
2. Pre-war resistance
All political parties were banned in 1933(4). The KPD & SPD undertook extensive underground resistance after its suppression.(3)
The SPD and the KPD managed to maintain underground networks, although the legacy of pre-1933 conflicts between the two parties meant that they were unable to co-operate. The Gestapo frequently infiltrated these networks, and the rate of arrests and executions of SPD and KPD activists was high, but the networks continued to recruit new members.(2)
3. Groups in Germany that resisted the Nazi's 3.1 Social Democrats (SPD)
In 1933 the SPD members voted against the Enabling Act (law that gave Hitler unlimited power), & they were forced to disband, their leader fled into exile.(4) They established a sophisticated underground organisation to oppose Nazi regime. A paramilitary wing of the Social Democratic Party, called the Reichsbanner, sabotaged railway lines and acted as …show more content…
(2) Active members were drawn from the Prussian aristocracy. Most army officers, felt bound by the personal oath of loyalty they had taken to Hitler in 1934.
During late 1943 and early 1944 there were a series of attempts to get one of the military conspirators near enough to Hitler for long enough to kill him with a bomb or a revolver. Himmler and the Gestapo were increasingly suspicious of plots against Hitler, and specifically suspected the officers of the General Staff. All these attempts therefore failed, sometimes by a matter of minutes. In January & February 1944 when first Moltke and then Canaris were arrested, the Gestapo was closing in on the conspirators.
By the end of 1943 Himmler knew that most Germans no longer believed that war could be won and that many, perhaps a majority, had lost faith in Hitler. Himmler apparently did nothing to track down the resistance network. Military officers attempted to assassinate Hitler but he survived the blast. Most were executed at Berlin's Ploetzensee (1) prison, a men's prison in Berlin. My great-grandfather was also held there in 1944. About half of those executed at Ploetzensee, were Germans, most of whom were sentenced to death for acts of resistance against the Nazi regime. The last execution was carried out on 20 April 1945. Around 5,000 people who were suspected of being part of the plot to
Adolf Hitler was appointed chancellor of Germany on January 30, 1933, bringing an end to German democracy. Guided by racist and authoritarian ideas, the Nazis abolished basic freedoms(3)The Third Reich quickly became a police state, where individuals were subject to arbitrary arrest and imprisonment. By mid-July 1933, the Nazi party was the only political party permitted in Germany
German resistance to Nazism (“Widerstand”) was the opposition by individuals and groups in Germany to the National Socialist regime between 1933 and 1945. (2) Some people engaged in active plans to remove Hitler from power and overthrow his regime. The Resistance members were motivated by factors such as: the mistreatment of Jews, harassment of …show more content…
2. Pre-war resistance
All political parties were banned in 1933(4). The KPD & SPD undertook extensive underground resistance after its suppression.(3)
The SPD and the KPD managed to maintain underground networks, although the legacy of pre-1933 conflicts between the two parties meant that they were unable to co-operate. The Gestapo frequently infiltrated these networks, and the rate of arrests and executions of SPD and KPD activists was high, but the networks continued to recruit new members.(2)
3. Groups in Germany that resisted the Nazi's 3.1 Social Democrats (SPD)
In 1933 the SPD members voted against the Enabling Act (law that gave Hitler unlimited power), & they were forced to disband, their leader fled into exile.(4) They established a sophisticated underground organisation to oppose Nazi regime. A paramilitary wing of the Social Democratic Party, called the Reichsbanner, sabotaged railway lines and acted as …show more content…
(2) Active members were drawn from the Prussian aristocracy. Most army officers, felt bound by the personal oath of loyalty they had taken to Hitler in 1934.
During late 1943 and early 1944 there were a series of attempts to get one of the military conspirators near enough to Hitler for long enough to kill him with a bomb or a revolver. Himmler and the Gestapo were increasingly suspicious of plots against Hitler, and specifically suspected the officers of the General Staff. All these attempts therefore failed, sometimes by a matter of minutes. In January & February 1944 when first Moltke and then Canaris were arrested, the Gestapo was closing in on the conspirators.
By the end of 1943 Himmler knew that most Germans no longer believed that war could be won and that many, perhaps a majority, had lost faith in Hitler. Himmler apparently did nothing to track down the resistance network. Military officers attempted to assassinate Hitler but he survived the blast. Most were executed at Berlin's Ploetzensee (1) prison, a men's prison in Berlin. My great-grandfather was also held there in 1944. About half of those executed at Ploetzensee, were Germans, most of whom were sentenced to death for acts of resistance against the Nazi regime. The last execution was carried out on 20 April 1945. Around 5,000 people who were suspected of being part of the plot to